Mid Sussex District Council Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles (WAVs) Review Questionnaire

To all those in the Mid Sussex District Council licensing area who consider they need extra assistance or an adapted taxi to allow them to travel

Who we are

Independent consultancy LVSA, has been asked to carry out this engagement with you on behalf of Mid Sussex District Council Licensing. A summary of the results will be provided to the District Council, but your personal details will not be included.

The Background

Mid Sussex District Council as part of its regular review of the policy limiting the number of hackney carriages is now carrying out a review of the current supply and demand for wheelchair accessible vehicles and other adaptations or assistance that users may need across the hackney carriage and private hire fleets in the Mid Sussex District Council area.

Your views and experiences

We want to hear from as many of you as possible about your views and experiences of the taxi service (both hackney carriages and private hire vehicles) and the current wheelchair accessible vehicle policies and customer needs. Your responses will help inform any recommendations on the future of the wheelchair accessible vehicle policy in the Mid Sussex District Council area.

If you are unable to complete the survey by yourself, you are welcome to ask someone else to complete it on your behalf and then state their relationship to you in the final question. We are keen to hear from parents and carers of children and young people with additional needs.

A person is considered disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if they have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on their ability to undertake normal daily activities, including using taxis. However, we also want to hear from people who do not fit this definition, but nevertheless face physical challenges when accessing taxi transport that mean they require extra assistance or adaptations.

You can complete this survey anonymously, however our contact details are given at the end of the survey should you wish to discuss anything about the regulation of taxis in more detail. The survey should take around five to ten minutes. We are looking for as many completed questionnaire responses as possible to include in our report.

Please feel free to add further information you believe to be relevant. To confirm, your responses will be summarised and included in our report and will not identify any individual. If you write or call on behalf of more than one person, please let us know how many people you are representing. The consultation closing date is 5pm Monday 27th June 2022.

Thank you in advance for taking part.

Section one – about you

Question Title

* Q1 To help us understand better how our policies can improve the taxi service delivered to you please identify your condition, disability or disabilities. Please select all that apply.

Mobility

Hearing

Vision

Learning

Mental Health

Communication

Long-standing health condition

Other (please specify)

Question Title

* Q2 Does your disability or mobility issue require you to use any of the following? Please select all that apply.

An assistance dog

A wheelchair all of the time

A wheelchair some or most of the time

Hearing aids

Sight aids

Walking sticks or crutches

A chaperone / carer who is with you all of the time when you travel

Question Title

* Q3 When you travel by taxi, which of these statements best describe what you would need? Please select all that apply.

I'm a wheelchair user and the vehicle would need to be a purpose-built wheelchair accessible vehicle (WAV)

I'm a wheelchair user but would not require a purpose-built WAV vehicle

I would require the driver to assist me to transfer from my wheelchair into a passenger seat and for the driver to store my wheelchair safely in the vehicle

I would require the driver to assist me walking to the vehicle and getting in

I find it hard or impossible to step up into larger wheelchair accessible vehicles and so need a saloon-style vehicle

I would require the operator to provide me with a vehicle and driver that can carry me and my assistance dog

I would require a text message to let me know my vehicle had arrived (for private hire vehicles)

I would require the driver to knock on my door or call me once the vehicle had arrived (for private hire vehicles)

I would require the driver or operator to communicate with another person – such as a carer, family member, friend to confirm I have been collected and again when I have been dropped off.

I would require the vehicle to arrive exactly on time and not be late (for private hire vehicles)

Other measures, please state:

Section two – Hackney carriages
In this section, we want to know about your experience of using hackney carriages. These are taxis that can park on a rank in a town centre and be hailed as they are driving along. (Section three relates to pre-bookable minicabs or Private Hire Vehicles). Sometimes when you book through an operator a hackney carriage may be used.

Question Title

* Q4 Which of the following best describes you with respect to your use of hackney carriages (taxis)

A regular user

An occasional user

I rarely use hackney carriages

Question Title

* Q5 How do hackney carriage drivers meet your current needs? Please identify which if any of the following statements you agree with:

Taxi drivers do enough to enable me to travel

Taxi drivers usually go above and beyond to assist me when travelling

Taxi drivers don’t take any reasonable steps to assist me when travelling

Taxi drivers do not seem to understand my disability or travel needs

Any other comments?

