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Improving Access to Public Transport

October 20, 2026 · 14 min

Show notes

For many blind and visually impaired people, access to public transport is a key element of living independently. So just how accessible is it, and what's being done to remove the barriers that plainly still exist?

In this episode, we hear from Seren Jaye about her experience as a seasoned visually impaired bus user. We're also joined by the Director of Policy and Research at the Campaign for Better Transport, Silviya Barrett who tells us about the charity's work to make bus travel more accessible.

Meanwhile, over on the railways, we hear from Engagement Manager at the Thomas Pocklington Trust, Dave Smith and Accessibility Lead for Greater Thameslink Railway, Carl Martin about their partnership to produce station audio guides. Frequent train user David Best tests a guide out and gives us his feedback.

Presenter and Producer: Fern Lulham Production Coordinator: Helen Surtees

Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image, wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three individual white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch"; and the Radio 4 logo (the word Radio in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one of a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.’

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