Intercity operator gets accreditation for accessible website

Avanti West Coast says it is the first train operator to win an accreditation from the Shaw Trust for the accessibility of its website.

Accordingly, the website has achieved Shaw Trust Web Accreditation – a mark confirming it has been tested by people with a wide range of disabilities and found to be accessible.

Collaborating with 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 was needed to meet these standards.

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. 

Avanti West Coast’s website goes above the minimum requirement of WCAG standards and  conforms to WCAG 2.1 Level AA – making it accessible to more people.

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.

Accessibility and inclusion manager at Avanti West Coast, Brandon Peat, said: “We want everyone to use the railway and recognise it’s important a consistent approach is adopted, which is why we’re pleased to be the first train operator to be awarded this accessibility accreditation for our web content by Shaw Trust.

“Providing an accessible website is the latest project we’ve delivered as part of our commitment to make journeys and easy and convenient for all our customers. It has been great to work with Shaw Trust to make sure our website meets the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and we hope it will enable customers to book and plan their journey confidently and independently every time they travel with us.”

National account manager at Shaw Trust Accessibility Services, Joe Manock, said: “Shaw Trust are absolutely delighted to have awarded Avanti West Coast their WCAG 2.1 AA Accreditation for the outstanding work in making their website accessible and inclusive for all. We have been impressed at the way they have left no stone unturned in making sure that one and all can access their services. It has been a real pleasure to work with the Avanti West Coast Team and we look forward to continuing supporting them on their Accessible journey.”

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