Pokémon GO Might Become the New Smart City Urban Accessibility Master
Not just a child’s game anymore.
For the estimated 53 million U.S. adults living with disabilities, moving around and within a city may feel like an obstacle course. Hilly terrain and elevated pathways can prove daunting for people with disabilities (PWDs). There’s also the problem of cracked sidewalks and poorly designed or non-existing curb cuts and ramps.
And despite the 1990 passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act, which laid out standards for making public areas accessible, there are still public and private businesses that fail to have or maintain accessible entrances and exits for wheelchair users and guide dogs. Is there a Smart City solution?
The use of technology for wayfinding and navigation, which are two different and related tasks, is now commonplace. However, most wayfinding and navigation apps and services fall short of addressing the needs and preferences PWDs. Examples of shortcomings include:
1) absence of real-time accessibility information such as the slope of a sidewalk, which matters to pedestrians and older persons with limited mobility and people that use manual wheelchairs compared to those with powered wheelchairs
2) lack of data regarding accessible entrances to buildings
3) locations of curb-cuts at corners of intersections
4) Equally important is the inclusion of indoor navigation and wayfinding for individuals with cross-disabilities — which is often missing from many, if not all, current navigation and mobility option services
The fact is, streets and pathways don’t stay static. Routes may need to be re-planned dynamically due to prevailing conditions such as pop-up construction sites that can create instantaneous mobility barriers and hazards — blocking what was once an essential, accessible route for PWDs, e.g., wheelchairs users.
The ability to safely navigate one’s city and independently explore a new environment goes a long way in improving a person’s quality of life — not to mention the ability to remain engaged with the broader community, independent, and employed.
In the absence of real-time accessibility information about the environment in which PWDs are navigating or are planning to navigate, PWDs may take routes that are not safe or not accessible — and some PWDs are just too fearful to travel far from their home, or seek-out better employment opportunities beyond their “transportation comfort-zone” such as an adjacent city. Is there a practical solution?
A solution may be hiding out at your favorite Poké Stop. What if Pokémon GO Trainers could share and crowdsource real-time accessible urban navigation issues — just like the ones above. With its exponential popularity, Pokémon GO might just have what it takes to converge the powers of gaming and civic engagement to help PWDs better navigate the streets and pathways between their home, transit stops, and other destinations.
What if Pokémon GO Trainers could capture, share, and exchange real-time accessibility information to dynamically help PWDs better navigate their urban jungles? That’s right, think about it.
Outside your favorite grocery store, you collect some Pokémon balls, throw down some berries, battle a wild Pokémon — and map the accessible ramp that leads inside your favorite Poké Stop. Afterward, you discover a clutch of Pokémon eggs — a smart way perhaps to incentivize Trainers to engage and map accessible places around the Pokémon world.
In its current version, Pokémon GO is not entirely accessible or easy to play for PWDs. Steve Spohn of AbleGamers, an organization, and charity that campaigns for the inclusion and accessibility for players with disabilities, says Pokémon Go players with physical disabilities want better accessibility options to enable them to equitably access, fully experience and enjoy the game in the same way that able-bodied gamers might take for granted. Spohn argues Niantic Labs, the developer behind the game, can and should implement new accessibility features to support players with ranging disabilities.
Yes, it’s possible now to create an accessible and inclusive experience that encourages both users with and without disabilities to engage fully with their Pokémon Smart City communities. The marriage of Pokémon GO players and Smart City civic engagement scaled to the max to help all people better navigate our world is not only possible — it’s the dream for many great thinkers and doers like Miguel A. Gamiño Jr., EVP Head of Global Cities for @Mastercard and Former CTO of NYC and CIO of SF.
Read all about Miguel’s Pokémon GO dream in this Medium.com post, “Open letter to the creators of Pokémon GO. Help us — yes, I’m being serious”
All I can say is your Pokémon GO dream is my dream to Miguel A. Gamiño. I’m on-board that rocket. Let’s launch it now!
Darren Bates is internationally recognized as a visionary strategic thought leader in global Diversity and Inclusion and Smart City Human-Centered Urban Innovation. Founder and President of Darren Bates LLC and the Founder and Chief Innovation Officer for the Smart Cities Library.™
Darren Bates LLC
Darren Bates LLC is a boutique global consulting firm that helps private and public organizations diversify their workforce by outreaching, hiring, retaining, and promoting qualified individuals with disabilities.
FMI: www.darrenbatesllc.com
Smart Cities Library™
The Smart Cities Library™ is the premier online resource for building and refining accessible and inclusive, human-centered Smart Cities that ensure no citizen is left behind or accidentally excluded due to the rapid pace of global urbanization and technology innovation.
FMI: www.smartcitieslibrary.com
Trademarks
▪︎ Building a Global Culture of Access and Inclusion™
▪︎A Smart City is a Connected City and a Connected City is an Accessible and Inclusive City™
▪︎ A City Isn’t Smart If It Doesn’t Include Everyone™
▪︎ Building a Culture of Access and Inclusion in the Modern Workplace™
