He was one of the many central Victorians who made the journey to the Bendigo Railway Station last Friday for the city’s first “try before you ride” day.

The event was put on by V/Line and Public Transport Victoria.

To get on the train Mr Williams must drive his scooter up a ramp and onto the carriage. Then he must turn into a corridor and reverse backwards into a space set aside for scooters.

He can walk from there to his seat, but he needs handrails, especially if the train starts while he’s still walking.

Mr Williams was badly injured in a crash four years ago. For a time doctors feared he might never walk again. 

Thankfully, four years later he had his independence. He was confident with trains, but wanted to try out some of the other transport options available. Like electronic lifts for buses.

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V/Line acting CEO Gary Liddle said it was a chance for people to build confidence getting on and off trains, buses and taxis.

“From our point of view it is important everyone can access public transport,” he said.

Mr Liddle said he was pleased so many people had come to the event.

“If we get just a few more people using public transport today, well, that’s fantastic,” he said.

Mr Williams was one of the many people waiting to try out an electronic chairlift built in to a V/Line bus.

“I’m interested to see how I go. I’m not sure my scooter will fit, though,” he said,

Mr Williams was concerned his custom-made scooter with a bumper bar might be too long.

He said there were still design flaws on some public transport vehicles, including the position of handrails on some train carriages. But he believed public transport services were getting better at catering to those using scooters and wheelchairs.

Sharkey Mobility Aids’ John Sharkey agreed.

“It’s positive. It’s improving all the time and they are making the effort to work on it,” he said.