BLIND bus passengers are being left stranded and vulnerable, say national charity Guide Dogs.
Nearly nine out of ten passengers with sight loss who took part in the charity’s survey had missed their stop – just because they didn’t know where they were on a bus journey.
Guide dog owner and nurse Andy Parkinson, from Nantwich, spends three hours a day commuting. He said: “Bus drivers can often be patronising and impatient.
“They regularly forget to let me know when we’ve reached my stop. There have been times I have ended up back at the depot or in unknown parts of town, not knowing where I was or how to get home.”
David Cowdrey, campaigns manager at Guide Dogs, said: “Some of the stories that people told us were awful, including one lady who was almost locked in a bus in a depot for the night because the driver forgot she was there.
“People are ending up lost or left in potentially dangerous situations because they can’t get the information they need about their bus journeys.”
Guide Dogs is lobbying for audio-visual announcements on buses to help everyone, not just blind and partially sighted people.
“We want all buses to have information telling passengers the next stop and the final destination, much like trains,” added Mr Cowdrey
