Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps have been taken to prevent taxi drivers charging extra to disabled people.

Andrew Jones

Government is committed to building transport networks that work for everyone, including ensuring that disabled people have the same travel choices as other members of society.

Nobody should face discrimination when accessing transport services, and it is unacceptable for any provider to charge a disabled person extra on account of their disability.

The Equality Act 2010 requires service providers to make reasonable adjustments to enable disabled people to access their services, and Sections 168 to 173 specifically prevent a taxi or Private Hire Vehicle driver from charging an assistance dog owner extra.

I have also committed to commencing Sections 165 and 167, which will require drivers to provide assistance to passengers in wheelchairs and prevent them from charging more.