Shortly before my second year of college, I received a few orientation and mobility lessons for learning how to navigate with low vision and a blindness cane. These lessons were helpful for learning general travel skills, but I noticed they didn’t get into specifics about navigating college campuses or using university resources available for students with vision loss. One lesson that would have been really helpful is how to navigate campus construction, so I’ve created the College O&M series to share my most-used tips and strategies for learning about this topic and others. Here are my tips for dealing with campus construction and sidewalk closures, and how I navigate campus as a student with low vision who uses a blindness cane.
Disclaimer
I am not a Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist (COMS), and I strongly recommended working with a COMS from the state department for visual impairment or vocational rehabilitation to determine the appropriate mobility solution for individuals. The tips and strategies shared throughout this post are informed by my lived experiences using a blindness cane (white cane) on my college campus.
Challenges with campus construction
Campus construction isn’t just a detour; it can completely disrupt the landmarks, surface cues, and auditory information that I rely on to navigate college campuses independently. Orientation and mobility training teaches students to build mental maps of their environments using a combination of tactile cues underfoot, sounds, and sequential landmarks. When construction suddenly removes a familiar landmark, closes a sidewalk, or introduces unpredictable terrain, all of those systems get disrupted at once.
For me, this can mean that a route I’ve walked dozens of times suddenly feels unfamiliar, or I might have to spend several minutes thinking about how I will get to the class or get to the dining hall. For students with low vision, construction zones also tend to have reduced contrast, cluttered visual fields, dust, and temporary signage that can make things even harder to read. Being aware of construction helps me plan for how I will navigate campus proactively, instead of dealing with the consequences of showing up late to class or meetings because I had to navigate around detours.
Related links
How I use my blindness cane (white cane) to navigate campus construction
If I’m going to be navigating a particularly bumpy area, I prefer to use my large ball tip blindness cane whenever possible. The ball tip cane provides lots of feedback for me, and I can use the tip for long periods of time without it wearing down too quickly with the constant contact method. This is especially important when it comes to construction, as I once had to replace a marshmallow tip on my cane after less than a month due to extremely rough terrain on campus, though that was a one-off instance. Some of my friends prefer smaller cane tips that are more sensitive, but I find it easier to use rolling tips.
To navigate indoor and outdoor environments, I typically use the constant contact method. This involves keeping the tip in continuous contact with the ground rather than tapping, which gives me much richer information about surface texture changes. This is really useful when I’m walking over gravel, temporary asphalt patches, plywood walkways, or uneven ground.
While we didn’t have the opportunity to practice navigating campus construction, the certified orientation and mobility specialist (COMS) that I worked with introduced me to a few other techniques that I use for navigating barriers. For example, I learned to use the two-point touch method (tapping side to side in an arc) to get information about curbs and also practiced the diagonal technique for navigating more narrow areas. In unfamiliar or uneven terrain, I shorten my cane arc and slow down so I can be more aware of obstacles.
Related links
- Decoding The Tips of Blindness Canes
- Ten Things To Know About Going To College With A Blindness Cane
- Decoding The Colors of Blindness Canes
Learn at least two different routes to get to each building
I jokingly tell prospective students that the unofficial mascot for our college is the construction crane, and a lot of my classmates agree! It isn’t uncommon to encounter construction while I am walking to class, so I make sure to learn at least two different routes to get to each building on campus. As I have become more familiar with campus over time, I can easily figure out alternative routes based on surrounding roads, but other helpful methods include asking friends and the Disability Services office for directions or accessible routes. Another thing I like to note is the nearest campus shuttle stop to buildings I go to frequently, so if needed I can easily hop on the campus shuttle which stops right near my dorm.
When I’m learning a backup route, I try to identify at least two or three reliable landmarks per route. These can be tactile (a change from concrete to brick, tactile pavement), auditory (hum of an HVAC unit, sounds of restaurant or dining areas), or visual (a brightly colored building, art or sculptures). Landmarks that work across multiple senses are the most reliable, since construction can impact how someone might access specific senses, such as blocking items from view or masking auditory cues.
When developing routes or backup routes, I prioritize routes with consistent, predictable surfaces (paved sidewalks rather than gravel paths) that are easier and safer to navigate with a cane, as well as paths that are well-lit or that have consistent lighting. When given the option, I prefer routes that don’t involve crossing traffic, though this is not always practical.
Related links
- Using GPS Apps On College Campuses: College O&M
- Campus Addresses Every Student Should Know: College O&M
- Ten Questions to Ask When Choosing a College
Using landmarks for navigating college campuses
When learning a route, I rely on stable landmarks, which are features that are always present and consistently located. These can include texture changes on pavement, environmental sounds, shifts in slope, or distinctive building shapes. I also note visual cues such as color, materials, covered walkways, murals, or how a building stands out against the sky, which can help me identify different landmarks with low vision and reduced acuity.
