RNIB Cymru research calls for reform to the Bus Bill in order to deliver on a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a national bus network for Wales that is truly accessible for all.
A Bill is currently making its way through the Senedd which promises to create a bus network in Wales that’s better integrated, simpler to access, and safer for passengers.
The Bus Services (Wales) Bill was first presented at the end of March 2025 and will be debated in the Senedd next week. At its core, it aims to integrate Wales’ myriad bus services and their separate timetables and ticketing systems under the banner of One Network, One Timetable, One Ticket.
While its overarching objective to simplify bus travel across Wales is admirable, it’s clear that, in its current form, the Bill doesn’t go far enough in addressing the serious barriers that blind and partially sighted passengers face when using public transport.
These issues are laid bare in an RNIB Cymru report, published shortly after the Bill’s introduction. Its findings, based on a survey of 146 people with sight loss from across Wales, are significant.
Buses are often the sole means of travel for blind and partially sighted people. Over half of those surveyed use services several times a week, for any number of reasons including getting to work, travelling to social events, and attending medical appointments.
But, despite their reliance on buses to get around, only 1 in 10 people we spoke to feel able to make all the journeys they want or need to by bus, with 9 in 10 regularly experiencing difficulties when making unfamiliar journeys.
In writing our report, we set out realistic, effective solutions which take the entire journey into account to tackle the most significant barriers to travel, paving the way to a more accessible bus network for everyone.
The inevitability of these obstacles leaves many people feeling anxious about travelling independently, and some people report losing confidence to the point of feeling unable to travel at all.
Despite these significant challenges there are reasons for quiet optimism.
It’s encouraging that the Senedd’s Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee recently made their own recommendations related to the Bill, echoing calls we made in a June evidence session for a greater commitment in its legislation to the requirements of blind and partially sighted passengers.
In writing our report, we set out realistic, effective solutions which take the entire journey into account to tackle the most significant barriers to travel, paving the way to a more accessible bus network for everyone.
The potential for fundamental, sweeping changes that come with the Bill’s introduction means that now is the perfect time to implement these recommendations and tackle accessibility challenges head on.
Journey planning
The first of our recommendations concerns journey planning, which is the point at which many blind and partially sighted people encounter their first hurdle.
Timetables are often designed without accessibility in mind, so people end up relying on other people to tell them when and where they need to catch a bus. Others told us that because they are unable to access timetabling information, they have to just turn up at a bus stop and hope that one arrives.
Syniadau uchelgeisiol, awdurdodol a mentrus.
Ymunwch â ni i gyfrannu at wneud Cymru gwell.
Around a third of survey respondents use apps or websites to access journey information, but many noted their incompatibility with the assistive technology they’d usually use to interact with digital platforms, such as a screen reader, for example.
Creating accessible apps and websites doesn’t require guesswork. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are well-established recommendations designed to improve online accessibility, and they’re already in use across all Welsh Government platforms.
It’s vital that the Bus Bill introduces legislation ensuring all service operators in Wales also conform to these standards.
Of course, not everyone is tech-savvy enough to plan their journey online (28% of the people we spoke to for our report have either never used the internet or don’t have access to it), which is why it’s of equal importance that bus companies are required to provide passengers information in their preferred format, whether that’s larger print, audio, or braille.
Catching the bus
The design of bus stops and stations can create all sorts of access issues. Text on signage might be too small to be readable, or tactile markings to assist with wayfinding could be missing altogether, turning the simple task of finding the correct bus into a real mission.
Any one station or stop can throw up its own combination of challenges, and this unpredictability leads to feelings of trepidation for travellers, particularly on unfamiliar journeys.
The Bill presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a national bus network for Wales that is accessible by default.
We know that things don’t have to be this way. Cardiff’s new bus interchange is an example of accessible design in action: its floors are paved with tactile markers that allow white cane users to find their way around; its departure boards are high contrast screens for maximum legibility; and at both entrances you’ll find tactile maps that help travellers locate everything from toilets and cafes to individual bus stands.
The Bus Bill represents the perfect opportunity for Transport for Wales and local authorities to replicate the success of Cardiff’s interchange and introduce consistent design across the national network, prioritising accessibility and ensuring everyone can navigate stations independently and with confidence wherever they are.
On the bus
Assuming the Bus Bill can tackle accessibility concerns prior to passengers starting their journey, a series of challenges still awaits them once they’re on board.
Audio announcements are vital for blind and partially sighted bus users. For many, they’re the only way of reliably identifying their stop, but too often announcements are of bad quality or turned off entirely, as evidenced by 80% of survey respondents.
Without announcements, passengers face missing their stop and arriving at the wrong destination, where they may need to navigate unfamiliar stops and routes to get back on track.
Given that most modern buses can make audio announcements, we are asking Welsh Government to mandate their use.
Any such regulations could also include requirements for appropriate lighting, accessible layouts, large font, high contrast displays and the separation of important travel information from advertisements. Small changes that would make a big difference.
On top of bus design and function, our report found that drivers often lack awareness of how to support passengers with sight loss.
Gofod i drafod, dadlau, ac ymchwilio.
Cefnogwch brif felin drafod annibynnol Cymru.
When audio announcements aren’t present, a helpful alternative is for drivers to call out stops themselves, but over a third of the people we spoke to said this wasn’t done reliably.
Blind and partially sighted passengers also told us that drivers could better assist them to find and use card readers and scanners, identify priority seating, and make sure passengers are seated before departing.
We know that helpful, supportive drivers are out there, and we’ve heard from many blind and partially sighted passengers who’ve had positive experiences as a result.
It’s why we want to see requirements brought in that ensure bus operators give regular disability equality training to their drivers to support them in understanding passenger accessibility needs.
Conclusion
As the Bus Bill enters the next stage of legislative scrutiny, RNIB Cymru is urging all Members of the Senedd to listen to the experiences of their constituents with sight loss and use their platform to push for amendments to this Bill that would address the issues we’ve outlined.
The Bill presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a national bus network for Wales that is accessible by default.
The benefits could be life changing in creating opportunities, opening up new experiences, and giving people with sight loss the chance to live without barriers. The Welsh Government’s ambition is for a coordinated bus network that puts people and communities first, but this will only be achieved if inclusive design principles and accessibility are at the heart of these reforms.
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