Memorandum by DPTAC to Going for Gold: Delivering Excellent Transport for London's 2012 Olympic Games - House of Commons Transport Committee Investigation

• This document has also been made available in MS Word for downloading (78kb)

[The Committee's report and oral evidence are at www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmselect/cmtran/588/58802.htm]

Introduction

1. The Government set up the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) in 1985 to advise it on disabled people's transport needs. We use these four overarching principles to base our advice on.

• Accessibility for disabled people is a condition of any investment;
• Accessibility for disabled people must be a mainstream activity;
• Users should be involved in determining accessibility;
• Providers are responsible for achieving accessibility for disabled people.

2. Your Committee's own reports have gone a long way towards describing the improvements that are necessary for disabled people to travel freely.

3. The absence of accessible, affordable and available transport means that disabled people are less able to secure and retain employment, obtain medical treatment, enjoy a full social and recreational life, or travel with whom they want, where they want and when they want. Compared with others, disabled travellers are likely to plan further ahead, use more effort, pay more to travel, spend more time, experience embarrassment and stigmatisation, find themselves more tired at the end of a journey and generally are more dependent on public transport than non-disabled people. This will have a crucial effect on their confidence and preparedness to travel in future.

4. In terms of disabled people's participation, the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester were notable on two counts. Firstly, the Paralympic Games were fully integrated with the mainstream events. Secondly, Manchester City Council recognised the importance of having an overall strategy for improving accessibility within the city. DPTAC believes that the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games (referred to collectively here as "the 2012 Games") offer an even greater opportunity to deliver excellent inclusive transport, that takes account of the needs of all disabled people right across the United Kingdom. This memorandum focuses on the potential of this opportunity, and on the possible risks.

Scope of transport for the Olympic Games

5. The fact that the 2012 Games are branded "London 2012" should not obscure the fact that events will take place throughout the country. While most venues are in the Olympic Park and River Zone east of the city, other London venues include Horseguards Parade, Islington Business Design Centre, Lords Cricket Ground, Wembley Stadium, Wimbledon, and several Royal Parks. Further afield Hampden Park, the Millennium Stadium, Old Trafford, Villa Park, Weald Country Park, and Weymouth and Portland will host events. There will be nine key venues for the Olympic and seven for the Paralympic Games. The Government intends to base Olympic training camps and preparation facilities throughout the UK.

6. Moreover, many UK and overseas Olympic visitors are likely, with tourism industry encouragement, to visit attractions around the country. We also expect a cluster of sporting events to be loosely associated with the Olympic Games. A Deaflympics for London in 2013 and a Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014 have already been suggested. It follows that the need for transport that is accessible to both disabled competitors and spectators spans the whole country, and not just London, and extends before and beyond the period of the 2012 Games themselves.

Provision for Olympic Games and Paralympic Games

7. DPTAC is disappointed that the reported five key objectives of the Olympic Transport Strategy Team at Transport for London make no reference to accessibility, inclusion or disability. We believe that an Olympic Delivery Authority Board member should lead on access issues, supported by dedicated staff possessing the skills, training and experience to ensure that all Olympic events and associated services and information are delivered inclusively.

8. Transport for London's "Olympic & Paralympic Transport Strategy - Paralympics Surface Transport" published in May 2004 undertook to "provide universally accessible [Paralympic] Games for athletes, officials, media, support staff and spectators." The Bid document on the Paralympic Games states that "all spectators will travel to Paralympic venues by fully accessible public transport using low emission vehicles..There will be no private car access to venues, but there will be provision for those disabled people entitled to such special parking arrangements under UK regulations current at the time." It then describes a 'Games Mobility' service for disabled spectators, based on that used at the Manchester Commonwealth Games. If, as is likely, this involves community and other demand responsive transport, then DPTAC would like your Committee to explore how this will be funded.

9. DPTAC accepts that there may be valid logistical reasons why the Paralympic Games cannot be totally integrated with the Olympic Games, but we are concerned that assurances and provisions for the Paralympic games do not appear to have been extended to the Olympic Games, and we would expect them to be so extended.

Public sector duty

10. The Olympic Delivery Authority will be responsible for planning and coordinating transport for the 2012 Games. Its responsibilities to disabled people will be much clearer if the Government could confirm that the authority will be covered by both the recent extension of the Disability Discrimination Act to cover public functions; and the new duty to promote disability equality, including publishing and implementing a Disability Equality Scheme. DPTAC recommends that the Committee seeks such confirmation.

