Guide Dogs supports calls for changes to Aylesbury town centre to make it safe for blind and partially-sighted people

Guide Dogs supports calls for changes to Aylesbury town centre to make it safe for blind and partially-sighted people

Guide Dogs is joining local visual impairment charity BucksVision in calling on Buckinghamshire County Council to make changes around Beorg Bridge in Aylesbury town centre, which it says is “very dangerous” for blind and partially-sighted people.

After meeting council officers in July to set out its concerns, Guide Dogs is still waiting to hear if the council will agree to change certain parts of the scheme – including the approach to Beorg Bridge from the bus station, the crossing from the train station to the bus station and the Beorg Bridge shared facility for pedestrians and cyclists – so that the area is usable for all pedestrians.

Those issues, and more, have been highlighted to the council over the last two years by Guide Dogs and BucksVision, in the hope that the scheme would be built as a model of good practice in inclusive design – particularly as Aylesbury is a Cycling Town, developed with government funding.

Helen Aluko-olokun, Guide Dogs’ Access Policy Officer, said: “It is very disappointing that the advice we have given has been largely ignored. We support schemes that make town centres user-friendly, but as a result of this development Aylesbury town centre has become a frightening area for residents and visitors with sight loss.”

Local resident Tony Hawkins, who is a guide dog owner, said: "The most precious thing to a blind person like myself is their independence. This has been taken away by the introduction of a shared surface around the bus and railway stations. The audible signals at crossing points around Aylesbury have also been removed. Aylesbury is fast becoming a most unsafe place for pedestrians – disabled or not.''

Chief Executive Officer of BucksVision, Kiera Bentley, said: "We are extremely disappointed at BucksVision that advice and recommendations given during the planning process were not acted on. The town centre is fast becoming a ‘no-go’ area for visually-impaired people. We want our town to be accessible to all; it is not too late to sort it out."

The issues
The approach to Beorg Bridge from the bus station is now a shared surface – with nothing to indicate where the pavement ends and the road starts. Guide Dogs is supported by 28 national disability organisations in calling for a stop to such developments. The absence of a kerb, or other delineator which has been proven to be effective, makes navigation and orientation impossible for blind and partially-sighted people.

The crossing from the train station to the bus station is unusable by blind and partially-sighted people, and likely to be difficult for other pedestrians. A controlled crossing leads to a complex central island, which becomes an uncontrolled crossing at a very dangerous point with traffic approaching from several directions. A blind or partially-sighted person could be ‘trapped’ on the island. All crossings off the island should be controlled with visual, audible and tactile signals, and tactile paving on the dropped kerbs on the approach.

On Beorg Bridge, the line provided to mark the sections for pedestrians and cyclists is of no use to people who cannot see it. In addition, users are not keeping to their designated areas. The line should be replaced with a raised white trapezoidal strip (central delineator), as recommended in Department for Transport guidance, and the associated tactile paving, and more symbols are needed to encourage people to use the correct side.