Transport (Wales) Bill

moved Amendment No. 1:"Page 1, line 13, at end insert ““and elderly or disabled persons””" The noble Lord said: My Lords, with respect, the explanation given to me by the Minister in Committee was not quite satisfactory. This amendment would be beneficial to the Bill. The Minister stated that Clause 1(3) deals with modes of transport rather than sections of society when it refers to,"““facilities and services for pedestrians and cyclists””." However, he failed to appreciate that the elderly or disabled frequently require ““facilities and services”” that are not necessary for the general population, in just the same way as pedestrians and cyclists do. A wheelchair user would not be specially considered under this subsection as it stands, and something should be done to ensure that the elderly and disabled are always in the forefront of consideration. In the same way, the Bill does not have sufficient consideration for the elderly or disabled, as the Minister claims it does. The specification of ““elderly or disabled”” in Clause 7(2)(c) refers only to certain public passenger transport services, not to the wider transport network, and even those appear to be limited by Clause 7(5). The Bill should ensure that providing an integrated transport network for all, including the elderly or disabled, is a primary aim of the Assembly. Let us not minimise this category; the Royal National Institute for the Blind tells me that there are 100,000 blind or partially sighted people in Wales, and of course they have special transport needs. They and other disabled people and the elderly certainly deserve special consideration, because they have special transport needs. I beg to move.