accessibility

name	accessibility
description	Audit and improve web accessibility following WCAG 2.1 guidelines. Use when asked to "improve accessibility", "a11y audit", "WCAG compliance", "screen reader support", "keyboard navigation", or "make accessible".
license	MIT
metadata	{"author":"web-quality-skills","version":"1.0"}
version	1.0.0

Accessibility (a11y)

Comprehensive accessibility guidelines based on WCAG 2.1 and Lighthouse accessibility audits. Goal: make content usable by everyone, including people with disabilities.

WCAG Principles: POUR

Principle	Description
Perceivable	Content can be perceived through different senses
Operable	Interface can be operated by all users
Understandable	Content and interface are understandable
Robust	Content works with assistive technologies

Conformance levels

Level	Requirement	Target
A	Minimum accessibility	Must pass
AA	Standard compliance	Should pass (legal requirement in many jurisdictions)
AAA	Enhanced accessibility	Nice to have

---

Perceivable

Text alternatives (1.1)

Images require alt text:

<!-- ❌ Missing alt -->
<img src="chart.png">

<!-- ✅ Descriptive alt -->
<img src="chart.png" alt="Bar chart showing 40% increase in Q3 sales">

<!-- ✅ Decorative image (empty alt) -->
<img src="decorative-border.png" alt="" role="presentation">

<!-- ✅ Complex image with longer description -->
<figure>
  <img src="infographic.png" alt="2024 market trends infographic" 
       aria-describedby="infographic-desc">
  <figcaption id="infographic-desc">
    <!-- Detailed description -->
  </figcaption>
</figure>

Icon buttons need accessible names:

<!-- ❌ No accessible name -->
<button><svg><!-- menu icon --></svg></button>

<!-- ✅ Using aria-label -->
<button aria-label="Open menu">
  <svg aria-hidden="true"><!-- menu icon --></svg>
</button>

<!-- ✅ Using visually hidden text -->
<button>
  <svg aria-hidden="true"><!-- menu icon --></svg>
  <span class="visually-hidden">Open menu</span>
</button>

Visually hidden class:

.visually-hidden {
  position: absolute;
  width: 1px;
  height: 1px;
  padding: 0;
  margin: -1px;
  overflow: hidden;
  clip: rect(0, 0, 0, 0);
  white-space: nowrap;
  border: 0;
}

Color contrast (1.4.3, 1.4.6)

Text Size	AA minimum	AAA enhanced
Normal text (< 18px / < 14px bold)	4.5:1	7:1
Large text (≥ 18px / ≥ 14px bold)	3:1	4.5:1
UI components & graphics	3:1	3:1

/* ❌ Low contrast (2.5:1) */
.low-contrast {
  color: #999;
  background: #fff;
}

/* ✅ Sufficient contrast (7:1) */
.high-contrast {
  color: #333;
  background: #fff;
}

/* ✅ Focus states need contrast too */
:focus-visible {
  outline: 2px solid #005fcc;
  outline-offset: 2px;
}

Don't rely on color alone:

<!-- ❌ Only color indicates error -->
<input class="error-border">
<style>.error-border { border-color: red; }</style>

<!-- ✅ Color + icon + text -->
<div class="field-error">
  <input aria-invalid="true" aria-describedby="email-error">
  <span id="email-error" class="error-message">
    <svg aria-hidden="true"><!-- error icon --></svg>
    Please enter a valid email address
  </span>
</div>

---

Operable

Keyboard accessible (2.1)

All functionality must be keyboard accessible:

// ❌ Only handles click
element.addEventListener('click', handleAction);

// ✅ Handles both click and keyboard
element.addEventListener('click', handleAction);
element.addEventListener('keydown', (e) => {
  if (e.key === 'Enter' || e.key === ' ') {
    e.preventDefault();
    handleAction();
  }
});

No keyboard traps:

// Modal focus management
function openModal(modal) {
  const focusableElements = modal.querySelectorAll(
    'button, [href], input, select, textarea, [tabindex]:not([tabindex="-1"])'
  );
  const firstElement = focusableElements[0];
  const lastElement = focusableElements[focusableElements.length - 1];
  
  // Trap focus within modal
  modal.addEventListener('keydown', (e) => {
    if (e.key === 'Tab') {
      if (e.shiftKey && document.activeElement === firstElement) {
        e.preventDefault();
        lastElement.focus();
      } else if (!e.shiftKey && document.activeElement === lastElement) {
        e.preventDefault();
        firstElement.focus();
      }
    }
    if (e.key === 'Escape') {
      closeModal();
    }
  });
  
  firstElement.focus();
}

Focus visible (2.4.7)

/* ❌ Never remove focus outlines */
*:focus { outline: none; }

/* ✅ Use :focus-visible for keyboard-only focus */
:focus {
  outline: none;
}

:focus-visible {
  outline: 2px solid #005fcc;
  outline-offset: 2px;
}

/* ✅ Or custom focus styles */
button:focus-visible {
  box-shadow: 0 0 0 3px rgba(0, 95, 204, 0.5);
}

