Making Connections

Co-design with disabled people

Many journeys rely on people changing from one transport service to another. We often need to make connections between buses and trains, or trains and taxis. Navigating these connections can be challenging, especially for disabled people who experience barriers to travelling easily.

Making Connections: the spaces in between, brought together transport operators, designers, people with dementia, disabled and Deaf people to explore a process for improving connections between train stations and ferry terminals in Scotland. To make travel easier for everyone.

Working together we followed a co-design process of research workshops and live ‘walk-throughs’. We brought people together on journeys, recording barriers along the way such as difficult environments, lack of information, noisy spaces, anxious road-crossings. This allowed us all to reflect on the stories and challenges from that shared experience, and collaborate in design workshops to develop recommendations for improvement.

The film below shows an overview of the project – made by Flux Video, it provides an alternative to a traditional project report by using sound and visual content that’s understandable and accessible to all.

Making Connections was led by Andy Hyde of Go Upstream, and funded by Transport Scotland. Disabled passengers were involved throughout the entire process of the project, contributing vital insights from lived experience.