Vitebsk presented the first audio-described route for visually impaired people

The navigation sound system “Kroki na huki” with specialized informants, which serve as landmarks at specific points along the route, formed the basis of the project. The main goal of the project, implemented by the institution for the rehabilitation of visually impaired people "Center for a Successful Person" in cooperation with the brand "Volkswagen" in Belarus, is to help blind and visually impaired people adapt to the urban environment, creating a barrier-free environment for people with disabilities using innovative and technological developments.

 

The route runs from the enterprise "Elekt" of the public association "BelTIZ", where a significant part of the employees are visually impaired, through facilities on Kirov and Kosmonavtov streets to the Territorial Center for Social Services of the Railway District (members of BelTIZ gladly participate here). Initially, it was planned through the bus station, but the reconstruction of the Polotsk overpass introduced adjustments.

 

Along this route, 12 sound informants have been installed at significant facilities (hairdresser, children's polyclinic, pharmacy, a number of shops, industrial-technological college). When the necessary establishment is activated on a smartphone, a beacon (usually located above the entrance) begins to emit signals tens of meters before it, helping a blind person reach their destination. The chairman of the regional organization of the public association "BelTIZ", Konstantin Lamchanovsky, noted the people who contributed to the project's implementation. These include, for example, the head of the administration of the Railway District, Yuri Panfilov, and the director of OJSC "Vesta", Reiman Veniaminov.which will further contribute to the installation of audio informers in the stores of its network.

All participants of the unusual presentation had the opportunity to follow the route in light-blocking masks and see how comfortably the navigation system works. For example, at the entrance to the hairdresser's, a pleasant voice announces the location of the men's and women's halls, and the cash desk. This means that a visually impaired person, using, of course, a special white cane, can manage without an escort.

Summing up the results of the event, the director of the "Center for a Successful Person," Deputy Chairman of the Central Board of the Public Association "BelTIZ" Mikhail Antonenko noted that this is only the beginning. For example, the task is to qualitatively organize the purchase of products by visually impaired people in retail outlets and comfortable use of services. Belarus, according to him, is still only on the way to creating a tolerant society. One where we will respect the rights of other people regardless of their physical and mental health, different views, and physiological characteristics.

Konstantin Lamchanovsky pleased the attendees by announcing that an agreement had been reached at a meeting with the heads of the city's healthcare institutions to install audio informers in them by the end of the year.

Ales BYNKOV, "Vitbichi".