17/05/2023 - What does the term ‘wheeling’ mean to you?
We’re looking for opinions from wheelchair and mobility scooter users, plus their friends and family, with a view to making our digital content more inclusive.
Depending on the responses we receive, we may update the walking section on our website to become ‘walking and wheeling’, with new, related information.
Of course you don’t have to be a non-foot/pedestrian-based user. All opinions are welcome, particularly around understanding how the language is used.
We’d use the term as an inclusive way to include the use of mobility aids for active travel. Wheeling is defined to only cover modes of transport that use pavement space at a similar speed to walking. It does not include the use of e-scooters or cycles.
What is wheeling?
It’s an equivalent alternative to foot/pedestrian-based mobility. Includes wheeled mobilities such as manual self- or assistant-propelled wheelchairs, including:
- wheelchairs with power attachments or all-terrain attachments (such as the ‘Freewheel’)
- powered wheelchairs
- mobility scooters (three and four-wheeled)
- rollators
Some people rely on their cycle to move (at a pedestrian’s pace) through pedestrianised environments when it is not physically possible to walk/push their cycle. Some people use their cycle as a walking aid, by leaning on it (do not use crutches but need to lean in order to walk, due to pain etc. – they can dismount but cannot park their cycle).
Some people use e-scooters (with or without a seat), to wheel/scoot through pedestrianised environment if they cannot walk unaided.
See Wheels for Wellbeing for more active travel definitions.
We’d appreciate a few minutes of your time to complete the survey to improve our understanding in this area.