The Future of Inclusive Navigation
In recent years, the real estate industry has seen a shift in how value is defined. Once assessed by location and square footage, the conversation has expanded. Now, how people move through a space and whether they can move at all is part of that value equation.
Navigation is becoming a primary indicator of how welcoming, functional, and thoughtful a space truly is. For property owners, asset managers, and developers, this shift presents both a challenge and an opportunity. As expectations evolve, so must the experience buildings offer.
The Experience of Movement
We often think of navigation in practical terms: signage, maps, information desks. But the deeper question is emotional. Can someone enter a space and feel immediately oriented, assured, and included?
The reality is that many cannot. A parent with a stroller may hesitate at a staircase. A person with vision loss may avoid a venue entirely. Even an international student or newcomer unfamiliar with a building’s layout can lose time, energy, and confidence trying to figure it out alone.
When someone feels disoriented, they disengage. And when enough people feel that way, a space loses part of its purpose.
Why Real Estate is Listening
Accessibility and inclusive navigation have shifted from being compliances and considerations to shape how buildings are perceived, how tenants make decisions, and how communities determine whether a place is truly for them.
The 2024 National Accessibility Survey by the Rick Hansen Foundation found that 40 percent of Canadians have a friend or close acquaintance with a disability. This data reframes accessibility as something widespread beyond a niche market. If a building excludes movement, it excludes participation. And in a competitive market, exclusion has consequences.
More tenants and visitors are noticing whether a space is easy to navigate. They are also paying attention to whether it reflects an understanding of different needs. The result is a growing expectation that accessibility should be designed, not requested.
Why This Matters to Investors
Real estate portfolios are being measured in new ways. Tenants expect user experience, beyond rentable area. Cities and institutions expect alignment with ESG targets, including accessibility audits. And post-pandemic foot traffic recovery depends on creating spaces that invite confidence, safety, and clarity.
Here is what better navigation does for buildings:
If the experience of moving through a building is broken, then value leaks quietly, constantly.
The Market has not Caught Up Yet:
Today, indoor navigation is where outdoor GPS was in 2006. Everyone understands the need but very few are standardizing the experience.
The next generation of building systems will not only tell how many people came in.
They will know where those people moved, where they paused, where they gave up, and how to keep them engaged.
That data will shape leasing decisions, asset improvements, and reputation.
Pedesting’s Role in the Shift
Pedesting is a mobile platform that offers step-by-step navigation within indoor and outdoor spaces. It helps users move through complex environments with clarity and confidence. Unlike general mapping tools, it accounts for physical barriers, accessible routes, and the specific flow of pedestrian movement within each mapped location.
Pedesting Zones are already live in office towers, campuses, convention centres, and public venues across Calgary. Each zone is carefully mapped and verified, providing a digital layer that enhances physical space.
For building owners, Pedesting offers a way to provide better service without changing the building’s structure. It improves access. It builds goodwill. It removes unnecessary frustration. Most importantly, it allows more people to fully engage with the places they enter.
What Comes Next?
The future of buildings is design + experience. It is about the quiet experience people have the moment they arrive.
The spaces that anticipate this future will be the ones people return to. They will be the ones people recommend. They will be remembered for how they made people feel, not just how they looked.
Pedesting is part of that future. Not by replacing buildings, but by helping people move through them with clarity and ease.
Learn More About Mapping Your Building
If you’d like to speak with our team or learn how Pedesting is transforming accessibility into asset performance, reach out to us at hello@pedesting.com