Eleanor’s Journey: Accessing Healthcare with Confidence Through DART

For Eleanor, travelling to hospital appointments has never been straightforward.

A serious accident earlier in her life changed everything, leaving her with a traumatic brain injury and the loss of one leg. While Eleanor continues to face life with remarkable strength and determination, the long-term impact of her injuries means that travel, particularly long-distance journeys, can be both physically demanding and emotionally overwhelming.

Eleanor requires specialist medical care that is not always available locally, making regular hospital appointments in Belfast essential. Before accessing DART, these journeys were a major source of anxiety. Navigating public transport presented multiple challenges: accessibility barriers, lengthy travel times, and the absence of appropriate support all made attending appointments stressful and exhausting.

That experience changed when Eleanor began travelling with DART through our Access Plus Programme, a service specifically designed to support passengers with additional and complex needs.

From the moment Eleanor is collected at her door, she knows she is in safe and understanding hands. DART’s fully accessible vehicles meet her mobility needs, while our trained and experienced drivers provide reassurance, patience, and practical support throughout the journey. Access Plus allows for extra time, flexibility, and one-to-one assistance, recognising that some passengers require a more personalised approach to travel.

As a result, Eleanor’s trips to Belfast have been transformed. What was once a daunting and worrying experience has become a calm, reliable routine.

Thanks to DART and the Access Plus Programme, Eleanor can now attend her hospital appointments consistently and with confidence. By removing a major barrier to accessing specialist healthcare, the service allows her to focus on her wellbeing, not the journey.

For Eleanor, DART is about far more than transport. It is about dignity, independence, and feeling supported every step of the way. Her story highlights why services like Access Plus are so vital, ensuring that people with disabilities can access essential healthcare, regardless of distance or complexity of need.