7567 posts
<<“Hello, does anyone know if there is a discount on rail passes in
Switzerland for those that are disabled? I’m legally blind and thus
disabled and will be accompanied by a seeing “eye” companion.”>>
I recall that a blind person could ( a few years ago) travel for free or at a substantial discount, as long as they had a traveling companion. I got elected to be a traveling companion one time, when a blind person sat beside me and asked if I would mind being his companion for ticketing purposes.
Perhaps Arno and Annika can pin point a link.
Try this, at least for a start –
http://www.sbb.ch/en/station-services/passengers-with-a-handicap/blind-and-sight-impaired.html
Slowpoke
72625 posts
Slowpoke, thanks for the information. I’m just trying to figure out if that also applies to myself as a US citizen visiting and what I need to bring with me for proof. Maybe Arno or Annika can assist.
72625 posts
Arno & Annika,
It would be great if you could provide some insight on this. According to “special conditions of international carriage ” (SCIC), as well as numerous sites including the SBB travel for those disabled and blind and their guide or companion should be mostly free. There is also mention of a disabled passengers ID card. I’m not sure what exactly this is, but most definitely would be interested in finding out what I need to do to handle that. Thanks, Joe
7567 posts
Hi Joe –
this link for contact may help. There is a contact e-mail address for travelling with a handicap partway down the list.
http://www.sbb.ch/en/meta/con tact.html
When I have contacted them on other issues, I’ve always gotten one of those automated “We’ll get back to you real soon” kind of messages. Then , they have done so, usually within 24 hours.
Slowpoke
15481 posts
Hi Joe,
The tourist passes such as the Swiss Travel Pass are unfortunately not discounted for disabled passengers. There are options to have a companion to travel along for free, but as far as I know that’s for Swiss residents only, because the required ID can only be issued by local authorities. Please see http://www.sbb.ch/en/station-services/passengers-with-a-handicap/travel-discount/id-card.html for details. Various kinds of assistance is offered to blind travelers for free, like help boarding trains. You’ll find details through the link provided by Slowpoke.