Chance to have your say on draft Wayfinding Strategy for Inverness City Centre

View & comment on the draft strategy here (from Fri 27 April) 

The Highland Council invites you to have your say on a draft Wayfinding Strategy for Inverness city centre during a six week consultation beginning on 27 April 2018. Wayfinding is the term used for signs, maps and other devices that convey information about location and directions to visitors and residents so as to improve people’s understanding of the city.

A recent assessment of wayfinding information in Inverness city centre concluded it is difficult for visitors and many residents to plan journeys in advance and, when navigating the streetscape, to fully appreciate all that the city has to offer. 

The document, which is out for public consultation on Friday (27 April) until Monday 11 June, includes proposed designs for monolith panels, fingerpost signs, a large-scale walking map complete with annotated line drawings of prominent buildings and features, and an overview map showing the city centre in its wider context. It also shows proposed locations for 10 monoliths and 23 fingerposts signposting destinations that can be accessed on foot or by bicycle. The style and content of the maps has already been informed by feedback from representatives of disabled people’s organisations, Inverness BID, community councils, active travel groups and transport companies. 

Once adopted, the new wayfinding system will help to improve people’s understanding of the city centre, making it more engaging, welcoming, accessible and easily navigated. Changes to city centre signage will occur incrementally as funding becomes available from grants, significant capital projects and Developer Contributions from new development in/around the city centre. 

Launching the consultation, the Provost of Inverness Helen Carmichael said: “Inverness attracts around 900,000 visitors every year who spend time exploring Inverness on foot and by bicycle. To give them the best experience we need to ensure that they can find their way around with ease. 

“A review we commissioned to look at wayfinding in the centre of Inverness showed that the existing signage does not provide visitors with information to see all the city has to offer. There is no consistent city-wide mapping style and the information that is displayed can be unclear and look visually cluttered. 

“This consultation is a chance for people to let us know what they think about the draft plans to upgrade the wayfinding information in the city centre in order to provide well-presented information and directions to key locations that will help visitors get the most out of their time in our city. I encourage as many people as possible to look over the strategy and let us know their thoughts and ideas.” 

To view and comment on the draft strategy when it becomes live on Friday visit –http://consult.highland.gov.uk/portal/

Following consultation, Members of the City of Inverness Area Committee will have an opportunity to review how public feedback has been taken into account in preparing a final draft of the strategy, and once it has their approval, it will be formally adopted