Travel Training - Helping young adults Move Confidently in the World
What Is Travel Training?
Travel training is a tailored program designed to teach skills needed for safe, confident travel in everyday environments. It could be:
catching the bus to a friend’s place
walking to the local shops to get a favourite treat
navigating the route home from school
Each travel training plan is unique. We begin by understanding their interests, routines, strengths, and what feels doable right now. From there, we set purposeful goals that feel relevant, because learning is far more powerful when it connects to what matters for your family.
How We Build Skills, Step by Step
We find that breaking journeys into smaller pieces, and practising transferable skills in safe, familiar environments, builds both competence and confidence. Here’s how it usually works:
Table with step by step guide for building travel training skills.
Get creative!
Sometimes practicing away from the roads is an important first step, but you might have to be willing to get a bit silly and try to keep things fun.
To the left is a picture of some car resources I have used in local parks to create a “real life frogger” style game, where young adults have to try and cross a path whilst the car (Held by their OT or support person) isn’t heading towards them.
As well as practicing, this is a great way to informally assess comprehension and ability to scan the environment.
Key Skills We Help You Master
These are some of the skills that become part of travel training. We focus on what the person can do and build from there.
Recognising landmarks - Things like a certain shop, street sign, tree, or fence help with orientation, knowing where to cross, and showing the way home.
Where to cross safely - Learning about pedestrian crossings, kerbs, and signals, while also teaching the importance of crossing only where there is good visibility of approaching traffic.
Stop, look, listen - A routine that becomes instinctive: stop before crossing; look both ways; listen to what traffic or the environment is telling you.
Problem-solving - What do you do if something unexpected happens (bus detours, crowd, traffic lights out)?
Self-awareness and hazard scanning - noticing cars reversing, uneven pavement, obstacles, distractions, etc.
What You Can Do as a Parent or support person
You are a key partner in this journey. Here are things you can do that make a big difference:
Plan small practice outings together, choosing low-traffic times and simple routes.
Use the persons interests when choosing destinations to increase motivation and reward.
Praise each step forward (even small ones). Noticing a landmark? Great. Stopping and looking? Wonderful.
Talk through “what if” scenarios together (“What would you do if…?”) to build flexibility.
Collaborate with your OT: share what works at home, what feels scary, what your child enjoys.
A Vision of Progress
Imagine this: At first, the person practises identifying the tree at the end of the street as a sign they are close to home. Then they learn to choose crossings with clear visibility, stop at the kerb, look both ways, and listen carefully. Over time, they build confidence walking longer routes, remembering landmarks that guide them, and safely crossing where traffic can be clearly seen. Eventually, they feel safe going to the local library or visiting a friend independently, knowing both where to cross and how to travel home again.
Final Thoughts
Travel training isn’t just about getting from A to B. It’s about opening doors: doors to community, friendship, confidence, and choice. As a support person, you play a central role: celebrating progress, helping plan goals, encouraging practice.