Project Sidewalk

Project Sidewalk is an online platform in which streets are assessed virtually to identify accessibility issues on sidewalks. Launched in 2012 by computer scientists at the University of Washington, the platform leverages online maps, remote crowdsourcing, and machine learning to create accurate maps and evaluations of sidewalks. The goal is to revolutionize how accessibility information is collected and displayed for every sidewalk, street, and building in cities. This will enhance urban planning, create interactive visual analytics for urban accessibility, and enhance governmental transparency. Currently, data from 18 cities is available for exploration here.

Project Sidewalk in Action: Burnaby

The SWAN Project is collaborating with Project Sidewalk to analyze sidewalk infrastructure in Burnaby. The collaboration is between Simon Fraser University, the University of Washington, the University of Illinois Chicago, Burnaby Neighbourhood House, Civic Innovation Lab, and the City of Burnaby.

Participant Recruitment

We partnered with Burnaby Neighbourhood House to create and run a short-term program that digitally mapped the urban environment of the city using the online tool. Under this collaboration, we also worked together to recruit and educate youth on the importance of accessibility.

Youth participants attended two training sessions in the Burnaby Neighbourhood house. The first session highlighted the importance of accessible neighbourhoods for the quality of life of older adults and people with disabilities, while the second session focused on how to use the Project Sidewalk tool. Following the training, we hosted three map-a-thon sessions where community members, including youth and research assistants, gathered to label sidewalk accessibility features in Burnaby. This data was validated by project team before the results analyzed in GIS. The analysis identified 3-4 hotspots per neighbourhood for which we recruited older adults to conduct on-site data collection using the SWAN tool.

Project Highlight: Intergenerational Approach

The data collection adopted an intergenerational approach by engaging youth as well as older adults to gather diverse perspectives and experiences. This method enriches the data, providing a more comprehensive understanding of the topic. It also fosters knowledge sharing across generations, enabling the project to capture a wider range of insights, experiences, and solutions.

While youth participated in the first stage of data collection using the online tool, older adults were recruited to conduct ground truthing and on-site analysis of 3-4 identified hotspots with significant sidewalk issues.

"After participating in this project, I know more about inclusive environments and my rights!"

Older Adult Participant

"My involvement in project sidewalk increased my knowledge of existing civic issues affecting my local community. …., I was not entirely aware of how inaccessible sidewalks within my neighbourhood were, nor of the care and attention that should go into their design to ensure that they are accessible."

Youth Participant

Study Details

Neighbourhood Selection

The neighborhoods were selected based on crash data provided by the City of Burnaby, as well as areas prioritized for new high density developments. Our goal was to collect data on the most inaccessible areas. Data collection was completed over the period of two years in summers of 2023 and 2024 for the following neighbourhoods.

Brentwood
Lochdale
Metrotown
Edmonds
Royal Oak
Cascade
Lougheed

Data Collection through Intergenerational Approach

The participants in the data collection included both youth and older adults. Youth were involved in the online tool, while the older adults participated in the later stage to audit the identified hotspot areas. This intergenerational approach served to verify the data and enrich it with qualitative insights.

Study Participants

7 Youth (aged 15-18)
14 Seniors (aged 60+)

Labelling Process

Segments of roads/streets are divided as game missions. Each mission involves exploring and labelling. The process of labeling the sidewalk on Project sidewalk platform includes:

Identify the feature that is hindering accessibility by choosing the type of label among options: [Curb Ramps, Missing Curb Ramps, Surface Problem, Obstacles, No Sidewalk, Pedestrian Signal, Cross Walks]
Choosing a severity rate for the inaccessible feature from 1-passable to 5-not passable
Choose tags to provide more context on the chosen label and fill a description where needed

Validating

In data validation, user receives missions to validate other people’s labels. Data, mapped by the youth, was validated by research coordinators. This step ensured correct features have been mapped and if any feature has been missed out.

SWAN Tool/Ground truthing

The mapping tool identified hotspots where the severity of the sidewalk being 'not passable' was high. The locations were selected for further assessment using the SWAN tool with older adults.

Learn more about the SWAN tool.

How does the data look?

The map below displays the sidewalk features identified for Burnaby after the data collection and validation. Feature types can be checked in the legend for a selective preview. For example, one of the following map shows the distribution of ”Surface Problems” in south Burnaby.

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Research Implications

This study has the potential to directly influence future capital planning and policymaking within the City of Burnaby, improving the quality of life for its residents. Additionally, this partnership serves as a model and foundation for larger-scale collaborations with other municipalities and community organizations, aiming to better understand and address the needs of citizens with disabilities across British Columbia.

One example of how the sidewalk data can contribute to strategic planning is shown below. We overlay Project Sidewalk's sidewalk accessibility data with other data sources. In the following heat maps, brighter colors indicate areas with more sidewalk problems and greater inaccessibility.

Traffic data is overlaid on the density heat map of Metrotown, revealing that a higher number of crashes occur near inaccessible sidewalks. Additionally, key destinations such as schools, libraries, and community centers—frequently visited by pedestrians—are located close to these inaccessible sidewalks.

The density heat map highlights areas with accessible and inaccessible sidewalks. The locations of schools in Brentwood is overlaid on this data. The results shows that immediate location of schools has accessible sidewalks, however, the overall areas is close to regions with inaccessible sidewalks.