BTS provides staffs to assist blind passengers

[Thaivisa News]

Bangkok:- The Bangkok Mass Transit System (BTS) has assigned staffs to help blind passengers at all of its skytrain stations, BTS Chief Operating Officer Surapong Laoha-Unya said.

He said staffs have been assigned to help blind passengers to use the skytrain service since March 1.

The staffs will lead the blind to pass through the gates on the ticket selling floor to the escalators and guide them to enter the train so that the blind will not stumble and fall.

Surapong said the blind can inform BTS staffs upon arrival at each station that they need assistance.

He said the BTS has trained its staffs how to guide the blind properly and safely with cooperation from the Association for the Blind in Thailand. The association has dispatched its staffs to demonstrate and train the BTS staffs.

Surapong added that the blind must carry identification cards as members of the association, which are issued by the Social Development and Human Security Ministry to be eligible for using escalators.

He explained that the ID cards certify that the blind have received training how to use escalators. Those without ID cards of the association must use stairways to prevent accidents.

In late January, the Supreme Administrative Court ordered the BTS and Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to install elevators at all 23 skytrain stations and also install other facilities for people with disabilities at all stations and inside trains.

Representatives of people with disabilities brought the case to the Central Administrative Court in 2007. There are elevators for people in need at only five of the 23 BTS stations at present. The Central Administrative Court dismissed the complaint but the Supreme Administrative Court overruled the lower court’s decision and ruled in favor of the people with disabilities.

[bkkjames]

I have seen the security guards assisting the blind since day one.

[HeijoshinCool]

Most blind people have their own "staffs."

[ALLSEEINGEYE]

a couple weeks ago I saw the BTS staff using (or perhaps testing?) some some strange device to assist wheel chair bound people up the stairs. This device was a bit like a wheel chair but climbed the stairs. It was very very slow and looked very dangerous. Also took about 4 people to help operate it.

Has anyone else seen this? I really should have taken a photo but was in a rush.

[oneday]

BTS provides staffs to assist blind passengers

Go back to school.

[Thian]

Recently i was at the new huge governmentcomplex at Chaeng Wattana.

There they made a track of yellow profiled stones in the pavement for blind people.

The track went around EVERY single drainlid so it was a huge slalom. What a disrespect for the blinds! Then better don't make anything because sure nobody can follow it.

[Lupatria]

The system would collapse if the other kind of blind people in high positions would leave their chauffeur driven limos at home and turn to public transport

[Daniel Ingalls]

Don't they use brail over here? Years ago I told my wife those little white bumps on the road between the white lines were

for the blind people driving. They drag their fingers over the bumps to make sure their on the right side of the road......at first she believed me!

[Daniel Ingalls]

So where is the Supreme Administrative Court when it comes to the sidewalks of Sukumvit Road. surly they must see the curbs and bumpy sidewalks. Some spots look like a passage way up to the Himalayas. It seems every department head in this whole country

is blind to the thing they are suppose to be doing. But eyes are wide open at other department and what they do wrong. If you want a world class City, start from the bottom up first......fix the sidewalks so old men don't trip on them, and end up penniless from Hospitals that over charge for services not needed. Instead of worrying about raising money for boom ba wa festival, raise money to fix the roads, streets. Especially those damn wires hanging on telephone poles. I swear, if the USA Environmental Protection Agency came over here for an inspection, The Whole Country of Thailand would be shut down, and claim it a hazard for any tourist to visit!! Then bar all USA citizens from entering. Open your eyes Minister of all departments.....its utterly shameful how you manage to turn Bangkok into one big kayotic mess. There must be at least 600 wires on one pole coming from all directions......how many of them are legal? who ever is in charge of collecting service

fees, must be a nightmare. Getting back to the blind, and disabled, Thailand has a very long way to go........probably into the next century before you will see proper sidewalks for the blind. Talk about the right hand not knowing what the left hand is doing?.........

[razer]

In Taipei they use retired people. What a brilliant idea. They are so cheerful and helpful and they can speak passable English.

[cancan70]

Now if we could just get BTS to do something about the bottleneck that is created by there not being modern technology installed that will accept bills and not only coins. It is a crying shame that if you don't have the correct change, you have to go to the wicket and exchange a bill for some coins. The technology does exist and it sure would move things along a lot faster. I guess the first order of business is for the powers to be at BTS to give a damn. They mustn't have to ride on the system or they are given pass-cards so they don't have to wait in the long lines.