| Description: | This project organized and developed a comprehensive evidence base on boarding and disembarking public transit vehicles, completed research to address key policy and design issues, and identified new research needs. The IDeA Center, as part of the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Accessible Public Transportation (RERC-APT), conducted laboratory research on the usability of access ramps in transit applications by employing a full-scale simulation of a low-floor transit bus and an adjustable ramp. One study evaluated the usability of ramps of different slopes during ascent and descent. The second study focused on the ease of boarding, fare payment and disembarking under different conditions of fare payment and available floor space at the front area of a low-floor bus. The data collected in this study established a model for evidence-based practice in this field for the development of policies, standards and design tools. This project was part of a larger effort to research and develop methods to empower consumers and service providers in the design and evaluation of accessible transportation equipment, information services and physical environments. Data collected in this project was used to design and evaluate vehicle features, boarding technologies and design of stops and stations. Research on the anthropometry of wheeled mobility devices and their users indicated that current dimensions prescribed in U.S. accessibility standards for transportation are inadequate, e.g. clear floor area and ramp slope. The researchers included these findings when they submitted comments in response to the U.S. Access Board’s proposal to revise and update its accessibility guidelines for buses, over-the-road buses and vans. Findings from the research were also used to provide the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA) with recommendations for new bus designs; two of these recommendations were incorporated in two new buses. |
| Project/Activity Leader(s): | Ed Steinfeld, SUNY Distinguished Professor, Professor in Department of Architecture and Director, Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access (IDeA) |
| Unit: | School of Architecture and Planning |
| Department: | Architecture |
| City: | Buffalo |
| State: | NY |
| Country: | United States |
| External Funding: | Yes |
| Funding Source: | National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services |
| Start Date: | 2008-10 |
| End Date: | 2013-09 |
| Internal Partners: | Rehabilitation Science, School of Public Health and Health Professions; Industrial and Systems Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences |
| External Partners: | Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA) |
| Are UB students involved? | Yes |
