Finding public transport a drainer?

How annoying is it when the tram/train/bus is full and you can't get on? Or when a vehicle is late, or when a driver simply doesn't stop for you? You get grumpy, get over it, and get on the next one. But imagine if you couldn't get on 4 out of every 5 vehicles? And not because it was full, but because you physically couldn't get on up on to it.

Did you know that if you are in a wheelchair, it doesn't matter how long you've been waiting in the cold/rain/heat you simply cannot get on every vehicle that passes you by. Sometimes this is because the vehicle does not have a ramp for you to use to get on to the vehicle. Sometimes the ramp gets stuck. Sometimes the driver doesn't want to have to get up and put the ramp down. Sometimes it's because the vehicle is not a low floor vehicle so even if there was a working ramp you still couldn't get on.

Did you also know that, despite the introduction of low floor trams and super stops, you still can not get on at every stop, or off at a stop that's convenient to you, let alone every tram line? And our Government is not bound to ensure disabled access on public transport until 2020.

Did you also know that when you book a disabled taxi you have to leave an hour either side of the booking, that is that if you book a taxi for 2pm, it could come at 1pm or at 3pm - how could you possibly plan your life around that? Think twice next time you get into a disabled taxi at the airport - someone in need could be waiting for it.

Further, imagine that you actually manage to get to work and you rock up and the lift is broken. Or you're invited to a dinner party and when you arrive you realised that you can't get in. Or imagine if you have a meeting, and the door into the meeting room isn't wide enough for your chair. Or imagine if you've finally found a disabled toilet and the door is so heavy that once you're inside, you can't open it to get out.

My mum faces these problems every day. So do many like her.

So if so many people are facing these problems, why don't we recognise it and change it? Before mum was in a wheelchair I hardly knew these problems existed. I think we have this incorrect notion that someone's disability, or illness, is their own private battle. But mum's battle happens every day in public. It's when she leaves the house that she really feels disabled. She battles to get to work, she battles to get on to a bus/tram. She battles with the stares from people around her - and worse, the surprised looks on people's faces when they realise that a woman in a wheelchair has something of worth to say.

When mum was forced to accept a wheelchair as her mode of transport, she chose to increase her mobility and independence as much as possible by using an electric wheelchair. Her wheelchair, in an ironic way, provides her with a freedom that she otherwise would not be allowed as a disabled person. So why then, when she has it hard enough, do we need to stifle that freedom (which, let's face it, is already pretty minimal compared to us non-wheelchair-bound people) by making it so hard for her to get out of the house? And why do we need to make her feel like the only one in the room by our staring? And why do we find it so surprising that people in wheelchairs are just like us?

Please - the next time you see someone in a wheelchair, don't stare. If they're waiting for public transport ask them if they require any assistance and get out of the seats in the designated wheelchair zones. And like the dear old ladies on my mum's bus, lend them your umbrella if it's raining - people in wheelchairs cannot hold umbrellas and steer their wheelchairs at the same time so they may need you to shield them with your umbrella. And don't be surprised if what they have to say is of value - expect that it will be, like anyone else.

If you're mad about public transport, or disabled access in general, look around you and see what you can do. If your work doesn't have a lift - ask why. Don't book at restaurants that don't have wheelchair access or toilets - there are plenty that do. If there aren't any people in wheelchairs on your public transport ask why.

If we could remove these road-blocks then maybe we'd be lucky enough to meet more people like mum in the workforce, in the community, at our dinner parties. We must understand and accept that the problems that exist for those with a disability exist within our community. The problems are ours. The solutions are ours to find and implement. This is our public battle.