Parking

11. DPTAC notes that the bid states that there will be no provision for spectator parking at Olympic venues. We support the principle of using public transport as much as possible. However, public transport, including the proposed park-and-ride and park-and-rail schemes for Olympic venues, may well fail to be wholly accessible to the significant numbers of disabled people who will wish to travel in groups to the Olympic Games and to the Paralympic Games. In these cases there will need to be parking available for taxis, private hire vehicles, other demand responsive and community transport, and private cars, together with accessible pedestrian routes to and from the parking areas. The Bid document states that "additional parking facilities for people with disabilities and mobility shuttles will be available for spectator use", and DPTAC would like your Committee to seek clarification of this commitment.

12. The Blue Badge Scheme provides an on-street parking concession enabling many disabled people, who travel either as drivers or as passengers, to park close to their destinations. Concessions are also commonly given to Blue Badge Holders in off-street car parking areas. The Blue Badge scheme is recognised in many countries, and is a practical means of identifying many of those people who may need extra assistance in accessing Olympic venues. We would expect adequate provision to be made for parking (either or both on and off street) by Blue Badge Holders adjacent to all Olympic venues. There will need to be information for spectators on the Scheme, on the complex use of the badge in central London, on the recognition of other national parking permits for disabled people and, where appropriate, on the congestion charge, including any variation made for the Olympic period. Parking attendants, police and others involved in traffic management may well need training also.

Dedicated rail services

13. The Olympic Javelin, a high speed, high capacity spectator rail service, is set to run between St Pancras and the Olympic Park with a seven minutes journey time. Your Committee may wish to investigate the accessibility of this service, as any delays due to insufficient provision for disabled people using this service could severely affect station dwell times and the seven minute service.

End dates for compliance with Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations

14. The Secretary of State for Transport can make accessibility regulations ensuring that all rail vehicles (though not Channel Tunnel vehicles) are subject to provisions of the Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations. The role of these Regulations could change before 2012 as a result of European Union legislation. Section 6(1) of the Disability Discrimination Act 2005 requires him to exercise this power no later than 1st January 2020. We believe that there is a case for the Secretary of State to consider setting an end-date in advance of 2020, in respect of selected routes or services, so as to ensure the accessibility of rail vehicles to and from Olympic venues across the country. In London we would recommend an earlier end-date for the Tube and for Thameslink to complement our proposals for improved accessibility at Kings Cross Thameslink station.

Train stations

15. The condition of our stations must not undermine the increasing accessibility of rail vehicles. DPTAC believes that the Department for Transport, in allocating the Access for All Fund, should ensure that all stations near Olympic venues, including those outside London are fully accessible to disabled people and that they are also safe to use in terms of the Secure Stations scheme, as security is particularly important to disabled people. Robust data from access audits must form the basis for the design and prioritisation of this work. Within London, we believe that accessibility improvements to Kings Cross Thameslink station would allow Thameslink to serve as a cross-London route to the main Olympic venues, particularly if combined with an end-date in advance of 2020 to meet the provisions of the Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations.

Tube stations

16. The Transport section of the Bid states that the only accessibility constraint that the Government has identified is the provision of mobility impaired access at all London Underground stations. DPTAC considers it is certainly one of them, though there are others such as the lack of full audio-visual display systems on all Tube vehicles. Transport for London has stated that only 40 of its 275 stations are currently accessible without stairs or escalators. The stations nearest to Islington Business Design Centre, Hyde Park, Lords Cricket Ground, and Regent's Park are not among these. We are aware of plans to increase the number of stations with step-free access by a further 27 in the next five years, and to make 25% of stations step-free by 2010 and 50% by 2015. This means that by 2012 well over half of London Underground stations will remain inaccessible to many disabled Olympic visitors, a situation which we do not consider to be acceptable. The Bid document states that "London Underground's mobility-impaired accessibility programme has been prioritised to ensure mobility-impaired access for everyone from Underground stations serving Olympic venues." DPTAC would like the Committee to seek clarification of this commitment. Again, we would expect underground stations to meet the requirements of the Secure Stations scheme.

Wheelchair accessible buses

17. Part V of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 sets a framework for accessibility for some land-based public transport modes. It gives the government powers to make technical regulations setting access requirements for buses, coaches, trains and taxis. The Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulations 2000 set out the standards that new buses and scheduled coaches must meet, together with end dates by which existing vehicles must meet regulations. Small buses will need to be accessible to wheelchair users by 1 January 2015, large single deck buses by 1 January 2016, and double deck buses by 1 January 2017.

18. Only 30% of the national bus fleet is currently accessible to people in wheelchairs. Progress has been fastest in cities, where there is a quicker turnover of vehicles, and a large proportion of such vehicles are in London, where wheelchair accessibility is rapidly approaching 100%. Outside London and the conurbations, disabled people are less well served. DPTAC recommends that the Committee seeks assurances that all buses serving Olympic and Paralympic venues will meet the Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulation requirements. In some cases, these requirements might need to be exceeded in order to allow for the number of disabled people who are likely to wish to attend Olympic events.

