Chapter 2 - Barriers to Travel

2.1 Introduction

When persons with reduced mobility make a journey they have the same expectations as other people. They expect to be able to leave their house, get to the terminal or embarkation point, board the vessel, travel in safety and comfort, disembark from the vessel and get to their destination without any difficulties. Passengers with reduced mobility, in particular, need to be confident that every stage of a journey will work effectively and consistently. If even one component of the journey presents a barrier, then some passengers will choose an alternative method of travel (where available) or might not travel at all.

Figure 2.1: travel chain diagram showing various stages of a journey by vessel.

If a person using or attempting to use maritime transport has a bad experience, it may undermine their confidence in maritime transport. The person may assume that they cannot rely on maritime transport to meet their travel needs, and the absence of a reliable transport service could lead to restrictions in their quality of life.

Barriers in the maritime transport system can prevent passengers with reduced mobility from using maritime passenger transport services. Different barriers affect passengers with particular disabilities in different ways - some examples are outlined here:

A flight of stairs or steps are a barrier to a wheelchair user. They may also present a difficulty to someone with a vision impairment, but this difficulty can be reduced if the staircase has well designed handrails, appropriate tactile warnings and colour or tonal contrasts
Visual information such as a safety information card or emergency exit sign with no audible alternative might present a person with a vision impairment with serious difficulty
Boarding calls or other announcements made over a public address system may be a problem for passengers who are Deaf or hard of hearing and for passengers with intellectual disabilities
Glare from the glass screen at a ticket counter is a problem for passengers who are Deaf or hard of hearing because they cannot see the other person's face for visual clues or lip-reading. It is also a problem for some passengers with a vision impairment because it can make their residual vision less effective
Poor signage, especially signage without appropriate pictograms, can be a barrier for people with an intellectual disability
If a terminal building has a confusing layout, passengers may end up walking farther than they need to, and this could be a problem for those with walking difficulties. A confusing layout might also pose problems for those with an intellectual disability, who might lose their way; and for those with vision impairments who might not be able to follow visual clues or signage

For persons with reduced mobility, barriers to travel fall into the following four categories:

Physical barriers
Barriers created by policies, procedures and systems
Barriers in accessing information
Barriers caused by management, staff or customer attitudes

2.2 How does the physical environment create barriers?

Physical barriers include:

Steps and stairs
Narrow doors
Heavy doors
High customer service desks
Steep or narrow gangways

There are also less obvious barriers, such as:

Confusing terminal layout
Inadequate lighting
Lack of seating
Poor colour or tonal contrast
Inadequate signage

The needs of passengers with reduced mobility should be considered by those who are responsible for acquiring new vessels or for building port facilities. This will ensure that new facilities are accessible for all customers, including older people, parents with young children and passengers with heavy luggage. When sourcing a new vessel, or designing a new terminal building, there is an ideal opportunity to address accessibility at reasonable cost. Accessibility features can often be integrated into the original design in a way that improves the travelling experience for all passengers. Failure to take this opportunity during the design stage can result in substantial costs to retrofit accessibility features at a later stage.

2.3 How do policies, procedures and systems create barriers?

Policies, procedures and systems can create barriers to passengers with reduced mobility in the maritime transport environment.

For example, in order to minimise boarding times and reduce staffing levels, an operator might require passengers to buy their tickets at a ticket office before they board a vessel. If the ticket office is up or down a few steps or if the ticket counter is too high for a wheelchair user to be seen, then the requirement to buy a ticket before boarding will create a difficulty for wheelchair users. The effect of this barrier can be lessened if staff are flexible and understand that certain passengers might not be able to buy tickets in advance. An online booking facility may also be helpful as an alternative sales channel for customers who have Internet access. Quality customer service policies, procedures and systems can help to compensate for poor access in the physical environment (as interim measures), until changes can be made in the physical environment.

2.4 Barriers in accessing information

Information for customers (including advertising, timetables, ticketing details, safety information and so on) needs to be accurate, consistent and accessible to all. Issues relating to the adequacy, availability and formatting of information, text size and colour, and the type of paper used should be addressed to ensure that the needs of all passengers are met. Websites can be imaginatively designed so that they can be used successfully by people who are blind or have impaired vision and who use screen-reading technology.

2.5 How do people's attitudes create barriers?

Public attitudes towards people with disabilities have improved considerably over the past few decades. However, there are still some people who believe that passengers with reduced mobility should not be using mainstream transport by themselves - or that they should be using some other form of specialised transport. There are also people who assume incorrectly that a person with an obvious disability is not responsible for his or her own affairs and will deal with the disabled person's helper or partner instead.

Staff can be educated to understand more about the barriers faced by passengers with reduced mobility. Strong leadership and staff training should help to overcome these barriers.