Travel

Travel

Travel as an amputee is a challenge but not an obstacle. Trains, boats, planes, buses, cars, hotels and toilets all pose a challenge and have to be considered as a wheelchair and prosthetic leg user. Since I lost my leg I have flown to Australia and New Zealand, travelled by coach to Germany and by ferry with car across the English channel.

Hotels & Motels

Make sure that when you book you specify wheelchair access
Enquire whether there is a lift
Enquire about the dinning room and wheelchair access
Some hotels do provide swimming pools that have disabled facilities
Help them to understand that wheelchair access means NO steps

Buses

My experience of buses is limited. In this country wheelchair access does not seem to be very well accommodated, but in Australia & New Zealand most service buses were fitted with a fold-down ramp and there was room for a wheelchair. There is also a link to British Transport provision for wheel-chair users on my links and I intend trying out the buses in London during the summer.

Coaches

Generally the front platform can be lowered to make access easier.
You can not get a wheelchair on board, but there is generally plenty of room in the under-floor lockers, so providing you use your leg, you should be OK.
Take your time on the steps at the front.

Flying

The first question is whether to wear my leg for the flight. If it is a short haul then the answer would be yes, but if like I did, you are flying half way around the world and it is going to take 24 hours, then the answer is no. Of course if you have a below-the-knee amputation then you may well chose to wear your prosthesis on the longer flights. With an above-the-knee prosthesis you sit with the top of your leg in what I refer to as 'the bucket', which for prolonged periods can be uncomfortable.

Make sure that you inform the travel agent or booking staff when you book your flights that
- You are disabled
- The level of assistance you will require on the plane
- You have a wheelchair to take with you (they will want to know the folded size and weight)
- Aim to get an isle seat and if possible where people will not have to climb over you

If you are in a wheelchair you can expect a different level of assistance from walking passengers.

When you check in at the airport you will be given priority treatment
- Generally you will be asked to check-in between 30 - 60 minutes earlier
- I was taken to the First Class Booking-in desk
- Ensure that they are aware that you will need a special isle wheelchair on the plane as you can not walk.
- Insist that you take your own chair through to the plane. Explain that it is specially modified for an amputee.
- You will have to check your leg in as Special/Fragile Cargo as it will not fit in a locker
- You will be taken through to the front of the queue for security checks along with your carer
- You will be taken through to the front of the queue for customs checks along with your carer
When boarding you will be taken to the plane first.
- You will transfer from your chair to the isle wheelchair
- Your wheelchair will be loaded into the hold and should be returned to you at the door of the aircraft on landing
- You will be settled into your seat and luggage stowed before the rush starts.
When you require the toilet
- Ring for assistance and notify the flight attendant
- They will bring you the special isle wheelchair and transfer you to the toilet
- Insist that you need a disabled toilet with room to take the chair into to do a sideways transfer
  (You may find that this is the first class toilet, although modern planes have several disabled toilets)
- The attendant can lock off a toilet while they transfer you to make sure it is vacant
When leaving the plane
- Wait as all the other passengers get off
- An attendant will bring you the isle wheelchair to take you to the aircraft door
- Your own wheelchair should be returned to you at the door of the aircraft
  (sometimes you may have to use their wheelchair to until you get up the corridor to your chair)
- If in transit you will be told to return to the transit lounge for a certain time for boarding onto your next flight
- At your final location you will be taken to the front of the queues once more for customs and immigration
- You may find that your bags and leg will have been put on one side for you
- Generally, despite the wait on the aircraft, you will come out in front of the rest, so be ready for the hostile stares

At smaller airports, like those in New Zealand, I was lifted into the aircraft from the tarmac using a fork-lift-truck with a special platform/cage attached to the forks. I was also advised that during the flight (lasting 1 hour) I would not be able to use the toilet facilities unless I could make my own way without a chair. You certainly see a different side of life.

Travel Bag for Leg (Tribord Bag)

On a long haul flight, such as to Singapore, Australia, etc. I decided that it is more comfortable to sit without the leg, given the 14 hour flight.
To enable me to do this I have purchased a Bag (designed for Scuba Gear). I wear my leg to the airport, then take it off and use my wheelchair.
When I book-in I insist that I need my own chair and the leg is in the bag which is marked fragile and is to be made available when I leave the plane.

This usually means it goes to the aircraft door and is taken down to the hold at the last moment.
I can then put my leg back on before coming out of the airport, so that I can use normal transport

Take a photograph of your prosthesis beforehand so that when you come to check-in your bag you can show them what is inside it. The first time I used this bag the check-in insisted it was a tennis racket and my husband had to get the leg out in full view of the queue waiting behind me. It raised quite a few smiles but may have upset some people.

Car Ferry

When booking request Disabled Cabin. They have a lot more room, no steps and a usually a full wet room.
When checking-in advise them you need disabled access and lifts.
(They will put you into a special queue and give you priority treatment)
On small ferries you may have to sit out the journey in the car.