Disabled are still stuck on the station platform

Access to public transport for people with a disability was not at the forefront of most bus, tram and train manufacturers' minds a couple of decades ago.

Despite some noticeable improvements in infrastructure, such as the installation of ramps and lifts on station platforms, truly accessible public transport for the disabled still remains some way off. Public transport operators will need time to invest the sums needed for replacement of their older vehicles.

Fed up with the obstacles still faced by disabled travellers, the Brussels-based European Disability Forum (EDF) has been trying to speed up progress. "We have mobilised the disability movement in 25 member states to make sure they put necessary pressure on local providers to make buses more accessible. We are also trying to apply provisions to international coaches," says Helena González-Sancho, spokeswoman for EDF.

In the case of accessibility of bus services, which is covered by a 2002 European directive on bus and coach design, although EU-wide standards do exist there are significant variations across the member states in how well measures are implemented. "The idea of the directive is that all urban buses must be accessible for the disabled," says González-Sancho. "The directive requires priority seating for people with disabilities, a designated area for wheelchairs, space for guide dogs and accessible information for the visually impaired. Buses in rural and urban areas should be accessible. But this is not yet the case."

Ophélie Spanneut, project co-ordinator at Polis, a network of leading European cities and regions promoting improved technologies and policies in local transport, believes that progress in the area is long overdue. Polis is joined by public transport authorities, operators, vehicle manufacturers and users, on the EU-funded UNIACCESS forum, which is setting research and development aims for EU-wide improvements in accessibility.

"We believe there's a lack of accessibility options," says Spanneut. The group is working on a roadmap for future research covering the whole transport system, including infrastructure as well as vehicle design. Examples of technologies to be developed include real-time information screens understandable by all, sound information that can be converted into text, emergency alarms with bright lights, and internet and mobile phone services. The roadmap will be presented at the Committee of the Regions in November.

González-Sancho believes that legislative measures guaranteeing improved access to public transport should be part of an overall package aimed at fostering maximum integration of the disabled into society. "We're trying to explain to the EU that there is no point in trying to raise employment figures for the disabled if they don't provide comprehensive legislation covering not only transport, but also all areas," she says.

EDF would hope to see proposals for such a package in 2007, the tenth anniversary of the inclusion of article 13 on equality of opportunity in the EC treaty. This would be a good way to celebrate," says González-Sancho. "We pushed for this in 2003. We didn't get it. But, we're confident the Commission is now open to creating a new proposal for a directive."

Access to public transport for people with a disability was not at the forefront of most bus, tram and train manufacturers' minds a couple of decades ago.