DDA

[P419 EJW]

May I ask what does DDA stand for? The only DDA I know is Disability Discrimination Act.

That's the one!

Oh. Right. I assume the DDA compliance is to give access for wheelchairs, etc? Obviously not for deaf people like me, I can walk, see, touch but not hear.

You're disabled under the Equality Act 2010 (DDA Replacement) if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a 'substantial' and 'long-term' negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.

What 'substantial' and 'long-term' mean
'substantial' is more than minor or trivial - eg it takes much longer than it usually would to complete a daily task like getting dressed
'long-term' means 12 months or more - eg a breathing condition that develops as a result of a lung infection

Okay, thank you for explaining.

Deaf people like yourself are included in the DDA rules, hence the illuminating 'Bus Stopping' signs which are a requirement for people like yourself to know the bell has rung

Okay, I understand now. Thanks, Tony!

May I ask what does DDA stand for? The only DDA I know is Disability Discrimination Act.

That's the one!

Oh. Right. I assume the DDA compliance is to give access for wheelchairs, etc? Obviously not for deaf people like me, I can walk, see, touch but not hear.

Yes all buses must eventually be low floor/wheelchair accessible capable of carrying certain types of wheelchairs/mobility scooters etc, but also partially sighted people etc.

I found this post on another forum which provides a bit more info on what early low floor buses need to be DDA compliant

It seems that buses registered after 31/12/2001(or manufactured after October 2000) will have a DDA certificate (type approval applies to identical vehicles).
Low floor buses in service before this date are not DDA compliant unless modified and approved, (The list is lengthy but includes ramp access, handrails, spec of wheelchair parking area, minimum gangway widths, destination spec etc etc).

Then this from an Arriva document

CURRENT LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK

  The principal legislation governing the accessibility of disabled persons on bus services is the Disability Discrimination Acts 1995 and 2000, and regulations made under them, principally the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000 (PSVAR). The main effect of this is that public service vehicles with a capacity of more than 22 passengers, constructed after 1 October 2000 or first used on or after 31 December 2000, and operated on local or scheduled services must be "regulated public service vehicles". That is to say, they must include specific features to enable and assist the carriage of disabled persons.

  Taken with operator/industry introduction of low floor buses in the years before 2000, the effect of the Acts on the UK bus and coach stock has been significant: fleets in some areas already have 100% low floor operation; while fleets in many other parts of the UK are being progressively converted to low floor buses. We make a distinction here between older low floor buses and DDA-compliant buses, firstly to be consistent with the relevant timescales under which all types of buses need to be compliant with DDA, and secondly in the context of this submission, because DDA-compliant buses include features that are particularly beneficial to the carriage of mobility scooters: as well as having a priority space to fit a wheelchair meeting the reference dimensions, they also have a ramp at the vehicle entrance to make boarding/alighting safer and easier.

Thanks a lot, Winston!

[Niall]

Do the Darts at West Brom have ramps fitted?

They do