Maps for the Colour-blind Are a Real Eye‑opener

The new Ordnance Survey digital mapping has been developed to be customisable, allowing for the creation of colour-blind-friendly styles, which to most people will look very strange but could help avoid future confusion for those with the condition.   Paul Beauchamp, Ordnance Survey spokesman, comments: “Cartography is a fine art, but the colours that have become so familiar to most of us are actually among the worst possible choices for those with colour blindness. By using our new mapping product, called OS VectorMap Local, councils and businesses will be able to create styles especially for colour-blind people that we hope will make life easier.”   Colour vision deficiency can have an impact on many everyday tasks that most people take for granted – from reading maps, using the Internet and rewiring a plug to knowing when traffic lights change. It can even affect career choices, with pilots and coastguards requiring excellent colour vision.