Map Accessibility

The practice and field of making maps — digital geovisualizations, online navigation maps, tactile maps, and physical signage — perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust for users with disabilities. Map accessibility spans multiple modalities: tactile maps with raised features for blind users, audio-described maps, screen-reader-compatible interactive maps with keyboard navigation, high-contrast and color-blind-safe palettes, and emerging conversational interfaces that let users query map content in natural language. Because maps encode information through spatial layout, color, and visual hierarchy, they resist simple alt-text solutions and typically require multi-modal or interactive approaches to convey both the "what" and the "where" of geographic information.