In Australia, accessibility isn't a nice-to-have. The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) and WCAG 2.2 AA are table stakes. Get audited, fail, face legal action. Most sites retrofit accessibility — hunt down 300 missing alt texts, add focus styles to buttons, squint at contrast ratios. Velocity X doesn't wait. It ships WCAG 2.2 AA compliant by default. Semantic HTML, Radix components with built-in ARIA, keyboard navigation verified, focus-visible styles baked in, contrast ratios pre-checked against brand.json. Your audit doesn't start at "this is broken"—it starts at "nice, nothing major."

Why WCAG 2.2 AA Matters (Beyond Legal)

WCAG 2.2 AA is the Australian standard. Fail it, and you're exposed: employees with disabilities can't use your intranet, customers in wheelchairs bounce off your site, you're liable if someone sues. But the upside is sharper: 1 in 4 Australians have disability. That's 6M people. 15–20% of your potential users benefit from accessible design. Better navigation, better keyboard support, better contrast—everyone wins.

Plus, Lighthouse audits it. Google feeds accessibility scores into rankings. A11y debt compounds like technical debt: ignored today, expensive tomorrow.

Six Things Velocity X Handles Out of the Box

1. Semantic HTML. Every heading is `

`, `

`, `

` — never a `

` playing heading. Forms use `` + ``, not custom widgets. Screen readers parse structure natively. No ARIA band-aid needed.

2. Radix UI ARIA. Velocity X ships Radix components (buttons, sliders, tabs, dropdowns, modals). Radix handles aria-expanded, aria-labelledby, aria-hidden, role, and focus management automatically. Your custom button doesn't need a janky ARIA patch—Radix's `` already has it.

3. Keyboard Navigation. Tab order is native. Enter/Space trigger buttons. Arrow keys navigate menus. Escape closes modals. Tested on launch. No click-only UX.

// Radix Dialog — keyboard nav + focus trap built-in
import * as Dialog from "@radix-ui/react-dialog";

<Dialog.Root>
  <Dialog.Trigger>Open Modal</Dialog.Trigger>
  <Dialog.Content>
    {/* Tab never leaves the modal until dismissed */}
    {/* Escape key closes automatically */}
  </Dialog.Content>
</Dialog.Root>

4. Focus-Visible Styles. Every interactive element shows a ring on keyboard focus. Tailwind's focus-visible:ring utility means you never miss a focused state. Sighted keyboard users see where they are.

5. Contrast Ratios Pre-Checked. Velocity X brand.json specifies palette colors. All foreground/background pairs are tested to WCAG AA (4.5:1 for text, 3:1 for large text). You don't hand-pick colours and hope—they're locked to a compliant palette.

// brand.json — all hex pairs pre-checked for WCAG AA
"palette": {
  "primary": "#0f172a",    // text
  "accent": "#06b6d4",     // 10:1 contrast ✓
  "bg": "#ffffff"
}

6. Alt-Text Schema. Image components require alt props. Missing one, TypeScript screams. No accidental images without descriptions.

Three Things You Still Own

Alt Text Content. Velocity X forces you to write it, but "image" isn't descriptive. "A hail-damaged roof with two dents in the eastern ridge" is. The schema enforces discipline, not genius.

Video Captions. Embedded videos (YouTube, Vimeo) must have captions. Velocity X doesn't inject them—your video host does, or you upload an SRT. But the template includes caption-enabled embeds by default.

Complex Interactions. If you build a custom slider or data-viz, you add ARIA and keyboard support. Radix handles 80% of common widgets; edge cases are yours.

How to Audit Yourself

axe DevTools (browser extension): Scan any page, get a report. Zero errors = good sign. Warnings and "best practices" are worth checking.

Lighthouse (Chrome DevTools → Accessibility tab): 100 is clean. Below 90 means something's broken. Velocity X sites score 95–100 without retro-fitting.

Manual keyboard test: Tab through the whole page. Can you reach every button? Does focus move logically? Does a screen reader user get enough context? Spend 5 minutes—catches 30% of issues automated tools miss.

Five FAQs

Does accessible design look bad?

No. Velocity X's design is premium—bold typography, generous spacing, high contrast. Accessibility and beauty aren't enemies. The best design works for everyone.

Is WCAG 2.2 AA the same as AA in WCAG 2.1?

Mostly. 2.2 added a few new criteria (like Target Size Enhanced, draggable alternatives). Velocity X handles both. No breaking changes.

What if I need WCAG AAA (the hardest level)?

AAA is rarely mandated. AA covers Australian law. Velocity X ships AA; AAA is edge-case polish (7:1 contrast, longer form field labels). Ask your auditor.

Can I skip accessibility for internal tools?

No. Australian disability discrimination law covers internal systems. Employees with disabilities have rights. Plus, accessible design improves UX for everyone—better search, better labels, faster scanning.

How long does an audit take?

Depends on site size. A Velocity X marketing site (50 pages) takes 3–5 days with axe + Lighthouse + manual testing. A Velocity X dashboard might take a week. Budget 10–15% of your project timeline.

The Bottom Line

Accessibility retrofits are expensive. Velocity X bakes compliance in from day one—semantic HTML, Radix ARIA, keyboard nav, focus styles, pre-checked contrast, alt-text schema. Your audit doesn't start at "this is broken." It starts at "this is mostly there." Alt text is yours to write, video captions are yours to source, complex interactions are yours to verify. But the 80% that kills most sites? Already done. Check Velocity X pricing to build compliant on launch day instead of patching after the fact.

Ready to see how a Velocity X audit flows? Read how Radix components ship with ARIA by default.