Disabled fear FIFA World Cup will leave them stranded

The City of Cape Town states on its website that a free Special Needs Shuttle will operate on match days to transport disabled ticket-holding spectators from the Civic Centre to the Cape Town Stadium.

Dial-A-Ride, which operates 17 customised wheelchair-accessible busses operating seven days a week, has over 1 000 registered users across the peninsula. Although the city states the shuttle service for disabled soccer fans during the World Cup will necessitate using Dial-A-Ride vehicles, the Dial-A-Ride service to registered Cape Town residents will operate as normal.

It is anticipated that this (the shuttle service for disabled soccer fans) will not have a significant impact on the normal operations, states the City. But representatives from the Disabled People of South Africa (DPSA) are concerned and called a meeting with Executive Mayor Dan Plato last Friday to try and convince him to reverse the Citys World Cup plans. DPSA provincial chairperson Lennox Bonile said the organisation was not taking todays meeting lightly.

We want him to reverse the decision. Already we are short of vehicles and now they do this, it is unfair. Just because we are disabled does not mean they can do as they like, said Bonile. He said the DPSA would not allow disabled people to suffer because of their (citys) plans. Dial-A-Ride marketing manager Esther Moag said, not all Dial-A-Ride vehicles would be used for soccer fans and disabled Capetonians who normally used the service would still be transported to and from work.

But Nomangesi Ralarala, who is disabled and relies on the Dial-A-Ride services for her daily commute, said she was worried that if the city went ahead with their World Cup plans, she would not be able to get to work. I dont know how I would get to work. I will be left stranded, meaning my employer would not pay me for the days I dont come to work. She said as far as she understood, the city believed many people would be taking leave during the World Cup and would therefore not need the Dial-A-Ride service, but said, I am not going to take any leave. Moag was not able to say how many Dial-A-Ride vehicles would be used for soccer fans as it would depend on the number of bookings received.