App to help those with disabilities get around

SMU School of Information Systems is working with a non-profit group, Trampolene, to develop an app – the first of its kind here – that maps out the shortest barrier-free routes to a destination. The SmartBFA (Barrier-Free Access) app is expected to be launched by the middle of next year and is free for users. The project has recruited 38 volunteers so far and is planning to recruit 200 more. It is hoped that the app will be able to cover most parts of Singapore. SMU Assistant Professor of Information Systems Tan Hwee Xian said the group came up with the app after seeing how their friends with disabilities faced problems getting around. The cost of developing the app is about $700,000 with 90 per cent of the cost being covered by the Tote Board-Enabling Lives Initiative Grant. SMU student Najulah Mohamed, who was born with brittle bone disease, is one of the volunteers helping to collect data, through sensors attached to his wheelchair, on routes that are accessible to people who use mobility aids.