30 June 2007

Have cane, will travel

Getting around town when blind is difficult - at least it is here - I realised this a long time ago but it has recently hit home just how bad it is. I tried getting around Cambridge at New Year, when it was dark and there were few people around for me to get in the way of, and that was bad but here it's worse.

Cambridge - the parts I was in at least - has had the good sense to not pave its footpaths with uneven lumps of rock and its pedestrian crossings have the decency to beep when it's safe for people to cross the road. Here the marketplace and most of the surrounding streets (i.e. the main portion of the pedestrianised shopping and entertainment district of the city) are paved with either slabs that are unevenly laid or cobbles dating back to the Victorian era at the very least.

I have found one pedestrian crossing that beeps when it's safe to cross and even then it's hard to hear over the noise of the traffic on the nearby not-quite-a-motorway which, because our civic leaders have a sense of humour, runs through the middle of the city. This town is a death trap for blind people.

You might be wondering why I complained about the cobbles and uneven paving slabs. The reason is simple: to use my cane, you have to run the roller tip along the floor in front of you. I believe it is canes of this sort that influenced the addition of lumps to the paving slabs at pedestrian crossings - when you feel the cane run over them, you know you're at a crossing. It's very useful.

Now, bearing in mind the fact that when out and about I'd be running a cane along the ground, when I hit cobblestones, the cane starts to bounce and more often than not I'll catch it between the cobbles. This usually stops the cane moving, but I'm usually walking forward when this happens. Ever had five feet of metal rammed into your ribs? I have; it's not pleasant. The same thing happens with uneven paving slabs.

I'm sure there's a workaround for this but I've yet to work it out.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Okay, this may be a late reply, but I've just recently (as a blind person) discovered blogs on this topic. I find it very interesting.

As to the cane travel, I will give you a nice guide about beeping traffic signals: they're dangerous. They give a great representation of how traffic is for drivers, but very little indication of how it is for pedestrians. I will give an example of an intersection of one near where I live: the signal beeps to indicate the pedestrian "walk" at the intersection of a main street crossing a relatively minor street. If you're walking along the main street, walking when it beeps will result in a safe cross. If you're walking ACROSS the main street, walking while it beeps will lead to being hit by turning cars- they turn NEARLY nonstop during the pedestrian signal, because it's so short.

That said, my largest suggestion is to NEVER rely on those beeping traffic lights. With your vision significantly impaired (ie, with sleepshades or whatever it is you use) stand on the intersection as long as you need, to establish the traffic pattern. Listen to the direction the cars travel and ignore the helpful beeping.

In regards to the cane getting stuck in pavement, I still use what I learned in o&m: two point tap. I find rolling my cane along the ground relatively slow and useless. That said, if it works for you, great. I would still suggest switching to two point tap while walking in areas where your cane is very likely to get caught in the pavement, like cobblestone. My cane (I use NFB type metal tips) still gets stuck occasionally, but nowhere near the level it would if it was in constant contact with the ground.

another consideration would be, of course, the type of tip you're using with the cane. Ambutech sells a "jumbo roller" tip, an oversized and differently shaped version of the rolling ball, which also allows one to maintain constant contact. Because of it's shape and size, it's fairly difficult to get caught in pavement. Of course, being ambutech, it's completely overpriced (something like 10$ for the tip, regardless of if you use hook or slip on tips) but ah, such is life.

I hope that helps.

April said...

That's a lot of excellent tips. Thank you. :)