Subway and bus travel can be unreliable and sometimes inaccessible for people with disabilities… [+] hindrance.
Getty
Have you traveled recently? I did last week. I noticed that the travel industry is in what’s called the “Mullet Stage” of accessibility reform. That’s right, it’s stuck in the 80s. Transportation in general seems to need the most improvement: airlines, buses, subways, rideshares, and rail. On the positive side, it seems like the big family attractions and destinations and big corporate hotels are leading the way. How are they able to lead the way while others are lagging behind? Mostly by making simple changes.
Equipping staff with new skills, such as autism training, plays a big role. Technology upgrades are also important: Many conference and performance centers are now standard on installing closed-captioning screens in meeting rooms and connecting hearing loops, allowing people who use hearing aids to hear lectures and performances more clearly.
Most adaptations start with an epiphany, and a trip to Chicago last week gave me one. I write about disabilities in the workplace for a living, so accessibility modifications seem like a given to me. But what about the average person who works in the travel industry? This is entirely new territory.
For business owners, this may be a surprising fact: People with disabilities are the largest minority in the United States. The disability travel market is growing 22% annually, and Chicago nonprofit Open Doors estimates that in a two-year period (2014-2016), people with disabilities took 73 million business and leisure trips. And that doesn’t even include the Baby Boomer generation of travelers who have reluctantly joined us as they’ve gotten older.
But accessibility revamps aren’t something that happens as part of a regular business refresh. If accessibility is everyone’s job, there’s a good chance it will fail, because no one feels responsible for getting the job done. So the most common question we get from business owners about accessibility is, “Where do I start?”
Here’s my advice to people with disabilities: Start by talking to travelers with disabilities and finding out about the common obstacles they face. Set measurable goals and hold people accountable to them. This is basic business strategy 101, but somehow progress has been incredibly slow when it comes to serving customers with disabilities. Accessibility is the law. I’m not being sarcastic at all. As a person with a disability, I’m baffled that a law passed in this country nearly 30 years ago, the Americans with Disabilities Act, is still considered “sort of, maybe, sometimes” enforceable.
These are ideas from experts in both the disability and travel industries.
If you work in the travel industry, take pride in being a resource. Find out how other hotels are remodeling their meeting spaces or how popular destinations are training their staff on the basics of supporting families with autistic children of all ages (Jet Blue, Sandals Resorts, Universal Studios Theme Parks are just a few examples). Help your employees to be lifelong learners. That way, no matter how long they’ve worked for you, they’re ready for change and hopefully looking forward to it. Suggest basic etiquette for helping people with visible and invisible disabilities. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you’ll see more accessible opportunities. Whether you’re designing rooms or programs for children in the travel industry, test before you propose it. Usability testing by someone with experience can make the difference between a real solution and one that seems like an afterthought. For travel agents, there are a variety of certifications available for agents who want to specialize in disability-friendly vacations. But don’t be fooled by online offers to get certified. A travel agent who is a certified disability agent, an autism-friendly agent, or an accessible travel specialist may not be more qualified to help than someone who has been planning tours for people with mobility issues for 30 years. Both can be useful resources. Do the right thing. Go beyond compliance. If part of your job is to help someone truly enjoy their trip, stop thinking about budgets and numbers for a moment. Learn more about the lives of people with different abilities. Often it’s the smallest things that make the biggest difference. There’s an example that always makes me smile. Wheelchair-bound people traveling in the UK can literally get the keys to the (accessible) kingdom, thanks to RADAR (Royal Association for the Rights of People with Disabilities). For about $10, the organization will mail you a royal blue key that gives you independent access to more than 9,000 accessible toilets in the UK. Don’t think that making your business accessible is completely done, especially when it comes to technology. But don’t think that you have to do it alone, either. Again, ask the experts – disabled people who travel. It is much more satisfying to work together than to work around people with disabilities. There are services such as peatworks.org and traveltripper.com that can provide advice on staying up to date on web accessibility. Finally, some advice to baggage handlers who deal with wheelchairs and mobility scooters: Stop for a moment and think before you act. Wheelchairs break at an incredibly high rate. Thousands of wheelchairs and scooters are damaged every year. Travelers with disabilities say it is hard to choose between the expense of repairing a wheelchair and the inconvenience of being without one for weeks, especially while on vacation. To hold airlines accountable for damages, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) has sponsored a bill requiring airlines to submit monthly damage reports.
On a recent trip, I watched an annoyed airline baggage handler treat a wheelchair like an ambulance. Later, at a hotel, I watched a concierge struggle to give directions to a person in a wheelchair as he tried to make himself heard through a marble wall (or desk). I struggled not to yell, “Get outta my desk!” On a return trip, the attendant at the long-term parking lot I used looked surprised when I asked him to help me move my car. To me, the spot seemed just big enough for two adult tricycles. I also needed help because my learning disability includes a total inability to determine where things are in space.
In these three cases, the best response would have been to slow down and look for alternatives.
Throughout my pregnancy, I would often remark to my partner that I saw pregnant women everywhere – I had no idea so many women were pregnant at the same time. He kindly explained that maybe he was paying more attention to my pregnancy because he was thinking about it. The same goes for accessibility. As I find out about my learning disability and write about disability in the workplace, I believe there is room for accessibility adjustments everywhere – and I think you will too.