General transport issues 

 

Access to public transport, including trains, trams, ferries and taxis, is covered by legislation including the Equality Act and the Sex Discrimination Act. Amendments to the Disability Discrimination Act also ensure that transport service providers are now obliged to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ if their services are not fully accessible to disabled people, while the government’s ‘10 Year Transport Plan’ makes ‘building in accessibility a condition of all public money being spent’.

With new laws and improvements in transport technology, there is therefore greater awareness of accessibility issues throughout Britain today. However, serious issues still remain for a wide range of groups, from old people and parents with small children to people with mobility impairments and those who rely on personal assistants, carers or assistance dogs.

Nearly half of disabled people in England and Wales, for example, say they experience difficulty with travelling.

Cars are not always reliable either, with one survey reporting that more than one in five spaces reserved for disabled drivers are misused by non-disabled motorists.  It is therefore important to know your rights. 

On this page

 

What is unlawful

It is unlawful for a transport provider to discriminate against someone:

• by refusing to provide any service to someone because of their sex, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief which it provides (or is prepared to provide) to other members of the public
• by offering a service at a lower standard to a person because of their sex, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief
• by offering a service on different terms to a person because of their sex, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief.


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The legal duties of transport providers

This section cites examples of the legal duties associated with taxis and minicabs, buses and coaches, and trains and trams.

Taxis and minicabs

The difference between taxis and minicabs is that taxis may be hired on the roadside: for example, black cabs in London. Minicabs are booked through an office by phone or in person, and drivers are allocated by the operator or their booking clerk.

The driver of a taxi hired by a disabled person who has a guide dog or a hearing dog, or hired by someone accompanying them, is in most circumstances under a duty to:

• carry the passenger’s dog and allow it to remain with the passenger, and
• not make an additional charge for doing so.

A driver who fails to comply with these duties may be liable to a fine.

The operator of a minicab or other private hire vehicle commits an offence if:

• they refuse to accept a booking requested by a disabled person (or booked by someone who wishes to accompany them) if the reason is that the disabled person will be accompanied by an assistance dog, or
• they make an additional charge for carrying an assistance dog.

The driver of a minicab or other private hire vehicle commits an offence if he or she refuses to carry out a booking requested by a disabled person (or a person who wishes a disabled person to accompany them) and the reason for the failure is that the disabled person will be accompanied by an assistance dog.

Buses and coaches

All new buses and coaches must meet the requirements of the Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulations 2000. These regulations cover wheelchair-accessible spaces, priority seats, handrails, and slip-resistant floors. It is a criminal offence for a new bus or coach not to have the relevant certificate demonstrating that the requirements of the regulations have been met.

Rail vehicles – trains and trams

The Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations (RVAR) 1998 apply to rail vehicles such as trains, trams, monorails and magnetic levitation systems brought into use on or after 1 January 1999.

The RVAR 1998 require trains and trams to have wheelchair spaces, accessible door controls, accessible toilets and wheelchair-compatible doorways. It is a criminal offence for a rail vehicle to fail to conform with the provisions of the RVAR 1998.


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