Transport

More than 30 protesters, including Heidi Alexander and wheelchair-users, with placards about access in front of a sign for Hither Green station

June 28, 2018 0

Minister lauds £600,000 for rail access… after her department confirms £47 million in cuts

A transport minister has announced £600,000 funding for seven digital projects to help disabled passengers access rail travel, days after her department confirmed another minister had rubber-stamped tens of millions of pounds in cuts to a separate rail access scheme. Nusrat Ghani, the transport accessibility minister, said this week that the seven “innovative, high-tech

Transport

June 14, 2018 0

Motability calls police about disabled woman who failed to return car

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A disabled woman who refused to return her Motability car after she lost her eligibility for disability benefits was threatened with arrest by police officers after the company reported the vehicle as stolen. Mary Jenkins* was approached by two police officers in the middle of a supermarket carpark on the Isle of Wight on

Transport

June 14, 2018 0

TransPennine performs sharp U-turn on train access after protest threat

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A train operator that planned to run mainline rail services that wheelchair-users would not have been able to access has been forced to abandon its plans after it faced threats of a protest by disabled activists. Disability News Service revealed last month that TransPennine Express (TPE) was planning to introduce two extra trains, each with four

Transport

June 7, 2018 0

Protest planned over rail company’s ‘terrible step backwards’ on access

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Disabled activists are preparing a protest action over a train operator’s plans to run mainline rail services that wheelchair-users will not be able to access. Disability News Service revealed last week that TransPennine Express (TPE) is to introduce two extra trains, each with four carriages – all of which will be inaccessible to wheelchair-users

Transport

May 31, 2018 0

Rail company to run services with no wheelchair spaces… on government’s orders

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A train operator will this summer start running mainline rail services that wheelchair-users will not be able to access… with the apparent blessing of the government. It is believed to be the first time for many years that a scheduled mainline train service will run without any provision for passengers who use wheelchairs. And

Transport

May 31, 2018 0

TUC Disabled Workers’ Conference: ‘Discriminatory train firm should be stripped of franchise’

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A train company which issued discriminatory guidance to its station staff should be stripped of its rail franchise, say disabled trade unionists. The TUC Disabled Workers’ Conference in Bournemouth – attended by representatives of 22 unions – heard from a string of delegates who were furious at the guidance and called for action to

Transport

May 24, 2018 0

Equality watchdog ‘considering legal action against government’ over rail access failures

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The equality watchdog is considering legal action against the government over its failure to ensure an accessible rail service, according to a leading disabled expert. The potential legal action emerged in the wake of anger directed at rail operator Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) – which runs Southern (pictured), Thameslink, Gatwick Express and Great Northern

Transport

May 24, 2018 0

Motability faces calls to increase grants or cut prices after MPs’ fierce criticism

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Disabled activists have told Motability it would be “obscene” not to expand a fund that provides grants to customers with high support needs, after an inquiry heavily criticised the decision to pay the executive running the car scheme £1.7 million. A report by the work and pensions and Treasury select committees says the £1.7

Transport

May 10, 2018 0

A year on from new taxi discrimination laws… and not a single prosecution

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Local authorities have failed to prosecute a single taxi-driver for discriminating against wheelchair-users under new legislation introduced more than a year ago, according to new figures released under the Freedom of Information Act. The figures show that not one taxi-driver out of more than 30,000 so far covered by the new legislation has appeared

Transport

Three women, sitting in their wheelchairs, with their assistance dogs

April 12, 2018 0

Government set to ignore key air travel discrimination concerns

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The government appears to be ignoring pleas to clamp down on significant areas of discrimination against disabled air passengers. The concerns arose after the Department for Transport (DfT) issued a progress report on its new aviation strategy. It included suggestions that it could “make flying more accessible for disabled passengers”, including improving assistance on

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