FabSwingers.com > Forums > The Lounge > Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson
Jump to: Newest in thread
In the news today.
I know it won't be news to members of this site who's struggles dealing with disability are a daily issue.
One of our most decorated para Olympians, multiple winner of the London marathon plus many many other notable achievements forced to crawl off a train at king's cross station because assistance failed to show up.
Absolutely disgusting a lady very famous getting treated like this certainly doesn't bode well for regular people with disability.
Awful story. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
The one and only time I requested assistance for my mum it failed to turn up. She refused to travel by train after that.
It'll get worse now there are so many unmanned stations
Yet if you travel by bus the driver will almost always be only too happy to hop out of their cab and give whatever assistance is needed |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"Reading it I immediately thought of Mrs KC on the forums. She often has similar distressing encounters. It's disgraceful that there is not a dedicated service at all stations.
 "
I've had a very similar experience fairly recently, in July, at Euston. I crawled on with the aid of a passenger. I disembarked in Manchester on the same day by crawling and with other passengers trying to help. The assistance system is completely hit and miss, it's not really a system at all. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"The one and only time I requested assistance for my mum it failed to turn up. She refused to travel by train after that.
It'll get worse now there are so many unmanned stations
Yet if you travel by bus the driver will almost always be only too happy to hop out of their cab and give whatever assistance is needed "
I'll counter with issues in London sometimes with the ramps being electronic. I've had a few issues whereby the ramps weren't working and so have been told I couldn't board and had to wait and wait. Fortunately most London bus routes are frequent. In Manchester, I've had the odd driver claim they are unable to deploy the manual ramp due to back problems and suchlike. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
I have had the distinct pleasure of her esteemed company, and she is truly a delightful individual.
It is an indignity for any person, not solely her, and a source of shame where none ought to exist.
To contemplate that, despite our technological advancements facilitating wheelchair accessibility in trains and buses, it remains the prevailing mindset of individuals that serves as the principal barrier to users.
Likewise, At present, I am endeavoring to secure a venue for the forthcoming MLS, undertaking considerable effort to ensure its wheelchair accessibility. Nonetheless, I trust that the endeavor shall prove worthwhile, though perfection may elude us.
Chad ThunderCock
🌹 |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
It is a disgrace that this is allowed to happen, not just to celebrities but the people experiencing this everyday.
I worked in aviation for 20+ years and the indignity passengers experienced made me angry and upset.
Airports are responsible for assistance to and from aircraft and on airport grounds , they constantly cut the budget they pay private companies to employ staff.
Government need to put better regulation and accountability in place for all types of travel |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"The one and only time I requested assistance for my mum it failed to turn up. She refused to travel by train after that.
It'll get worse now there are so many unmanned stations
Yet if you travel by bus the driver will almost always be only too happy to hop out of their cab and give whatever assistance is needed
I'll counter with issues in London sometimes with the ramps being electronic. I've had a few issues whereby the ramps weren't working and so have been told I couldn't board and had to wait and wait. Fortunately most London bus routes are frequent. In Manchester, I've had the odd driver claim they are unable to deploy the manual ramp due to back problems and suchlike. "
I'm only experiencing it second hand and infrequently. You're experiencing it every time you travel. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"There must have been other passengers around... I wonder why no one helped her?  "
The ramps are locked away and people get off trains and leave PDQ. Wheelchair users are often the last people on the train.
The only option then is to pull the emergency cord thing but that only works if staff remain on the train. Which they often don't. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
This is another example of why trains should still have a conductor,it gives people the ability for a first point of contact for just such situations.
It's not like train travel is cheap, given the costs you'd have thought that a premium service should be available because of this.
We are very good at putting up with shit customer service in this country.
It's a piss poor state of affairs.
|
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"This is another example of why trains should still have a conductor,it gives people the ability for a first point of contact for just such situations.
It's not like train travel is cheap, given the costs you'd have thought that a premium service should be available because of this.
We are very good at putting up with shit customer service in this country.
It's a piss poor state of affairs.
"
On the average train, you can't get to the conductor as a wheelchair user. You are confined to a very small area of the train, unable to move from carriage to carriage and only able to board and disembark at one door. Staff have to know you are there to come and help you. Train managers are informed of or should see the presence of disabled passengers and they should not be allowed to leave the train until the passenger disembarks. But they do leave. The assistance service is the responsibility of the station staff, not the train staff, so train staff don't bother to wait. It should be mandatory for the train manager/conductor to remain until everyone is off. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"This is another example of why trains should still have a conductor,it gives people the ability for a first point of contact for just such situations.
It's not like train travel is cheap, given the costs you'd have thought that a premium service should be available because of this.
We are very good at putting up with shit customer service in this country.
It's a piss poor state of affairs.
On the average train, you can't get to the conductor as a wheelchair user. You are confined to a very small area of the train, unable to move from carriage to carriage and only able to board and disembark at one door. Staff have to know you are there to come and help you. Train managers are informed of or should see the presence of disabled passengers and they should not be allowed to leave the train until the passenger disembarks. But they do leave. The assistance service is the responsibility of the station staff, not the train staff, so train staff don't bother to wait. It should be mandatory for the train manager/conductor to remain until everyone is off. "
There definitely should be at least one member of staff stay with the passenger, on an aircraft the landing crew handed over responsibility of the aircraft to a new crew or an engineer, the company then changed it to the cleaners taking responsibility, most crew thought this was wrong as the cleaners had there own job to do.
So most time one of the crew would stay with the passengers waiting for assistance, |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"I see she had booked to be on an earlier train but she missed it.
Could that explain why there was no assistance?
How did she get onto the train at Leeds?
I have no idea "
Either she magically appeared in her wheelchair on the train, or the staff at Leeds assisted her in boarding with a ramp. Ramps can only be operated by staff.
Therefore Leeds staff should have called ahead to the destination station to inform them of the presence of a wheelchair user. The train conductor or manager should also have circulated around during the 3hr journey and observed her being present. Two op opportunities for the destination station to be informed of the presence of a wheelchair user.
Why did the train conductor/manager leave the train without checking the wheelchair user was being assisted by station staff? Why either did Leeds not phone ahead or the London station act on that call?
The system is at fault. Not the passenger. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
Also why do travel operators see passengers with reduced mobility as an inconvenience and drain on resources.
When it could be a fantastic revenue maker if there assistance programs where properly staffed and taken seriously. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"Also why do travel operators see passengers with reduced mobility as an inconvenience and drain on resources.
When it could be a fantastic revenue maker if there assistance programs where properly staffed and taken seriously. "
Society thinks disabled people are a drain on resources and this is reinforced by messaging about "combating" benefit fraud and reducing "sicknote culture" etc.
Imagine needing to commute to work by train, via wheelchair?!
Basically, until SOCIETY values disabled people, train companies will not. |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
"Also why do travel operators see passengers with reduced mobility as an inconvenience and drain on resources.
When it could be a fantastic revenue maker if there assistance programs where properly staffed and taken seriously.
Society thinks disabled people are a drain on resources and this is reinforced by messaging about "combating" benefit fraud and reducing "sicknote culture" etc.
Imagine needing to commute to work by train, via wheelchair?!
Basically, until SOCIETY values disabled people, train companies will not. "
Agree with that and it’s frustrating as all the technology that has been developed to assist Mobility gets wasted because of society not thinking positively |
Reply privately, Reply in forum +quote
or View forums list | |
» Add a new message to this topic
Society seems to have it's priorities completely askew these days 
