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Conflict with the driver
“Every morning I take my daughter to camp by public transport. We got on bus number 41 at the Inkaro street stop and after going to the Exhibition Hill we switched to another city bus. So it was yesterday. My son from fifteen years old, who has an autism spectrum disorder, was traveling with me and the bus. Seen from the outside, he looks physically healthy, but does not speak and is not very oriented in the environment. Now, when the use of protective masks is mandatory in the public spaces, it is very difficult for the son to put it on, going to the store is not so successful and when driving on public transport the child refuses to use it, he persuades, “said Justė, who communicated with journalists from the portal.
During the quarantine, the woman had no problem during the quarantine because the adolescent did not use a protective medical mask on public transport, as she always carries a family doctor’s certificate, which states that the girl cannot always wear a protective mask due to his state of health.
Photo from the reader’s personal file.
“When we got on the number 41 bus on Wednesday, I was wearing a protective mask and was not wearing it properly. The driver said,” Repair and wear masks normally! “And added:” The saying also applies to the young man. “Then I said that the son is disabled, we have a certificate. I sat in the middle of the bus and the boy in front. The driver began to ask: “Will a son with a certificate of disability cover his nose and mouth? Is he perhaps not breathing? that there are exceptions to the use of protective masks for children with disabilities, and I advised calling to be sure. He said he does not have time to be interested. Another passenger weighed in on the conversation and said the exceptions apply. So the driver said: “I didn’t know “and stopped,” explained the interviewee the details of the incident.
The driver began to ask: “Will a child with a certificate of disability cover his nose and mouth? Maybe he is not breathing?
Read about exceptions
Justė said that she read the information about the fact that people with disabilities may be covered by the aforementioned exceptions to wear protective masks when they are not mandatory, after reading on the Facebook page of the social network “Rain Children” of the Lithuanian Autism Association.
It says: “The Ministry of Health of the Republic of Lithuania (SAM) has clarified that children under the age of six are not required to wear face protection. Masks are not mandatory for children with disabilities if they are older than six years, for whom the use of masks would cause discomfort, discomfort, adverse reactions, and in some cases it is simply impossible to put them on, persuade them to put them on, “he says. the profile of the association. .
It is true that the comments below the post emphasize that there is no official document authorizing exceptions to the use of protective masks, but that the responsible authorities are informed by the SAM.
“It seems that the public transport driver doesn’t know yet. This is the first time I have come across such a problem. Why make fun of a disabled child? Justė wondered without hiding her frustration.
Submitted your version
After the journalists of the portal contacted Rimas Stankaitis, director of transport operations for the Kauno Autobusai company, the representative presented a different version of the story that happened to the Kaunas resident, which was told by the bus driver 41.
“The driver stressed that the three passengers got on the bus without wearing masks. They sat in the seats behind the middle door. Seeing this, the driver, before starting to drive, loudly asked to put on masks. The mother and daughter were put and the boy did not. Then the driver again asked why the boy was not wearing a mask. The woman was bubbling something, “taught R. Stankaitis.
A representative of “Kauno autobusų” was asked if the driver of said bus was subsequently given a certificate proving the adolescent’s disability, the interlocutor assured that he was aware that no document had been shown.
“While the woman was sitting near the middle door of the bus, she remained seated, just commenting something. No passenger intervened in the interview, although there were several. The driver implied that the passenger had not approached to hear what he was commenting on or see what it showed, ”emphasized the Director of Transportation Operations.
A difficult situation
He acknowledged that the current situation regarding the risk of coronavirus prevents public transport drivers from leaving the cabin and, in particular, from entering the cabin of a trolleybus or bus in the event of unforeseen problems with passengers. However, employees, seeing people who do not wear masks in public transport, have the right not to drive, disembark or even call services when they cannot handle the situation themselves.
“It is not written on the forehead that the passenger has a disability. And how to present a disabled driver’s license when the two front seats are fenced and the passengers are separated by a distance of about twenty feet, I really can’t imagine. When passengers enter through the main door of public transport, the driver can see the documents displayed, and now we are in an ambiguous situation. It would be good if the SAM provided information on how to control passenger flows when the driver currently has the right to letting people in through the central or back door, because even if it is not very possible to see what is written on the disabled driver certificate. And we cannot ignore and allow people without masks to enter, “explained R. Stankaitis.
It would be good if the Ministry of Health informed how to control passenger flows when the driver currently has the right to let people in through the central or rear door, because although it is not very possible to see what is written in a distant disability certificate .
The solution will improve
Representatives of the SAM also alluded to the shortcomings of the current decision, which obliges all people over six years of age to use nasal and oral protective equipment (masks, respirators or other means) in public transport.
“In view of the problems faced by certain groups of people, it is intended to complement this point with an exception for people with disabilities. This decision will take effect soon, we will inform it separately. In case of doubts about exceptions to the use of masks, the right not to wear a mask will be confirmed by presenting a certificate of disabled person “, stressed Julijanas Gališanskis, chief specialist of the SAM Press Service, adding that even in a public place it must be presented with the.
Photo from the reader’s personal file.
According to him, SAM will not specify in detail how the driver can verify the passenger’s document, as it is not his responsibility.
“Every passenger transport company, taking into account the conditions in which we currently live, must decide how to verify passenger documents without violating the rules of passenger transport, prevention requirements or the dignity of the disabled,” he added J. Gališanskis.
According to a SAM spokesperson, if a driver, who must also wear a nose and mouth guard, reviews the passenger’s documents through the cabin glass or within a few steps, it will not be considered a violation.
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