Following a successful legal challenge, supported by the Equality and Human Rights Commission Arriva London North Ltd have taken positive measures to support disabled bus users.
Drivers will undertake more disability equality training and adopt a pro-active approach to ensuring that disabled people using wheelchairs have access to priority spaces.
The legal challenge was brought by Nina Grant who has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and uses a wheelchair to facilitate her independence. Despite a ruling from the Supreme Court in Paulley v FirstBus plc that bus companies must end ‘first come, first served’ policies and do more to provide access for wheelchair users, Nina has regularly been left kerbside by bus drivers. On one occasion a driver failed to open the doors to her before driving off, as he said that there was a buggy in the wheelchair space and this couldn’t be moved.
As a result of Nina’s challenge, with immediate effect, Arriva has agreed:
- To improve accessibility for disabled passengers.
- Every induction for a driver include comprehensive mandatory training on the Equality Act and the duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled passengers.
- Every driver undertake refresher training in relation to the above and be assessed to a minimum competency standard, a record to be maintained on each driver’s personnel file.
- Should a driver fail to reach the Competency Standard as specified above, the driver will not be permitted to drive pending successful resolution of the training course.
- At the end of each shift, every driver must complete and file a record of each occasion when during their shift, access has been refused to a wheelchair user. Failure to do so will give rise to an investigation in respect of that driver, and where appropriate, disciplinary action.
For more information on this case visit the Equality and Human Rights Commission page.
Do you believe rules like these should be introduced with bus companies operating in Sheffield? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
