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"To mark the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (3 December), the International Association of Public Transport (UITP), IRU (World's Road Transport organisation) and EDF jointly publish an 'Accessibility Guide' to improve customer service for persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility.

The publication aims to show that service quality and inclusiveness are of paramount importance for the public transport sector.

The guide is one of the initiatives that we are undertaking to raise awareness amongst staff about the barriers still existing to a fully inclusive public transport system and how to best overcome them. It is targeted at public transport staff regularly interacting with passengers and can be used in the context of disability awareness trainings.

Gunta Anca, EDF Vice-President: “With this accessibility guide we want to give simple tips and advice on how to improve service for persons with disabilities. There is really nothing to be afraid of – we are passengers like everyone else, just sometimes we need a little bit more of your support and understanding.”

Thomas Avanzata, Director of the European Department at UITP: “An average person does not know much about persons with disabilities. With this guide, we hope to close the knowledge gap for our bus drivers and be able to offer an improved service to persons with disabilities. We are very happy about the cooperation with EDF and IRU and optimistic that such small initiatives can make a difference on the ground, especially at times where financial resources for costly infrastructure works are scarce.”

Rémi Lebeda, who leads IRU’s work on passenger transport in Europe: “This accessibility guide is an excellent tool to improve the quality of service offered to people with disabilities by drivers and operators. We thank EDF and UITP for their excellent cooperation in working on this important issue. In further recognition of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities the guide will also be available in accessible format.”

This briefing paper aims to encourage security managers and policy makers towards implementing disability inclusive safety and security protocols and standards as an integral part of Duty of Care within the humanitarian, development and private sector. Development of SOPs, guidelines and contingency plans, training, briefings, feedback and incident reporting mechanism are outlined. Examples are provided of a visually impaired person in a vehicle at a roadblock and of disability inclusive travel preparations.

The committee considered whether the UK Equality Act 2010, a legislative framework, adequately supports the fight against disability discrimination and how it can be made to work better for disabled people. Aspects covered include: the Red Tape Challenge; the Public Sector Equality Duty; leisure facilities and housing; access to justice; the restoration of the Equality and Human Rights helpline and conciliation service; and communication. Major issues identified were the need to include disabled people in the planning of services and buildings and communication concerning this, the need to be proactive rather than reactive or process driven and the importance of enforceable rights. Statistics concerning disabled people living in the UK are presented. The development of the Equality Act, and it's relationship with the UNCRPD and with EU law are outlined.

The blog seeks to present a brief history of accessible tourism through reviewing key documents and presenting new research as it is published. Central to the examination of the history of the field and contemporary innovation, is an understanding that accessible tourism is complex, multilayered and involves stakeholders from the commercial, government and the third sectors. Solutions need to be developed through collaboration and understanding stakeholder perspectives.

Background: One of the most popular means of public transport within South Africa is mini-bus taxis.

Objectives: As South Africa is made up of diverse cultures, religions and beliefs, the aim of this study was to explore Johannesburg based taxi drivers’ experiences of beliefs about, and attitudes towards passengers who have a communication disability.

Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 mini-bus taxi drivers.

Results: Interviews revealed that almost all the taxi drivers had encountered passengers with a communication disability, and had an awareness of passengers with a hearing disability as opposed to a speech disability. Furthermore mini-bus taxi drivers generally held a positive view of their passengers with a communication disability.

Conclusion: Study findings contribute to existing literature within the fields of speech pathology and audiology, advocacy groups and policy makers, particularly research studies on participation experiences of persons with communication disabilities related to transportation access. The results of the study should also provide a foundation for disability policy development initiatives with the aim of increasing levels of public awareness.

This video presents the barriers to participation in society that people with disabilities face in Russia despite the Russian government claims regarding accessibility in the lead up to the Winter Paralympics Games in Sochi in March 2014

"Road traffic injuries (RTIs) are a leading cause of disability and fatality globally. Motorcycle-related injuries, mainly head injuries, and related deaths and disabilities are a significant contributor to the burden of disease in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Helmets have been proven to be an effective way to reduce the risk of head injury. As motorcycle use continually increases in Cambodia, head injuries and related deaths and disabilities are expected to rise. This article aims to assess the current status of helmet use in Cambodia, as well as the knowledge, attitudes, and practices among motorcyclists, in order to assist with better planning and implementation of injury prevention strategies"
Traffic Injury Prevention, Vol 13, Supplement 1

This toolkit suggests strategies and tools to improve disaster recovery and reconstruction practices for disabled people. It is structured around the following seven major thematic areas related to disability inclusive recovery and reconstruction: physical environment; livelihood, employment and social protection; transportation and communication; education; health; capacity building of disabled people's organisations (DPOs); and organisational and operational issues. This toolkit is useful for humanitarian agencies and NGOs in disasters situations