OSM_Wheelchair_Routing

Navigation and wayfinding are essential for modern mobility and are readily available for vehicles and pedestrians. However, the process can be more challenging for individuals using wheelchairs, as the availability of suitable services may be limited.This study investigates the suitability of OpenStreetMap (OSM) for wheelchair navigation. The primary goal is to analyze and identify OSM tags (i.e., key-value combinations) that are particularly relevant for wheelchair users.Previous research has indicated that the type of street, surface type, gradient, and barriers are particularly challenging factors for wheelchair navigation and are therefore analyzed in more detail here. Particular emphasis is placed on the analysis of pavement conditions and the associated difficulties in urban infrastructure.Additionally, an area of interest in the city of Graz is selected for a detailed analysis and case study.Further aspects of the work focus on generating a network specifically for wheelchair users using open-source data and tools. This study highlights the distinctions between pedestrian and wheelchair navigation and demonstrates this quantitatively through the comparison of their respective routes for numerous origin-destination pairs. Additionally, a performance evaluation is conducted on the established wheelchair network.