Transport

Our transport campaigns aim to make sure that people with a vision impairment can travel independently and with confidence.


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E-scooters

E-scooters are almost silent, which means that people with sight loss have little or no warning that they are approaching. Even a near miss with an e-scooter can rob people with vision impairment of the confidence to go out independently.  

I was almost hit by an e-scooter. It was so close that I felt the wind from his movement on my face as he went by. I was really frightened because I didn't know what it was, and I was disorientated and thought I must have stepped into the road.
Rachael, person with sight loss

A YouGov survey for Guide Dogs found that half the people who had come across e-scooters saw them driven unsafely. Even though it’s against the law, most e-scooters are being used on the pavement, where they are most likely to come into conflict with pedestrians.  

We are working with the UK Government and companies running the trials to talk about the impact of e-scooters on sight loss. We’re also continuing to call for the law as it stands to be enforced to tackle illegal use of e-scooters. 

In May 2022 we published our response to the Department for Transport’s evaluation on e-scooters. The UK Government has recently announced they intend to expand the legal use of e-scooters. Once more detail is available on these plans, we will update our report and recommendations. 

Our report on the effect of e-scooter use on people with sight loss

We’re calling on the Prime Minister for action to stop illegal e-scooter use.


Safe and Sound

Quiet electric and hybrid vehicles are hard to hear as they make less sound than conventional cars. As the number of quiet vehicles on our roads continues to increase, the risk to pedestrians living with sight loss is growing because many rely on being able to hear a car to cross the road safely. 

Guide Dogs has been working with the Royal Institute of Blind People (RNIB) and the World Blind Union (WBU) to ensure that our concerns about the dangers that electric and hybrid cars pose to pedestrians with sight loss are exposed.

We believe that all quiet cars should be fitted with a sound generator, and this should be switched on.


Talking Buses

Travelling by bus can be challenging for people living with a vision impairment as it can be difficult to know where they are and when the bus has reached the right stop.

We are campaigning for audio announcements to be introduced to all buses to help people living with a visual impairment to understand where they are and when they need to get off.

I have missed my stop before because the driver drove past it without saying anything to let me know. I once asked a driver for the number of the stand I was at and he completely ignored me, very rude! These experiences are part of my apprehensions currently.
Lee, guide dog owner

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