Gargy M. Sudhakaran, Colin A. Booth, Abhinesh Prabhakaran, Peiwen He, Suresh Renukappa, Samuel J. Abbey
Purpose In the current technology-driven era, where the built environment is meticulously planned and designed to optimise human utility, the urban transport environment emerges as a critical domain warranting focused attention. Among the diverse spectrum of road/pavement users, wheelchair users (WCUs) are disproportionately susceptible to risk during independent navigation due to inherently inadequate planning and management, which adversely affects their quality of living, social participation and economic well-being. This raises a significant question about the feasibility of co-creating travel environments that effectively ensure the safety of all. Design/methodology/approach This study, grounded in the “social model of disability” concept, adopts a practice-based, technology-integrated approach involving WCUs to develop a co-creation framework for inclusive urban travel. Traditional methods like workshops and surveys often marginalise vulnerable voices and are prone to subjectivity. Previous studies highlight visual distraction, attention allocation and hazard perception as key safety concerns for WCUs. Therefore, this paper proposes using Virtual Reality (VR) and Eye-Tracking (ET) to safely and effectively assess these challenges in simulated environments that avoid potential risks linked to real-world testing. Findings The study highlights the capacity of immersive technologies to enhance participatory design and road safety for WCUs. It has led to the development of the PERCEPT framework (Participatory Eye-tracking Research for Co-creating Equitable Public Territories), a standardised model for tech-integrated co-creation in urban planning. Originality/value A co-creative approach involving WCUs is sparse in the transport safety domain. Augmenting this significance, an ET-integrated co-creation approach constitutes a pioneering method to understand the travel experiences of WCUs.