Pair left stranded in Vancouver due to lack of wheelchair-accessible cabs

"I wouldn't ever want anyone else to be in that position. It was honestly scary because he's in a wheelchair and I'm a young female and we were stuck downtown."

Leaving a venue after a concert ends tends to be hectic, no matter where you are. However, the ride home can be a lot more stressful for someone who uses a wheelchair.

This happened to two West Kelowna, B.C., residents who were left stranded after they were told no accessible taxis were available.

When Hannah Desrochers and Kyle Hindley went to a concert in Vancouver at the end of March they were able to get a wheelchair accessible ride to the show.

However, when the performance ended it was a different story.

“I probably made 30 different phone calls trying to get someone to get us because we needed a wheelchair-accessible vehicle. Every cab company told me they had one or two wheelchair-accessible cabs and either they were being in use right now or they weren’t in the area,” said Desrochers.

As the pair waited near BC Place, they started to get worried thinking about how they might be able to get home.

“It was kind of like out of our hands unless we had someone to help us get him into a regular cab and lift him. We couldn’t get a wheelchair cab, so we were literally just stuck there,” Desrochers said.

“I wouldn’t ever want anyone else to be in that position. It was kind of honestly scary because he’s in a wheelchair and I’m a young female and we were stuck downtown on the street.”