Question Title

* Q6 What is your view on the balance between the availability for Wheelchair Accessible hackney carriages in the Mid Sussex District Council area and the demand for them?

There are too few wheelchair accessible vehicles to meet demand

There are just about the right number of wheelchair accessible vehiclesto meet demand.

There are more than enough wheelchair accessible vehicles to meet demand

I don’t know

Question Title

* Q7 If you are unable to find a suitable hackney carriage when you need one, what do you do? Please select all that apply.

Call a private hire operator

Wait until a suitable vehicle is available

Call a friend or family member to ask for a lift

Use other public transport

Get to my destination under my own steam (walking or using wheelchair)

Use a less suitable vehicle for which I require more assistance

Other (please state)

Section three – Private hire vehicles

In this section, we want to know about your experience of using private hire vehicles. These are booked in advance, through an operator.

Question Title

* Q8 Which of the following best describes you with respect to your use of private hire vehicles (minicabs)

A regular user

An occasional user

I rarely use private hire vehicles

Question Title

* Q9 How do private hire drivers meet your current needs? Please identify which if any of the following statements you agree with:

Taxi drivers do enough to enable me to travel

Taxi drivers usually go above and beyond to assist me when travelling

Taxi drivers don’t take any reasonable steps to assist me when travelling

Taxi drivers don't seem to understand my disability or travel needs

Any other comments?

Question Title

* Q10 What is your view on the balance between the availability for wheelchair accessible private hire vehicles in the Mid Sussex District Council area and the demand for them?

There are too few wheelchair accessible vehicles to meet demand

There are just about the right number of wheelchair accessible vehicles to meet demand

There are more than enough wheelchair accessible vehicles to meet demand

I don’t know

Question Title

* Q11 The ability to book private hire vehicles through an operator is an integral part of local transport provision. We are interested to know if operators are currently meeting your needs? Please select as many of the following statements that represent your views

I do not tell operators that I have a disability as I worry that they will discriminate against me

I find that private hire operators are never, or rarely, able to provide a vehicle suitable for me

If I tell operators about my needs they are usually happy to find me appropriate transport

The service I receive from private hire operators is good

Usually operators tell me they do not have a suitable vehicle available

I am usually unable to get a private hire vehicle if needed instantly

I do not believe that private hire operators make reasonable adjustments to help me travel

If I book sufficiently in advance operators will usually meet my needs (please tell us how far in advance)

Question Title

* Q12 If you are unable to book a suitable private hire vehicle when you need one, what do you do? Please select all that apply.

Don’t attend my activity or appointment

Wait until a suitable vehicle is available

Call a friend or family member to ask for a lift

Use other public transport

Get to my destination under my own steam (walking or using wheelchair)

Use a less suitable vehicle for which I require more assistance

Use community transport

Other (please state)

Section four: your overall experience

Question Title

* Q13 Do any of the following statements apply to you?

I booked a vehicle through an operator but when the vehicle arrived the driver did not take me

I have been refused transport by an operator or driver for reasons related to my disability

A taxi driver refused to take me as I had an assistance dog

A taxi driver refused to take me because I am in a wheelchair

A taxi driver refused to take me because of some other aspect of my disability, not a dog or wheelchair

I was charged extra because of my disability

I have been made to feel uncomfortable by a taxi driver due to my disability

Any other comment?

Question Title

* Q14 What changes do you think might improve the situation in the Mid Sussex District Council area for passengers with disabilities or other additional needs?

More wheelchair accessible vehicles

A wider variety of wheelchair accessible vehicles (for example, those that are not so high off the ground)

Disability awareness training for drivers

Disability awareness training for operators

Better use of smartphone apps

More Distrcit Council enforcement

Any driver or operator found to actively discriminate against disability to have their licences revoked

None of the above

Any other comments or suggestions:

Question Title

* Q15 Please sum up your experience of using taxis in the Mid Sussex District Council area?

Excellent

Good

Satisfactory

Bad

Dreadful

Question Title

* Q16 Please tell us about any positive experiences you have had in using taxis in other places that you think could provide useful lessons for Mid Sussex Distrcit Council to learn from.

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* Please provide your postcode:

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* Q17 If this survey has been filled in by someone else on your behalf, please state what their relationship is to you

Carer

Family member

Support worker

Other (please specify)

Question Title

* Please feel free to add any further questions or comments.

Thank you for your response