A training program has been launched to help people with vision disabilities use white canes to navigate railway station platforms safely as part of efforts to prevent falls and other accidents. The initiative, introduced by the transport ministry in Japan, aims to improve mobility and safety in busy transit systems, reported Jiji Press.
With more time needed to install platform screen doors, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism views the initiative as an urgent interim measure. It plans to promote the program among railway operators nationwide and encourage them to adopt similar training.
Media were invited to observe a walking training session held in March on a platform at East Japan Railway’s Shinagawa Station in Tokyo’s Minato Ward, using actual train cars. The session brought together six participants with vision disabilities and six mobility instructors who worked in pairs.
Instructors taught basic techniques for safe movement, including walking while keeping the tip of a white cane in contact with the ground and sweeping it from side to side. Participants were also instructed to stop immediately if they sensed they had reached the platform edge.
Participants practiced locating train doors by using their hands to feel along the side of the train. After confirming the position of the train floor with a white cane, they boarded by placing one heel carefully onto the surface. In addition, instructors showed them how to distinguish train doors from the gaps between cars, where falls are more likely to occur.
“Stations without platform screen doors are sometimes compared to bridges without railings. We walk through them with a constant sense of danger.” a participant with a vision disability said.
“Accidents can be prevented if people have a solid grasp of the basics,” he added. “I hope as many people as possible will come to understand the importance of mobility training.”
A transport ministry official said, “We are asking railway companies to incorporate such drills into their staff training programs.”
One instructor who took part in the drill called for “an environment in which station staff at any station will cooperate in the training whenever this is requested.”
