THE LINE THAT SAVES LIFES

TitleTHE LINE THAT SAVES LIFES
BrandTRAFFIC SAFETY RESEARCH CENTER
Product / ServiceTACTILE PAVEMENT
CategoryB02. Pro Bono led Education & Awareness
EntrantSIMPLESHOW JAPAN Tokyo, JAPAN
Idea Creation TRAFFIC SAFETY RESEARCH CENTER ASSOCIATION Okayama-Shi, JAPAN
Media Placement SIMPLESHOW JAPAN Tokyo, JAPAN
PR SIMPLESHOW JAPAN Tokyo, JAPAN
Production SIMPLESHOW JAPAN Tokyo, JAPAN
Additional Company SIMPLESHOW FOUNDATION Miami, USA

Credits

Name Company Position
Tetsu Yoshida simpleshow Japan Inc. Chief Executive Officer
Madoro Ishii simpleshow Japan Inc. Copywriter
Ken Kouzai simpleshow Japan Copywriter
Masayuki Ichiwara simpleshow Japan Copywriter
Astrid Kirk simpleshow Japan Inc. Assistant Project Manager
Toshiya Nara simpleshow Japan Inc. Producer
Naoya Ohtsuka simpleshow Japan Inc. Cinematographer
Saori Yoshimura simpleshow Japan Inc. Editor
Yuhi Noi simpleshow Japan Inc. Account Director
Yuko Makabe simpleshow Japan Inc. Account Director
Makoto Imazu simpleshow Japan Public Relations
Daisuke Sato simpleshow Japan Inc. Sound Design Manager
simpleshow Academy simpleshow GmbH Supervisor
Ilya Kompasov simpleshow Foundation Foundation Manager
Yuri Kimihiro Traffic Safety Research Center Managing Director
Seiichi Miyake Traffic Safety Research Center 1st Administrative Director and Inventor of Tactile Pavement
Saburo Miyake Traffic Safety Research Center 2nd Administrative Director

The Campaign

There are two types of tactile pavements. The lined type is indicating the direction in which the user should move. The dotted type indicates danger or turns. The two types can be felt with a white cane or under the feet and indicate whether to proceed or stop. A new type was released in October 2016, which adds a line to the dotted tile, letting the user know which side of the tactile pavement the train platform is on, even if they should have accidentally walked in the wrong direction. They can use public transport easier now, increasing their daily walking times and travel distances.

Creative Execution

In August 2016, after the fatal accident of a visually impaired person, the new version of tactile pavements for train stations has been released. After their first Japanese release in 1967, the research in this field is now being continued in collaboration with the Japanese government and improvements are being made. In 2001, the tiles were certified with the Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS T 9251) and their design standardized. Based on this, a worldwide standard was formed in 2012 and keeps on supporting the visually impaired people of the world. Furthermore, an explainer video was created and spread on social media channels in order to raise awareness for the issue and increase the public effort to achieve a barrier free society.

The efforts contribute to a barrier-free society in which visually impaired people can live safely. In August 2016 a visually impaired person had a fatal accident at a train station, prompting the development of a new type of tactile pavement in October 2016. This type (SM1800-JUDF) has an additional line indicating which side the train platform is on. So even if a visually impaired person mistakingly takes the wrong direction, they can still confirm the safe side with their white cane or just by feeling the pavement under their feet. It was reported that approximately 600 stations used by more than 10,000 people a day in JR East, West Japan, and Tokai will complete the installation of the new type within 2018, as issued by the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

Tactile pavements have been developed in 1967. Their design has improved through collaborative research with the Japanese government. More than 300 million visually impaired people are able to move through a barrier-free environment and are directly impacted by this product. A new type of Tactile Pavement has been developed, that contains an additional inner line indicating on which side of the block the trainstation platform is. So visually impaired person are able to confirm the safe side of the platform. It enables them to be more physically active and reduce the risk of death of cardiac disease and cerebral infarction.

According to the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, there have been more than 400 fatalities in accidents involving falling onto tracks in the 6 years between 2010 and 2015. With more than 300 million visually impaired people in the world, reducing the number of these accidents is a social challenge not only for Japan, but for the world. After a visually impaired person had a fatal accident in August 2016, the Traffic Safety Research Center has released a new type of tactile pavement in October 2016.

Links

Video URL