Comedian humiliated for using disabled space on train - BBC News 17th July 2018

[whole diary]

[JayMac]

An absolutely disgraceful way to treat a disabled person. If this is wholly as reported then I would have zero sympathy for the Train Manager involved if they were to lose their job. Beyond dispicable to treat a disabled person like this.

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

A comedian has hit out at a train operator after she was "harassed and humiliated" for using a disabled space for her mobility scooter.

Tanyalee Davis, who lives in Norwich, found herself embroiled in a row on the Great Western Railway (GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)) service between Plymouth and London on Sunday. She said a train guard threatened to call the police if she did not leave the space.

GWR said staff who saw the video were "collectively horrified".

Canadian-born Ms Davis, 47, who has a form of dwarfism, was travelling on the 11:00 service with her partner, Kevin Bolden, who filmed the incident on a mobile phone. She was told to move from the unreserved space after a young mother asked to use it for a pram.

She said she felt "personally and publicly humiliated" after the guard threatened to call the police. "He made an announcement... saying that it was 'the woman with the mobility scooter' that was causing problems and that the train would be delayed indefinitely. It was humiliating and I cried for most of the journey home," she said.

Ms Davis had been travelling back to Norfolk after headlining the Plymouth Comedy Club on Saturday.

In a tearful video after the journey, she said: "I don't know what it is about this country, they really make you feel disabled. Just because I use a mobility scooter it doesn't make me a pariah, it doesn't make me less disabled".

"I'm just trying to make a living, to make people laugh," she added.

Dan Panes, from GWR, said a team from the train company had watched Ms Davis' video and were "collectively horrified. We got it wrong, it made no sense. A wheelchair space is a wheelchair space, it's not for luggage or pushchairs," he admitted. "The priority is really clear. Tanyalee should not have been asked to move."

He confirmed that an investigation is under way - but did not say if any action would be taken against the train guard involved.

[ChrisB]

Can one have less than zero sympathy?

[1st fan]

I saw this on the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) and thought it was totally wrong. I had the impression too that it was the wheelchair space and a buggy should not have been put there if it was already being used. I hope that the boys on The Last Leg give GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) a kicking over this

[bobm]

If, as already said,  this happened as reported it is completely indefensible. You have to wonder what they were thinking. 

Good to see Dan Panes not hiding behind a corporate firewall and calling it out for what it was.

[TaplowGreen]

Can one have less than zero sympathy?

 Yes, and in your case , knowing your well documented attitude to customers whether disabled or able bodied I'm not at all surprised.

[ChrisB]

Just go and read that again, will you? You might actually get a life.

Less than zero = negative sympathy (for the TM^‡(resolve), you wazzock)

[TaplowGreen]

Just go and read that again, will you? You might actually get a life.

Less than zero = negative sympathy (for the TM^‡(resolve), you wazzock)

Thank you for clarifying that you were referring to the TM.

My problem was Chris, your attitude towards customers is generally so contemptuous that  thinking you were true to form in this case was an all too easy conclusion to jump to, but I'm happy to be corrected......and in such a charming way! 😂

[broadgage]

If as reported, it certainly sounds very poor indeed.

The only SLIGHT wiggle room that I can see, Is that I thought that mobility scooters were not allowed on trains ? Wheelchairs are of course allowed.
Can anyone confirm or deny the ruling on mobility scooters ?

[didcotdean]

According to the information on National Rail:

GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)
...

Policy:
A scooter permit scheme is in operation for all scooters that cannot be folded down and taken onto the train as luggage. Please contact Great Western to obtain a permit.
Max Length: 1200mm (3ft 11in approx)
Max Width: 700mm (2ft 3in approx). 610mm (2ft 1in approx) on Coach L First Class HST^▸ (High Speed Train)
Maximum combined weight of user and scooter: 300kg (660lbs approx)

also in general

Because scooters come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, many have problems on trains, including: tipping backwards on ramps; being heavier than the ramp's safe working load; or being the wrong shape to manoeuvre safely inside a carriage.
These problems mean that some companies have trains that cannot carry scooters so if you are a scooter-user who wants to travel by rail, you should contact the Train Company to check they can safely accommodate your scooter.

This is the GWR leaflet and form for obtaining a permit. Seems like the expectation is that the 'driver' of the scooter would sit in a normal seat after getting on board.

Actually how to deal with the situation when someone is sitting in a scooter on board (whether he or she should be, with or without a permit) is another matter

[ChrisB]

My problem was Chris, your attitude towards customers is generally so contemptuous that  thinking you were true to form in this case was an all too easy conclusion to jump to, but I'm happy to be corrected......and in such a charming way! 😂

Thank you - maybe you've learned not to jump to quick conclusions....

[JayMac]

GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)'s scooter policy does now seem at odds with a report issued by the RSSB^▸ (Rail Safety and Standards Board) in December 2017. That report states that the Office of Rail & Road and the Department for Transport say that mobility scooters, used by a person with protected characteristics, can reasonably be interpreted as being 'wheelchairs' for the purposes of the legislation.

That just leaves the issues of boarding, weight and size. There are size limits for wheelchairs. They are same for mobility scooters in GWR's policy, notwithstanding that policy's other requirements which may breach the Equality Act (do users of mobility aids more traditionally 'wheelchair' shaped require a permit?) Clearly in this case there were no problem with size, shape and weight. Tanyalee Davies was boarded at Plymouth, her mobility aid was of size and weight that could use a ramp, and was of a size that could be manoeuvred into a disabled space once on board. That's clear from the videos she's posted on YouTube.

Once she was in that space there is no justification whatsoever for a retrospective application of the 'scooter policy'. No justification in insisting she move for a mother and baby. No justification in humiliating her over the public address. No justification in threatening her with removal or police attendance.

[TaplowGreen]

I've seen the video, a very small mobility scooter indeed, I'd say smaller than a lot of "regular" wheelchairs.

No doubt there'll be a thorough investigation of the incident & the TMs^‡(resolve) actions, it could be that he finds himself available for fine weather,BBQs & football matches on an indefinite basis going forward.

[ChrisB]

in response to BNM's post....

Absolutely.....maybe GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) need to assess mobility scooters (by definition aids mobility - ie not requiring a wheelchair as they have some mobility, and motorised wheelchairs which are what they say on the tin.

[didcotdean]

Also interesting to note that the GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) leaflet includes 'March 2018 v3' in its link, suggesting that the contents had been updated or at least reviewed fairly recently.

[Rob on the hill]

I do wonder whether the mother too would not have helped the situation, as I read in one report that she had asked to use the space for her pram. The TM^‡(resolve) then failed totally to resolve the matter.