Inclusive design explored at Transport Design Forum

Inclusive public transport design was at the heart of the recent Transport Design Forum 2025 event.

Held in London, the event was hosted by transport flooring specialist Altro, in collaboration with Autoglym, Camira and Autistica. A major focus was the need and opportunity for truly inclusive public transport design for neurodivergent individuals.

Altro says an estimated 15% identify as neurodivergent in the UK. Speakers at the Transport Design Forum underscored the importance of moving beyond traditional accessibility models to address often ‘invisible’ sensory and cognitive challenges.

Key discussions and insights from the forum included:

• The Accessibility Iceberg: A powerful concept illustrating that while physical mobility impairments are often visible, sensory (sight, hearing, touch, smell, temperature) and cognitive (memory, communication, problem-solving, emotional state, recognition) challenges represent a vast, unseen majority of accessibility needs that public transport must address.
• Barriers to Travel Identified: Research from Bus Users UK and Autistica revealed significant barriers preventing neurodivergent individuals from using public transport, including sensory overload (91% impacted by noise), the behaviour of other service users (85% impacted), and the sheer effort and energy required for journeys (83% impacted). Restricted space and challenging staff attitudes were also highlighted as major concerns.
• Community-Driven Solutions: The neurodivergent community’s top priorities for improvement include real-time travel apps with walkthroughs and personalised updates, vehicle and transition zone designs that better support sensory loads, and comprehensive neurodiversity awareness training for all transport service staff.
• Universal Design Philosophy: The forum championed universal design, demonstrating how features initially conceived to overcome specific barriers – like automatic doors or rolling luggage – ultimately improve life for everyone. “Neuroinclusivity isn’t a design feature to add later – it’s a design foundation to build upon from the start,” stated Altro’s Chris Edwards-Thorne.
• Introducing the ‘Universal Bus’: German design house Neomind unveiled a visionary concept for a ‘Universal Bus’ designed for everyone, featuring distinct quiet, family and priority spaces, enhanced passenger information screens, and thoughtful material choices for aspects such as improved acoustics.

Speakers from Autistica and Floyd Slaski further delved into the intricacies of neurodivergence, emphasising that it is a spectrum and that inclusive design must consider varied sensory processing differences. They provided practical architectural and interior design considerations, such as appropriate chroma in colour palettes, naturalistic geometries, multi-sensory wayfinding and logical hierarchies of atmosphere.

Chris Edwards-Thorne said: “This forum marked a pivotal moment in acknowledging the vast neurodivergent community and the critical need to design public transport that genuinely serves ‘for all,’ as the word ‘bus’ (from omnibus) truly implies. The insights shared, particularly the direct feedback from the neurodivergent community, will guide our collective efforts to build more welcoming, less stressful, and truly accessible transport systems.”