Since January, C-TRAN has partnered with Next Stop Mobility Coalition (NSMC) to take a deep dive into one of the most important aspects of any transit system: accessibility. NSMC is a group of graduate students from Portland State University’s (PSU) Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP) program who are creating C-TRAN’s Bus Stop Accessibility Action Plan. Through this partnership, the students have had the opportunity to put their theoretical knowledge to work and transform it into real-life results. In return, C-TRAN has the privilege to put these results into action that will benefit passengers for years to come. Accessibility is an ever-evolving goal, however, this work by NSMC is a catalyst for meaningful forward momentum for Clark County and beyond.

No one is better suited to tell NSMC’s story than the students themselves. We’re delighted to collaborate on this post with contributing author Michelle Auster to share more about the process and outcome of creating the Bus Stop Accessibility Action Plan.

By Michelle Auster, contributing author

When you think about riding the bus, you probably think about the experience of being onboard while the driver takes you where you want to go. Before you even board, actually getting yourself to the bus stop, waiting at it, and getting off the bus at another stop are all part of the experience. Many of these aspects—such as missing or uneven sidewalks, no shelter structure, or a lack of seating—occur at the bus stop itself or on the path leading to it. These can all be major barriers to riding the bus, yet today, 33% of C-TRAN bus stops still do not meet ADA-accessible standards. These gaps can be barriers or challenges to all riders, especially people with disabilities or mobility challenges, even when bus service is frequent and dependable.

Accessible bus stops are the foundation of a safe, reliable, and equitable transit network, and C-TRAN has made a commitment to improve bus stop accessibility across its entire network. However, bringing a third of bus stops to this standard (283 of them, to be exact) is a lot of work. The unfortunate reality is that such a large effort can’t all happen at once. Before C-TRAN staff could decide where and how to act first, they had to identify:

• Where the most inaccessible bus stops are;
• What specific things make them inaccessible (beyond minimum ADA standards);
• What amenities or features do C-TRAN riders want for better accessibility; and
• Where improvements to bus stop accessibility would have the biggest benefits.

With that in mind, our group of urban planning graduate students set out to help C-TRAN create a Bus Stop Accessibility Action Plan. This plan needed to include a new tool for assessing accessibility at every bus stop, a long-term strategy for improvements and investments, and above all, clear and thorough feedback from you: C-TRAN’s community of riders.

Learning from you first

The first phase of our work was about listening and learning. We first met C-TRAN’s  Community Advisory Committee (CCAC) to hear their thoughts on important destinations, common accessibility challenges, and the best ways to get in touch with C-TRAN riders. We also met with a handful of other transit agencies across the country to understand how other communities plan for improvements to bus stop accessibility, and what lessons we could bring back for C-TRAN.

Based on this feedback, we collected data to understand what the reality on the ground is like for accessibility at every bus stop in C-TRAN’s network. We took this early data to local organizations that do incredible work to support people with various challenges and disabilities. We met with Washington State School for the Blind, Fourth Plain Forward, Community in Motion, and PEACE NW, who all helped paint a clearer picture of the barriers C-TRAN riders face in accessibility.

Next, we sent a survey to C-TRAN riders to get their input on what improvements they wanted most for better accessibility and a better overall experience at bus stops. The survey was available in English and Spanish. You may have seen a notification for our survey in the Transit app, talked to one of us at a bus stop, or seen it advertised through an email list. To those who took it—thank you! Between these listening sessions, interviews, and survey responses, here are some things we heard that stood out most:

“For any stops with no bench, that means there is no accessibility at all. It doesn't matter if there is a concrete pad."

“Good lighting is important at any stop, but it’s not always there. Blind or low-vision people may assume the driver will see the passenger, but they could be obscured and not know it, so we often tell passengers to wear bright clothing or turn their phone flashlight on.”

“I can deal with the rain, but the heat is really a problem, and I’m sure it’s even worse for people with disabilities. It makes it discouraging for people to ride the bus.”

 
After all this, our team finally drafted a preliminary prioritization matrix and strategy for continued bus stop accessibility improvements. We didn’t want to finalize it before we made sure this tool truly met the accessibility needs of C-TRAN’s riders, though. We took this first draft plan back to the CCAC, as well as other community partners and committees, to get their recommendations on adjustments. After several months of intense data crunching, meetings, community analysis, and more data crunching, we gave C-TRAN the final Bus Stop Accessibility Action Plan.

A long-term investment strategy

We were honored to do this work for C-TRAN. We spoke with so many incredible transit riders, community workers, volunteers, and staff, who we all learned so much from. You were our guides in this project. What you shared about your needs in bus stop accessibility helped us collect better data and apply it in a more holistic way. Your priorities as C-TRAN riders are what make up the heart of the Bus Stop Accessibility Action Plan, which will be C-TRAN’s first long-term vision and strategy dedicated to bus stop accessibility. Thank you for everything you shared, and we can’t wait to see what’s next. 

With gratitude,
Grace Alston, Michelle Auster, Zoe Beckley, Noah Crawford, Ryan Gallo, and Angelique Wallmann, Masters of Urban and Regional Planning and fans of C-TRAN