What is it about?

This paper presents a data review conducted as part of a larger study commissioned by the Queensland Government in Australia. The overall study focuses on improving transportation and mobility access for people with disabilities by developing design principles for future autonomous vehicles. Existing research points to the disadvantage faced by people with disabilities, including lack of mobility, social inclusion, and violation of human rights due to poor transportation design. An autonomous future has the potential to provide accessible transport, leading to improved access to medical care, employment, social inclusion, and safety. The data review identifies key information for accessible AVs, such as wheeled mobility user anthropometric percentiles, clear floor space requirements, recommended ramp angles, interior layout configurations, and door dimensions. However, there is a need for further research into collaborative design prototyping, analysis of standards, and current design best practices. The review, alongside the larger ongoing research, aims to provide a comprehensive set of design principles for an automated vehicle that caters to the diverse needs of people with disabilities. The review concludes by discussing clusters of information identified, gaps in data, and opportunities for further research.

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Why is it important?

Everyone has a right to appropriate access to transportation. The cumulative disadvantage faced by people with disabilities to transportation has a detrimental effect on their physical, financial, health, and emotional well-being and has negative effects on the broader community. Barriers to freedom of movement for PwDs violate human rights and impact dignity and inclusion in society. Providing appropriate access to mobility for PwDs could lead to effective access to medical care, employment, greater social inclusion, and improved safety, which would lead to multiple benefits for people with disabilities and to the community at large.

Perspectives

This article identifies areas that require further study that may lead to advances and improved design standards for vehicles that are inclusive of all users, including people with disabilities. Improved access to mobility for all has the potential for more inclusive, equitable and satisfied communities.

Rafael Gomez
Queensland University of Technology

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: On the Road to Enhancing Transportation Access for People with Disabilities: A Data Review of Accessible Autonomous Vehicles Research, September 2023, ACM (Association for Computing Machinery),
DOI: 10.1145/3581961.3609867.
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