Disabled woman left ‘humiliated’ by ticket inspector for not carrying her pass – even though she’s not legally required to Dr Hannah Barham-Brown was ‘made to feel like a criminal’ when an inspector demanded to see her pass, despite not being required to carry it

A disabled woman says she was left humiliated and made to feel “like a criminal” on a London bus this month when a ticket inspector demanded to see her travel pass, despite her not being required to carry it.

GP Trainee and disability campaigner Dr Hannah Barham-Brown, 32, boarded a Transport for London bus (TfL) between Chelsea and Euston on 11 December at around 11:30am when she was approached by the ticket inspector.

As a wheelchair user, Dr Barham-Brown qualifies for a disability Freedom Pass. Under TfL rules, wheelchair and mobility scooter users are not required to carry their pass to travel for free on TfL buses, and they can travel at all times without restriction.

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But when two inspectors boarded the bus after Dr Barham-Brown, she was left “shaken up” after one demanded to see her ticket, forcing her to search through her bag for the Freedom Pass, before claiming they could have fined her for not carrying it.

‘She watched me struggle’

“A pair of inspectors boarded the bus. While one inspector walked past me as usual, the second inspector came straight up to me and asked to see my ticket,” Dr Barham-Brown told i.

Confused by the request, the doctor, who has been featured in the Shaw Trust’s Disability Power 100 List, told the inspector that she had never been asked for a pass before.

“I explained that I’d never been asked before but I had a Freedom Pass,” she said. “I don’t live in London anymore, and haven’t used it for years, so said it may be in the bottom of my bag, but I wasn’t sure.

“She watched me move my chair forwards in the space, whilst the bus was moving, and take my rucksack off the back of my seat. It was full of stuff. She watched me struggle with that, on a bus full of people, then try to empty my bag. I even had to ask her to hold my wash bag, which she did with a look of disdain.

“An older lady on the bus even asked her to just leave me alone, and she told her she was ‘just doing her job’.

“When I finally gave up and accepted I didn’t have it, she came closer towards me, and gave me a ‘talk’ about how she could fine me, but was just going to advise me this time that I should always carry it with me. She then got off the bus, leaving me to repack my bag.”

‘Utterly humiliating’

According to TfL rules outlined in a Freedom of Information request response in 2015, wheelchair users do not have to provide a pass to prove their right to free travel.

TfL wrote on its accessibility conditions: “Wheelchair or mobility scooter users do not need to have or show a concessionary ticket or validate a Freedom Pass. However, companions to wheelchair users do not automatically travel free; they must show a valid ticket or validate a card.

“Wheelchair and mobility scooter users, themselves, do travel for free on TfL buses at all times without restriction.”

Although the doctor was aware of this rule, the inspector’s insistence made the experience “utterly humiliating”.

“I was quite shaken up for the rest of the day,” Dr Barham-Brown said.

“I am a very confident person, I work in the NHS on the front line, I’m heavily involved in politics and work with the BMA, and it takes a lot to upset me. But she really succeeded.

“In front of a bus full of people I was made to feel like a criminal, and made to empty my personal possessions out in front of everyone. She was rude, patronising, and massively abused her position of power that day, all for what? She wasn’t even going to fine me, she just made an example of me.”

Wheelchair users like Dr Barham-Brown have told i they have been forced to resort to drastic measures to curb frequent delays using public transport. One wheelchair user, Shona Cobb, said she had to resort to using her wheelchair to cleave train doors open to get off a train and end a “nightmare” journey.

Dr Barham-Brown shares their frustrations.

“As a wheelchair user, I can access only around a quarter of the tube network. Every journey in London takes much longer, and is far more unpredictable for us than able-bodied people,” she said.

“Ramps fail, the one wheelchair space may be full, drivers don’t always help enforce the rule that wheelchairs have priority over pushchairs, so I can’t even rely that the bus I want to get on will be available to me. But I still have places to get to, and work to do, just like everybody else.”

A TfL spokesperson said: “We’re very sorry for any offence caused when one of our ticket inspectors asked to see this customer’s disabled freedom pass. We want everybody to feel welcome on our services and people who use wheelchairs and mobility scooters don’t need to show a ticket to travel on buses. We’ve spoken to ticket inspector involved and have taken the appropriate action.”