Safeway makes website more accessible for visually impaired

Pleasanton, Calif. -- Safeway has made its online grocery shopping website more accessible and usable for Safeway shoppers with visual impairments.



Safeway collaborated with its visually impaired customers to make the necessary changes to its website. As such, the company has adopted the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.0 level AA as its accessibility standard.



"Safeway has a long history of supporting our communities and people with disabilities. This decision is an important step towards helping our customers who are blind or visually impaired have a better shopping experience," said Larree Renda, Safeway executive VP.



The WCAG 2.0 guidelines are promulgated by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and ensure that online content is more accessible and usable to persons with visual and other disabilities. The guidelines do not affect the content or look and feel of a website. They are of particular benefit to blind computer users who use voice output or magnification technology on their computers and mobile devices and who, like some individuals with mobility impairments, rely on a keyboard instead of a mouse for navigation.



The W3C is an international community that develops open standards to ensure the long-term growth of the Web. The Web Accessibility Initiative is a program of the W3C that works with site owners, developers, people with disabilities and other interested parties to develop accessibility standards.