Wheelchair / buggy on bus

[MoonlightMistletoe]

Today I had got the bus with my sister we both have children I had my toddler who was walking and my one year old who's only just started to walk who is still in a buggy, my sister has a 12week old baby who was also in a buggy.

We had got on the bus as you do and the next stop another parent got on with their buggy, a few stops later we stop and straight away a woman is screaming/shouting at the rear doors with her phone in our faces demanding we collapse our buggies, very angry , shouting at us with buggies and also at the driver. The driver is telling us to stay put due to her being aggressive and recording us. Someone on the bus was telling us to co operate with the woman who wanted to get a person on the bus who was in a wheelchair. We know disabled people are a priority and had absolutely not said we wouldn't put the buggies down, I was taking my sleeping one year out the buggy while this woman was still swearing and being nasty and recording us, I had given my baby to my sister to sit with my toddler and herself while I was about to take her baby out the pram then all of a sudden everyone made a "ohhhhhhh" gasp and the disabled man has fallen down the side of the curb and bus sideways in his wheelchair.

She then looses her absolute shit at us for her own mistakes being so caught up in recording us to make sure we move that the man is now probably injured.

AIBU to think all she had to do was say excuse me can we move the buggies so I can get the wheelchair on?

So I’m aware that being considerate is very important of course but even sitting with a baby and a force of the slam we experienced could have been bad. There were a few injuries amongst the passengers.

@ScreamedAtTheMichelangelo thank you for taking up our banner and giving me a break to calm down again! I’m not going to tell you to shut up and get back in your lane, you’re doing a grand job! Thank you for your empathy. It means a lot.

No, we are NOT going to campaign again. WE HAVE THE LAW ON OUR SIDE. Paulley v FirstGroup, 18/01/17, Supreme Court Ruling.

To be honest @MoonlightMistletoe, I no longer give a shit what that stupid bloody sign says on your bus. You are like a dog with a bone over the semantics of it.

You're welcome @gingersausage. I'm in awe of your calmness here - this has had my blood boiling at times and I'm lucky enough not to be affected. Can't imagine facing it every time I just want to get on a bleeding bus, or what it's like to read these comments knowing that it's your rights being discussed! So seriously - my hat is off to you.

Durstarr
Where and to whom? Op had never seen the woman before. The bus company? Not being able to report the carer shouldn’t preclude reporting the bus driver.

@Mummyoflittledragon In that specific moment the bus driver was doing the right thing. She was shouting and swearing being very abusive towards me in front of my young children. I am happy he refused her on I'm not happy that her actions led a disabled man down the curb and him unable to board but perhaps she should have thought about that before calling people cunts and recording people. so when you view it like that if anyone needs reporting it is the carer not the bus driver.

I got on a bus today with my 1 year old in the buggy. Someone got on in a wheelchair around 20 minutes down the road. I folded up the buggy and managed to hoist it into the luggage area. Sat the 1 year old in my knee for the rest of the journey. Everyone managed not to be a twat.

@Zippy1510 And that is exactly what I was doing regardless of being shouted at. I wasn't being a twat or refusing to move I was never given the chance as she was shouting as soon as the doors opened. The whole thing wouldn't have happened if she didn't act like that.

@gingersausage You are taking everything I say in the complete wrong way. I haven't said I'm going to continue using the space with my buggy. I've already adjusted the way I travel incase someone in a wheelchair comes along.
But other people are still going to make your life difficult and use the space so I was suggesting ways to make your life easier. If you just sit here and voice this on a forum it's not going to change anything. You don't need to put up and shut up. If something isn't working then you need to say it's not good enough as buggy users arnt going to campaign as they are happily using your space that's why you need to if you want this resolved. So when they take that space from buggy users they will have no choice to fight for their own space. Does that make sense? My opinions arnt against you at all!!!

Ffs so you the op still want disabled people to sort it out.
You still have not reported the driver,
You still blame it all on the carer.
You have not changed at all.

