Our Application Process, Tips and Deadlines | Lehigh University

Maps & Directions | Lehigh University

Jobs - Build your Career at Lehigh | Lehigh University

File Not Found (404 Error Page) | Lehigh University

Faculty at Lehigh | Lehigh University

Explore Lehigh | Lehigh University

Academics | Lehigh University

University Leadership | Lehigh University

Events & Venues | Lehigh University

Lehigh History & Our Founder, Asa Packer | Lehigh University

Two adjacent links should not point to the same destination. You almost always want to combine the 
two links.

For example, it is quite common to link an image and text together like this:

```html
<a href="news.html">
    <img src="photo.jpg" alt="" />
</a>
<a href="news.html">
    News
</a>
``` 

These adjacent links should be combined like so:

```html
<a href="news.html">
    <img src="photo.jpg" alt="" />
    News
</a>
``` 

Links to `#` are ignored, as these are nearly always placeholders for JavaScript, e.g.:

```html
<a href="#" onclick="approve()">
    OK
</a>
<a href="#" onclick="reject()">
    Cancel
</a>
```

# Justification

Many users of assistive technology are only able to experience content sequentially - that is, they must
step through each part of the page, one part at a time. Often this is a slow process, potentially 
hampered by a physical impediment.

Stepping through redundant links is time consuming; for example users of a screen reader must 
hear each link read aloud in turn. 

This also simplifies your code. 

# Methodology

1. Find all links (`<a>` tags) on the page.
2. Ignore links pointing to `#`, as these are usually placeholders for JavaScript.
3. Flag links which are (a) separated only by whitespace and (b) which point to the 
   same absolute URL.  

# Learn more

Read about [Technique H2](https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG20-TECHS/H2) on how to combine
an adjacent image and texts links.

duplicate-adjacent-link

February 2026

January 2026

Lehigh University

	Title / URL	Issues
	Our Application Process, Tips and Deadlines \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/admissions/apply	14
	Maps & Directions \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/about/maps-directions	14
	Jobs - Build your Career at Lehigh \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/about/jobs	14
	File Not Found (404 Error Page) \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/invented-url-for-404-page	14
	Faculty at Lehigh \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/academics/faculty	14
	Explore Lehigh \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/admissions/explore-lehigh	14
	Academics \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/academics	14
	University Leadership \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/about/university-leadership	14
	Events & Venues \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/about/events-venues	14
	Lehigh History & Our Founder, Asa Packer \| Lehigh Universitywww2.lehigh.edu/about/history	14

Combine adjacent links with the same destination

Lehigh University

Where this issue has occurred