Information and communication
Access to information is essential for using public transport, including finding and understanding timetables, buying tickets, and accessing real-time information while travelling.
Deaf people and people with hearing loss cannot access this information when it is provided solely in audio format. Visual displays are valuable for multiple user groups, but particularly for people who have limited or no access to audio information. For example, if there were no visual displays on buses, 23% of disabled people and 19% of people who are not disabled would find it difficult to impossible to use buses (Bromley et al., 2024).
The level of difficulty a person experiences will depend on their level of hearing, and the speed and quality of the audio broadcast (Almoshaogeh et al. 2025, Bigby et al. 2019, Department for Transport 2015, Mindell et al. 2025, Wagner et al. 2024). When announcements are unclear or absent, it creates a “pervasive sense of uncertainty and frustration” for disabled travellers (Motability 2025).
31% of young disabled people cited “clear and accurate information” as the key to accessible transport (Motability 2025), and disabled people who are satisfied with information provided at bus stops are more likely to be satisfied with bus travel overall (Verbich and El-Geneidy 2016).
Using public transport makes me feel nervous and worried that I might miss changes. It reminds me that I have a “hidden handicap” and I feel vulnerable. […] Very often it is announcements of change for trains that I miss. Announcements are made over the Public Address system, which is inaudible to me as a hearing aid user, or the T-coil system may be available (by signage) but is not being operated by the staff or not working.”
– RNID storyteller Steve
Access to information is also affected by the physical environment and transport infrastructure. Loud background noise, for example in large train stations or at busy times of day, may make it harder to hear audio announcements, as does low-quality audio (Almoshaogeh et al. 2025, Fürst and Vogelauer 2011, Orcyzk and Młodystach 2022). Travelling at different times of day or year may also bring variation related to how busy it is, whether enough staff are available, and how easy it is to see signs from inside buses and trains (Mindell et al. 2024, Tessier et al. 2024).
The challenges people face depend on personal circumstances and preferences. For example, it is especially challenging for deafblind people when multiple buses arrive at once or stop in a slightly different place every time (Hersh et al. 2016), and some hearing aid users may avoid noisier times of day such as when there are a lot of school children on the bus (Bromley et al. 2024).
However, not providing visual displays is likely to affect a range of people, including people with hearing loss, people with other disabilities, and people without disabilities (Bromley et al. 2024), demonstrating their importance to transport users.
Once I was waiting at the platform and my train disappeared off the screen. There was an announcement over the tannoy, which I couldn’t understand, but I watched in horror as most of the people waiting on the platform suddenly left.
I asked someone in the crowd what was happening, but I couldn’t understand her either, and there were no signs or main screens to check on the platform. I followed everyone going downstairs and finally found the platform where my train had arrived, but it was too late… it left before I could reach it.”
– RNID storyteller Emily
However, the simple presence of visual displays does not indicate that information is fully accessible. Research suggests that visual displays do not always offer the same information available through audio formats, especially with unexpected real-time information, such as in an emergency (Almoshaogeh et al. 2025). Visual displays may also not have accessible language, or be unclear due to font size, visual ‘noise’, and poor light and positioning (Aarhaug and Elvebakk 2015, Age Cymru 2013, Hersh, 2016, Młodystach et al. 2023, Nielsen and Landa-Mata, 2025).
For example, train infrastructure in the South West of the UK was found to have small, hidden signage with poor lighting, alongside inconsistent and sometimes inaudible audio announcements (Musselwhite and Roberts 2021). This is likely to be a particular problem for people who are deafblind, and deaf people and people with hearing loss with other disabilities or long-term conditions, such as wheelchair users.
In emergencies, barriers to information access include broken or unusable service hotlines, elevators with audio-only information feeds, and a lack of visual alerts for disruptions, emergency alerts, and alarms (Fürst and Vogelauer 2011, Młodystach et al. 2023).
It is evident that there are problems preventing equitable access to information on UK public transport. However, it is neither possible to generalise these issues across all transport systems, nor to identify how experiences differ between modes of transport. More research is needed to identify the prevalence and severity of these barriers.