Rights on Flights’ Post

"Every wheelchair user I know has a horror story about airlines." These powerful words from TV presenter and disability rights advocate Sophie Morgan set the stage for her eye-opening Channel 4 documentary, ‘Fight to Fly,’ which exposes the appalling reality of air travel for many disabled people.   In the documentary, Sophie enlists 17 wheelchair users to go undercover and document their flying experiences. These journeys reveal the shocking and often humiliating treatment endured by wheelchair users, from the indignity of being carried onto planes to the risk of damage to essential mobility equipment. One particularly distressing scene shows an individual dragging himself along the floor to use the toilet.   In 2023, Sophie founded the ‘Rights on Flights’ campaign to combat these accessibility issues. Through the initiative, Sophie, along with other leading voices, including ORA Non-Executive Director, Martyn Sibley are bringing this critical issue to the attention of international governments and changemakers. They are also collaborating with airlines to develop innovations that allow wheelchair users to remain in their chairs during flights.   ‘Fight to Fly’ is a wake-up call to airlines, regulators, and the public. It underscores that accessible, safe and dignified air travel is not a luxury but a fundamental human right and necessity in our interconnected world.   As advocates for accessible travel, ORA encourages everyone to watch this important documentary and join the conversation about making air travel inclusive for all.   Mark your calendar: Watch ‘Fight to Fly’ on Channel 4 at 9 PM tonight (Monday, 22nd July). #RightToFly #RightsonFlights #Accessibility #InclusiveTravel #AccessibleTravel

This documentary highlights the horrible treatment people with disabilities experience when they try to fly. It is common for people with disabilities to have their mobility devices broken by the airline or to be manhandled into a seat. We need an Ed Roberts-like figure to take on the big airline corporations to make them provide a humane experience. Each airline should offer an accessible wheelchair seat and train their staff to value all their customers. #accessibility https://lnkd.in/gSAVyPc8

Analysis of Passengers Willingness to Travel with Individuals with Disabilities 1. Passenger Willingness to Accommodate Individuals with Disabilities: Passengers, in general, tend to be willing to accommodate individuals with disabilities, especially when there is a structured system in place that promotes inclusivity and ease of use for all parties involved. Factors that can influence the willingness of passengers to take on individuals with disabilities include: - Social Responsibility: Many passengers view helping individuals with disabilities as a social responsibility. This sense of empathy and desire to support others can make passengers more likely to agree to shared rides with individuals who have disabilities. - Incentives: Providing incentives, such as tokens or discounts, can significantly increase the willingness of passengers to accommodate individuals with disabilities. These incentives could be financial (e.g., reduced fare) or non-financial (e.g., recognition or rewards). - Enhanced Accessibility Features: If the platform offers features that make it easier for passengers with disabilities to join rides (e.g., accessible vehicles, easy entry/exit points), it can make the idea of shared rides more appealing and reduce any perceived inconvenience. - Pre-ride Communication: Allowing passengers to communicate before the ride starts can help set expectations and address any concerns, such as special assistance needs or seating arrangements. This can create a more positive attitude towards sharing a ride with someone with a disability. 2. The Willingness of Individuals with Disabilities to Share Rides: Conversely, individuals with disabilities might be cautious about sharing rides due to concerns about privacy, independence, and potential discomfort from being in close proximity with others. However, this can be mitigated by: - Ensuring Privacy and Comfort: Allowing these passengers to choose who they share a ride with based on prior interactions or preferences can enhance their comfort and willingness to participate in shared rides. - Access to Special Services: If the ride-sharing service provides additional services specifically for individuals with disabilities, such as assistance with boarding and deboarding, or ensuring that the car is equipped with necessary accessibility features, it could make the service more attractive. - Community Feedback: Positive testimonials from other individuals with disabilities who have had successful experiences with the platform can encourage others to try it out. Creating a community atmosphere where everyone feels valued and respected is crucial. Conclusion Both groups—general passengers and individuals with disabilities—are likely to be open to shared rides if the platform is designed with inclusivity in mind. Offering incentives, ensuring accessibility, facilitating communication, and building a supportive community can significantly https://lnkd.in/dNC6_QJp

In response to this article by The Guardian about the challenges of improving disabled access to the UK's public transport, we believe this discussion is both timely and crucial. At Driving Miss Daisy Didcot, we see first-hand the daily struggles people with disabilities face when trying to access public transport. Our small fleet of wheelchair accessible vehicles (WAVs) is designed to meet the needs of those who find traditional transport options inadequate or inaccessible. We believe that while large-scale improvements to public transport are essential, specialist services like ours play an important role in providing immediate and reliable solutions for those who need extra assistance. The journey towards fully accessible public transport may be complex, but collaboration across all sectors—from local providers to national policy makers—can help bridge the gap. We remain committed to ensuring that no one is left behind when it comes to mobility and independence. #Accessibility #InclusiveTransport #DrivingMissDaisy #MobilityForAll #Didcot Driving Miss Daisy UK https://lnkd.in/e2mHKx3J

