29 June 2005
Disabled travellers could be about to be given a major helping hand after calls were made to readdress airport resources.
The news comes after volumes of complaints were filed about a number of the recent assistive technology introductions which have been proven to be inconvenient for many customers with impairments.
Such new technologies include automatic airport check-in kiosks and web-based reservations systems, which have been heavily promoted by the travel industry but have proven nigh on impossible to use for people with mobility and hearing impairments.
Web sites improperly coded have also been rendered useless to blind travellers in particular who are using special screen readers to get access.
"Basically, they've developed all this technology with very little input by people with disabilities," said Candy Harrington editor of accessible travel magazine Emerging Horizons.
"I believe the travel industry wants to accommodate as many people as possible, but it's not easy."
Ms Harrington suggested that work can be done to prevent disabled people from being excluded such as the adding of Braille readers or audio prompts to the technologies.
At the very least, she continued, airlines should start providing employees to help people with disabilities use the machines.© DeHavilland Information Services plc
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