Accessibility features on the new whistler.ca

The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) is pleased to introduce new functionality in this website designed to improve usability and accessibility for site visitors.  Developed towards W3C industry standards, the new sited has incorporated a number of features that serve a variety of users’ needs. 

A summary of the main new features includes:

Alt (Alternative) text – When users hover their mouse over section links, this opens the section heading text in a larger text box with a white background for easy reading and quick reference.  Alt text has also been added to image files to explain the images loaded into the site and available for download.
 

Colour Contrast – The design team has tested several text colour options for optimum readability, including titles, main page text and hyperlinked text.  Section headings are designed with bright contrasting colours to easily users to relevant sections within a page.  The site was also designed to conform to minimum contrast requirements for users with visual impairments.
 

Keyboard Interface – Users can use search tools and forms in the new site without requiring specific timings for individual keystrokes.  In addition to a keyword search tool on each page which loads relevant pages and supporting files, the site has been built with easy-to-navigate drop down links from: the main top level menu, a quick pick “I want to…” linked list of top site content along with section quick links from a left side sidebar on each page.  To navigate the site easily, main content sections are grouped together under key headings.
 

Text Enlargement – With the exception of captions and images containing text, the new website text can be resized for more easy reading.  This was developed without assistive technology and can magnify text up to 200 percent without loss of content or functionality. This functionality is enabled at the top right tab on each page and is also possible through each user’s browser.

Browser Compatibility – whistler.ca is designed to be compatible with the following browsers and devices: 

• Internet Explorer 7 and 8
• Mozilla Firefox versions 3.5 and up
• Google Chrome 12 and above
• Safari 5
• Apple iPhone Operating System 3 and above
• Android Operating System 2.3 and above
• BlackBerry Operating System 5 and above

For more information on the RMOW’s Accessibility Strategy and Project, click here to learn more or contact the RMOW Accessibility coordinator.