Dear constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about travel for disabled passengers and a passenger charter for public transport.

The right to physical accessibility, which is the foundation of so many economic, social, civil and political rights, is, for many, dependent on access to reliable and affordable public transport. I think it is essential we recognise the challenges of lived experience for disabled people go beyond medical impairments and we must also consider how we remove societal barriers.

Earlier this year, the Government published its long-awaited National Disability Strategy. Although it promises to “enable disabled people to travel with confidence by addressing staff training, information and the attitudes and behaviours of others”, I am concerned that the whole consultation process failed to properly consult with disabled people organisations. In addition, many critical areas such as collecting data and adequate funding were not addressed.

The Government has previously acknowledged that many disabled passengers are unaware of their rights to assistance and what steps they could take to enforce those rights. Although it says it is committed to increasing awareness of passenger rights, I know polling by Scope has found that eight out of ten disabled people feel stressed or anxious when they travel. More than half reported they felt like this most or every time they make a journey.

I remain convinced the Government has not tackled one of the biggest challenges with our transport system, which is that the different modes of transport just do not talk to each other and are not joined up. We need a transport system that genuinely connects people. We must also ensure policies are made in partnership with disabled people and that they have dignity and respect at their heart.

Thank you once again for contacting me about this issue.

Yours sincerely,

Peter Dowd MP