An 80-year-old gran of three was refused a seat on a busy tram because a passenger said she is not disabled.
Before this incident Rachel Allen was bedridden due to Covid-19 and had lost one stone.
However she has not been the same ever since and now she struggles to walk short distances without taking short breaths .
Rachel Allen said:” I’ve never been spoken to like that before and everybody was quiet and nobody listened to me and i was not rude to him.
“He said well I’m not and he just turned his head away and he said look there’s a seat there because somebody got up in front of him.
“So I was able to sit down and there was another man in a disabled wheel chair and says to me how disgusting he was.
“And I could not get over that because as i said it has never happened to me before and I think if I was trying something i was not entitled to i would understand.”
On metro trams the rules are clearly stated that you should give up your seat for people who are elderly or disabled.
There are even seats designed for people who can not walk to the back of the tram.
Allen said: “So when I got to my destination because i had to get another tram after that i had no trouble because there was plenty of room.
“So it’s only when it’s really busy that this comes into place.
“I find it quite upsetting that this has happened you know i’m not saying that its happened before to that extent.
“if I’ve ever pointed it out to somebody that sat on that seat because a lot of them wear their headphones, they get up immediately”.
“Young people should be more considerate of the elderly and help them when they are in need because they are fragile and need support”.
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