Advancing Inclusive Service Design Thinking in Transport Buildings: Research and Practice Reflections

Addressing the slow progress in developing socially equitable solutions, this research explicates the benefit of ‘inclusive service’ thinking by integrating Service Design (SD) from financial services with inclusivity in the built environment (BE). The study applied the five-stage SD methodology—observe, synthesise, new idea, refine, and implement—to underground station design. Four empirical studies analysed how vertical and horizontal circulation systems in crowded stations impacted inclusivity and service experiences. Study A used a questionnaire to gather passenger experiences in existing Tube stations, informing the design of studies C and D. Study B captured insights from a participant-observer's experience in a crowded underground station. Study C refined circulation arrangements for new inclusivity proxies, including Level of Service (LOS) and Vertical Severance (VS), using Agent-Based Modelling (ABM). Findings showed that multiple large lifts significantly improved inclusivity and service without increasing station size or cost, revising earlier pedestrian modelling theories. Study C was implemented, and a post-occupancy study at two Red Line stations in Tel Aviv generated new knowledge. Study D evaluated a new mined station, Farringdon Station, on the Elizabeth Line in London. Original contributions include developing a new theory of ‘inclusive service’ thinking by transferring the SD method from financial services; demonstrating that inclusive underground stations need not be more costly or larger; creating a new theory of design as discourse; revising early-stage design practice for complex underground stations; and establishing SD as a 'next-next' generation design method.