As part of their ongoing Open Doors campaign to stop access refusals, Guide Dogs charity has asked licensing authorities in England for their support in sharing guidance on the law on carrying guide or other assistance dogs with all taxi and private hire operators.
Guide Dogs hopes that this will help reduce the number of illegal access refusals and give guide dog owners confidence using taxis.
Taxis and the door-to-door service they provide are an important mode of transport for people with disabilities, including people with a vision impairment.
Since 2001, drivers of licensed taxis and private hire vehicles have a duty to carry any guide or other assistance dog travelling with a disabled person, at no additional cost.
However, guide and other assistance dog owners continue to face illegal access refusals from taxis.
Guide Dogs’ most recent research found that 63% of respondents had been refused access to a taxi or private hire vehicle in the 12-month period prior to survey.
This experience can affect their confidence and ability to get out and about independently.
Click link below to hear more about the impact of taxi access refusals, in this video with guide dog owner, Graham, and his guide dog, Ricky.
Jessica Luke, Regional Policy and Campaigns Manager at Guide Dogs said: “While it is a criminal offence to refuse to carry a guide or other assistance dog in a taxi or private hire vehicle, without a medical exemption certificate issued by the local authority, sadly guide dog owners regularly report this kind of access refusal to us.
“We are calling on licensing authorities to circulate our guidance on carrying assistance dogs with all taxi and private hire vehicle operators and self-employed drivers on a yearly basis to reduce the number of illegal access refusals and help more people with sight loss to live the lives they choose.”
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