Wheelchair users want improvements in access to buses

From article: “Wheelchair users want improvements in access to buses“, by Pearl Forss, Channel NewsAsia. Posted: 05 May 2007 1729 hrs

It has been almost a year since wheelchair friendly buses were introduced, but a survey by the Society for the Physically Disabled showed that only 40 percent of its mobile members are using them. Therefore, in an attempt to redesign wheelchairs to meet the challenges of the environment, the society organised a Wheelchair Enabler Competition.

The Society for the Physically Disabled feels there is a need to review how wheelchair-accessible bus routes are selected.

Currently, it takes more than five minutes for the wheelchair-bound to board a bus, with some help from the bus driver. Some commuters feel this slows down public transport.

Cedric Foo, Chairman, Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport, said: “This is a challenge of balancing the needs of the public commuters with that of the elderly and the people with disabilities.

“The society must accept that Singapore is not just an economy, the public transport system must also be human in that aspect so commuters must be patient if the bus captain is helping somebody who is using a wheelchair to board or disembark the bus.”

Full article here.