South West Transit Association

One of the most important variables for effectively utilizing public transit is the availability, accessibility, and usability of the information needed to navigate to, from, and within the public transit network. As a result, transit agencies invest a tremendous level of effort and resources designing transit facilities, shelters, stops, signage, and other assets to be as accessible, intuitive and easy for people to use as possible. But what happens when a passenger has a physical disability that requires the use of a mobility device, or a visual impairment that precludes the use of traditional signage, or a hearing impairment that renders audio announcements inaudible, or some other physical or intellectual disability that makes it difficult to complete a long journey through a complex multi-modal transit facility? How can we serve the wayfinding needs of this larger group of passengers, many of whom need and want to use transit as much as anyone? The goal of this workshop is to explore this question, and perhaps, surface some ideas for answering it.

First, participants will be introduced to some of the challenges people with disabilities face when attempting to use transit stations, stops, signage, mobile apps, and other assets. Then, we will explore an array of physical, technical, and operational approaches for addressing those challenges.

Next, we will take a walking tour to the nearby Ft. Worth Central Station, a multimodal transit facility serving Amtrak, Trinity Railway Express, TEXRail, Trinity Metro buses and trains, and a host of other micromobility services, where we will have the opportunity to evaluate this modern, multimodal station from the perspective of passengers with disabilities who may face different challenges when navigating within complex pedestrian spaces.

This workshop will conclude back at the hotel, where we will spend some time debriefing our walking tour, and discussing how our observations of Central Station might inform the way we look at the accessibility of the transit facilities where we each live and work.