Testing Auracast to improve public transport

For millions of people who are deaf or have hearing loss, missing a station announcement can turn a simple journey into a stressful experience.

In March 2026, funded by the Motability Foundation, we carried out testing at a train station that showed how Auracast can significantly improve accessibility of railway announcements. This offers important lessons for organisations designing inclusive customer experiences.

The challenge: public transport is not accessible

Public transport is an essential part of people’s lives yet for more than 18 million people across the UK who are deaf, have hearing loss, and tinnitus it can be a significant challenge.

Many people struggle to get the travel and safety information they need. This can increase anxiety and stress, lower confidence, and even lead to people avoiding public transport altogether.

I have found myself on the wrong train travelling in completely the wrong direction because I have missed announcements. I am nervous to travel on trains alone” – Female hearing aid wearer, 35-44

There’s been times when I’ve been dependent on fellow passengers. I’ve heard enough on a train or something to know that the whole service has been disrupted, but not what they have suggested or where you go” – Male hearing aid wearer, 55-64

These challenges are not unique to transport and can happen in any service using audio, particularly those using public address systems.

The opportunity: Auracast improves access for deaf people

Auracast is a Bluetooth technology that enables venues, such as train stations, to broadcast audio directly into people’s hearing aids, cochlear implants, or headphones.

This means people can use their own devices to hear audio more clearly.

What we did

We tested Auracast at Bristol Temple Meads railway station to understand how people find, connect to and use the technology in real conditions, to learn what works well and what potential improvements are needed.

We invited ten people, with a mix of genders, ages, and hearing aids and cochlear implants to use Auracast in quiet conditions and in a noisy station environment and then spoke to them about their experiences.

Only one person already had Auracast built into their hearing device. Everyone else was loaned either a neckloop receiver or a smartphone dongle receiver to test Auracast.

Testing focused on:

• What helps or makes it harder for people to use Auracast
• How easy Auracast is to use in an urban train station
• Whether Auracast fits with people’s travel routines and the technology they already use

Key findings

Overall experience

Participants found the audio announcements in the train station substantially clearer and easier to understand when listening to the Auracast audio.

In contrast, most participants could not understand the announcements when listening to the PA system without Auracast.

My experience on my platform was second to none with the announcements… I could not hear a word from the announcements without Auracast, but as soon as Auracast was connected and those two beeps started for the announcement, it was amazing.

It was clear, it was crystal clear, it was no latency on it. There were no concerns with regards to what I was hearing, and I actually felt quite relaxed on the platform” – Male cochlear implant wearer, 45-54

Where improvements were suggested , these related to the implementation of Auracast such as making it easier to find and connect to an Auracast broadcast, and balancing the audio between the Auracast broadcast and sounds picked up by the hearing device microphones.

What people value

Participants valued that Auracast could make train stations less stressful and tiring by making announcements easier to understand. People also liked that they could freely move around the platform and did not have to stand in one place to hear announcements.

A railway station platform is a particularly bad place for me to hear anything. But I did find that today with the Auracast announcements, they were pretty much clear as a bell” – Male hearing aid wearer, 65-74

I found Auracast much, much clearer than listening to the general announcements that are muffled and you only pick up every few words” – Female hearing aid wearer, 45-54

What to consider when designing accessible services

Auracast could improve travel for anyone who uses a hearing device, including headphones and earbuds.

For people who are deaf or have hearing loss, participants shared their views on how to make sure the technology is easy to use and helpful when travelling by train.

Train operators

• Include information about Auracast and how to use it on website
• Install signage in carriage and stations, so people know it is available
• Use an audio alert at the start of all announcements to help people distinguish between an announcement and a conversation
• Ensure adequate coverage of Auracast within a space, and use it on trains and stations, especially when information is not displayed visually

Technology developers

• Design user interfaces so people feel condiment they are connected to an Auracast stream and know if the connection is dropped
• Integrate Auracast controls within existing hearing aid and cochlear implant controls and smartphone apps
• Make the user experience frictionless

Audiologists

• Enable the T+M loop setting so people can use this to balance the audio more easily when using Auracast via a neckloop receiver