A CEREBRAL palsy sufferer is leading a campaign to fight for better public transport for disabled people in South Lakeland.

Carrie-Ann Fleming, 24, of Kendal, says it is ‘pointless’ using her free bus pass from Cumbria County Council as she sometimes has to wait for more than one hour for a wheelchair friendly bus.

Socialising with her friends also takes a hit, she claims, because she struggles to get a taxi at night which can take her wheelchair.

Now she has launched a group called Trailblazers - part of a nationwide organisation of young disabled campaigners - to highlight the issues faced by disabled people in the area.

She has teamed up with fellow disabled campaigner David Gale and the pair are celebrating their first success after CCC said it would revise timetables to make them more disabled friendly.

“The county council will revise the timetable and update information to show which bus services wheelchair users can use and having clearer information gives disabled people more independence,”

said Ms Fleming.

“It will really help, but there is still lots more that can be done.

“There is a lack of transport provision for disabled people.

"We are trying to reach out to others affected. It's a real struggle for disabled people to get around in this area.

"The buses aren't all accessible, so when I am waiting for one I have no idea whether I will be able to get on it or not.

“Taxis often are not an option - the numbers of accessible cabs in Cumbria is very limited, with many contracted to day centres and only available between 10am and 4pm.

"A little investment in adapting buses and better training of staff would go such a long way.”

Ms Fleming, who works at Tourism for All UK in Kendal -a charity supporting leisure and tourism opportunities for all - is keen to hear disabled people’s thoughts on taxi provisions at www.surveymonkey.com/s/Q3Z53YP.

A spokesman for CCC said that Ms Fleming’s suggestions had been ‘useful’ to the council and that it would be revising its timetables to help disabled people.

He said that most bus services run by the county council did have low floors for disabled access and that by 2017 all buses would be required by law to have appropriate access for wheelchair users.