Wayfinding for Everyone — Designing Journeys Without Barriers

Page One — Wayfinding Is More Than Signage

Wayfinding is the process through which people understand where they are, determine where they need to go, and make decisions along the route.

For sighted visitors, this process often depends on visual maps, directional arrows, colors, room numbers, landmarks, and signs. When these are the only communication tools available, blind and visually impaired users may enter a physically accessible building but remain unable to understand or navigate it independently.

International accessibility standards treat circulation and orientation as central components of an accessible environment. ISO 21542 covers access to buildings, movement within them, normal egress, and emergency evacuation. Accessibility is therefore not limited to ramps and entrances; it includes the full journey through the environment.

A review of 35 peer-reviewed studies on wayfinding tools for people with visual impairments found growing use of smartphones, audio instructions, Bluetooth beacons, computer vision, tactile interfaces, and other digital navigation technologies. The research also emphasizes that technology must be tested in real environments and designed with users, as accuracy alone does not guarantee usability.

More recent reviews of haptic navigation technologies similarly show that vibration and tactile feedback can complement spoken instructions, particularly when users need directional information without receiving excessive audio.

The Best Wayfinding Systems Use More Than One Channel

A robust accessible journey may combine:

• Physical accessibility and obstacle-free routes.
• Consistent signs and landmarks.
• High visual contrast and readable text.
• Audio information.
• Tactile or vibration feedback.
• Digital location information.
• Staff awareness and support.
• Clear emergency guidance.

This is known as sensory redundancy: essential information is communicated in more than one way so that users are not dependent on a single sense or technology.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has already developed a national foundation for universal accessibility. The King Salman Center for Disability Research’s Universal Accessibility Built Environment Guidelines outline technical requirements intended to create accessible environments across the Kingdom. The Ministry of Municipalities and Housing also published a simplified guide to universal accessibility standards for establishments in 2025.

However, the existence of standards does not automatically guarantee a complete user journey. A study examining public locations in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province found obstructive elements in locations including healthcare facilities, restaurants, shops, mosques, and banks, concluding that accessibility conditions remained inadequate in several commonly used environments.

The strongest evidence comes from Saudi Arabia’s official disability statistics. Among persons with disabilities aged five and above:

• 48.2% reported being completely unable to access public transportation and navigate public places.
• 23.2% reported a high level of difficulty.
• Combined, this means approximately 71.4% faced a major navigation barrier.

Principles for Effective Accessible Wayfinding

Start at the Arrival Point

The accessible journey should begin at the entrance, parking area, transport stop, or reception.

Place Information at Decision Points

Guidance is most valuable where users must choose between corridors, floors, doors, or service areas.

Keep Instructions Short and Actionable

Directions such as “turn right” or “reception ahead” are easier to process than long descriptions.

Provide Confirmation

Users need reassurance that they are still moving in the correct direction.

Maintain Consistency

Marker placement, terminology, voice instructions, and content structure should follow one system across the site.

Test With Real Users

A route that appears logical to a designer may not be intuitive to a blind user.

Strategic Relevance to Noor Path

Noor Path can act as the digital-information layer within a wider accessible wayfinding system. It should not be positioned as a substitute for accessible building design, tactile paths, white canes, guide dogs, or mobility training.

Its role is to make locations and decision points easier to identify by connecting physical markers with audio, distance, direction, and contextual information.

Key Messages

• Entrance accessibility is only the beginning.
• 71.4% of surveyed persons with disabilities in Saudi Arabia faced major public-navigation difficulty.
• Effective wayfinding combines physical, visual, audio, tactile, and digital information.
• Accessible journeys should be tested with users, not assumed by designers.