[ Page 5 of 8 ]

By Barbara Knecht

The problem to solve was, in fact, specifically related to accessibility, but the solution is an invention that plays to a broad section of users. Passengers are dropped off at one location at the terminal. Those who need help with checking in and boarding must find their way from this drop-off to a cantankerous revolving door and through the terminal to a reception area where they can request an escort.

Raynes’s solution begins with a tactile, audio, and visual map at the drop-off point. It offers detailed instructions in all three means (tactile, aural, and visual) and three languages for users to find their way along the airport sidewalk—explaining how to manipulate the speed of the door, if necessary—and tells them where they will find the next information station along the route to their destination.

 

Without drawing attention to its universal design solutions, the museum features universal way-finding along a centrally located ramp (above). Galleries wrap around the ramp, relieving visitor dependence on maps and signage. Staircases (below) are situated so as to play a minor role in the circulation scheme. Natural light pours in through large windows to illuminate the ramp and reveal the galleries below grade. Photography: © Tim Hursley

The map is a 61¼2-foot glass panel mounted horizontally at a slight angle and a height that is comfortable for viewing and touching. The panel shows the whole building, including services and amenities, in a diagram so that people can orient themselves within the terminal. Its messages are reinforced specifically for people with low vision by a bright yellow rail, the Raynes Rail. This protects the map and provides a place to lean, has instructions in braille along its edge and photosensors that activate the audio instructions. The same rail can be placed at strategic points along a route to provide additional information or to reinforce a pathway with visual, audio, and tactile information. Originally conceived for transportation systems, the rail has been used in museums in France and Colombia to explain exhibitions and direct movement. In Charles de Gaulle, way-finding is further enhanced by bright yellow “tac dots” embedded in the floor surface to help direct the passengers to their destinations.

The system has obvious advantages for people who don’t speak the host country language or for any infrequent and first-time users. By providing an orientation at the airport entry, all passengers can quickly familiarize themselves with the layout before entering the terminal. The desired sequence to check in, visit amenities and services, pass through security, and reach gates can be planned without repeated help from airport personnel and confusing signs. The pathways and destinations can be checked and reinforced with the system, which is being designed into the new Terminal E at de Gaulle. According to Raynes, “The new system will follow the same pattern as the glass panel map at the drop-off. The railing segments will be used to direct passengers to restaurants and restrooms. The floor markings in the new terminal will be granite, however, in keeping with the architecture of the building.” It’s a modest system, capable of being implemented incrementally, with grand effect for many types of users.