New initiative to aid bus travel for visually impaired people

Councillor Andrew Fender, Chairman of the TfGM Committee and Gail Brett, from the charity Henshaws, demonstrate the orange pass wallets and bus hailers

A new initiative to help make bus travel easier for visually impaired people across Greater Manchester has been launched.

To help make travel less challenging for people registered blind or partially sighted, new products indicate to bus drivers that visually impaired passengers may require additional assistance. 

The bus hailer is a flip pad that consists of bold and embossed numbers and letters, with the braille version underneath. Users select the number of their bus and display it to oncoming traffic, signalling to the bus driver that they need to stop. The word ‘bus’ can be displayed if users are unsure of their bus number.

The fluorescent orange pass wallet is designed to stand out to drivers from a distance, indicating to them that the user may need extra assistance boarding and leaving the bus.

Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has teamed up with the charity Henshaws, which supports people with sight loss.

Robert Cooper, Director of Community Services at Henshaws said: “Everyone has the right to an independent life and being able to travel, for work or leisure, is key to this. Thanks to initiatives like this, people with sight loss can look forward to a more positive future.”

The free bus hailers and orange pass wallets are available in Travelshops in bus stations across Greater Manchester and from Henshaws. Both products come in clear plastic wallets to withstand all weather conditions and have instructions for use in braille and text.

More information is also available by calling 0161 244 1000 (7am-8pm, Monday to Friday, and 8am-8pm at weekends and bank holidays).