Tree sensitive design (existing and new trees)
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
- Embellishments must be designed in accordance with AS 1428 Design for Access and Mobility.
- Consider both the beginning and the end of a journey, together with a safe path of travel through the environment.
- Pathways must provide a clear, unimpeded passage for pedestrians.
- Consider planting trees at decision points which have identifiable fragrances which act as memory markers for people with low vision.
- Where existing trees are close to the edge of a pathway, consider realignment of path design to provide a minimum 500 mm offset from the edge of the path (a greater setback is desirable for ongoing tree health and structure).
- Ensure clear height envelope is maintained as obstructions may provide a hazard for vision impaired persons (see LIM Paths, trails and tracks for further guidance).
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.
This component is currently in development