International Wheelchair Day Today is International Wheelchair Day, a day that acknowledges the positive impact wheelchairs have in wheelchair users lives. It highlights the work of those who provide support for people who use wheelchairs and the importance of safe and accessible transport for people with disability. The Point to Point Transport Commissioner understands the vital role wheelchair accessible taxis and hire vehicles play in supporting safe passenger services for people travelling with wheelchairs, not only today but every day. The Commissioner and his team, following consultations with people with disability, industry and disability groups, recently launched an industry toolkit for providers of wheelchair accessible services. The toolkit includes resources to help service providers better understand their safety obligations. It is intended to be shared with drivers also, to support their important work in providing transport to passengers travelling with a wheelchair. The toolkit contains fact sheets, driver checklists, quick reference guides and videos (https://lnkd.in/gj-vjiGw). Community information sessions on WAT safety To continue the conversation on wheelchair accessible vehicle safety, the Commissioner’s team is running information sessions across NSW. The sessions aim to educate and inform those travelling with wheelchairs, carers, people who make wheelchair transport bookings, and the public, on travelling safely in wheelchairs. The interactive nature of the sessions provides an opportunity to ask questions, along with demonstrations on how drivers of wheelchair accessible vehicles safely transfer passengers in and out of the vehicle. The next safety information session and drop in stand are being held in Wyong and Gosford on Tuesday, 5 March. More information can be found here. With more sessions to follow in Tamworth, Coffs Harbour, Tweed Heads, Port Macquarie and Wagga Wagga throughout the year. “Our safety information sessions are a great opportunity for the industry and community to share and learn more about how we support safe travel for people travelling with wheelchairs, and I encourage people to come along and talk to my team.” Commissioner Wing shared. “Safety is my priority, and I want passengers travelling with wheelchairs along with other passengers including carers, and those who book wheelchair accessible services, to understand how the industry is regulated, and what we do to support safe journeys for all – today and every day,” Commissioner Wing finished.

When an airline isn’t going to let you on the plane because you’re a disabled electric wheelchair user 🙃 The disabled rage I feel is indescribable. I’ve been inappropriately touched, had my wheelchair broken, been treated like an inanimate object by airlines before. I’ve spoken in the Disability Royal Commission about it. But to not be even allowed on the plane?? What the actual hell? Oh, and no refunds. Oh, except for a voucher that I have to PAY for and can only be used on their services, WHICH WE CAN’T USE BECAUSE THEY WON’T LET US. Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool. Flight is in five days. You can bet your ass I’m going to fight, but also, I just want to enjoy my holiday??? I’ve worked so so so hard. ID: an image that says “when an airline won’t let you on the flight because you’re disabled and use an electric wheelchair”. #Disability #DisabilityDiscrimination #DisabilityRights #DisabilityAwareness #DisabilityInclusion #DisabilityAdvocate #DisabilityJustice #Disabled #DisabledTravel #DisabledBlogger #DisabledLife #Wheelchair #WheelchairUser #WheelchairTravel

For disabled people who use wheelchairs and other mobility aids, every flight we take poses serious risks to our mobility, safety, and even our lives. The Department of Transportation (DOT) is proposing new rules to improve air travel for disabled passengers. These new rules are badly needed. Today we remember Engracia Figueroa, a disability advocate who was traveling home from a rally for expanding home care access when her custom wheelchair was mishandled and broken by the airline. Using the airline's generic wheelchair for a few hours led to her developing a pressure sore, which killed her. Not one more disabled person should die from airlines mishandling their mobility aid. There are a few days left to share your story with DOT while they finish these new rules. AAPD will submit a comment supporting the proposed rule as well as ask to expand it to cover other assistive equipment and devices beyond wheelchairs, such as speech boards and breathing apparatuses, which also are frequently damaged on flights. Let's take action to honor Engracia's legacy, and the many other disabled people who are no longer with us as a result of unsafe and inaccessible travel. Disabled passengers deserve better. https://lnkd.in/gssYbpEv #FlyingWhileDisabled #RightsOnFlights #AccessibleAirTravel #AccessibleAviation #Air4All #SafeTravel #DisabilityRights #DisabilityAwareness #DisabilityAdvocate #DisabilityInclusion #TheBarriersWeFace #HandsOffMyADA #DisabilityJustice #DisabledPower #WeTheDisabled #DisabilityPolicy #DisabilityAgenda #AAPD

