How Universal Access Is Transforming the Passenger Experience at PIT

Pittsburgh is known for being a welcoming community, which explains why being at the forefront of the universal access movement in airports comes naturally.

The transformation at Pittsburgh International Airport, driven by the new landside terminal opening this year, is creating a sense of place through the concept known as NaTeCo – Nature, Technology, Community. And nothing could be more representative of the Pittsburgh community than a space that invites people of all abilities.

“I think what’s interesting about universal access and what’s different from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance or a regulatory piece of it is that we’re broadening the scope of what it means to access and how we support that access,” said Siri Betts-Sonstegard, senior vice president of Experience and Design at the Allegheny County Airport Authority, which operates and manages Pittsburgh International Airport. “It’s not just a physical space; we’re also thinking about the services and the wayfinding and the noise and all of that.”

“ADA is a minimum set of requirements,” said Kristine Mudd, owner of muddpuppy service design firm and adjunct faculty at New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering. “Compliance is checking the boxes but it’s very different when you’re thinking about how things all fit together and the way folks interact with the space. It’s holistic and collaborative.”

“The 7 Principles of Universal Design” were developed in 1997 by a group of architects, product designers, engineers and environmental design researchers led by the late Ronald Mace at North Carolina State University. In essence, the motivation is to create environments that are comfortable, convenient and welcoming to all.

They go beyond the tenets of the ADA to consider everyone from senior citizens and caregivers to children and people who need help wayfinding. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that 44.1 million or 13.4 percent of the population has some type of disability but millions more have challenges to getting around, lifting or grasping or have limited hearing, eyesight or color blindness.

Ksenia Pachikov, founder of Field Studio, a collective of researchers and designers, worked with ACAA to develop seven accessibility principles: ease mobility, eliminate physical strain, reduce stressors and stimuli, embrace cognitive diversity, put accessibility within reach, consider caregivers and support personal devices.

“Designing for people with diverse needs benefits everyone,” she said, citing curb cuts, which were created to help people with wheelchairs “but are obviously very helpful for people pushing strollers. And in an airport, everyone is pushing something.”

“Universal design is super important, especially at someplace like an airport where there’s such a diverse population and a diverse set of needs,” Mudd said.

Improvements on the way

One of the ongoing considerations as PIT transforms its airport is to ease mobility for seniors, pregnant women, children and people with disabilities and vision restrictions. This will be evident in a variety of ways from raised pedestrian walkways across roads to adding places throughout the airport where passengers of various body types can sit and take a break. Also, signs will be redesigned to be high contrast, which will increase legibility.

“Think about traveling with a child for the first time. That is a different experience for somebody and they’re navigating a space in a different way and so that we have to be thinking about their needs,” said Betts-Sonstegard.

Because travel can be stressful, measures are being taken to create a calmer environment. For five years, Presley’s Place has been a refuge for neurodivergent travelers, but other amenities also exist, such as nursing rooms, Kidsport, PIT PAWS and the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower lanyard. These efforts will be augmented when four outdoor terraces open as part of the new terminal, offering a chance to reconnect with the calming effects of nature, and the new “warm welcome and thoughtful send-off” in the new terminal.

“We have been very intentional about these spaces. We did a significant amount of research and outreach with our community of travelers as we were developing our overall program. One thing that came up repeatedly is that Pittsburghers are much more prone to dropping off and picking up their friends and family than you would see in other cities. As such we have intentionally curated spaces for both groups in order to provide that ‘warm welcome and thoughtful send-off.’ We have not only provided functional seating and spaces for all of our customer groups, but we have also oversized some of these spaces to allow those friends and families to comfortably dwell,” said Chad Willis, director, Planning, Environmental, & Sustainability.

“Universal access is good for the passenger, but it’s also good for business, because the more that you can reduce barriers to travel, the more people want to travel. If you can create an effortless experience through the airport, then it’s a win-win,” said Betts-Sonstegard. “When people are under stress, there is absolutely no curiosity. If you can reduce that anxiety and encourage curiosity, then people are going to be more willing to take some time and explore what the airport has to offer.”

Why service design matters

Universal design has been incorporated everywhere from schools to banks and even a few airports such as Tokyo International and Fort Wayne International. But PIT’s Experience and Design team stands out because it is one of two dedicated service design teams at an airport. (Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam is the other).

“Service design is just like when you build a building you have a blueprint for it and that’s what we do for services because services can be sort of intangible. When we design the services, we think about every moment that the passengers engage with our organization and how do we want to best design that experience. And then we’re layering on top of that: How do we think about all different types of passengers and how they would access this touch point?” Betts-Sonstegard said.

PIT’s service design culture goes far beyond physical assets. It is built on three qualities of excellent service: the right information at the right moments, support with the unexpected and comfortable transitions and waiting.

For example, the Ambassadors program has trained volunteers who can proactively assist travelers and their caregivers.

“We found out that as an organization we need to deliver a better service to our care team so that they can support the passenger,” Betts-Sonstegard said. “So, there are a number of initiatives. One is giving volunteers devices so if a passenger has a question, they can use an iPad to find the answer or show them on a map where to go. It also has translation services if somebody doesn’t speak English. That way they don’t have to leave the passenger’s side because before they were having to walk back to the information desk.”

“Principles on their own don’t fix things,” Mudd said, adding that PIT “turns them into action to ensure the customers have what they need.”

“Our group’s role is to look at what are all the problems to solve, narrow in on the right problems to solve and then explore different solutions and narrow in on the right solutions. We’re always learning, evolving, iterating,” Betts-Sonstegard said.

“We are blazing a path that services in airports should be thoughtfully designed.”