Local Fianna Fáil Senator and Spokesperson for Disability, Erin McGreehan, has said much more needs to be done to tackle the problems and dangers associated with inaccessible transport and infrastructure, calling for a national review of laws governing public transportation infrastructure to outline mandatory accessibility regulations for people with disabilities.

Senator McGreehan made the comments after facilitating a meeting between members of the Oireachtas and the Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA) coinciding with the launch of their “Going Nowhere” report.

Senator McGreehan said: “The ‘Going Nowhere’ report is stark and is important reading for us all. The report found that over half of respondents reported difficulties accessing public transport. Currently, Ireland has no mandatory requirements for disability access to public transport infrastructure. This is something that has to change.

“It also outlined that Ireland is failing to deliver on its 2018 commitments to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), having only delivered on one of four of the necessary steps to ensure accessibility outlined by the convention.

“I will continue to work with the IWA on the next steps in terms of progressing policies, planning and design guidelines and calling for a review of laws underpinning Ireland’s public transport infrastructure projects. We need to implement requirements regarding disability access in public transport infrastructure that meet international standards.

“We must comply with the UNCPRD. Crucial to this is conducting a national review of the gaps in the laws and policies governing public transportation infrastructure. The review must outline mandatory accessibility regulations to be negotiated by people with disabilities and include monitoring mechanisms to ensure enforcement and sanctions and fines for noncompliance.”