A disabled man told today how his promising career has been threatened by London bus drivers refusing to allow him on board with his mobility scooter.
Television editor Ollie Knocker, who has muscular dystrophy, claims he is late for work at least twice a week because buses either zoom past without stopping or drivers refuse him access.
A written apology from Transport for London, which runs the capital’s routes, has done nothing to help, said Mr Knocker.
He bought the joystick-operated electric scooter because it was lightweight and specifically designed for bus travel.
Tfl gave him an email to show to drivers, but they still refuse to let him board.
Mr Knocker, 22, from Hoxton, is unable to complete his journey by tube, the one stop between Angel and Old Street, because neither station has disabled access and instead tries to use routes including the 394, 43 and 205.
He said: “Yesterday morning I tried to show the driver the email, I even chased him down the road and tried to shove the letter through his door but he drove off.
“The majority drivers do let me on when I show them the email, but many are so ignorant and just refuse.
“I’ve got a thick skin to it now, it used to really upset me.”
The drivers tell Mr Knocker, he claims, that having a his scooter on board would present a health and safety risk.
His scooter weighs just 43kg compared with the TfL-approved wheelchair weight limit of 350kg.
Mr Knocker said he moved to London from North Yorkshire to lead an independent life, but finds it infuriating trying to get around.
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He said: “My whole life in London is at risk because I’ve got no control about when I get to work, even if I leave early.
“They have these wonderful buses with disability access but I can’t get on because of bureaucracy.
“The rules were made years ago when scooters were huge and cumbersome.
“I bought mine purposely because they are so light and manoeuvrable.”
“I’ve never used the term discrimination before but I’ve never experienced anything like it.”
Despite the attitudes of some drivers, Mr Knocker said he has been buoyed by fellow passengers stepping in to back him.
He said: “Members of the public have got off the bus to fight my corner. Other passengers have shouted at the driver and said it’s not fair.
“When one driver refused to put the ramp out this guy helped to lift me up because the driver couldn’t be bothered.”
Mr Knocker added: “It’s ridiculous when we’ve got the Olympics and Paralympics coming and there must be hundreds of people like me already in London having similar problems.”
Mike Weston, operations director for London Buses, said: “TfL takes the matter of accessibility extremely seriously and we are sorry to hear of the difficulties Mr Knocker has encountered.
“All of London’s 8,500 buses are low floor and fitted with wheelchair ramps, with the exception of a small number of heritage Routemasters. Most wheelchairs, including motorised wheelchairs, will fit into the designated space on our buses.
“Unfortunately, we are unable to carry some types of motorised scooters due to their limited manoeuvrability while onboard the bus.
“TfL is in the process of developing a new recognition scheme which will make it easier for bus drivers to identify the more compact scooter designs which can fit onto our buses.”