Rant: My friend's new traffic app almost got us in a wreck because of its color coding

We were driving in Portland last week and he was using this app that shows slow spots in green and fast spots in red. He's red-green colorblind and didn't see a big red warning for a closed lane until I yelled. The designer just assumed everyone sees those colors the same way. It's not just about being nice, it's about safety. Has anyone else seen a public app or sign that's just plain dangerous for colorblind folks?

3 comments

3 Comments

karen3681mo ago

Guess they forgot some of us see the world in a different palette.

miles7071mo ago

Wait, they used red and green for a traffic app? That's like the worst possible color combo.

wyatt_fox6826d ago

Exactly, and it's not just about picking better colors. The real problem is that designers don't test for this stuff. They build an app in a room full of people who see normally and call it done. It's a basic step they skip. For something like traffic, that's a huge safety risk. They could use shapes or patterns along with color, but they don't bother. It feels lazy and leaves a lot of people out.