Water sensitive urban design (WSUD)
Equal access
Requirements for the integration of equal access for all users
The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) defines ‘premises’ as the whole of the built environment and includes existing buildings, new or proposed buildings, transport systems, car parks, pathways, and public parks and gardens.
Note: Consult an access consultant accredited by the Association of Consultants in Access Australia (ACAA).
Elements required for equal access
- WSUD auxiliary embellishments must be designed in accordance with AS 1428 Design for access and mobility.
- Install infrastructure associated with WSUD at a minimum 500 mm offset from the edge of a pathway, to provide safe clearance for pedestrians and cyclists.
- Avoid finished height difference between a concrete slab and adjoining surfaces to prevent trip hazards and to prevent ‘tramlining’ of pram, bicycle and wheelchair wheels.
- Ramp down turf from the edge of a concrete slab to prevent a finished height difference which has the potential to tramline/tip wheeled devices, or create a trip hazard.
Visual/sensory wayfinding
- For people with a vision impairment, provide a minimum 30% luminance contrast between objects and the background they are viewed against, for ease of identification.
- Where luminance contrast may not be achieved (such as grey aluminium furniture on grey concrete), luminance contrast can be addressed by introducing colour into the ground surface providing a minimum 30% luminance contrast with the embellishment base, resulting in the embellishment being more visible for people who have low vision.
- Consider designing nodes with a contrasting coloured concrete, or a variation in surface texture, to enable people with a disability to identify the location of embellishments along a pathway.
Built environment
- All open space infrastructure must be installed following principles of universal design. This design philosophy ensures that products, buildings and experiences are accessible to as many people as possible, regardless of age, ability or cultural background.
- For guidance about the universal design of auxiliary embellishments refer to individual LIM categories such as:
This component is currently in development