Brighton railway station gets new technology designed to make announcements easier to hear
Brighton railway station has become one of the first places in the UK to permanently introduce new wireless technology designed to make public announcements easier to hear for passengers with hearing loss.
The station has installed an Auracast-based assistive listening system, allowing people with compatible hearing aids, cochlear implants, headphones and earbuds to receive station announcements directly through their devices.
The technology, known as Auri, has been installed throughout Brighton station and uses Bluetooth-based Auracast broadcasts to transmit announcements with low latency and over relatively long distances.
Passengers with compatible devices can select the station's broadcasts using their smartphone, in a similar way to connecting to a Wi-Fi network.
Technology tackles a problem at Brighton station
The installation is particularly significant at Brighton because of the station's age and busy environment.
The Grade II* listed station is more than 160 years old and can be a challenging place to hear announcements, particularly when passenger noise and the general sounds of a busy railway are taken into account.
The new system is intended to send announcements directly to compatible personal devices, reducing the impact of surrounding noise.
According to information released about the installation, the system can also potentially help passengers who are neurodiverse, people who need language interpretation and passengers with visual impairments.
A demonstration of the technology was held at Brighton station in July, with members of the Brighton Hearing Loss Group among those invited to experience the system.
What is Auracast?
Auracast is a newer Bluetooth technology that allows compatible audio to be broadcast to multiple nearby devices at the same time.
Unlike traditional Bluetooth connections, where one device normally connects directly to another, Auracast allows a broadcast to be shared with many compatible receivers.
That means a public venue such as a railway station can transmit an audio feed that passengers can access on compatible hearing aids, earbuds or headphones.
The Brighton installation is being supported by Southern, Thameslink and Gatwick Express, which operate under Greater Thameslink Railway.
A sign of Brighton's growing technology sector
The project also adds to Brighton's reputation as a centre for technology and digital businesses.
The city's technology community continues to develop through organisations such as Silicon Brighton, which brings together people working across Brighton & Hove's technology and digital industries.
Brighton is also home to a growing collection of technology startups and established digital businesses, with companies working in areas ranging from artificial intelligence and software to quantum computing.
For passengers, however, the appeal of the new technology is much simpler: making it easier to hear what is happening at one of the city's busiest transport hubs.
As more hearing aids and personal audio devices become compatible with Auracast, installations such as the one at Brighton station could provide a glimpse of how everyday public spaces may become more accessible through technology.
The new Auri system is now permanently available at Brighton railway station.
