Maintenance and testing of wheelchair lifts

[GusB]

This exchange was originally posted in the Stagecoach East Scotland thread

A wheelchair user attempting to board on the Forth Road Bridge approach stop caused the service to terminate there. When the driver lowered the gizmo to enable them to board it wouldn't go back up so everyone had to decamp out the Emergency Exit on the other side. Luckily there is plenty of space at that stop to achieve this safely.

It wasn't the wheelchair user who caused the service to terminate; it was the faulty equipment. It could quite easily have been any other "gizmo" on the bus that failed, eg door failing to close properly.

I'm sure that you didn't intend it to come across that way, but it's not the fault of the disabled passenger!

Correct, but they were getting a few "if looks could kill" glances in the aftermath.

A sad reflection of the general declining standards of societal behaviour towards minority groups such as disabled people I guess.

I don't wish to de-rail that thread any further, but the above exchange really annoyed me.

I'm not a regular traveller on buses or coaches these days, but the last time I remember someone boarding in a wheelchair I recall that the process was fairly smooth. The driver was clearly quite confident with the equipment she was using. The passenger was boarded and secured in the wheelchair space and we were on our way fairly quickly. I was a wee bit late arriving at my destination but I'd put this down to traffic congestion more than anything else. It may have taken a couple of extra minutes at the stop where they alighted, but those extra minutes could quite easily have been eaten up by an able-bodied passenger with a fare query. I'd never place any blame upon a disabled passenger (who has the right to travel as much as anyone else does) when there's an equipment failure.

My question is: how often are these lifts tested? I've only ever seen one used once. Are they tested as part of the walk-around checks?

 

[nathanclass323]

All accessibility equipment should be checked as part of a walk around check whether it’s a ramp on a low floor bus or a lift on a coach. If it’s faulty at the first user check, the coach should not be going out in service.

 

[JJM22]

The equipment must be mechanically tested every six months, to check for any defects or weaknesses.

However, it must be checked during a walk round, if it is not functioning correctly and cannot be fixed. The vehicle should not go in to service.

 

[Welly]

It's yet another thing to check and I can easily imagine the driver not checking it when they are in a hurry to get started. No excuses though.

 

[Ken X]

All lifting equipment which lifts persons should undergo a "Thorough Examination " by an independent competent person every six months as per the LOLER Regulations.

As to periodic operational checks this would be the perview of the operator. Cycling of the lift on a regular basis with written confirmation of correct operation would seem prudent.

 

[GusB]

All accessibility equipment should be checked as part of a walk around check whether it’s a ramp on a low floor bus or a lift on a coach. If it’s faulty at the first user check, the coach should not be going out in service.

The equipment must be mechanically tested every six months, to check for any defects or weaknesses.

However, it must be checked during a walk round, if it is not functioning correctly and cannot be fixed. The vehicle should not go in to service.

That has answered one of my questions. Thanks for your replies.

All lifting equipment which lifts persons should undergo a "Thorough Examination " by an independent competent person every six months as per the LOLER Regulations.

As to periodic operational checks this would be the perview of the operator. Cycling of the lift on a regular basis with written confirmation of correct operation would seem prudent.

This answers the other question. I've never heard of LOLER before, but a quick google search brings this up:

Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER) - HSE

www.hse.gov.uk

Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER)​

These Regulations (often abbreviated to LOLER) place duties on people and companies who own, operate or have control over lifting equipment. This includes all businesses and organisations whose employees use lifting equipment, whether owned by them or not. In most cases, lifting equipment is also work equipment so the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) will also apply (including inspection and maintenance). All lifting operations involving lifting equipment must be properly planned by a competent person, appropriately supervised and carried out in a safe manner.
LOLER also requires that all equipment used for lifting is fit for purpose, appropriate for the task, suitably marked and, in many cases, subject to statutory periodic 'thorough examination'. Records must be kept of all thorough examinations and any defects found must be reported to both the person responsible for the equipment and the relevant enforcing authority.

It's yet another thing to check and I can easily imagine the driver not checking it when they are in a hurry to get started. No excuses though.

I agree that there are no excuses and I would imagine that most drivers are fairly diligent about their checks, but if they're paid to turn up at 6.00am and then have to take the vehicle out in service at 6.05am, corners may be cut. It's down to the operator to ensure that drivers have sufficient (paid) time to carry out these checks.