Disabled people 'isolated' due to lack of taxis

Ian Lawson, 70, said about 200 more accessible taxis are needed in the county

A disability charity said a lack of accessible taxis in North Yorkshire had left residents feeling isolated and unable to get to medical appointments.

Disability Action Yorkshire said, since 2023, 144 more saloon taxis had become available in the county, but none of them are wheelchair friendly.

It said accessible transport was a "fundamental right and a corner-stone of independent living" and called on North Yorkshire Council to rectify the situation.

A spokesperson for David Skaith, Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, said: "Taxis form a vital part of the public transport infrastructure and if our public transport network doesn't serve everyone equally, it serves none of us properly."

Ian Lawson, chair of the North Yorkshire Disability Forum, told the BBC: "I have been a wheelchair user for the past 12 years but we've been campaigning for more wheelchair taxis since the turn of the century.

"But, unfortunately, when the new North Yorkshire Council was created, they did not make sure more taxis were wheelchair accessible.

"So we continue campaigning - 200 more wheelchair taxis are needed."

The 70-year-old said: "Wheelchair users without their own vehicle find themselves unable to get to hospital or dental appointments and it leads to social isolation in rural North Yorkshire."

Mr Lawson, who is living with motor neurone disease, said he needs to be able to use taxis "like everybody else".

'Second class citizens'

He said he recently missed a hospital appointment because he had to wait for three hours for an accessible taxi when a train was cancelled in Northallerton, which he described as a "fairly common experience".

"We are being treated as second class citizens," he said.

Jackie Snape, chief executive of Disability Action Yorkshire, said a shortage of wheelchair-accessible taxis "severely limits" disabled people's work, healthcare, education and social opportunities.

The charity says a lack of accessible taxis means disabled people are missing out on hospital appointments

The charity said it was urging Skaith to use his influence within the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority to address the "systemic failure".

It called on the mayor to ensure a forthcoming Strategic and Local Transport Plan had "accessibility as a core priority".

The mayor's spokesperson said: "While taxi licensing sits with the local authorities, the mayor is clear that we must make public transport completely accessible for disabled people."

They added: "As the mayor develops the first regional Local Transport Plan, the public, including organisations such as Disability Action Yorkshire, will be asked to share their views on the future of accessible and integrated transport in York and North Yorkshire."

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