Skip links (2.4.1)

<body>
  <a href="#main-content" class="skip-link">Skip to main content</a>
  <header><!-- navigation --></header>
  <main id="main-content" tabindex="-1">
    <!-- main content -->
  </main>
</body>

.skip-link {
  position: absolute;
  top: -40px;
  left: 0;
  background: #000;
  color: #fff;
  padding: 8px 16px;
  z-index: 100;
}

.skip-link:focus {
  top: 0;
}

Motion (2.3)

/* Respect reduced motion preference */
@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
  *,
  *::before,
  *::after {
    animation-duration: 0.01ms !important;
    animation-iteration-count: 1 !important;
    transition-duration: 0.01ms !important;
    scroll-behavior: auto !important;
  }
}

---

Understandable

Page language (3.1.1)

<!-- ❌ No language specified -->
<html>

<!-- ✅ Language specified -->
<html lang="en">

Form labels (3.3.2)

<!-- ❌ No label association -->
<input type="email" placeholder="Email">

<!-- ✅ Explicit label -->
<label for="email">Email address</label>
<input type="email" id="email" name="email" 
       autocomplete="email" required>

<!-- ✅ With instructions -->
<label for="password">Password</label>
<input type="password" id="password" 
       aria-describedby="password-requirements">
<p id="password-requirements">
  Must be at least 8 characters with one number.
</p>

Error handling (3.3.1, 3.3.3)

<!-- Announce errors to screen readers -->
<form novalidate>
  <div class="field" aria-live="polite">
    <label for="email">Email</label>
    <input type="email" id="email" 
           aria-invalid="true"
           aria-describedby="email-error">
    <p id="email-error" class="error" role="alert">
      Please enter a valid email address (e.g., [e-mail])
    </p>
  </div>
</form>

---

Robust

Valid HTML (4.1.1)

<!-- ❌ Duplicate IDs -->
<div id="content">...</div>
<div id="content">...</div>

<!-- ✅ Unique IDs -->
<div id="main-content">...</div>
<div id="sidebar-content">...</div>

ARIA usage (4.1.2)

Prefer native elements:

<!-- ❌ ARIA role on div -->
<div role="button" tabindex="0">Click me</div>

<!-- ✅ Native button -->
<button>Click me</button>

When ARIA is needed:

<!-- Custom tabs component -->
<div role="tablist" aria-label="Map filters">
  <button role="tab" id="tab-1" aria-selected="true" 
          aria-controls="panel-1">Countries</button>
  <button role="tab" id="tab-2" aria-selected="false" 
          aria-controls="panel-2" tabindex="-1">Cities</button>
</div>

Live regions (4.1.3)

<!-- Status updates -->
<div aria-live="polite" aria-atomic="true" class="status">
  <!-- Content updates announced to screen readers -->
</div>

<!-- Urgent alerts -->
<div role="alert" aria-live="assertive">
  <!-- Interrupts current announcement -->
</div>

// Announce dynamic content changes
const showNotification = (message, type = 'polite') => {
  const container = document.getElementById(`${type}-announcer`);
  container.textContent = ''; // Clear first
  requestAnimationFrame(() => {
    container.textContent = message;
  });
};

---

StarMapper-specific notes

• MapLibre canvas: the map itself is not keyboard-navigable (known limitation). Add an accessible text description of what the map shows.
• Popups: MapLibre popups injected via innerHTML must sanitize content. Use textContent for user-provided data (location strings, usernames).
• Progress indicators: chunk loop progress bar must announce % loaded to screen readers via aria-valuenow + aria-valuemin + aria-valuemax.
• Token modal: focus must be trapped within the modal when open. Escape closes it.
• Unmapped drawer: animate with transform, respect prefers-reduced-motion.
• Filter combobox: follows ARIA combobox pattern — role="combobox", aria-expanded, aria-controls.

---

Testing checklist

Automated testing

# Lighthouse accessibility audit
npx lighthouse https://starmapper.bruniaux.com --only-categories=accessibility

# axe-core
npm install @axe-core/cli -g
axe https://starmapper.bruniaux.com

Manual testing

• Keyboard navigation: Tab through entire page, use Enter/Space to activate
• Screen reader: Test with VoiceOver (Mac) or NVDA (Windows)
• Zoom: Content usable at 200% zoom
• Reduced motion: Test with prefers-reduced-motion: reduce
• Focus order: Logical and follows visual order

---

Common issues by impact

Critical (fix immediately)

1. Missing form labels
2. Missing image alt text
3. Insufficient color contrast
4. Keyboard traps
5. No focus indicators

Serious (fix before launch)

1. Missing page language
2. Missing heading structure
3. Non-descriptive link text
4. Missing skip links

Moderate (fix soon)

1. Missing ARIA labels on icons
2. Missing error identification
3. Missing landmark regions

References

• WCAG 2.1 Quick Reference
• WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices
• Deque axe Rules
• Web Quality Audit