First train operator to be recognised for accessible website
 
 

In December, Avanti West Coast became the first train operator to be awarded Shaw Trust Web Accreditation which recognises its web content is accessible to people with disabilities.

 

Working alongside Shaw Trust Accessibility Services, Avanti West Coast made updates and changes to content on its website to meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), which is an international standard. 

 

An assessment by the charitable enterprise’s digital auditors, as well as a series of automated and human tests by users with a disability identified what design and coding (what defines content structure on the front-end of a website) changes were required to meet these standards.

 

To address the requirements to obtain the accreditation, coding was changed to ensure content is accessible to keyboard only users and assistive technologies, including screen readers. In addition, changes were made to the design of webpages to provide sufficient colour contrast between text and background for visually impaired users. 

 

The accreditation follows the launch of Avanti West Coast’s dedicated social media forum earlier this year to create an interactive online community for disabled customers travelling on its route.

 

You can find the full press release here.