Every parent who takes a pushchair on a bus has faced the question at some point: what happens if a wheelchair user needs the space I am standing in? The answer is shaped partly by operator policy and partly by a Supreme Court case that is often called “wheelchair versus buggy”. This article explains what that case actually decided, what the bus regulations say, and how the rule looks in practice on London buses. It covers an England-based case decided under the Equality Act 2010; the rules in Northern Ireland and on services elsewhere may differ and are not covered here.
What happened
The case is FirstGroup plc v Paulley [2017] UKSC 4, decided by the UK Supreme Court on 18 January 2017. On 24 February 2012, Doug Paulley, a wheelchair user, tried to catch a bus from Wetherby bus station to Leeds. The wheelchair space was occupied by a woman with a sleeping child in a pushchair. The driver asked her to fold the pushchair and move so that Mr Paulley could use the space; she replied that the pushchair did not fold down and refused to move. Mr Paulley waited for the next bus, around 20 minutes later, and missed his train connection in Leeds.
The operator’s policy
The judgment records FirstGroup’s published policy at the time, which said wheelchairs did not have priority over buggies and that other customers were asked to move. By the time of the trial the wording had changed: wheelchair users had priority use of the space, and if it was occupied by a buggy, standing passengers or otherwise full and there was space elsewhere, the driver would ask that it be freed. The revised policy added that the driver had no power to compel passengers to move and relied on their goodwill.
What the regulations say
The judgment quotes the Public Service Vehicles (Conduct of Drivers, Inspectors, Conductors and Passengers) Regulations 1990, as amended in 2002. Under these, if there is an unoccupied wheelchair space and the wheelchair can be correctly and safely located in it, the driver and conductor must allow a wheelchair user to board (provided capacity is not exceeded). A wheelchair space counts as occupied if passengers or their belongings are in it and cannot “readily and reasonably vacate” it by moving to another part of the vehicle. The judgment also quotes the Government’s guidance from the time, which said any passengers in the wheelchair space should be asked to move, but that this “may not be practical” if, for example, the vehicle is nearing capacity or passengers with baggage or a baby buggy are using the space.
What the Supreme Court decided
The Supreme Court held that FirstGroup’s approach fell short of its duty to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010. In his judgment (with which Lord Reed agreed), Lord Neuberger said it was not enough for a bus company simply to instruct drivers to request that non-wheelchair users vacate the space and to do nothing further if the request was refused. He accepted that circumstances vary and that a driver may conclude that a refusal is reasonable, in which case taking the matter no further would not normally be unreasonable. Where the driver concludes the refusal is unreasonable and there is another place on the bus to move to, however, he said the driver could be expected to rephrase the request as a requirement and consider whether the bus should not move on for a few minutes.
The justices did not all agree on how far the required policy should go, or on damages: Lord Toulson, for example, agreed with Lord Neuberger that the trial judge’s award of damages could not be sustained, while Lady Hale, Lord Kerr and Lord Clarke would have restored the trial judge’s order. It is a long judgment with several separate opinions, so the safest summary is the narrow one: a request-only policy was not enough. The judgment does not say pushchair users may be compelled to leave a bus, and the practical detail is left to operators’ policies.
What operators say now
Transport for London’s page on getting around with a buggy says all buses have a wheelchair space and that, by law, wheelchair users have priority over it as it is the only place they can travel safely. When no wheelchair user is using it, buggy users can use the space on a first-come, first-served basis. If a wheelchair user wishes to board, TfL says you should share the space, fold your buggy or move; you will not be asked to leave the bus, though you may choose to. It suggests that if you do leave, you may be able to use its Hopper fare to board the next bus at no cost. TfL also says buggies should be moved out of the middle aisle and folded if they are too wide to fit through the doors and down the aisle.
Practical takeaways for pushchair users
The following are our own suggestions rather than legal advice. If you regularly use buses, a pushchair you can fold quickly makes the situation easy, and gives you a way to say yes when asked. Choosing a stand position that leaves the space clear when a wheelchair user is waiting also avoids awkward conversations. If your child is asleep, ask the driver where you can put the pushchair, and remember that the driver’s role, as the judgment shows, includes trying to help.
The bottom line
Paulley did not create a rule that pushchair users must leave buses, but it did establish that operators cannot simply ask politely and shrug if the request is refused. In practice, wheelchair users have priority for the wheelchair space, and buggy users are expected to share it, fold or move where they reasonably can.