Building the Viking Triangle Trail
Viking Trail - Waterford City & County Council
The aim of this audit of The Viking Triangle in Waterford City was to examine the efficacy of the existing signs and based on findings create a new Wayfinding System, where establishing a ‘sense of place’ was of primary concern.
Industry
Tourism
Location
Ireland
Project Scope
Human-centric Research, Interview Staging, Interpretive Planning & Design
Client Brief
Creating a 'sense of place' for all relevant stakeholders
Clarifying the brand architecture so that all the parts total into something greater.
Understanding the customer journey to increase their enjoyment – way finding and meandering.
Connecting the Viking Triangle to the city physically and emotionally.
Deliverables
A Wayfinding system that doesn't just guide you through the area but tells you stories, that are tucked away in the cobbled streets of the Viking Triangle
Having considered all stakeholders, their need for and interaction with the system, we mapped out their journeys around the area and the essential touchpoints that need to be considered and highlighted. This then served as a good foundation for assessing the strategic placement of the signages and the structure of the wayfinding patterns. when establishing wayfinding patterns, it is essential to ascertain which kind of signage goes at which location and how they all work together. Also, when implementing any way finding system it is important to consider all types of users. Wheelchair users digest information differently to those on foot or passing via vehicle. Ensure the most information is available for as many users as possible.
Finally these signages didn't only serve as a wayfinding system, but were also used for storytelling. With motion sensors installed in the liths, as a person approaches the signage, the AI in the liths, ask you to record a short story about yourself and then when the next person visits the signage, they can know who visited the spot last and then the AI asks you to record your story.
We also did custom Viking Trail monoliths, designed similar to the standard signages but in a different colour to help users differentiate from the other signages. These Viking Trail Monoliths take you on a trail of 7 locations in the Viking Triangle. At every spot, there is a sculpture/installation, that you can point at using the camera through the Viking Trail AR App on your smartphone - characters come alive taking you back in time and telling you about the history of that spot.
