Curb Cuts as a Design Example

Reading | Quick Check

The Curb Cuts of Kalamazoo

In 1945, Jack Fisher, a veteran and attorney in Kalamazoo, Michigan, advocated for greater city accessibility for injured veterans. He successfully petitioned the city to install curb cuts and ramps to support veterans using wheelchairs and crutches. This small investment dramatically improved mobility for many individuals. Read Fisher’s inspiring story.

Universal Design

Kalamazoo’s curb ramps were one early example of designing for people who had been excluded by the built environment. They directly supported disabled veterans and other people with mobility disabilities—and also helped parents with strollers, bicyclists, delivery workers, and travelers with luggage.

Decades later, architect Ron Mace and a team at North Carolina State University formalized the concept of Universal Design: designing products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without requiring adaptation or specialized design.

The Seven Principles of Universal Design

Equitable Use – useful to people with diverse abilities.
Flexibility in Use – accommodates a wide range of preferences and abilities.
Simple and Intuitive Use – easy to understand, regardless of experience, knowledge, language, or concentration.
Perceptible Information – communicates necessary information effectively in different conditions and for different sensory abilities.
Tolerance for Error – minimizes risks and adverse consequences.
Low Physical Effort – can be used efficiently and comfortably with minimal fatigue.
Size and Space for Approach and Use – provides appropriate space regardless of body size, posture, or mobility.

Explore the original principles and guidelines from NC State’s Center for Universal Design.

Quick Check

Which example best shows Universal Design in a way that could apply to both services and learning environments?

Creating a special alternate process that people must request if the standard process doesn’t work for them: This can help, but it still relies on people knowing they should ask for an alternate path.
Designing a process with multiple built-in ways to access it (clear instructions, readable formatting, and more than one method to complete it): Correct: Yes. Universal Design builds access into the default experience, so more people can use it without needing a separate workaround.
Publishing a policy that says people can request help if they need it: That’s a good support, but Universal Design focuses on reducing barriers in the first place.

Connection

Consider how the principles of Universal Design might influence the way you structure your courses, deliver services, or create physical and digital environments. Even modest changes in design can produce widespread benefits and increased access.