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Future Journeys

Future Journeys is a bold new initiative to make journeys more accessible for blind and partially sighted people, led by RNIB and the Motability Foundation.

Follow the journey
An older man with a white cane steps onto a red public transport vehicle. He wears a hat, sunglasses, a red checked shirt, and a backpack, and is holding onto the door frame as he boards.

RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People) and the Motability Foundation are working in partnership on an innovative project to reimagine a better future for blind and partially sighted people getting around in the UK.

Why accessible journeys matter

Being able to get around is essential for everyday life, including work and leisure. Even short journeys can be stressful or difficult for blind and partially sighted people. Many don’t feel safe, and there is rarely enough support to help them travel confidently. We want to change that, which is why we're reimagining the transport system to show how it could work for everyone.
A woman seated on public transport holds a white mobility cane. She wears a black headscarf and has sunglasses resting on her head. Rows of blue-handled seats and passengers are visible in the background.
Five user icons, one of which is white and the others – grey

One in five of us will experience sight loss

Disabled people take 25% fewer journeys than non‑disabled people

A pie chart

The annual economic benefit of improving transport accessibility in the UK is:

£72.4 billion

Our approach

We’re working with people with lived experience of sight loss and experts in transport and technology to understand the problems and co-create bold new solutions. We’re doing this by:
  • Listening to real stories from blind and partially sighted people.
  • Running immersive workshops between people with sight loss, industry experts and government partners to spark new thinking.
  • Creating short inspirational films to spark change in transport design, policy and awareness.
Our focus is on the entire end-to-end journey, covering the complete travel experience, from planning your route and starting out, through travelling, navigating transitions and interruptions, to arriving and finding your exact destination.
A videographer operates a professional cinema camera outdoors, adjusting the lens while looking at the monitor. The background is blurred with red and white barriers and greenery.

What is an end-to-end journey?

First stages

An illustrated woman interacts with a large smartphone interface, tapping an app icon on the screen. Around the phone are floating icons for location, messages, finances, and weather.

Planning the journey

  • Researching routes
  • Checking schedules
  • Assessing the weather

First Metres

  • Leaving the house
  • Starting the journey
  • Checking progress

Recurring stages

An illustrated woman taps a card or phone on a ticket barrier while entering a train station. A blue train is stopped behind the row of barriers.

Multimodal experiences

  • Public transport
  • Walking and wheeling
  • Community and shared transport

Transition zones

  • Moving between physical environments
  • Everyday moments and spontaneous detours

Final stages

An illustrated woman presses the up or down button beside an elevator with closed doors.

Last metres

  • Arriving at the destination
  • Navigating within the destination to find a seat, room or person

Latest updates

Download video transcript

Future Journeys Workshop 1

December 8, 2025

On 6 November 2025, RNIB and the Motability Foundation brought people together for the first Future Journeys workshop – a key step towards reimagining how travel works for blind and partially sighted people. The project uses speculative design, which focuses on […]
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Reimagining the transport system

Using Design fiction, a method that combines storytelling and film, we’ll explore bold ideas, challenge old ways of thinking, and bring to life new possibilities for making every journey truly accessible.
The project focuses on an entire end-to-end journey, covering the complete travel experience, from planning your route and starting out, through travelling, navigating transitions and interruptions, to arriving and finding your exact destination.

Partnership

RNIB and the Motability Foundation have formed a unique partnership with one united purpose: to co-create innovative solutions that will make journeys more accessible for blind and partially sighted people.

Future journeys RNIB & Motability foundation logos

This collaboration combines our expertise, lived experience, and resources to better understand how we can break down the barriers to transportation and drive change.

Building on previous research, we created Future Journeys to support our shared goal of improving transport, ensuring accessibility is key to the development of future transport modes.

The lived experience of people with sight loss is key to this partnership, with individuals actively collaborating to identify barriers and co-design solutions.

Stay updated

We’re sharing our progress as we go. Stay updated with behind-the-scenes footage, interviews, blogs, and design fiction films. This is a living story about what travel could become. Watch it unfold - and help shape what comes next.

Follow the journey
An older woman smiles while seated on public transport. She wears dark wraparound sunglasses and a red jacket, holding a mobility cane in one hand. Other passengers sit in the background and daylight comes through the window beside her.

More information

Learn more about how RNIB is campaigning for inclusive journeys.Learn more Arrow right
Find out more about how the Motability Foundation is making transport more accessible for disabled people.Our strategy | About us | Motability Foundation Arrow right