INTERACTIVE COMPUTER INFORMATION TRAIL GUIDES FOR ACCESSIBILITY

PLACES THAT OFFER OUTDOOR RECREATIONAL XPERIENCES RARELY PROVIDE INFORMATION ABOUT ACCESSIBILITY OF HIKING TRAILS. WITHOUT ACCESS RELATED INFORMATION, PERSONS, WITH DISABILITIES ARE FACED WITH SIGNIFICANT DIFFICULTIES WHEN ATTEMPTING TO CHOOSE AND ENJOY TRAILS WITH APPROPRIATE CHALLENGE LEVELS. IN AN EFFORT TO PROVIDE EQUAL OPPORTUNITY TO ENJOY OUTDOOR RECREATIONAL EXPERIENCES, THIS PROJECT PROPOSES TO DEVELOP A USER-FRIENDLY, COMPUTERIZED TRAIL GUIDE INFORMATION SYSTEM. THIS SYSTEM WILL BE COMPRISED OF TWO MAIN COMPONENTS: 1) AN INTERACTIVE COMPUTER INFORMATION TRAIL GUIDE THAT WILL PROVIDE VIDEO IMAGES AND ACCESS DATA FOR SPECIFIC TRAILS, AND 2) A SMART TRAILS SELECTOR PROGRAM THAT WILL SELECT TRAILS MEETING THE DESIRED SPECIFICATIONS ENTERED BY THE USER. THE COMPONENTS WILL INCORPORTE UNIVERSAL ACCESS INFORMATION THAT WILL BE USEFUL TO PERSONS WITH AND WITHOUT DISABILITIES. BOTH COMPONENTS WILL BE TESTED FOR ACCURACY AND RELIABILITY AND WILL BE EVALUATED BY PERSONS WITH AND WITHOUT DISABILITIES IN A PILOT STUDY AT YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK. QUESTIONNAIRE AND INTERVIEW RESPONSS WILL BE ANALYZED TO IDENTIFY STRONG AND WEAK ASPECTS OF THE SYSTEM. THE PRIMARY LONG TERM GOAL IS TO PRODUCE A TRAIL INFORMATION SYSTEM SYSTEM THAT WILL INCORPORATE EXTENSIVE TRAIL DATA FOR ANY PARK OR FOREST AREA AND PROVIDE VALUABLE ACCESS INFORMATION FOR ALL VISITORS.