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Crossing busy intersections in Regina just became easier for people with vision or hearing loss.
The City of Regina has launched a new smartphone tool called PedApp, which allows pedestrians to activate crosswalk signals remotely, a first step in making intersections more accessible and inclusive.
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Accessibility adviser Ashley Nemeth, who is blind, notes that crossing the street with a guide dog or cane often requires veering off course to locate a signal pole and then realigning before the light changes.
“It lets me stay on that straight path instead of veering off to find the pole and trying to line up again,” Nemeth said. “That makes travelling so much safer.”
The app connects to accessible pedestrian signals (APS) already installed at intersections. Once paired, the system audibly announces the intersection name and direction of travel, then provides countdown tones, haptic vibrations, and spoken prompts through the user’s phone.
Nemeth says the system not only improves safety, but also gives people with disabilities more independence and confidence.
“The more tools we have to travel safely and make things accessible, the better,” she said. “This is another tool in that toolbox that helps us be more independent.”
The technology is now live at nine intersections along Victoria Avenue between Albert and Broad streets, with expansion planned through 2025.
City transportation manager Vikas Ravada says the new system adds another layer of accessibility without removing any existing features.
A smartphone displays the City of Regina’s new PedApp during a launch demonstration on Victoria Avenue. (Jacob Bamhour/980 CJME)
He says the city already has 97 intersections equipped with accessible pedestrian signals, and work continues to install more. Once those are in place, activating the app can be done in a matter of days.
“It’s an enhancement, not a reduction of infrastructure,” Ravada said. “Our goal is to have all of downtown covered by the end of 2025, then expand to other high-traffic areas across the city.”
The project was developed in partnership with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB).
CNIB advocacy lead Mohammed Ali speaks at the PedApp launch, praising the app’s accessibility benefits for people with vision loss. (Jacob Bamhour/980 CJME)
Mohammed Ali, CNIB’s advocacy lead for Saskatchewan, says he was initially skeptical about the app’s usefulness, worried that checking a phone might distract users from navigating safely, but his testing experience changed his mind.
“When snow piles up or poles are hard to reach, this app makes crossings accessible again,” Ali said. “It really has the potential to be a game changer.”
Lisa Telfer, a certified orientation and mobility specialist with Vision Loss Rehabilitation Saskatchewan, says it will help a wide range of people, not just those who are blind.
“Anytime we have new technology that adds another layer of safety, it helps,” Telfer said. “That includes people who are deaf-blind or have mobility challenges.”
The city has created a webpage at regina.ca/pedapp, where residents can watch a demonstration video and learn more about the project.
Nemeth says accessibility improvements like this are part of a much larger effort to make Regina more inclusive.
“The City’s Accessibility Plan has over 60 actions to improve accessibility in every department,” she said. “This is one more step toward that goal.”
— with files from Abby Zieverink
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