Bus access better than rail for disabled

More than one-third of the Dublin Bus fleet and about 95 percent of Bus Éireann fleets in the cities of Cork, Limerick, Waterford and Galway are now low-floor and wheelchair accessible, the bus companies announced this week.

The services compare favourably with those offered by Dublin suburban rail, the DART and mainline rail, both in terms of access to stations and rail carriages.

The new DART carriages - which have low floors, unlike the mainline and suburban carriages - are not level enough, with platforms necessary for wheelchair-users to enter carriages.

Many mainline rail stations have second platforms served only by footbridges, while number of DART stations - including Greystones, Bayside, Booterstown, Salthill, Killiney, Glenageary and Howth Junction - also provide access to at least one platform by footbridge only.

Even more stations have access to second platforms only through wicket gates or ramps. Wheelchair-users must contact station personnel in advance in order to use them. Iarnród Éireann's website advises the mobility-impaired to contact the relevant station "at least 24 hours in advance".

The company also warns that some of the older, Craven-built rail carriages, which date from the 1960s, are not wheelchair-accessible, and are not due to be phased out until 2007.

Another problem for the mobility-impaired is the long distance service provided by Bus Éireann. Company spokesman Cyril McIntyre said long-distance buses were designed as luxury coaches for passengers with a lot of luggage stored under the floor. Because of the luggage arrangements, there would always be steps to climb. The mobility-impaired would need someone to lift them into their seats, but this work was not part of the bus crew's duties. He did not think staff could do this, due to insurance reasons.

"There is an issue of feasibility with lifts because of the cost and the demand," he said.

For Iarnród Éireann, Mr Barry Kenny said efforts were on-going to convert the entire system to one that was user-friendly for the mobility-impaired. He said a programme to extend DART platforms to accommodate lengthier trains would also incorporate full access.

The new Luas carriages are all wheelchair-accessible, and automated ticket machines have been designed to be accessible from wheelchairs, according to a spokesman.