Disability, Accessibility and Alternative Format Symbols
I’ve recently been looking for a standard set of icons to represent materials available in alternate formats. I didn’t find much, here are a couple that I came across:
- Sense, a UK Deafblind Charity has a set of symbols that they use on their site.
- The Graphics Artists Guild has created a set of twelve disability access symbols that are available to anyone to indicate the availability of accessible services. The symbols are available for download in TIFF format. If you do a search for “disability access symbols”, you’ll primarily get a bunch of lists of these icons.
Assuming that there must be more than these two resources, I started exploring disability iconography in general. A while back, Scott from Rolling Rains was was asked, “Is there an international standard that is used in the iconography depicting people with disabilities?” Scott replied:
Unfortunately, the answer is, ‘No.’
It may be arguable that the standard person in the wheelchair symbol is international in scope, but even if it is there are many good arguments that it is not a good representation of disabilities in general.
The need for better accessibility symbols is definitively laid out in a Symbolizing Accessibility article from Joe Clark wherein he critiques some of the current symbols and provides some suggestions on what is needed. In addition, Joe worked with Melanie Goux to develop an improved symbol for audio description and wrote about the process.
Is there anything better out there… anywhere? If so, please leave a note in the comments. If not, are there any ambitious graphic designers out there?
Further Reading:
- Thoughts on the International Access Symbol “Yeah, even though I’m a chair user, I have a problem with the access symbol. It disenfranchises many of my friends who live with disabilities but who do not use chairs.”
- Discussion of the Wheelchair symbol from the Accessify forums “I’d be interested to know what other’s feelings are on this and open to suggestions of an alternative symbol that would deliver the same message?” (regarding the wheelchair icon)
For more information on alternate formats, see
User-Friendly Materials and Alternate Formats from the National Center for the Dissemination of Disability Research.
Stickers to glue onto sidewalks:
Once glued on, these bright red stickers would warn users of problems before they get to them, with enough advance warning to get off the sidewalk ahead of the problem. They would also have the Mayor’s phone number.
1. No curb cut.
2. Poor curb cut.
3. Dodge the hole ahead.
4. Impassable hole ahead.
5. Obstruction above sidewalk.
6. Sidewalk ends.
After pealing the back off the sticker, the epoxy glue would make it a rather permanent fixture of the sidewalk. A lot of folks would get mad at these stickers appearing all around town. The powers that be might call this “graffiti” and it might be seen as civil disobedience. But this would get a lot of attention. I am sure many people know of a place where they would like to put a sticker, and this same place would likely be exactly where someone else would not want a sticker. The more **** it stirs up the better!
Perhaps instead of words, symbols could be used. I have been trying to find a company on the Internet that could make the stickers, but I have not found one yet.