In Vingo Park two new stands have been installed, which provide information to all visitors according to their individual needs. These are the first public space maps and billboards made according to the principles of universal design. By 2030, all information stands in parks and squares in the city of Vilnius will be installed according to this standard.
Attention to all residents
"Universal design means, first of all, attention to every resident and a city that is equally accessible to everyone. In this case, we are talking about a stand and a map created on the principles of universal design, where information is equally accessible to both tall and short, seated, sighted and blind," said Vilnius Vice Mayor Tomas Gulbinas.
The company "Vilniaus Planas" installed an information stand and a tactile map in Vingios Park. They were created in cooperation with the Lithuanian Union of the Visually Impaired and the Blind and other organizations of people with disabilities, the Lithuanian Blind Library. The map was produced by the company "Verslo ir navailijs vystymas grupė", which has won the public procurement procedures, and which also employs visually impaired employees.
“As these are the first elements of the wayfinding system, we asked various communities to test them and provide feedback. According to them, we improved the design of the stands and the map and learned by ourselves", he said while inspecting the map to the representatives of the municipality Vilnius city municipalities Rūta Matonienė, chief advisor of the Cityscape Department.
Will install more
The map contains a schematic diagram of the territory of Vingis Park with the locations of unique, important, attractions and other important information - elements such as Neris, forest and meadows, beach, paths and streets in Vingis Park and other elements are tangibly represented. Textual information is also provided in Braille.
Stands of universal design will soon appear in other parks and squares of the capital.
The essence of universal design - publicly used products must be suitable for everyone - children, seniors, residents with special needs. One product should work for everyone, so there is no need to create products separately for each group. For example, stairs are abandoned and walkways are designed that can be used by people with and without wheelchairs, wash basins that both adults and children can reach, etc.
The principles of universal design include the adaptation of products to people with special needs, the ability to adapt to individual needs (e.g. adjustable height). Universally designed products must be intuitive and easy to use, and information about them must be clear and presented in a variety of formats, including Braille and audio. The environment and products can also be used by people with lower physical strength. These principles are followed in the Scandinavian countries, especially in Sweden, JAV and in other countries.
