Written by John Sage, for Sage Traveling, August, 2019
London disabled access is very good compared to other European cities making it one of the best destinations in Europe for disabled tourists. Getting around London in a wheelchair is easy compared to other popular destinations such as Paris and Rome, primarily because every taxi in London has a wheelchair ramp. Most of the buses also have wheelchair ramps, however few of the metro stations have elevators. UK disabled access building codes have resulted in most tourist attraction being accessible to wheelchair users.
London Disabled Access – Best Aspects
Accessible buses – Nearly all of the bus lines have buses with wheelchair ramps (example shown in the picture on the right). The ramps aren’t operational 100% of the time but they work more often than in other European cities. They do a fair job of connecting the tourist attractions and are a great way to save some money on your trip to London.
Accessible black cabs – The best aspect of London wheelchair access is that every taxi has a wheelchair ramp that the driver can extend to the curb (shown in the photo on the right). The ramp leads to a large flat area in between the front seats and the rear seats. The older cabs have a little lower head room than the new cabs, so electric wheelchair users may want to concentrate on hailing the newer cabs.
Major sights are wheelchair friendly – London tourist attractions generally have good disabled access relative to other European destinations. Almost all of the museums have a wheelchair accessible entrance (although it might not be the main entrance), and the same can be said for popular churches like St. Paul’s and Westminster Abbey. The gravel at
Buckingham Palace and the steep ramp at Parliament cause some challenges but there is step-free access. Even the London Eye is accessible to wheelchair users and other disabled tourists by stopping the rotation and putting out a wheelchair ramp.
Flat London – Wheelchair users will appreciate the fact that almost all of the tourist areas of London are flat including Trafalgar Square, the theatre district, the area near the British Museum, and the south side of the Thames River near the Tate Modern and Imperial War Museum. The main exception is in the City of London near the Thames River and the Tower of London.
Very few cobblestones – The Battle of Britain during World War II resulted in a large number of bombs landing in London. Consequently, the city had to pretty much be rebuilt, and they did it with lots of pavement. Wheelchair tourists will enjoy the fact that there are very few cobblestones in London.
UK Accessibility Standards – UK building accessibility standards are quite good compared to many other countries in Europe. You will generally have a much easier time finding truly accessible London hotels and most tourist attractions are wheelchair friendly. Many of the historical buildings have wheelchair ramps or wheelchair lifts installed which is unlike disabled access in Paris.