From your standpoint, he was doing the right thing at that specific moment. She was verbally abusive. This is the your argument not to report.

This is what has been learnt on the thread:

1. Some disabled posters, who have suffered bus driver discrimination have pointed out to you that a couple of seconds before that specific moment, he may well have signalled to her there was no space on the bus for her. They have even explained to you why this is likely to be the case.

2. He should not have discussed this woman with you. It is unprofessional.

3. Then there’s the issue of him telling you not to fold as he had no intention of letting a disabled take a place on the bus, which is legally theirs.

Training issue or jumped up and discriminatory, idk. But there are reasons to report him.

@Samcro There are two different things being spoken about one being the situation I experienced the other day and the other being IN GENERAL.

I stand by my opinion on the facts I whitenessed that day the only person in the wrong at that time was the woman being aggressive.

As for changed in general yes I have. Don't tell me I haven't changed just by reading a few paragraphs. I've already said I've changed the way I travel and used my buggy.

@Mummyoflittledragon

I was already moving my buggy. The driver said to stay put because he wasn't letting her on due to her being aggressive it had nothing to do with not letting the wheelchair on it was her behaviour.

He said "it's ok don't worry (I was literally shaking) this lady has caused a scene in the past" again it had nothing to do with the man in the wheelchair it's HER behaviour.

If it will make everyone feel happier to report him then I can but I feel it wasn't his fault at this specific moment.

Further more I doubt that carer reported him herself she was more focused on sharing it with her SM friends.

@MoonlightMistletoe Wheelchair users should do a second campaign to be able to actually use the spaces that they won through the first simply because buggy users are happy taking those spaces for themselves? And you think you're not against wheelchair users? It's like talking to a brick wall.

@ScreamedAtTheMichelangelo no not at all! I mean to make that space strictly wheelchair users ONLY , no courtesy to anyone else.

But @MoonlightMistletoe, why does it NEED to be “made” wheelchair users only? It’s a couple of words on a bloody sticker!! Why can’t people JUST NOT BE TWATS??

Agree with gingersausage. Just be considerate (don’t mean you op) and we can all use public transport in safest and easiest manner.

@MoonlightMistletoe I know that's what you meant. My point still stands. Wheelchair users shouldn't have to have another campaign to get what they achieved in the first campaign. The fact that buggy users think it's ok to nab the spaces is the problem (regardless of what the policy says), and the fact that you think the onus is on wheelchair to solve that with another campaign, rather than buggy users just stop doing it, is maddening.

People with a pram can use it but they need to be very well behaved and considerate.

Wheel chair users shouldn't have to campaign. When you have a disability or a child with one it's an absolute constant battle fighting for everything. I'm currently fighting for more changing places. Before that I had to battle for my child's condition to be taken seriously by professionals then another to get her diagnosed. Then another for support at school then another to secure her a place in a specialist school. Then it was the battle for a special needs buggy, respite it's blinking endless. Then people say we should campaign for wheelchair spaces again when they already exsistaken. Are you having a laugh? 😠

@gingersausage because people are twats arnt they! So you will always have this problem! Like I've already said I've changed the way I travel I won't take my buggy on a bus from now on. I've used my sling instead of a double buggy I am not a twat!!!

@ScreamedAtTheMichelangelo because although I've changed the way I travel and being mindful to others to help wheelchairs not to struggle it's not going to stop other people from nabbing the space is it !!!

It’s fine for people to use the space. They just have to vacate it quickly.

@my2bundles no I'm not having a laugh for crying out loud! Fine don't do a campaign but then don't complain that people are using the space. Twats will be twats the only way to fully stop people using the space is to ask for a STRICT wheelchair only space!

@MarshaBradyo that's the thing people can't vacate quickly and wheelchair users problem is that buggies are in the space to begin with. But I know for a fact a person with a buggy isn't going to campaign to take that courtesy away are they? Yes people should be appreciative and act fast but if people are taking the piss what other options are there?