Kochi Metro Introduces Braille Enabled Facilities

11 Mar 2026 CW Team

The station has been equipped with a tactile Braille station map that enables understanding of the layout through touch, and Braille markings on handrails provide continuous wayfinding assistance. Key facilities have been identified with Braille signboards and new scripts have been installed at strategic points across the terminal, complementing tactile paths present since the metro's inception in 2017. Metro staff are described as accommodating and the measures are intended to work alongside human assistance.

The integrated system is designed to enable visually impaired passengers to plan journeys independently, reduce reliance on others for assistance, and move around the station with greater ease and assurance. The commuter who uses the service recommended regular public announcements to alert other passengers to tactile paths and Braille scripts so that they remain unblocked and suggested additional Braille scripts to help new users learn routes. Metro officials indicated that these operational suggestions will be taken up promptly.

Representatives of CII-Young Indians said they are considering extending Project Disha beyond Changampuzha Park station and that discussions with the metro team are under way to determine next steps. The ambition is to make the widely used public mobility system more inclusive and to normalise impairment in public spaces so that visually impaired commuters feel less dependent and less visible as a spectacle. The introduction of Braille-enabled facilities at the station is presented as a practical step towards those wider accessibility goals.

Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) has unveiled Braille-enabled facilities at Changampuzha Park metro station to make urban transport more inclusive. The project was implemented in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry-Young Indians (CII-Young Indians) under Project Disha and was inaugurated by KMRL managing director Loknath Behera in the presence of CII-Young Indians representatives and Dr Reem S, a visually impaired commuter and assistant professor. The scheme aims to help visually impaired passengers navigate the station independently and with greater confidence. The station has been equipped with a tactile Braille station map that enables understanding of the layout through touch, and Braille markings on handrails provide continuous wayfinding assistance. Key facilities have been identified with Braille signboards and new scripts have been installed at strategic points across the terminal, complementing tactile paths present since the metro's inception in 2017. Metro staff are described as accommodating and the measures are intended to work alongside human assistance. The integrated system is designed to enable visually impaired passengers to plan journeys independently, reduce reliance on others for assistance, and move around the station with greater ease and assurance. The commuter who uses the service recommended regular public announcements to alert other passengers to tactile paths and Braille scripts so that they remain unblocked and suggested additional Braille scripts to help new users learn routes. Metro officials indicated that these operational suggestions will be taken up promptly. Representatives of CII-Young Indians said they are considering extending Project Disha beyond Changampuzha Park station and that discussions with the metro team are under way to determine next steps. The ambition is to make the widely used public mobility system more inclusive and to normalise impairment in public spaces so that visually impaired commuters feel less dependent and less visible as a spectacle. The introduction of Braille-enabled facilities at the station is presented as a practical step towards those wider accessibility goals.

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