Visual Impairment

Signs a visually impaired person will make with the white cane

• Point cane straight towards the ground: The person is listening to oncomming traffic and waiting
• Point cane diagonal: The person is preparing to walk over the road

Show consideration and respect

• Reduce noise: Dont rev your car excessivly as the blind person primarily uses their auditory senses to determine if another car is approaching
• Stop well in advance: Make it clear that you are stopping in good time. The sound of the car decreasing will help the visually impaired person to understand that you do see them
• Dont hoot your horn: By hooting your horn indicates someone is in danger. The blind person might think that he is in danger and can get hurt
• Wait until the visually impaired person has crossed the whole street: If you drive as soon as the person has crossed over your lane but not over the whole road, you might give the person false sense that he is on the other side of the road, or you might scare him and cause an accident

Guide dog and visually impair person

Not all visually impaired people have a guide dog. Guide dogs are well trained animals but can also get scared in busy traffic situations. Always try to be considered and supportive towards the animal. Guide dogs do the following:

• Wear a white harness
• Help guide: The dog can help guide around difficult obstacles but cant understand traffic situations or determine the risk of the situation
• Dont try to get the attention of the dog: The dog leading a visually impaired person is usually very well trained to not get distracted and focus on leading the blind person. Try not to disrupt the dog whilst its busy working

Hearing impairment