Audible and visual information systems

19. The regulations do not include such features as audible and visible information systems on vehicles and at bus stops. DPTAC believes that regulations requiring such systems to be installed for all bus and coach routes would greatly increase the accessibility of buses and coaches for people with visual, hearing and learning disabilities. They would also benefit Olympic visitors whose first language is not English.

20. We understand that Transport for London plans to introduce new radio and automatic vehicle location systems to all vehicles in its network fleet, starting in 2005 and finishing four years later. Transport for London is committed to ensuring that these changes will benefit all passengers including disabled people, though the exact nature of the additional passenger information remains under development.

21. DPTAC strongly supports this intention. We believe that the system should comprise full audible and visual information, and should be extended to cover bus stops and to include buses serving Olympic venues outside London, including retrofitting existing vehicles.

Training

22. Effective training for transport staff is critical for all those involved in planning, designing, constructing and subsequently managing and operating venues and transport infrastructure. This includes transport engineers, architects, designers and associated professions taking part in the development and construction of services and facilities.

Transport infrastructure and information

23. DPTAC is aware that many disabled people find it hard to use transport infrastructure, such as bus and coach stations, airports and ferry terminals, as well as to use available transport information. We have drawn attention to this above in relation to railway stations, but the issue spans all forms of transport and the interchanges between them. We would draw particular attention to the need for pedestrian routes from the Olympic Park and other stations to the stadia to be accessible.

24. Even simple facilities such as the provision of wheelchairs for disabled people at airports without charge, or copies of timetables in large print, have proved difficult. The needs of people with learning difficulties are particularly poorly recognised. Some of these failures come from the design of buildings and facilities that ignores the DPTAC principles set out at paragraph 1 above.

25. If disabled people attend Olympic events in proportion to their numbers, as we hope they will, 50,000 disabled people might expect to encounter these problems each day of the 2012 Games.

Assistance dogs

26. DPTAC believes that transport interchanges, sport venues, and other places where people may have to wait for significant periods of time, should make provision for access by and facilities for assistance dogs and their users. DPTAC has contributed to such advice for specific transport sectors, and can make this available if needed.

27. We also anticipate that a significant number of overseas assistance dog users may wish to travel to the UK to attend the 2020 Games. We recommend that the Government reviews the capacity of animal reception facilities and ensures that travellers are aware of their location, and how to get from them to Olympic event venues.

Aviation and shipping

28. Voluntary codes and advice currently cover aviation and shipping, the latter supplemented by "European Commission Directive 2003/24/EC - Amending safety rules and standards for passenger ships". Further European Union legislation governing these sectors may be in place by 2012. The Government may also have lifted the exemption for aviation and shipping services from the provisions of Part 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act. The Government is prepared to do this if the voluntary approach fails to produce results. However, we note that aircraft and ships will be the first and last Olympic travel experience that most overseas participants and audiences will experience, and we believe that the Government should do all it can to ensure that that experience is a positive one.

Consultation processes

29. DPTAC is concerned that effective and inclusive planning and development of transport services in the run up to the 2012 Games could be put at risk by pressure of project completion deadlines. We believe that planning should employ the normal processes of consent and building control, including the development of and consultation on access statements. Consultation must provide for the participation and engagement of disabled people, by offering the correct information in the right format and manner and at the appropriate time. This will require including access for disabled people throughout the consultation processes and documentation and in the underpinning research, rather than relegating access for disabled people to a token paragraph in a consultation document or regulatory impact assessment. It also requires that consultation events are designed, carried out and reported, in ways that enable the full participation of disabled people.

30. The Government has undertaken to make publications available to disabled people in appropriate alternative formats when they are published in standard formats. Where this is not possible, and a time limit applied to documents such as in consultations, the Government would generally extend deadlines for those people who rely on accessible formats. DPTAC considers that this commitment should bind the Olympic Delivery Authority and all participants in the Olympic Transport Plan.

Displacement of other projects

31. In the press notice announcing this inquiry your Committee posed the question "will funding be diverted from other transport projects?" DPTAC agrees that this is a risk, and would seek the Government's assurance that the Olympics does not become an excuse to delay or postpone much needed transport improvements that benefit disabled people in all parts of the country.

Conclusion

32. We agree with British Paralympic Association Chief Executive Phil Lane that the 2012 Games can "leave a legacy of accessible transport and facilities not just for disabled sportsmen and women but for people with a disability in general." However, this will require all parties associated with the 2012 Games to work together holistically.

33. We congratulate the key stakeholders on their progress in taking forward the Olympic transport infrastructure, strategies and policies. However, there remains much to do as the details of the 2012 Games are developed, and we thank your Committee for drawing attention to it at this early stage.

Neil Betteridge
Chair, Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee

Date: 8 September 2005

• Responses to consultations

Top of page