Tips for travelers with disabilities

Travel is difficult for the average person, but now imagine doing all this in a wheelchair.

(BPT) — Traveling, especially during peak times, can come with lots of hassles. Booking a flight, traversing through a packed airport and getting to the gate on time are just a few things that can cause stress. Then there’s using those tiny on-board bathrooms, and hoping you get your luggage back in one piece.

Travel is difficult for the average person, but now imagine doing all this in a wheelchair.

“Problems for travelers with disabilities are extremely common,” says Shaun Castle, a service-disabled U.S. Army veteran and deputy executive director of Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA). “By far, the number one complaint that we receive from our members about any issue, is about the problems with air travel.”

Castle has experienced the difficulties firsthand. He has had his wheelchair bent, cracked and even lost in separate incidents.

“These are more than minor inconveniences,” Castle says. “If my wheelchair is damaged, it may mean I am stranded until I can get it repaired.”

But things could be getting better soon for Castle and tens of thousands of travelers with disabilities with the signing of the…