A railway carrier is testing an application for translating information into sign language in the UK

Arriva Rail London (ARL), which operates London Overground on behalf of Transport for London (TfL), has begun testing an advanced solution to improve the accessibility of information for British Sign Language (BSL) users, this is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

This solution, developed by GoMedia, is presented as an app called Luna.

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The Luna app operates based on Signapse technology and is integrated with GoMedia’s Visor navigation system. Its main function is to translate digital information available online into BSL and deliver it to users via smart devices.

The translation is done using a personalized digital interpreter, ensuring accuracy and prompt delivery of data.

The project was funded by the UK Department for Transport (DfT) as part of the First of a Kind 2023 (FOAK23) competition, valued at £5.3 million.

The competition was conducted in collaboration with Innovate UK and High Speed Two (HS2) Limited.

The funding enabled the development and testing of a solution aimed at improving information accessibility for over 150,000 people who rely on BSL in the UK.

For people who are deaf or hard of hearing, accessing important information in transport is often challenging.

This is especially true during service disruptions, when information is primarily conveyed through audio announcements, which are inaccessible to BSL users.

The Luna project addresses this issue by offering a unique web page accessible via URL or QR code.

This page provides real-time information about stations and facilities, train departures, and service disruptions, as well as station announcements in 33 languages.

In addition to BSL information, the Luna app also offers audio and text announcements, making it useful not only for BSL users but also for people using noise-canceling headphones.

The solution will be tested at five London Overground stations from May to September 2024.

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