Ahbid Choudry set up a specialist taxi firm for people with disabilities to stop them suffering the embarrassment he says he faced growing up. The 43-year-old, who is in a wheelchair himself, has spinal muscular atrophy, a degenerative condition that he was born with. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, Ahbid couldn’t do the things his friends and peers were doing socially because he couldn’t get a taxi to transport him in his wheelchair. There were evenings out at nightclubs like The Place and Valentinos where he simply couldn’t get home. It was this experience and his dogged determination to make a difference to those in the same boat as himself that led to the creation of CabAbility Transport in 2017. Starting with just two jobs in the first year of trading the company has grown hugely. Ahbid now has 22 wheelchair accessible cars and minibuses with a fleet of drivers covering North Staffordshire and South Cheshire and more than 50 regular customers. Ahbid, who comes from a family of taxi owners, lives in Shelton. He said: “Growing up I experienced firsthand how difficult it was to get a taxi when you’re in a wheelchair. There was absolutely no dignity in it. “Taxi drivers wouldn’t come and get me because it would take too much time to get me in and out, which meant less time to do other jobs which they saw as costing them money. “And when I did manage to get a taxi, there would be times where my wheelchair wasn’t clamped in correctly which was just laziness on their part and dangerous for me. “I wanted to something to change that and give people with disabilities their dignity back. In an age where there is supposed to be equality, why should a person in a wheelchair have to wait in the rain for hours just to get home because they can’t get a taxi? “I went to New York around 16 years ago and over there calling for a taxi when you’re disabled was quick and easy – it was like having a 4th emergency service. I don’t understand why that’s not the case here, why isn’t providing an accessible transport system for all at the forefront of people’s minds?” He added: “It makes me and the team incredibly proud and humbled to see how we are helping make peoples’ lives that little bit easier.” All the company’s drivers are trained in how to strap different wheelchairs in safely and correctly which is essential when some wheelchairs can be as heavy as twenty stone. Drivers also have British Sign Language, autism and seizure training. Ahbid left school before taking any qualifications and started selling windows before working in sales for Vodafone. He credits this sales background and his own personal experience as the reasons for the company’s success. He added: “I want to expand massively and would love the company to operate nationally. I want to leave a legacy and for me that legacy is CabAbility.” CabAbility has entered the Business in the Community (sponsored by Rydale Roofing Ltd) category of the Staffordshire University Business Awards. #proudtobestaffs

#CarersAwarenessWeek, taking place from June 10th to June 16th, is a vital opportunity to recognise and celebrate the incredible contributions of carers across the UK. Carers provide essential support to family members, friends, and neighbours who are elderly, disabled, or living with a chronic health conditions, often sacrificing their own needs to ensure their loved ones receive the care they require. This week is not just about raising awareness of the challenges carers face, but also about highlighting the support and resources available to them. Carers Awareness Week aims to inspire businesses, communities, and individuals to better support the carers among us, ensuring they feel valued and understood. For companies that supply equipment and aids for disabled people, Carers Awareness Week is an excellent time to showcase how your products make a significant difference in the lives of both carers and those they care for. Highlight stories of how mobility aids, adaptive technologies, and other products have enhanced the quality of life for users and eased the burden on carers. Healthcare professionals are invited to share their expertise on supporting carers. Offering practical advice, resources, and best practices, you can help carers navigate the complexities of their roles more effectively. Sharing success stories and highlighting the importance of self-care for carers can also be incredibly impactful. For individuals with disabilities, this week provides an opportunity to acknowledge and appreciate the carers in your life. Sharing your stories of gratitude and how carers have positively impacted your life can raise awareness and foster a deeper understanding of their invaluable role. Throughout Carers Awareness Week, we will be sharing articles, tips, and resources aimed at supporting and celebrating carers. From practical advice on managing caregiving responsibilities to stories of resilience and dedication, our goal is to create a week filled with recognition, support, and community spirit. Join us in celebrating Carers Awareness Week. Together, we can make a difference, ensuring that carers feel appreciated, supported, and empowered in their vital roles. #CarersAwarenessWeek #SupportCarers #CelebrateCaregivers Carers UK @The Blue Sky Social Care Card Image description: A question text box graphic asking the question: If you have a carer, how have they positively impacted your life?

Even today, companies do not care. And they show it all through a discusting practice of valuing the experiences of some customers more than the experiences of others. The lawmakers do not care, by creating exclusions for airlines in the ADA rules, by excluding built in vehicle systems from accessibility requirements in the European accessibility act. This has left me and countless other people without the service we’ve paid for. THis has left me and countless other people with a hollow worded boilerplate apology and no change at all. Accessibility doesn’t start or end on your website, at your door, in your customer service or at your marketing campaigns. Accessibility will need to be a part of everywhere where I as a customer interact with you as a business. If not, well, at least tell me in advance that you don’t care, so I can take my business to someone who cares.