Why I question the supermarket Quiet Hour concept: It's not as accessible as many people think

By Amaze employee Joel Wilson, who is an autistic adult in his 30s and is studying for a Communications and Media Studies degree. 
A couple of weeks ago, Coles announced they were expanding their Quiet Hour initiative, taking the number of participating stores from 68 to 173.
Quiet Hour occurs in these stores every Tuesday from 10:30-11:30am.
For this one hour a week, lights are dimmed to half the usual levels, the radio is turned off, and checkout scanner volume.
reduced to a minimum.

There won’t be any trolley collections during this time, staff won’t stock shelves, and announcements made over the PA system will be kept for emergencies.
Coles have also said they have trained staff to support people with autism and their families.
As an autistic adult, I am aware of not only my own time schedules, but also that other autistic adults work, study and participate in other activities during the day.
Then there are all the autistic kids at school, whether it be in classrooms or home-schooled. Plus all the parents/family members who support us but also work and have their own things to do.
I therefore question how accessible 10:30-11:30am on a Tuesday is.
Whilst Coles may think they’re doing something great, and no doubt there are some families and autistic people who can attend Tuesday mornings and find it accessible, there’s a bigger story that is not being told here.
For the sake of this explanation, let’s say I am free to go shopping for groceries 10:30-11:30 on Tuesday mornings.
The way it’s being promoted is that I can step into a Coles store and everything will go smoothly, and I’ll be relaxed the whole time.
If only it was that easy.
I’m going to discuss getting to the supermarket. Below is the standard process for me getting to my nearest Coles.
9.15am: I don’t drive. I never have, and I’ll never be able to. That’s because of my eyesight though. I know plenty of autistic people who drive, and plenty who don’t. It’s raining outside. Which means I have to take a raincoat or umbrella and navigate the icky feelings of getting wet.
I’m on the bus. Bugger, I forgot my reusable bags. If I go home to get them there isn’t another bus that will get me to Coles in time for Quiet Hour. If I buy some at Coles, then my budget is all out of whack. Decisions…
The bus pulls up outside the shopping centre. Coles is at the other end of the centre. Past all the bright, loud, smelly shops that don’t participate in Quiet Hour. I walk past Woolworths, who have staff out collecting trolleys, and as usual have their self-serve checkouts set to maximum volume.

I get to Coles. And then I remember: none of the Coles in my area participates in Quiet Hour.
As you can see, just getting to the supermarket involves many planned steps, and having one of those go wrong can result in my flight mode, where I just give up and leave shopping for later in the day, or another day altogether, which isn’t helpful when sensory access is only one hour a week.
It’s nice if one supermarket does it for a set period of time a week, but how much more inclusive would it be if all supermarkets, and shops in retail for that matter, did their bit to create inclusive environments? If people with sensory processing issues could access the community at any time?
I put these thoughts on my personal Facebook account, and had some really good discussions with some of my autistic friends.

 Tara Gordon said that it’s very tokenistic,

“giving us 1 hour a week where shopping is tolerable for us….how  is that concept accessible in itself”?
Camilla Birthisel agrees that one Quiet Hour a week is still not fully addressing the issue
“if the music was already down,  and lights at an appropriate level in the first place, then we wouldn’t even be having this discussion”.
Geraldine Robertson, Chairperson of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network of Australia and New Zealand, wrote:
“Universal design is good design for people and inclusive of both able-bodied shoppers and shoppers with disabilities, including Autism. ASAN recognises that the core business of a supermarket is to generate profit. We suggest that an inclusive, people friendly environment has the potential to generate profit and be emotionally and physically beneficial for all humans, empowering Autistics to take part on the same basis as the rest of the population.”
The full ASAN AUNZ Statement can be read on Facebook
All of these comments can be related back to something Katharine Annear stated
“Shops are designed to overstimulate by retail psychologists. Music lighting bright displays are designed to heighten your anxiety so you buy more.”
Katherine then linked to an article which explains the Gruen effect
Finally, one of my friends who isn’t autistic also commented. Tim wrote:
“Shopping is a baffling ordeal for the larger community. I believe the whole experience needs to be looked at. I put headphones on, tune out, and go at my own pace. Makes it a little better”.
I then decided to open some discussions with Coles, tweeting:
 @Coles: I’m sure I asked last year, but why aren’t all stores implementing Quiet Hour? Also, why was 10:30am-11:30am on Tuesdays chosen, given the amount of autistic kids at school, and also autistic adults who may be studying/working or (participating) in other activities?
Coles replied a couple of hours later:
“thanks for your feedback, Joel. We’ll ensure this is shared with our teams for their consideration.”
I would also like to share this opinion piece by West Australian autistic woman Georgie Elle, who shares her thoughts on Quiet Hour
Now I’m not saying I have an answer. I have autistic friends who prefer shopping in supermarkets in the current standard environment settings. Others can’t. Online shopping creates its own access issues.
However, I don’t think one hour a week is the best option.
I’d like the retail sector to start ensuring autistic people, as well as others with sensory needs, are included in accessibility discussions, and  move away from the current “let’s overstimulate customers senses to lure them in” model, and start making the stores feel welcoming to everyone.
It’s now over to you for your thoughts. Have you managed to attend Quiet Hour?
If you are autistic or a parent/friend/mentor to an autistic person, do you think it met your needs? Also if you don’t have autism and would like to comment please do so.