Arriva buses taken to court by wheelchair users.

Wheelchair users in Darlington are taking legal action against a bus company after claims they have been discriminated against. They say Arriva's bus drivers regularly drive past them or do not let them on board despite there being space. Complaints were raised t Darlington Association on Disability (Dad), and now three people are taking Arriva North East to court. Arriva says it is "satisfied" with its services.

Ann Dodsworth, 60, from Darlington, is one of three disabled people who are starting legal action against Arriva. She has Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and is paralysed from the neck down. She relies on Arriva North East, but says she has had cases of buses going by without stopping when there are empty seats on board.

She said: "We move forward at the bus stop waiting for them to stop and they just look and go on. You think... have I got two heads here? They'll drive up and they'll say, 'sorry there's a pushchair on', and that's it, they just drive off, then wait for the other passengers behind me to get on, they let them on and we are left waiting. You just feel embarrassed and humiliated."

Darlington Association on Disability has received reports that disabled passengers are being regularly discriminated against by drivers on a number of routes across the Darlington area.

Arriva issued a statement in response to the claims, stating: "We are satisfied that we comply with the current guidelines with regard to The Disability Discrimination Act. It is disappointing to hear that some customers may not have experienced the level of service we expect. We will of course continue to investigate any individual concerns and deal with them in an appropriate manner."