As part of CDC’s commitment to providing accessible public transport for commuters with special needs, CDC Victoria, had on 21 April, partnered SCOPE Disability Services and V/Line, to launch the BusAble programme, a community programme that not only educates commuters with accessibility barriers about bus travel, but also empower them to travel with confidence and become mobile and independent.
CDC Ballarat is the first depot to have the pleasure of facilitating regional clients and their carers from SCOPE Australia, in collaboration with V/Line to provide an outdoor learning experience on the fundamentals of inter-modal travel on public transport, including how to purchase travel cards.
Ms Judy Goldsmith, an experienced bus driver with great interpersonal skills and proficiency in sign language, as well as the passion to support those with disabilities, was the perfect candidate as CDC’s first-ever Accessibility Ambassador for the pilot run in Ballarat. As Ambassador, she will drive commuters around key bus stops so that they become more familiar with local bus routes, as well as provide training on bus on-boarding, buying of travel cards and travelling on inter-modal public transport.
Bus transport in Victoria is being made more accessible to support the needs of people with disabilities. CDC Victoria recognises the diverse accessibility requirements of the communities that we serve. We are committed to providing safe, accessible transport for all our passengers.
The BusAble programme is designed to become a sustainable programme that trains nominated drivers from each depot, who have the interpersonal skills we believe capable of delivering such training at a local level.
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