Bristol to be made better for disabled people after councillors vote unanimously

Bristol city councillors have voted unanimously to make Bristol a better place for disabled people – but stopped short of setting an ambition for it to be the “most inclusive and accessible” city in the country. A Labour motion at full council on Tuesday, October 8, was “watered down” by the Greens who said the original proposals were not realistic because the local authority faced huge cost pressures and could not deliver them all.

But the vote on the Greens’ amendment was carried by 57-0, with support from all parties including Labour. It means all eight policy committees must now work with disability groups to come up with ways to improve the city, with updates on what they have done to be reported back in 12 months.

The changes to the motion, tabled by Cllr Kelvin Blake (Labour, Hillfields), included rewording the aspiration for Bristol to be “the most accessible city in the country” to “a highly accessible city”. They also altered the suggestion for the Diamond bus pass scheme for disabled people, currently valid only from 9am, to be extended to 24 hours, changing this to “assess the options”, and instead of allowing disabled drivers to be allowed through bus gates, this will now just be “investigated”.

Transport and connectivity policy committee chairman Cllr Ed Plowden (Green, Windmill Hill) told the meeting that the original motion was a “great start”. But he said: “I do need to manage expectations – some of the aspirations in there are laudable but it could be very costly to refit all our legacy infrastructure, so we need to be realistic about the funding.”

Cllr Plowden announced that, following criticism from the Bristol Disability Equality Commission about proposed major changes to bus routes and pedestrianisation of the shopping quarter, an independent transport advisory group would be established to work closely with disabled people on policy. Green group leader Cllr Emma Edwards said: “We need to be practical and realistic about how we make changes.

“Unamended, this motion promises a lot but with little realistic action on how to deliver. We do not want the ambitions of this council to make Bristol a highly accessible city for disabled people to fail.”

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Moving the motion, Cllr Blake said: “Bristol is a campaigning city, and so it is with disabled people’s movement. In the 80s and 90s the Avon Coalition of Disabled People caused righteous disruption in the pursuit of better rights for disabled people.

“Whilst we have seen modest improvements there is much to be done still. Would you be shocked if I told you that there are restaurants not that far from here that have public toilets, but no disabled person toilet?

“How can that be acceptable? This motion can be the start to change all that.

“It sets high ambitions for this city. Its focus is transport, for now, because we know that would make a brilliant difference for disabled people.”

Seconding the motion, Cllr Kirsty Tait (Labour, Hartcliffe & Withywood) said: “Bristol’s journey to becoming a sustainable and just city cannot be achieved without removing the barriers disabled people face. These improvements will ensure our transition towards a greener future is inclusive and that everyone has a voice and a role in that journey.”

Speaking on the Greens’ amendment, Cllr Zoe Peat (Labour, Avonmouth & Lawrence Weston) said: “We are a proud city and an ambitious city. So I ask why can’t we be ambitious again?

“Why can’t we be the most accessible city in the UK and pave the way for disability rights? This amendment detracts from this vision by adding several caveats.”

Cllr Graham Morris (Conservative, Stockwood) said: “I’m sure the city agrees that the aspiration to make the city more accessible is absolutely something we should be doing. In fact the question is why haven’t we been doing it in the past.”

Cllr Richard Eddy (Conservative, Bishopsworth) said: “While recognising that some councillors here hate the internal combustion engine with a vengeance, for many of our fellow Bristolians who are infirm and disabled, the motor car is an essential lifeline, and transport policies need to reflect that.” Cllr Tim Kent (Lib Dem, Hengrove & Whitchurch Park) said the Greens’ amendment muddied the water by introducing technical jargon that was better suited to in-depth discussions at policy committees rather than the high-level ambitions of a full council motion.