What’s small and highly specialised? The industry that offers conversions of standard minibuses for use by disabled passengers. An increasingly caring society has worked hard to cater for the disabled, wheelchair users included, and this is reflected in the output of this small but dedicated band of expert companies.
Before examining the surprisingly comprehensive range of equipment on offer, let’s look at the recipient - the archetypal minibus. The products of Citroen, Fiat, Ford, Iveco, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Peugeot, Vauxhall and Volkswagen have one facet in common. Whether they have a short or long wheelbase, a high top or a sliding side door, they are all flat-floored vans. More to the point, each can be bought as a minibus. With a few additions to the specification, each can become a disabled minibus.
The first aspect that warrants consideration is arguably the most important. Access is a hugely important factor for the disabled user, whether wheelchair-bound or not. For the ambulant disabled person, the simplest addition to a standard minibus could be a foot-operated slide-out step, fitted below the minibus’s side door. The wheelchair user obviously needs more and this is where the range of options begins to broaden.
The simplest addition is a folding ramp, to be used at the rear of the minibus. Such items are usually light in weight for easy handling and lock positively onto anchor points on the vehicle’s floor. Some ramp mechanisms are two-piece and refinements exist to make using them as easy as possible. For example, a load lamp may be specified to illuminate the ramp for loading and unloading a wheelchair-bound passenger after dark. It’s also possible to use a special winch to ease the loading/unloading process. Such a winch is usually electrically powered, by the minibus’s battery.
In some instances, particularly in a long-wheelbase minibus, the seating layout and floor space specification permits the addition of an hydraulic tail lift. Often, a base minibus with air suspension is used. This allows the vehicle itself to be lowered, making access easier still. Tail lift options can include an under floor lifting mechanism, or a sophisticated ‘Power Stow and Deploy’.
The internal layout of a disabled minibus may work on what we might call a mix and match system. Such a conversion uses a proven floor system, such as ‘Innotrax®’. This allows the minibus’s seats to be quickly and easily fixed or demounted. So, for example, a minibus might be set up to carry 15 passengers and five wheelchairs.
One further aspect of a disabled minibus is of immense importance. Being wheeled, a wheelchair must obviously be restrained when the minibus is in motion. This is also catered for by the floor system, which boasts four-point wheelchair securement. An integrated three-point inertia reel seat belt, attached to the same strong points that secure the wheelchair, is used to keep the wheelchair user safe in his or her chair.
As the above begins to show, a disabled minibus can have a specification ranging from the simple, to the highly complicated. The extent of modification specifically for disabled use is dependent on requirements. However, the materials and practices used may be tailored to those requirements, in virtually any popular base minibus.
The Minibus Club is a specialist minibus insurance provider and has offered UK minibus insurance quotes since 1997. Visit our website for minibus driving advice and to receive an online quote for minibus insurance.
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