Central
Friday May 4, 2007RapidKL to operate 100 buses with accessible facilities
By YIP YOKE TENG
Disabled-friendly: Chew helping Lee to get on a RapidKL accessible bus at the Bangsar LRT Station.
The call is finally answered. Disabled-friendly buses will now ply selected RapidKL bus routes and there are 100 buses to start with.
RapidKL announced at the Bangsar LRT Station yesterday that 100 accessible buses had arrived with some already in use. The company hopes to have at least one of such buses in each of its 10 city routes and 63 trunk routes before launching the barrier-free system on June 1.
The buses come with a manual ramp for passengers on wheelchairs while the drivers have been trained to help them get on the buses.
Other facilities such as wheelchair lock, seat belt and head cushion have been thoughtfully included, too.
Women, Family and Community Development Ministry Parliamentary Secretary Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun, RapidKL chief operating officer (bus operations) Mohd Ali Mohd Nor and members of BEAT (Barrier-Free Environment and Accessible Transport Group) were at the function.
Ali said the company was evaluating each of its 2,500 bus stops in the Klang Valley with the aim to identify the right stops for these buses. It is also working together with BEAT and the local authorities to standardise the height of the pavements needed to support the buses’ manual ramps.
He said some of the disabled-friendly buses had been on the road since April 21 to facilitate some of the 161 newly realigned routes in the Klang Valley. The move had helped RapidKL in the process of identifying the right stops for passengers on wheelchairs.
“Some asked why we take such a long time to introduce barrier-free service. Safety is our main concern, not just safety in the buses but also safety within the whole integrated system. If we are not satisfied with the safety aspects, we would rather not implement the service first,” he said.
Ali did not reveal the cost of bringing in the 100 accessible buses but reiterated that the company did not mind spending more on durable products as the buses operate 16 hours a day.
He said the company would bring in more accessible buses over time and hoped that the entire RapidKL system could be barrier-free one day.
Chew said the government was committed to providing a barrier-free environment to the disabled where 197,519 have registered with the Welfare Department currently. Many ministries have also participated in relevant dialogues and adopting various strategies to better the lives of the disabled.
“Before this, many disabled persons depended on Selangor and Kuala Lumpur Mobility Association to move about. The association has 600 users registered with them while there were only four full-time drivers with four vans,” she said.
“Today, RapidKL opens up a new horizon. Although there are only 100 buses, still a small figure compared to its fleet of 950 buses, it is a very good start,” she added.
She urged RapidKL to cater to the needs of the disabled when it brings its services to Penang, and called upon all private and public organisations to provide disabled-friendly facilities at their premises.
She also encouraged BEAT and the disabled to work with architects, developers, engineers and contractors to better the disabled-friendly facilities of future projects.
BEAT coordinator Christine Lee commended RapidKL’s efforts amid enthusiastic applause from the floor.
“For the first time in the history of disabled person’s movement in the country, we are witnessing a bus company making efforts to incorporate user-friendly facilities to cater to the diverse needs of the travelling public,” she said.
She added that the accessible buses would benefit not only the disabled but also everyone including senior citizens and pregnant women.
Category: News
The Star – April 17, 2007: Don’t leave us out, urge wheelchair-bound commuters
North
Tuesday April 17, 2007Don’t leave us out, urge wheelchair-bound commuters
WHEELCHAIR users do not want to be left behind when RapidPenang’s 150 buses ply the streets in Penang in August.
Barrier-Free Environment and Accessible Transport Group (Beat) coordinator Christine Lee said that non-step, low floor buses should be made available for the public, including senior citizens and wheelchair bound commuters.
She expressed concern over a statement by State Local Govern-ment, Traffic Management, Informa-tion and Community Relations Committee chairman Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan that the state would not provide special buses for the disabled who use wheelchairs.
She pointed out that the statement contradicted Transport Mini-ster Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy’s announcement that the transport needs and interests of disabled persons would be included in the public transport master plan, and Second Finance Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop’s assurance that new buses in Penang would be “disabled-friendly”.
Beat, a coalition of 16 NGOs for disabled persons, urged Rapid-Penang, Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad to consider “every Penan-gite’s right to accessible public transport, irrespective of the person’s condition”.
“Non-step buses are already widely used in other countries such as Japan and Australia. They are convenient for senior citizens, pregnant women and adults with prams,” Beat assistant coordinator Peter Tan elaborated.
He said that he had no problem moving around Japan on public transportation when he was there, despite being wheelchair-bound.
“Costs should not be a justifica-tion for not bringing in accessible buses. It will still cost the state government to do so in future. Wheelchair users who are denied their accessibility to buses may not be able to go to work or participate in various activities.
“They’ll be further marginalised from mainstream society,” Tan added.
The Star – March 28, 2007: It’s time disabled be made senator
Wednesday March 28, 2007
It’s time disabled be made senator
By AUDREY EDWARDS
audee@thestar.com.myKAJANG: The time has come for a disabled person to be an appointed senator.
And Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil has written a letter to Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi recommending it.
“Our nominees are involved in many fields. They have high qualifications and are experienced,” she told reporters after opening the National Down Syndrome seminar yesterday.
“They will be an example to Malaysians. The ministry feels the time has come to have at least one disabled person as a representative in the Dewan Negara.”
Shahrizat also said that a special counter would be opened at all district welfare offices beginning Sunday to serve people with disabilities, their family members and caregivers.
This, she said, was to make it easier for them to deal with matters such as aid, registration and equipment. The counter would be open daily during office hours.
On the access auditing being carried out by the ministry with the Housing and Local Government Ministry, Shahrizat said a report would be ready by the middle of the year.
The auditing is being done at all major towns in the country to examine the barriers in infrastructure such as buildings, roads and transportation against disabled people.
“I am not happy because I feel we have to do more. It is not difficult. It is just a question of whether to give importance to it or not,” she said.
“If we do not begin from now to make sure that all the facilities available are barrier-free, we will face trouble when we suddenly wake up and find that Malaysia is an ageing society and we are not prepared for it.”