SOLOSTRIDE
Helping solo wheelchair users navigate public transport with greater safety, confidence, and independence.
Shaun Little
My Patrick App
Settings
1h 15m Total travel time
In-flight WI-FI available
Learn More
Solostride is an accessible travel concept that combines a portable ramp system with real-time digital support. Designed around the experiences of people travelling with mobility aids, it aims to reduce uncertainty, physical barriers, and dependence on unavailable station staff.
CRCP
I designed CRCP to help [user group] overcome [problem] by providing [main solution]. The app combines [feature one], [feature two], and [feature three] within one accessible experience.
ROLE
UX Research · Service Design · Concept Development · Prototyping · Usability Testing
TIMELINE
2025
TOOLS
Figma · Interviews · Affinity Mapping · Journey Mapping · Rapid Prototyping
SKILLS
Research, UX/UI, Prototyping
Lets Dig In
Project Overview
Echoes of the Outback was conceived as an empathy-driven serious game that translates the lived experience of Alzheimer’s disease into an interactive narrative. Rather than relying on exposition alone, the project uses gameplay mechanics and environment to embody memory loss, confusion, and emotional fragmentation. Set in Coober Pedy, South Australia, the Outback’s underground landscapes act as a metaphor for fading memory and buried identity. The core challenge was balancing expressive storytelling with ethical sensitivity, demonstrating how gameplay, narrative, and place can work together to foster empathy through experiential design.
Concept Development
Echoes of the Outback is a first-person narrative exploration game where players embody Tom Victor, a 62-year-old miner living with early onset Alzheimer’s in the Australian Outback. As reality blurs with memory, players drift between fragmented present-day landscapes and vivid flashbacks to a younger self in the city and mines. Through shifting environments, contradictory NPCs, and fading detail the game transforms memory loss into lived experience asking players when memory unravels what truly matters?
The Approach
Echoes of the Outback adopts an experiential, empathy-driven game design approach that prioritises feeling over explanation. Rather than teaching players about Alzheimer’s disease through exposition or instruction, the game communicates its themes through systems that gradually destabilise the player’s sense of control, memory, and spatial certainty.
Understanding Alzheimers Through Play
To create an authentic and respectful experience, Echoes of the Outback was grounded in interdisciplinary research spanning Alzheimer's disease, empathy-driven game design, Australian cultural identity, and narrative exploration. This research informed every gameplay mechanic, environment, and narrative decision.
RESEARCH AREAS
ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE & MEMORY LOSS
KEY INSIGHTS
Memory deteriorates gradually rather than suddenly.
Older memories often remain clearer than recent events.
Hallucinations, spatial confusion, and loss of independence become increasingly significant.
Many individuals are unaware of their own cognitive decline in early stages.
DESIGN TRANSLATION
Objects move or disappear.
NPCs contradict previous conversations.
Navigation becomes unreliable.
Player abilities gradually deteriorate over time.
AUSTRALIAN OUTBACK & COOBER PEDY
KEY INSIGHTS
Underground dugouts represent hidden and fragmented memories.
Mining symbolises uncovering forgotten experiences.
Isolation and vast landscapes reinforce loneliness and vulnerability.
DESIGN TRANSLATION
Underground environments become physical representations of buried memories.
Exploration mirrors the process of remembering.
Environmental storytelling replaces traditional exposition.
SERIOUS GAMES & PROCEDURAL RHETORIC
KEY INSIGHTS
Empathy develops through interaction rather than observation.
Gameplay systems can communicate emotion more effectively than dialogue.
Frustration can become meaningful when it reflects the player's lived experience.
DESIGN TRANSLATION
Doors lead to unexpected locations.
Conversations reset unexpectedly.
The game intentionally removes certainty and control.
There is no traditional "win" condition.
Solostride is an accessible travel innovation designed to help solo wheelchair users navigate public transport more safely, confidently, and independently.
Accessible Travel Innovation: Solostride
Current public transport systems often fail to provide mobility-impaired travellers with reliable, dignified support. Broken lifts, unclear accessibility information, difficult ramps, and unavailable staff create stress, safety risks, and dependence on others.
Problem Statement
Possible Solution
A portable RampPod system with a lightweight foldable ramp, ergonomic extendable handle, magnetic connection, carry bag, and companion app for pre-booking ramps, real-time lift/ramp updates, emergency location sharing, and optional staff support.
Target Audience
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Solo travellers with mobility impairments
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Wheelchair users
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People who rely on public transport systems
The Approach
A human-centred design approach focused on reducing physical and emotional barriers in accessible travel through portable assistive technology and real-time digital support. The solution prioritises independence, dignity, ease of use, and confidence while travelling.
Design Thinking Process
The project followed the Double Diamond design process:
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Discover: Conducted interviews, online ethnography, and background research to identify accessibility pain points.
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Define: Synthesised findings using affinity mapping, empathy maps, personas, and “How Might We” reframing.
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Develop: Ideated and prototyped the RampPod system and companion app.
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Deliver: Tested the prototype using think-aloud usability testing and refined the design based on feedback and iteration.
Discover
Develop
Define
Challenges in infrastructure and emotional well-being
Conducted over 10 detailed interviews
Insights from people using wheelchairs, crutches, and walkers
Insight: Users want independence, not sympathy real, usable tools are needed
Problem: Public transport fails to deliver dignified and reliable support
Ideated "RampPod" a modular, deployable ramp kiosk
Mapped pain points to actionable tech-enabled solutions
Refined concept based on personas
Deliver
Functional prototype for a train station kiosk
Plan to test and iterate based on feedback
User-focused features such as voice control and tactile UI
Emphatize Phase
Qualitative Research
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Conducted 10+ in-depth interviews with people using wheelchairs, crutches, and walkers
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Used empathy mapping and affinity mapping to identify emotional and physical pain points
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Performed online ethnography through Reddit, blogs, and accessibility forums
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Applied think-aloud usability testing during prototype evaluation
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Focused on experiences with public transport accessibility, independence, and emotional wellbeing
Interview Questions
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Can you describe a recent experience using public transport with a mobility aid?
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What accessibility challenges do you face most often while travelling alone?
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How do staff support services impact your travel experience?
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What makes you feel unsafe or stressed during travel?
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What tools or services would help you travel more independently?
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Have you experienced issues with ramps, lifts, or accessibility information?
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How do accessibility barriers affect your confidence when travelling?
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Users want independence, not constant reliance on staff or strangers
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Accessibility features often meet compliance standards but fail in real-world use
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Broken lifts, unclear signage, and unreliable ramps create stress and uncertainty
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Emotional exhaustion and planning fatigue are major barriers to solo travel
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Users value simple, real-time accessibility information and reliable support systems
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Many travellers avoid solo travel due to fear of being stranded or judged
