The Elevator Pitch: What Elevators Can Tell Us About NYC’s Conundrum for Equity and Inclusivity (p.3)
We’re coming to an end on our elevator research. We thought it was time to identify why we chose elevators.
From buildings, infrastructure and organizations, elevators can be used as a proxy to understand how inclusive society is.
355 out of 472 stops do not have elevators. Which means 75% of all NYC’s stations are not accessible.
To get a better understanding of how this impacts people who need elevators to get around NYC we were in search of data sources related to disabled populations. But the latest data sources we could find were data collected in 1840.
Data digging part 1: MTA data
We needed to use a proxy to get dig deeper. We went in search of data sources that would guide us in understanding how people who need elevators get to places around the city.
During our search for data sources, we came across MTA subway data on those who used Reduced Fare Metro cards. People who used the Reduced Fare Metro Cards were individuals who are 65 and older or those who have qualifying disabilities.
The image below shows how we cleaned up our data sources.
Through this data, we were able to get a visual on how accessibility works differently across different boroughs.
Data digging part 2: Elderly population
When trying to get data on disabled populations there were close to none in terms of public data. We needed another proxy that can help us understand the needs of those who needed elevators when commuting: our choice, the elderly.
To see how seniors navigate throughout the city, we used senior population data. By collecting 65+ census data we were able to see something very interesting.
When looking closely, the subways with elevators seemed to avoid where seniors were living.
Looking to the future
NYC has promised new elevators for every two stations by 2021. They have announced plans to make dozens of subway stations accessible to disabled riders. But if we look at the maps of where the elderly live, they live in places where stations don’t even exist. Whether they put in elevators or not those who need it the most won’t still be able to access elevators for quite some time. We mapped where the hypothetical elevators would be placed if NYC pulled through.
Learning points
By studying the state of accessibility in New York for 1 month we had to continuously use proxies to guide us meaning, data sets for the disabled are super hard to get. Their needs and current state are not visible. No metadata means no future. We kept asking ourselves, without visibility or even a basic understanding of who they are how can we even begin to design with them for a better future?
Elise Roy, deaf lawyer, artist, artisan, and human rights advocate who works in the vanguard of the social design movement said:
“ When we design for disability first, you often stumble upon solutions that are better than those when we design for the norm.”
Now with that in mind, how would you, yes you the reader, begin in designing for equity and inclusivity for NYC’s future?
