CDOT and CTA outline plans for wider boarding islands, handrails and tactile guides to aid riders with disabilities

Chicago Department of Transportation assistant commissioner David Powell on Wednesday outlined design changes aimed at making bus stops and boarding islands easier and safer to use for people with disabilities.

Powell told the CTA ADA advisory committee that CDOT’s new Complete Streets design guide incorporates NACTO and PROWAG guidance and committee feedback and now recommends a 9-foot minimum width for bus boarding islands — up from the prior 8-foot standard — to allow a one-foot buffer for handrails separating boarding islands from adjacent bike lanes. "We updated the design guide so that future bus boarding islands adjacent to bike lanes will incorporate handrails as a standard feature where appropriate," Powell said.

The change, Powell said, is intended to create a continuous physical edge that passengers can locate and to make it easier to understand where waiting areas end and bike lanes begin. He added that the 9-foot standard will apply to future islands but cannot be retroactively applied to existing 8-foot islands without redesign.

Powell also described efforts to pilot tactile treatments to help riders with visual impairments navigate between sidewalk, boarding areas and transit entrances. "We're doing a deep study into tactile directional indicators — TDIs — and a pilot could help us evaluate how these treatments perform in a real transit environment," he said, citing examples in the Netherlands and other U.S. cities. He said CDOT is investigating manufacturers, including Neenah Iron Works, and will coordinate pilot locations with CTA.

Committee members pressed CDOT on practical details. One member asked whether San Francisco’s examples are transferable to Chicago’s snow conditions; Powell said the department is comparing international and domestic pilots and considering durability, procurement and installation costs. He acknowledged funding questions: "We have the money, but where does that line item come from?" he said, noting that some budget details remain to be resolved.

Members also urged that stops with islands be labeled in trip-planning apps and on CTA materials so people who are blind or have low vision can know whether a stop uses an island layout. Powell said CDOT will coordinate with CTA and third-party app providers to add nuance to stop descriptions.

CTA staff and committee members raised safety concerns about island-bike-lane interfaces and passenger circulation; Powell said the guide will incorporate handrails and tactile separation where feasible and that pilots will inform future standards.

What happens next: CDOT plans to run pilots (including potential Loop Link tests) and return to CTA to discuss specific installations and procurement. The guide changes and pilot proposals were presented for committee feedback; CDOT asked members for additional recommendations and said it will report back as pilot sites and procurement are defined.