Polara Honored with 2025 Helen Keller Services AccessAbility Award
Polara Enterprises (Polara), the leading innovator in Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS), has been selected as a recipient of the 2025 Helen Keller Services AccessAbility Awards. These awards recognize organizations and individuals who make significant contributions to improving accessibility and independence for people who are blind, limited vision or DeafBlind.
Polara was honored for nearly three decades of pioneering work making intersections safer, more accessible, and more equitable for all pedestrians. With hundreds of thousands of units installed across North America, Polara’s technologies incorporate audible, vibrotactile, and visual cues designed with universal access in mind, helping cities meet ADA and PROWAG compliance standards.
“We are deeply honored to receive the AccessAbility Award from Helen Keller Services,” said Sarah Savery, Regional Sales Manager at Polara’s parent company, Synapse ITS. “It reflects not only our ongoing commitment to making intersections safer for the low vision, blind and DeafBlind communities, but to the power of continued collaboration with advocacy groups, agencies, and communities. Together, we are building safer and more inclusive streets.”
Polara was also recognized for expanding accessibility beyond hardware, through digital solutions such as PedApp® and Oko, an award-winning navigation app developed in collaboration with the blind community. Polara removed its subscription fees to make the app completely free, reinforcing the company’s goal of ensuring equal access to safe crossings for all pedestrians
“Helen Keller Services has been particularly impressed by Polara’s responsiveness to accessibility feedback, willingness to incorporate website improvements, and commitment to providing live APS demonstrations for our participants,” said Dr. Susan Ruzenski, Chief Executive Officer of Helen Keller Services. “Polara’s partnership with Helen Keller Services exemplifies how industry collaboration can drive meaningful accessibility advances that benefit entire communities.”
The award was presented during a ceremony held on Wednesday, October 15, 2025, at the Helen Keller National Center for DeafBlind Youths and Adults in Sands Point, NY.
Polara is a member of the Synapse ITS family of brands. Synapse ITS is a leader in transportation safety infrastructure, committed to developing and delivering best-in-class, intelligent traffic safety solutions.
About Polara Enterprises
Polara designs and manufactures the most technologically advanced and durable ADA-compliant and pedestrian-friendly crosswalk devices on the market. With hundreds of thousands of Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS) and push buttons installed across North America, Polara is one of the most trusted names in pedestrian safety. For more information, visit polara.com.
About Synapse ITS
Uniting industry-leading brands Polara Enterprises, Carmanah Technologies, Eberle Design (EDI), GovComm, Diablo Controls, and Availed Technologies, Synapse ITS is a comprehensive transportation technology company focused on increasing roadway safety, accessibility, and efficiency through innovative infrastructure. From intersections to highways, crosswalks to parking areas, Synapse ITS products leverage durable, dependable hardware alongside state-of-the-art software and data collection to provide agencies with intelligent solutions to complex transportation challenges. For more information, visit synapse-its.com.