A disabled man was left out of pocket and furious after a tram journey became a nightmare. Now Metrolink has apologised for his ordeal.
Patrick Matthew has used a wheelchair since he suffered catastrophic injuries in an accident five years ago. On Boxing Day he met a friend and went shopping at the Trafford Centre.
The 38-year-old said: "On the way home I got the tram from the Trafford Centre and got off at Cornbrook where I had a wheelchair uber waiting for me. But when I got off I discovered that the lift was out of order.
"I spoke to Metrolink staff on the platform who said I needed to go to the next stop - Deansgate Castlefield. I called the Uber driver who kindly agreed to travel onwards and meet me there.
"When I got there I made way to the lift and it too was not in service. A member of Metrolink staff told me to go to Cornbrook - they were clearly unaware that the lift there was broken too. The staff didn't have a clue sending disabled passengers to stops with no disabled access.
"My Uber driver then said he would have to cancel the trip when I called him to say the lift at Deansgate was not working either. I still had to pay £6.50 for that portion of the trip. I got back on the tram and got off at St Peter's Square where the platform goes to street level. Then I got a black cab from outside the Midland Hotel to my home near the Etihad Stadium which cost £13.
"I do believe that when a lift is out of order the driver should make an annoucement before passengers get off. I felt like Metrolink were treating me as a second class citizen. Most disabled people have travel passes and Metrolink don't make any money out of wheelchair users. It felt as if they did not care. I was furious."
A spokesperson for Transport for Greater MAnchester said: “The lifts at Deansgate-Castlefield and Cornbrook are currently out of service and awaiting repairs, which will be carried out as soon as possible. We apologise for any inconvenience this has caused for passengers on the network.
“In the meantime, we would ask any customers requiring step-free access to telephone the Metrolink contact centre before they travel for additional journey planning support. Alternatively, they can use the customer service help point on-stop.
“The primary consideration of tram drivers is the safe operation of the tram for passengers, pedestrians and other road users. Due to the size and scale of the network, and the unpredictable nature of maintenance issues occurring, it is not possible for drivers to make on-tram announcements about these types of issues.”
"For further information about any ongoing maintenance issues with lifts or escalators please visit the dedicated page on TfGM’s website - https://tfgm.com/public-transport/tram/lift-and-escalator-closures "
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