Disabled people need permission to travel for every single trip!

I do understand the impact of climate change and the benefit of what is now called 'active travel' but what people used to call walking or cycling, but in reality means cycling by those pushing the 'active travel' agenda.

If anyone of these fanatics could pause for a breath for a moment and be prepared to listen to what disabled people need and put in place effective exemptions it is quite likely I would be in favour of measures to reduce traffic - because who wouldn't. But none of that is not happening - more traffic, more air pollution and restrictions on travel.

What is frequently is thrown down our throats is the restrictions placed on disabled people are necessary for the common good - and in what isn't a parody of the Vicars Wife in The Simpsons - for the good of children! Won't someone think of the children! Their LUNGS!

Is no one hearing alarm bells at the logic behind these dreadful restrictions on the travel of disabled people? What will be next? I am fearful of what that might be, what might be absolutely essential, in a climate emergency, because its for the public good and in the interest of children to restrict the travel of disabled people. 

I am sick of people who know nothing about disability whatsoever telling me that the wide scale road closures known as Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs) do not impact in any way on access for disabled people because you can still get to your own home or even you don't live in an LTN so what are you crying about because you are lying.

The pro-LTN lycra-clad cycling troll who wrote the tweet at the top of this blog to me is quite notorious for telling disabled people the aren't disabled or they are lying. This is not an untypical exchange from the toxic pro-LTN lycra-clad cycling mob.

It is deeply worrying if this is the mindset of the people who are advising local councils and government.

What pro-road closure bullies love to do is find a disabled person who is experiencing an improvement in travel because of the road closures. Good for them. And then tell ALL disabled people that they are ALL better off - because this disable person is. Disability is not on homogeneous group of people.

There is a group of people with severe disabilities or complex health needs who face complex barriers to travel and therefore accessing services and wider society who are now effectively under house arrest and cannot risk going out and getting fined or stuck in traffic because of the wide-spread road closures known as Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs).

An example might include:

• A person with complex health needs one of which is diabetes who ends up pissing themselves because they've sat in traffic on West Green road for 20 minutes - which lets face it if you are going to piss yourself you are probably better off doing it in your own car than on the street or on a bus.
• Or a person with complex health needs one of which is diabetesthat cannot risk being stuck in traffic because they have to get their medication in the 'fridge.
  
• Or an epileptic who has seizures when they become very distressed because they do not understand sitting in a queue for 2 hours because West Green Road has been close
  
• Or someone who is doubly incontinent and needs a Changing Places toilet with a hoist etc but there are none on West Green Road so they spend 20 minutes sat in their own shit 
• Or Haringey does not provide appropriate services to meet the needs of a severely disabled person in the ableist concept of the 15 minute city so you end up having to travel far and wide to actually reach services to meet needs
• Informal family carers are twice as likely as non-carers to have serious long term health needs and it is not unreasonable that the person with complex health needs is looking after a person with a complex disability.

Now, I don't expect that the person who tweeted that nonsense at me will be in any way swayed by this blog, nor will  any of his pro-LTN lycra-clad cycling bullying mates.

But others might. People who are in positions to make decisions who might start being revolted by the arguments being put forward or the revolted by the behaviour of the pro-LTN lycra clad bullies - for who there is no middle ground and no argument in favour of exemptions for disabled people.

We live on a road that lies between Phillip Lane and West Green Road the boundary roads of the Bruce Grove LTN and the St Anns LTN.

• We are seeing increased traffic from people travelling between Phillip Lane and West Green Road and vice-versa
• We are not eligible for automatic exemptions are blue badge holders living on a boundary road, because we don't live on a boundary road
• We are seeing increased journey times leading to at least one significant medical emergency and much pain and discomfort
• We are seeing increased cost to our taxi journeys to and from hospital (hospitals have limited parking), the most egregious journey cost over £10 for the part of the journey from South Tottenham to West Green Road
• London black cab taxis are the only form of public transport that we can use
• My child requires 24/7 care - ruling out driving in part because I need to give my full attention to him and in part because we can be travelling to and from hospital appointments which themselves are very stressful 

Below we have screenshot the pages of the Individual Circumstances Form for Exemptions for Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs). In the form you have to state and provide evidence of

• Who you are and who needs the exemption
  
• Where are the start and end points of your journey
• Which route you intend to take for the journey
• Which route you would have taken before the imposition of the wide area road closures known as LTNs
• Why you need to take the route through the LTN
  
• Which filters in the LTN you will use (presuming you know what these are and where they are)
  
• When you intend to take the journey
• How often you will make this journey

And you also need to upload the evidence of
a. your home address
b. your health condition that demonstrates that you have the health condition to supports the criteria
c. both sides of you Blue Badge

Now remember if you do not live IN an Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) or on a boundary road you have to fill in an application form and get permission for every single journey. So, you won't be filling the this in once or once a year - you need to fill it in to go to say hospital, and then again to go to say the doctors, and then again for a trip to the dentist, and then again to get to a therapist, and then again if you go to a special needs social club - each time hoping you get permission.

Can you imagine any other group of people having to ask for special permission to travel because of their protected characteristic.

A screenshot of the application form is at the end of this blog

And you also need to upload the evidence of
a. your home address
b. your health condition that demonstrates that you have the health condition to supports the criteria
c. both sides of you Blue Badge