Westminster Urged to Act Over Disabled Transport

A group of young wheelchair users have taken their concerns over disabled transport to Westminster in a bid to get MPs to take action to tackle the problems disabled people are facing.

The Muscular Dystrophy Campaign’s Trailblazers group highlighted issues regarding buses and taxis.  One member of the group, Judith Merry, told MPs how she was left stranded at a bus stop after a bus failed to pick her up, despite the fact that the bus was a wheelchair accessible vehicle, with the driver claiming he did not see her.

Other problems raised include disabled people being ignored by seemingly available taxis, relying on members of the public to hail taxis for them.

Campaigning for Change

The Trailblazers represent 300 young disabled people across the UK with the aim of protecting the rights of young people who have muscle disease.

Trailblazer’s project manager, Bobby Ancil, commented: “Disabled people have the same need to use buses and taxis as non-disabled people.  Be it physical access or the attitudes of business owners and drivers, disabled travellers are facing obstacles daily that should have been left way back in the past.”

The concerns were raised to parliamentary Undersecretary for Transport Norman Baker, Shadow Minister for Transport Andrew Gwinne and British Paralympian and group chairwoman Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson.

Mr Baker said he would raise the campaign’s concerns with the government’s transport forum.