# Accessibility Isn’t Special Treatment — It’s Good Design ## What two fellow passengers taught me about design oversights in experience Published [[2025-07-21]] on [Idea Waypoints](https://substack.com/@ideawaypoints/note/p-168855255) --- It was a typical late train ride home. Inside the GO Transit car, everything was brightly lit as we sped along the tracks. Outside, the night was dark, and the streetlights were on throughout the suburban landscape. I had taken this train hundreds of times. But the couple who sat across the aisle weren't regular riders. Each time the train pulled into a station, they peered out the window, scanning the platform to get a sense of where they were. I could see their growing discomfort. They were disoriented, uncertain of where they were along their journey home. Eventually, I struck up a conversation, and discovered that they were deaf. They hadn't been able to hear the station announcements, and the GO Train doesn't have any onboard real-time indicators for where we are. The only indicator for them was the station name mounted on lamp posts on the platform, dimly lit, and not always aligned with our train car when we stopped. The reflections in the window were brighter than the yellowy station light. That was over a decade ago, but it’s never left me. As an experiential graphic designer and design educator, I come back to this moment often while I work. It’s a quiet but powerful reminder: there is no such thing as a “typical” user. If a space communicates only one way, it doesn’t communicate clearly — or equitably — at all. As we plan and design experiences, we need to ensure we're considering all sensory experiences as a part of how we make our way through the built environment. As an experiential graphic designer and design educator, I come back to this moment while I work. It's a quiet but powerful reminder: there is no such thing as a "typical" experience, and yet, that seems to be what gets design for. When we design with an accessibility-first mindset, we make things clearer for *everyone*. (Example, [the curb cut effect](https://notes.leahferguson.com/40+Atomic/Curb+cut+effect).) What would have helped: multiple modes of communication, better visual contrast, real-time feedback. And it would help me too, and you, and most people on that train. --- While I'm still on my 30 day writing challenge, I've now dropped the day number from my writing. While I'm keeping track (hello Day 3!), I'm intending for my writing to be [more evergreen](https://notes.leahferguson.com/40+Atomic/Evergreen+notes). **Today's question:** Have you ever found yourself in a simular situation, lost within a system and trying to reground yourself? I'd love to hear about it in the comments. (Even if it's years after I posted this post!)