That said, it’s important to have more than one cue for identifying areas; knowing a building only as “the blue one” fails when construction or changing conditions mask or remove that reference. Using multiple landmarks ensures I have backups if one cue disappears, such as a blocked entrance or masked sound. This is why I walk new routes several times and at different times of day, since lighting, noise, and crowd levels all affect which cues are available.
That said, long-term construction projects on campus have led to me using construction equipment as landmarks or cues to help me figure out where I am! This includes high-contrast elements in construction zones such as orange fencing, yellow caution tape, brightly painted barriers, or large construction equipment. I wear tinted glasses and/or sunglasses to help with managing glare.
Related links
Follow campus construction alerts
Recently, my college started sending out construction alerts for people who request them. They provide information about expected closures and alternative routes for students to take and ensure that there is always a stair-free route available. I found out about this from one of my college’s assistive technology specialists, though many colleges offer a similar service for students. If no such service is available, another option is to check out campus construction websites that can provide information about planned and unplanned closures, as well as construction timelines. This is also helpful to keep in mind when selecting dorms or on-campus housing.
Related links
- Dorms and Campus Housing: College O&M
- How To Choose A Dorm And Pick College Housing
- What To Know About College Assistive Technology Specialists
Use disability transportation services, if available
Students that use mobility aids or that have handicap placards/accessible parking passes often qualify for on-campus disability transportation services. At my college, this means a golf cart (driven by a student staff member) picks me up at a pre-set location and drops me off at my class building. Even if you use this option, you should still learn how to get to your classes on foot or by shuttle (or ideally both) since transportation may not always be available, especially at night.
Related links
Try to get to class during off-peak times
Instead of trying to push through a gigantic crowd of students and risk getting pushed around, I try to get to class during off-peak traffic times so that I can hear my surroundings better. For me, these off-peak times are the 15 minutes before classes get out. For example, if I am heading to my 10:30 class, I will leave at 10 so that I can beat the rush of students leaving their 10:15 class. Of course this isn’t always an option, especially for back-to-back classes, but it does help me to leave earlier for classes when I can.
Construction zones already demand more attention than a clear sidewalk, so adding a crowd of students makes it harder to hear what is going on and detect obstacles. Giving myself extra time also means I can slow down and navigate more carefully without the stress of being late, or gives me time to enjoy a snack before class!
Related links
- How To Schedule College Classes
- College Scheduling Hacks For Students With Chronic Illness
- How I Use The Coursicle Class Scheduling App
Use smartphone apps for orientation and mobility
My favorite tool for navigating campus construction (besides my blindness cane) is my smartphone, as I have a few different apps for orientation and mobility installed, including:
- Google Maps / Google Assistant for getting directions and searching for information. I also use the detailed voice guidance setting in Google Maps, which provides more precise turn-by-turn instructions for pedestrian routes
- Be My Eyes for getting quick assistance with visual tasks from a human volunteer, including reading temporary construction signage
- Google Lens (or Seeing AI for iOS) for reading short text, such as detour signs
- Aira for getting real-time information while walking from a professional agent. This service is available to me for free since my university is an Aira Access location (Disclaimer: I previously received free Aira service through a now-defunct program for college students in 2018/2019 and spoke at an Aira-sponsored event in 2018)
- Campus safety app for real-time alerts about unexpected closures or hazards
It’s important to note that GPS map data doesn’t always reflect recent construction closures, so I never rely solely on an app to confirm that a path is clear. I always verify information with my cane and with my usable vision/other senses!
Related links
- Using GPS Apps On College Campuses: College O&M
- How I Use Google Assistant While Traveling
- Smartphone Apps For Orientation and Mobility
- How I Use Be My Eyes With Low Vision
- Using Aira With Low Vision
- Accessible Maps and Wayfinding Tools For Low Vision
Other tips for navigating campus construction with a blindness cane
- Another option for getting to class is to use the campus bus system, which stops at various building sections on campus.
- If there is a lot of construction or safety issues such as exposed power lines, I prefer to use a human guide for navigation — learn more in my post How To Be An Effective Human Guide For People With Vision Loss
- Sometimes there may be construction inside a dorm building. Notifications about this are usually sent out via email or by the resident advisor/resident director and will have information for alternate routes. Learn more about navigating dorms in Dorms and Campus Housing: College O&M
- Report construction detours that are not accessible, including those that have no detectable warning surface, no edge protection, or a route that requires crossing an uncontrolled intersection. I share how to do this in Reporting Accessibility Issues: College O&M
Published October 21, 2019. Updated October 2025