Study of demand for wheelchair-accessible bus services

The purpose of this study is to investigate the use made of local and demand responsive bus services by disabled people. An attempt is made to place the use made of the service within the context of the total travel needs of such people, and to ascertain how such services should be planned. Services in Doncaster, Glasgow, Haringey and East London are monitored. Firstly, a description of the bus services is given, together with an outline of the methodology used. The users of the services are then described, including the types of disabilities encountered, use of wheelchairs, adaptions in the home, brief socio-economic data, and outside home activities. The extent to which people receive visits at home from both medical and non-medical services is also recorded. The level of use made of the special bus services, and the users' attitudes towards them is then described. The value of such special services to their users is also recorded. The final sections of the study consider the use made of ordinary bus services by the respondents, and compares data from this survey with national data from the General Household Survey.