TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

Airport

Hats Off to Heathrow Airport for New $40M in Accessibility Investment

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an airport looking at arrival departure screens in waiting areas
Heathrow airport is leading the pack in accessibility.

Heathrow was rated “good” in the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)’s airport accessibility report last year, and hopes to achieve “very good” by 2022, according to businesstraveller.com They are also working with tech companies to aid blind travelers and have appointed a disability campaigner, among other executives, to ensure accessibility is at the forefront of their agenda.

Our take:  Change starts at the top. The fact that Heathrow has now embedded more than a few disability champions in their workforce says to us that they’re in this for the long haul. Between new technology and greater awareness of the issues, hopefully, these efforts will also translate into changes on the tarmac as well. You can read more here.

SFO Uses Therapy Pig (and Other Cute Furry Friends) to Reduce Airport Stress

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two women travelers bend down to pet a pig named LiLou while an airline pilot watches and smilesPure joy is not something you come across often in an airport. Flights are delayed, security lines are long, and more often than not travelers are grumpy and stressed, writer Madeline Wells in SFGate. So why all the smiles at San Francisco International Airport? It’s the Wag Brigade, SFO’s very own fleet of volunteer therapy dogs—and one particularly adorable pig. Find a gallery of aww-worthy photos, here.

Our take: Fortunately, the recently issued new regulations clarifying which therapy animals are allowed on flights don’t apply to airports where the stress of delays and cancellations can be overwhelming.

photo courtesy SFGate.com

 

 

 

New IATA Resolution Addresses 30% Rise in Wheelchair Requests

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Requests for wheelchair assistance skyrocketed to 30% between 2016 and 2017, “putting a strain on the quality of the service provided, reports the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in a recent press release. (The average increase in requests between 2010-2018 was 17%, according to Open Doors Organization.)

At their Annual General Meeting, IATA overwhelming passed a resolution that promises the organization will have two new priorities: First, to work with airports to ensure that wheelchair assistance is available to those who need it. Second, to dramatically lower the number of mobility devices (scooters and wheelchairs, for example) that are damaged or lost in transport.READ MORE

OUR TAKE: If they’re smart, they’ll be speaking with Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), who has made it her mission to see that airlines are accountable to the public for damage done to wheelchairs. Legislation sponsored by Duckworth now requires airlines to report wheelchair damage monthly. If the IATA resolution is any indication, Duckworth’s advocacy is already having a profound effect on the industry. TravelAbility Insider has been tracking the results in our Duckworth Damage Report.

All airlines ranked by the number of wheelchairs damaged in one month and YTD

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