Autism-friendly public bus transport: A personal experience-based perspective.
Autistic riders say buses work when routes, sounds, and talk are steady, low, and clear.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Dirix et al. (2023) talked with seventeen autistic bus riders. They asked what makes public buses hard or easy to use.
Each person shared real trips they took. The team wrote down every quote about stress, sounds, and surprises.
What they found
Three needs came up again and again. Riders want predictable routes, less noise and lights, and clear driver talk.
They also showed self-chosen tricks. Headphones, seat choice, and phone apps helped them stay calm.
How this fits with other research
Byiers et al. (2025) extends these ideas to driving. Autistic teens say the same three needs matter behind the wheel.
Saré et al. (2020) asked parents years earlier. Parents also said slow, step-by-step exposure helps kids ride buses.
Cox et al. (2012) found parents worry about multi-tasking during driving lessons. The bus study shows cutting stimuli helps the same group.
Why it matters
You can make bus travel easier today. Post simple route maps at stops. Ask drivers to say each stop aloud. Let riders pick seats away from speakers. These low-cost steps honor autistic voices and boost independence.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Transportation plays an essential role in daily life, allowing people to participate in the community and form social relationships. Many autistic people rely on public transportation to meet their mobility needs. However, research shows that it is not always easy for them to use it. The exact issues autistic individuals face when traveling with public transportation and how public transportation can be made more autism-friendly have yet to be researched. The current study allowed autistic individuals to express themselves regarding issues they face while traveling by public bus transportation, to raise awareness for making public transportation more autism-friendly. We interviewed 17 autistic individuals about their experiences riding the bus. Three main themes emerged from the results: creating predictability, limiting stimuli, and open and accessible communication. If transport companies take initiatives related to these themes, autistic people traveling by bus can have a more pleasant experience. Participants also described coping strategies for stressful or uncomfortable situations while using public bus transportation, such as using noise-cancelling headphones or digital applications for real-time route tracking, etc. These findings may lead to a more autism-friendly public transportation.
Autism : the international journal of research and practice, 2023 · doi:10.1177/13623613221132106