Thursday, April 17, 2003
On this lovely April's Summer's day my parents came to visit and we went down into London for a walk about, mainly from Black Friars to Tower Bridge. Had a nice time and I may talk about it more later. BUT... my mother has health problems which mean she can't walk far and has to use a wheelchair for anything more than about a quarter of a mile. Part of the reason I chose this route was because I didn't think there would be too many stairs. Both me and my father got her around okay but it was tough.
So, after the event, I searched around and found this map that LU did last year with the charity Scope, showing the accessibility of the Tube to the physically disabled. If you ignore the Docklands Light Railway, which is new so you would hope it was designed better, it makes depressing reading. The accompanying puff-piece in execrable published-by-the-Daily-Mail-people-freebie Metro makes it out as though LU have unlocked the gates to the capital's disabled. Look at the map and you realise that far too many places are completely inaccessible to those who have difficulty walking and climbing stairs.
So, after the event, I searched around and found this map that LU did last year with the charity Scope, showing the accessibility of the Tube to the physically disabled. If you ignore the Docklands Light Railway, which is new so you would hope it was designed better, it makes depressing reading. The accompanying puff-piece in execrable published-by-the-Daily-Mail-people-freebie Metro makes it out as though LU have unlocked the gates to the capital's disabled. Look at the map and you realise that far too many places are completely inaccessible to those who have difficulty walking and climbing stairs.
