Accessible Services for People with Disabilities

Part of 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport – in the Senedd at 2:11 pm on 24 October 2018.

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Photo of Ken Skates Ken Skates Labour 2:11, 24 October 2018

Yes. I'd like, first of all, to thank the Member for her question and recognise her keen interest in this area. I can confirm that the intention is to continue to improve the experience of people with sight loss who wish to use our public transport system. I'm also pleased to say that provisions such as assisted travel audio guides, the orange wallet scheme, mobility scooters and assistance dog travel schemes will be rolled out across Wales.

Now, I think it's fair to say that buses provide a huge number of journeys for people with limited sight or with sight loss. And we, I think, led the way in many respects in ensuring that audiovisual announcements are made on bus services that depend on taxpayers' subsidies. This was very ambitious and, at the time, it was quite a controversial measure—it was a controversial intervention and demand on the industry. However, we didn't shy away from it, and I'm keen, through the reforms that I spoke about earlier this afternoon, that we go on improving the passenger experience, not just on trains but on buses, for people of all ability, for people who have limited sight or people who have no sight at all.