The City Without Sight
Exploring public space through the senses of the visually impaired and blind
M.X.L. de Reus (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
M.J. van Dorst – Mentor (TU Delft - Urban Studies)
Martijn Lugten – Mentor (TU Delft - Environmental Technology and Design)
More Info
expand_more
Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download, forward or distribute the text or part of it, without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license such as Creative Commons.
Abstract
Contemporary public spaces continue to be predominantly designed through a visual paradigm, resulting in environments that offer limited support for people who navigate the city primarily through non-visual means. Although accessibility has gained prominence as a design objective, this recognition has not translated into a substantive shift away from visually dominant design practices, resulting in limited and fragmented multisensory cues for wayfinding and perceptual comfort for visually impaired and blind individuals. This becomes particularly problematic in high-density urban contexts, where intensified sensory input increases cognitive demand and undermines non-visual legibility.
This research investigates how multisensory spatial design variables can support non-visual wayfinding and perceptual comfort in public space, and how these variables can be systematically translated into design strategies for plazas, parks and urban routes. The study employs qualitative walk-along interviews with visually impaired and blind participants conducted in The Hague, Rotterdam and Amsterdam, complemented by evaluations of spatial design principles with ten other visually impaired and blind participants.
The findings demonstrate that consistent auditory, tactile and material cues significantly enhance spatial legibility, reduce cognitive load and contribute to a more comfortable and predictable urban experience beyond vision alone. These insights are structured through a pattern-based framework that mediates between research and design, while a complementary maximization method is employed as an ordering and communicative tool within three spatial design proposals. By bridging experiential research and design practice, this study contributes to the d