Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that wheelchair users have reliable access to priority spaces on buses.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000 (PSVAR) require buses and coaches designed to carry over twenty-two passengers and used on local and scheduled services to incorporate features to support disabled people to travel safely and in reasonable comfort. This includes provision of a wheelchair space and lift or ramp suitable for a passenger using a standard “reference wheelchair”.
We know that wheelchair users are sometimes unable to board a bus because the statutory wheelchair space is already occupied, and we welcome efforts by operators to relieve pressure on it, including through dedicated announcements and signage, the provision of taxi guarantee schemes, and by incorporating a second wheelchair space into vehicle designs.
We want disabled people to be able to travel easily, confidently and with dignity, and the Bus Services (No. 2) Bill includes a comprehensive package of measures aiming to improve local bus network accessibility and safety.