Metro staff ask armless man to prove disability

Railway station staff who asked an armless man to prove that he was disabled in order to travel for free has sparked a wave of anger on social media.

Li Fengqiang posted a video of his experience at the entrance to a metro station in Wuhan, Hubei province, on his Douyin account on March 21.

A member of staff told him he needed to show his government-issued disability pass in order to travel for free on public transport.

Li had forgotten his document and argued he did not need to show proof, but was told by staff they had to act according to the rules, then offered to pay for Li’s ticket. Li turned down the offer and bought his own ticket.

Wuhan Metro apologised within 24 hours, saying the staff member had been inconsiderate and promised to protect disabled people’s right to barrier-free travel in future.

Online observers were not impressed, saying it was the transport company’s inflexible rules, not the staff, who were in the wrong.

“Both the staff and the armless man were victims of unfriendly rules,” an observer said on Weibo.

Li said he had not posted the video to blame the staff, but to call for a “more humanised” environment for the disabled.

“Many people with disabilities often have a hard time plucking up the courage to leave their home. An unfriendly rule like this could easily put them off getting out and about,” he said.

A disabled swimming athlete and owner of a swimming stadium company, Li said 70 per cent of the staff hired at his company were disabled, and he knew how much difficulty they had travelling every day.

According to a report jointly conducted by the China Disabled Persons’ Federation and China Consumers Association in 2017, there are fewer than 40.6 per cent barrier-free facilities in China.

The existing facilities also lack maintenance. China has more than 85 million people with disabilities, according to the government. It is estimated the number will rise to 250 million by the year 2050.

The country officially implemented the Barrier-free Environment Creation Law in September 2023, vowing to create a more inclusive environment.

The law specifies requirements for the construction of accessible facilities and the application of accessible information exchanges as well as social services.