1, 2, 3, 4 Für Alle

"The accessibility web map for the main districts in Munich."

What it is about

This is a web map of the U-Bahn stations, accommodation, and barriers for people with disabilities, as well as making them able to do their own route planning. When users click on the U-Bahn, information on barrier-free facilities is displayed; when they click on houses, information on barrier-free long-term rentals is displayed; and when they click on obstacles, images and information on the obstacles are displayed. At the same time, we provide a system for the public to report obstacles, so that the barrier system can be more helpful with the contribution of the public.

How we built it

We used Leaflet to build our web map and used Google form and Google sheet as an aid to the obstacle reporting system. The subway information and housing information are collected in the MVG and WG-Gesucht in Munich respectively. In this process, apart from the basic package of Leaflet, we also used plugins, such as sidebar controller, distance measurement or layer selector. All of these were integrated in the HTML framework.

Challenges we ran into

During the process of our project, besides some technical issues, our biggest challenge was that we weren’t sure whether the web map was helpful and friendly to the disabled. Because we both have no experience as disabled, we couldn’t put ourselves in their shoes.

What we're proud of

We have managed to create a website that is especially helpful for wheelchair users. We have stuck to our initial purpose of creating an innovative tool that actually brings something new to the community, with the real-time barrier updates on the streets from the main districts of Munich.

What we learned

We learned two very different but important things, in the technical and in the human field. Firstly, we learned about the things that can be done in web developing, in the process of creating an interactive map and website. Additionally, we learned about the needs of disabled people and their mobility issues in big cities such as Munich.

What's next

We believe that there is still a lot to be done within this project, as we addressed only the basic needs of our target user group in mobility and accessibility. Considering all the different types of barriers in cities, many features and tools can be added in order to improve the user experience, as well as expanding the study area to the whole city.

Sources

Leaflet — an open-source JavaScript library for interactive maps. (n.d.). https://leafletjs.com/
Redaktion mvg.de. (n.d.). MVG - Die Mobilitätsmacher*innen. https://www.mvg.de/
WG Zimmer Wohnungen Wohnungssuche WG Suche WG Wohnung vermieten WG Nachmieter Zwischenmiete : (n.d.). WG-Gesucht.de. https://www.wg-gesucht.de/
Students
Ching-Ting Chia
Ander Palacios Fraile

12th intake
Supervisor
Juliane Cron, M.Sc.
Keywords
Web map, accessibility, mobility, wheelchair, VGI, barriers, Munich
Try it