More community buses needed

There have been claims that more community buses are needed in Uttoxeter and the surrounding area. Currently, buses run by Mobility Link only run five days a week and have to be booked 24 hours in advance, which raises concerns about residents who may suffer with restricted mobility being unable to get to the doctors or a hospital in a non-emergency when they need to.

The market town in Staffordshire is the home of many elderly residents and those who struggle to get around outside of their home without the assistance of their mobility aids or residential stair lift, as such, the limited community bus that provides a lifeline for such residents is being called into question.

A taxi to hospital?

One of the biggest concerns among residents is the irregularity of the Mobility Link service as they are forced to book the service 24 hours in advance. For such trips as an unplanned doctor’s appointment or trip to the hospital this seems unreasonable as some claim to have had to use a taxi service instead which can cost up to “£25 each way”.

Mobility Link have commented on their offering stating in this article, that “It is a ring and ride service and we take the residents to where they want to go like the doctors or shopping” and “We offer the bus from Monday to Friday, we did try doing it on Saturday but it wasn’t being used so we stopped”.

Mobility Link has also answered such questions over the service by offering a car service to take Uttoxeter residents to hospital appointments, waiting there to take them home again straight after.

The struggle to make local towns and city centres as accessible to elderly residents as possible is continuous and despite there being such aids as walk in showers and bathtubs available for the home, many are still reliant on local councils and services to help them get out and about.

Image Credit: Carlos Jose (flickr.com)

This content was written by Emily Bray. Please feel free to visit my Google+ Profile to read more stories.