I watched in mild horror as he rolled himself towards the train door, stopped just right before the door, gathered himself and then did something like a stunt worthy of ESPN - he lifted his wheelchair back onto its back wheels and jerked the wheelchair forward so that the front wheels jumped directly into the train.

It was then when I realised that he had to do so as the two front wheels were no bigger than the gap between the train and the platform, and that had he rolled his wheelchair in, the front wheels would have been caught in the gap. He was alone so there was no one to push his wheelchair for him, and by the looks of it, he seemed like he travels on his own frequently.

My question is that this is a young man who can take the train on his own because he is strong enough to lift his own wheelchair (and his weight) across the platform gap. What happens if it's a woman or an elderly person? Does the environment allow them to travel on their own should they want to?

I myself cannot think of any constructive changes to the train that would make the movement of wheelchairs from the platform to train and vice versa more smoothly.

I am not sure if making the gap smaller will be safe for the train as it moves through the station. However, I will hope to see changes in the train and the station that will make our public transport more accessible to our wheelchair-bound friends.

Su Shiqi (Ms)