A woman was denied the use of a wheelchair space on the bus by two mums with buggies despite having priority
Disabled woman refused use of wheelchair space by mums with buggies
A disabled woman rowed with two mums for refusing to move their buggies to get her wheelchair on the bus – only to be forced off by heckling passengers. Maria Whitefield tried to board the 432 Arriva bus and was on her way to a hospital appointment, but found two buggies in the priority space.
The 38-year-old shared footage of her asking the two mums on the bus to fold their buggies so she can get on with her wheelchair, but they refused to move. The wheelchair user shared footage of the 20-minute standoff, where she can be heard saying ‘wheelchairs are a priority’.
One mum replies ‘he’s a priority too’ and refuses to move before Maria says, ‘these people are being selfish and will not fold up their buggies’. Maria said other passengers acknowledged she had priority but asked her to get off as she was holding up the bus.
According to the TfL website, by law, wheelchair users have priority over the space as it is the only place they can travel safely. TFL has since apologised to Maria and said that wheelchair users have priority access to the area.
Maria, from West Norwood, London, said: “I was on my way to the hospital, I wanted to board the bus and the driver had put the ramp out. In London we only have one space. It was made law by the Supreme High Court that wheelchairs have priority.
“In this case there were two buggies on the bus, I was half on half off the ramp trying to board, no one was helping. I asked them to fold their buggies. I said ‘look on the floor, there’s a sign that says it’s a wheelchair priority area’.
“I was sitting there filming the situation. No one was speaking up for me or helping me. We weren’t going anywhere for about 20 minutes.”
Maria said she was forced to wait 18 minutes for the next bus so missed her hospital appointment and had to reschedule for another time months later. Frustrated, Maria said she wished the driver, or other passengers, had intervened to enforce the bus rules but no-one did.
Maria said: “The driver is meant to enforce that law. They have an announcement they can make on the bus to say the wheelchair area is required and can the passengers please make space. The driver didn’t want to do anything, in the end I just had to give in. Traffic couldn’t move, we were at a standstill.
“No one really cared at all about it. I felt so angry and frustrated, I was trying to get to my hospital appointment and everyone was sitting there. People were saying ‘you have priority but people have places to go’, but I also have places to go.
“I had to wait about 12-18 minutes for the next one. I was late for the appointment and they had to reschedule it. I have to wait another two months for my hospital appointment because I was late. It happens quite frequently, I’m sick of this happening day in and day out. People need to take a step in my shoes. I don’t choose to be in a wheelchair, I can’t fold my wheelchair, they can fold their buggies up.”
The TfL website states: “All buses have a wheelchair space available. By law, wheelchair users have priority over the space as it is the only place they can travel safely. When a wheelchair user is not using the space, you can use it on a first-come-first-served basis.
“If a wheelchair user wishes to board a bus, you should share the space, fold your buggy or move.”
Maria said she complained to TfL and Arriva and was told the incident is being looked into but claims she has not heard back. She said she wants the two companies to take accountability and train their drivers to enforce this law. Maria said: “I was questioning whether to post it on my social media and I spoke to a couple of people and they said I should because it’s spreading awareness. I’ve tagged TfL and Arriva and none of them have made contact with me. I complained and they said they are going to look into it but I never heard back.
“I hoped either TfL or Arriva would respond to the video but they haven’t. TfL and Arriva need to take accountability for it and need to be telling bus drivers what they should and shouldn’t be doing. I think the driver not doing anything speaks a lot about the way the bus company trains their drivers.”
Maria shared the video on TikTok, which has racked up more than two million views, with many split on who is in the wrong. Some commenters were in disbelief that the driver did not help Maria, while others took the mums’ side. One wrote: “The wheelchair user can’t go anywhere else. The mother can go somewhere else. It’s as simple as that.”
Another commented: “The sign literally says ‘buggy users please make space for wheelchair users’.” A third added: “Can’t believe the bus driver did not say anything to move them.”
One wrote: “If I got there first, I’m not folding up my pram.” Another commented: “So who’s going to hold her small baby whilst she folds her buggy?! On a moving bus as we all know bus drivers don’t tend to wait.”
Arriva said queries regarding London buses are dealt with by TfL. Mark Evers, TfL’s lead on Customer Insight, Strategy and Experience, said: “Wheelchair users have priority access to the priority area. We apologise to Ms Whitefield for her recent experience and appreciate the inconvenience and upset it caused her.
“We work closely with all bus operators to make sure every driver knows what’s expected of them and last year introduced a new disability training course developed with a specialist provider. We have also followed up with Arriva, the bus operator, to investigate this incident as a matter of urgency.”
