Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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Hi, /r/Blind! Does anyone ride buses regularly in the Boston area? (self.Blind)
submitted 7y ago by literallyARockStar
Hi, there. I'm a human-computer interaction graduate student at DePaul University, and I'm currently taking a course on accessible design. As part of my class, I'm in a group that's conducting a pre-design exploration of how people with visual impairments interact with public bus systems in their communities.
I'm looking to interview someone in the Boston area who has a visual impairment and regularly (at least once per month and twelve times per year) rides MBTA buses. Preferably, this would be done in person, though I can make Skype or phone calls work, too. It should take no longer than 45 minutes, and there's also a quick survey associated with it, too.
If you're interested, give me a shout! Reddit's fine, but you can also email me at maxwell.bridges@gmail.com. Thanks for your time!
I'm looking to interview someone in the Boston area who has a visual impairment and regularly (at least once per month and twelve times per year) rides MBTA buses. Preferably, this would be done in person, though I can make Skype or phone calls work, too. It should take no longer than 45 minutes, and there's also a quick survey associated with it, too.
If you're interested, give me a shout! Reddit's fine, but you can also email me at maxwell.bridges@gmail.com. Thanks for your time!
0mgitsrachel 2 points
Public transit in Baltimore is pretty awful. I take uber exclusively.
geoffisblind 2 points
I would probably post to /r/Boston as well if you haven't already, you'd probably have an easier time finding someone there or someone who knows a visually impaired person who can help you. I could give you information on riding public transit regularly as a bus commuter but not as a Boston/ MBTA specific commuter.
literallyARockStar [OP] 1 points
Thanks! I did that, and actually might've found someone to talk to.
Out of curiosity, whereabout do you ride? Do you find it to be an okay experience, overall?
Out of curiosity, whereabout do you ride? Do you find it to be an okay experience, overall?
geoffisblind 2 points
I live in St. Louis, Missouri. Public transit has gotten much better but it is subject to bickering between municipal governments that has prevented further expansion of the rail system for years. Buses average about 30 minutes per connection which means if one bus is off you are stuck for a while. The operators seem pretty understanding of disability issues for the most part but on more than one occasion I've had a driver forget to let me off where I asked them to. In addition I've had drivers make assumptions about my abilities and tell me they won't let me off at a certain place, even if it is a sanctioned stop. This actually happened to me on Tuesday, I was riding in a part of the city I'm not normally in to go visit someone in the hospital, I asked the driver to let me off at an intersection to connect with the line that went to the hospital and he told me that he didn't feel comfortable letting me crossing that street with my visual impairment and that he would let me off further down where he was more comfortable doing so. Which is great, but it's not what I asked him to do and it was kind of insulting. This is aside from the fact that I missed my connection and had to wait for 30 minutes on the side of the road for the next bus.
The other issue I've had is a lack of modern integration, it seems like all of the decently sized cities in the US are getting some kind of smart card system to pay for transit easily, we haven't got that yet except for disposable, flimsy monthly passes that can be swiped. The project is underway but behind schedule from what I understand.
My last problem is with fellow riders, people really like to try to help me without announcing that they are doing so. Getting grabbed is an issue for me, but that's more of a social issue than a bus issue, I just notice it mostly when I'm riding.
So yeah, that's my experience. I'd like to move to either Seattle or Chicago to continue my education within the next year so I'm excited about having a more robust public transit system available.
The other issue I've had is a lack of modern integration, it seems like all of the decently sized cities in the US are getting some kind of smart card system to pay for transit easily, we haven't got that yet except for disposable, flimsy monthly passes that can be swiped. The project is underway but behind schedule from what I understand.
My last problem is with fellow riders, people really like to try to help me without announcing that they are doing so. Getting grabbed is an issue for me, but that's more of a social issue than a bus issue, I just notice it mostly when I'm riding.
So yeah, that's my experience. I'd like to move to either Seattle or Chicago to continue my education within the next year so I'm excited about having a more robust public transit system available.
homeschooled 1 points
Every blind person I know (including my SO) uses the paratransit system. Boston has one http://www.mbta.com/riding_the_t/accessible_services/?id=7108
I think you would be hard pressed to add accessibility features to make a bus system safe and do-able for your average blind person. I don't mean to be discouraging or anything, just my honest feedback.
I think you would be hard pressed to add accessibility features to make a bus system safe and do-able for your average blind person. I don't mean to be discouraging or anything, just my honest feedback.
literallyARockStar [OP] 1 points
That makes sense! I'm hoping for a stroke of luck, anyhow.
I do think making bus transit truly accessible is a challenging proposition. My group is inspired by $1. Most solutions I've seen are imperfect or prohibitively expensive. It's a tough nut to crack.
I do think making bus transit truly accessible is a challenging proposition. My group is inspired by $1. Most solutions I've seen are imperfect or prohibitively expensive. It's a tough nut to crack.
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