After months of protesting against “shared streets” in Central London, Guide Dogs for the Blind in the UK is suing Dixon Jones in High Court, BDonline reported. The £25 million project was protested against by the Guide Dogs Foundation due to the safety concerns for the blind and partially blind.
If Jones approves the schematic layout in Central London, that would mean all the curbs, traditional road markings and furniture would be removed in the process. The blind rely on the curbs to stop them from walking into fast moving traffic.
A spokesman for Guide Dogs said,
“Blind and partially sighted people need consistency in the design of streets. If they can’t tell where the road begins and the pavement ends, how can they feel safe?”
Councillor Nick Paget-Brown said the “decision was disappointing” and “accessibility and the safety of the 11.5 million people using Exhibition Road is of the utmost importance to the council and we will continue to work hard to address the charity’s concerns, while reconciling the needs of other user groups.”
We’ll have to wait to see how the High Court votes.
Images courtesy of conservativehome and Flickr: Guide Dogs UK
