This was published 1 year ago
Wheelchair access to Australian airports: Confusion over the rules left me stuck at the kerb
By Tracey Spicer
Tracey Spicer found herself struggling to find assistance with her wheelchair at Sydney Airport recently.Credit: Oscar Colman
It's 12.40pm and I'm in the back of a car outside Sydney airport. My wheelchair — affectionately named Wanda — is on the footpath, but I resist sinking into her comforting arms.
"You'll just have to get out and stay here on the footpath," the driver says. I'm completely bewildered. The car hire company gave an assurance the driver would wheel me inside the terminal to find a Virgin Australia staffer. Virgin had further promised a 'push' to the gate lounge, where Wanda would be safely stowed in the luggage hold.
Yet here I sit, like a piece of carrion by the side of the road. The analogy is apt: Long COVID is akin to a living death. After contracting COVID-19 in January, I've spent the past 10 months managing a 'dynamic disability'. It's estimated hundreds of thousands of Australians could suffer long COVID and may experience overwhelming fatigue, struggling with daily tasks including feeding, dressing, and walking.
It's commonly thought that the tourism industry has made leaps and bounds in recent years, catering to people with mobility issues. After all, this is a demographic necessity in a world with rapidly ageing population. More than a decade ago, Jetstar was forced to apologise to wheelchair marathon champion Kurt Fearnley, who crawled through Brisbane Airport instead of using an unsuitable airline chair. This prompted the Human Rights Commission to look into Jetstar's disability policy.
In 2022, our Australian of the Year is a disability advocate. Hotels offer wheelchair accessible rooms, and tourist attractions boast entrance and exit ramps. Heck, I'm writing this article in a room at the Voco hotel in Brisbane, which has a wheelchair-friendly shower. But there's a glaring lacuna in the 'grey zone' between the kerb and terminal at this country's busiest airport.
I explain to the driver that his manager guaranteed assistance with my wheelchair and luggage over this 20-metre distance. He steadfastly refuses, stating the risk of a fine for leaving his vehicle. In desperation, I ask whether he can request an exemption from one of the high vis-clad inspectors. Instead, his manager calls and orders me to get out of the car.
Madly dialling Virgin, I begin to panic about missing my 2pm flight. Dad worked as a reservation clerk for 35 years at Ansett. Our family has a pathological obsession with arriving at the airport early, so as not to cause inconvenience. A strange calm comes over me, as I stumble upon a solution. Turning to the driver I say, "Well, you're going to have to drive around all day with me, because I'm not budging". Call it passive resistance. Ten minutes later he relents, wheeling me inside.
The Virgin staffer is compassionate, saying staff are told not to leave the terminal, presumably due to safety concerns. We discuss the challenges for a person travelling on their own, moving a manual wheelchair while dragging two bags.
"I'd like to help other people with disabilities to navigate this system," I say. "What should people do to get help?"
Whispering, as if it's a state secret, she says a staffer will usually come outside, despite the regulations. What a ridiculous system.
Sharing this story on social media, I'm inundated with messages from people using wheelchairs who are abandoned at airports, miss flights, and are treated as nuisances. This makes no economic sense. As the tourism industry struggles to recover from almost three years of pandemic, surely it should welcome the patronage of the 4.4 million Australians living with disability.
Eventually the airline apologises, but the manager of the car hire company clings to his bigotry, like a warm blanket. In a perfunctory email, he maintains: "Drivers are not permitted to leave the car unattended and fine(s) will apply … the airline will help you extra if you need, and this is not our job to do."
But he's wrong. An email from Sydney Airport confirms the procedure. Virgin "may provide mobility assistance… subject to the availability of wheelchairs and staff on duty".
The website makes it clear, "the guest must be accompanied by a companion who can notify Virgin Australia staff".
Enter the role of the driver. It turns out that taxis, rideshare or limo drivers with unaccompanied passengers should stop in one of the accessible parking spaces outside the terminals.
Furthermore, the driver is supposed to enter the terminal to alert a staff member, or tell one of the kerbside management team. And here's the kicker: Fines are not issued to professional drivers who stop in accessible parking spaces to transfer passengers who need assistance. Phew! Now we can all get some sleep.
A spokesperson says Sydney Airport will now, "work with our airline and ground transport partners to ensure everyone understands the process for helping independent travellers who require mobility assistance".
Frankly, this entire episode underlines the dismissal of people with disabilities as an after-thought. An unnecessary addition to the travel landscape. A blight on the stunning scenery. Fellow wheelchair users wax lyrical about 'concierges' at overseas airport, assisting anyone who has difficulty walking.
Wake up Australia. Whatever happened to a fair go for all?
See also: 'Too windy': Disabled woman not allowed to board Jetstar flight
See also: Wheelchair user forced to drag herself to plane toilet, told 'to wear nappies'
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