Progress Report on Department for Transport Disability Equality Scheme 2006-2009
Over the past 12 months there has been significant progress in key areas that have contributed to making public transport more accessible to disabled people. We are aware that there remain a number of milestones in the Disability Equality Scheme action plan that are yet to be delivered, but we are taking this opportunity to set out the Department’s key progress to date.
Improving accessibility
By law, all new trains, buses and coaches now have to be accessible to disabled people, including wheelchair users. Over a third of all trains are already accessible, as is over half the bus fleet. We have set deadlines for all trains to be accessible by 2020, while all buses used on local or scheduled services will be required to meet accessibility standards by 2017 and coaches by 2020.
We have also been working at an international level to improve accessibility to air transport. We will be launching our revised Code of Practice on access to air travel for disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility on 23 July 2008 to coincide with new EU regulations, which come into force at the end of the month.
Accessibility legislation also covers infrastructure, such as bus and railway stations. Barriers to access such as stairs or steep ramps can mean that disabled people may not have the same opportunities to travel as other people. The Access for All Programme is improving this by installing accessible, obstacle free routes at priority rail stations. Under the programme we have made £315 million available to Network Rail to improve the accessibility of the railway network by 2015. 140 stations have been identified for improvement. By removing barriers to access, the programme is increasing journey opportunities for disabled people to access work, healthcare, educational and leisure facilities.
The Department is also currently considering options for including an output specification for accessibility in the next High Level Output Specification (HLOS) for rail in 2012. This will be informed by a review of the benefits of the Access for All Programme.
In December 2006 we extended civil rights to disabled people to ensure fair treatment and cut discrimination when using land-based public transport. New regulations have made it unlawful for a transport operator to discriminate against a disabled person simply because they are disabled, to treat disabled people less favourably or to fail to make a reasonable adjustment to the way they provide their services.
All transport operators have a legal duty to consider disabled people when publishing service information and providing booking and other facilities.
On 1 April 2008 we introduced a new extension to bus concessionary travel. Since 1 April 2006, disabled people and those over 60 have been entitled to free bus travel within their local authority area from 9.30am Monday to Friday and all day at weekends. To allow those bus users the freedom to use their passes not just in their local area but also in other parts of the country, a significant investment of an extra £212 million has been made in the concessionary scheme this year. From April 1 st, those eligible have been able to travel for free on local buses during off peak times, anywhere in England. Half fare subsidies for long distance coach travel are also available under a scheme agreed with coach operators.
On 24 January 2008 we published revised local authority guidance on the Blue Badge Scheme for England and launched a new £500,000 Blue Badge Centres of Excellence Fund, to promote best practice and improve consistency on the administration and enforcement of the Scheme.
The Department works to help older and disabled people to remain mobile through the use of a private car. We are funding mobility centres which provide information and advice to individuals on their ability to drive. In June we also sponsored the Mobility Roadshow, where disabled people received information on personal mobility solutions such as wheelchairs, scooters and adapted vehicles.
Involving disabled people
The Department held a number of workshops with representatives of national disability organisations and the wider disabled community when preparing the Scheme, to discuss policy issues and appropriate ways of becoming involved. We have since held a follow up event with representatives from national disability organisations, to discuss how the recommendations are being taken forward.
To capture the full diversity of disabled people, including those who do not currently travel, we use a variety of different methods for capturing views, gathering evidence, and using information.
The Department takes the advice of the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) in developing new policies, and their members have played an integral role in producing the Disability Equality Scheme. DPTAC Working Groups have been closely involved in the development of the new strategy for the Blue Badge Scheme, and in the revision of the Code of Practice on Access to Air Travel for Disabled People.
DfT published 'Towards a Sustainable Transport System'[1] in October 2007 in response to Rod Eddington's Transport Study[2], which recommended that we improve the way we plan transport. The Department committed to an early, open and ongoing dialogue with transport users and other stakeholders, including disabled people.
We will shortly be commissioning national research on passenger perceptions of personal security on public transport, and a number of disabled people will be interviewed as part of this research.
The Highways Agency (HA) have engaged with the Solihull Disabled Persons Network Group (SDPNG), holding a workshop with the members to discuss what sort of services they want and how they want to be treated if they break down on the strategic road network. The attendees consisted of people with disabilities affecting their mobility, and members of the deaf community. Feedback from the workshop was used to revise the HA Traffic Officer Manual, used by Traffic Officers who patrol the motorway network. The new guidance was also discussed with visitors to the Department's Mobility Roadshow, and this information is being used to draw up the terms of a contract that will be let for Vehicle Breakdown Recovery on the network.
Improving the Evidence Base
In order to strengthen and map its evidence base, the Department has produced the ' Evidence-based Review of Mobility: choices and barriers for different social groups.' This draws together existing research findings on the experiences of disabled people, ethnic minority groups, women and older people when using transport.
The Department is commissioning a long term evaluation of the impact of introducing accessibility planning to Local Transport Plans; research has also been commissioned to examine the impact that existing UK bus initiatives have on social exclusion. The findings of both pieces of work will be fed back to the Department, and to local transport authorities, to help improve transport accessibility at a national and local level.
The Department has developed an Equalities Impact Assessment toolkit to enable policy makers to take account of the potential impact of new policies, using available data and seeking the views of the people who could be affected. We have published internal guidance and advice on carrying out the assessments, as well as more general information on the Disability Equality Duty and its implications for the Department.
Human Resources
The Department's Human Resources group is assessing all new HR polices and procedures for their impacts on disabled staff. We are refining our workforce modelling procedures to better inform and underpin positive actions on recruitment, retention and staff development. Disabled colleagues have been involved in the development of employment policies such as our revised absence management policy. In the Department's Agencies work is underway to support both the gathering of monitoring information and, more importantly, how we are able to make use of the information to address imbalances.
Remaining priorities
Following a recent consultation on options for reforming the Blue Badge Scheme we will continue to work closely with our stakeholders, including DPTAC, on the consolidation and development of the Blue Badge Reform Strategy. The consultation, which closed in April 2008, looked particularly at fraud and abuse of the Scheme by those who are not eligible for a badge, and sought the views of disabled people on how to combat this fraud.
We are also considering how to increase the number of accessible taxis for those who may find it difficult to use public transport . I t is already unlawful for taxi drivers to discriminate against disabled people. We are discussing with local authorities and interest groups proposals for a consultation package to seek views on how we can encourage more accessible taxis and how we can address other issues like enforcement.
Research on mobility service provision for older and disabled car users began in January and will form an evidence base as we develop our future auto-mobility policy.
Schemes across the country help disabled people gain the skills and confidence they need to use public transport. We published a review of all Travel Training schemes last October and are currently exploring ways of increasing the number of schemes and developing a national qualification for training travel trainers.
[1] Towards a Sustainable Transport System Supporting Economic Growth in a Low CarbonWorld
