Overview

Accessible yearly 3 day weekend music festival with accessible viewing platforms for stages, accessible parking and a Changing Places toilet.

Transport & Parking

When I previously visited TRNSMT in 2018 I got sent a PDF document through email beforehand including the accessibility information but this year I kept checking my emails and received nothing. All I saw was the map on the TRNSMT mobile app say the disabled parking was at the East entrance. I wasn't sure if this was the same as 2018 so I messaged a friend who I knew was there the day before and used the disabled parking. We still ended up getting lost though. At first we ended up at the West entrance and the staff member basically just said to go to the other side. We drove around Glasgow Green, stopped at another barrier with staff at it and they said to take the next left after the bridge but there weren't any staff there so we continued around. Finally we found the disabled parking but there were only signs on the barrier when you got to it, no other signage anywhere which I feel is quite bad. More information is needed beforehand and more signage around the outskirts is needed on the day to point the way for disabled parking. The parking looked like just standard parking spaces but the ground was smooth and there were dipped kerbs nearby to get on to the kerb to get into Glasgow Green. I'm not from Glasgow so I can't comment on where the public transport is nearby but TRNSMT is in the city centre of Glasgow so I'm sure there are bus stops nearby and a train station. If you don't have a blue badge there is other parking you can book from other companies nearby for a charge.

Access

The queue to get into TRNSMT was very long when I arrived but I knew we had to go to the accessible booking office so I went past the queue and just headed in. There weren't any signs to point us in the direction of the accessible booking office but when I came up to certain areas staff would open barriers for me as they saw me in my wheelchair. This was great but some people of course have a hidden disability so more signage is needed to direct people through the accessible entrance. Also the way we went meant I didn't get my bag checked which worries me about their security. I had 2 carers with me so one of them collected the tickets and wristbands from the box office window but I did notice it was quite high for someone sitting in a wheelchair. There were mats down in front of the box office window so the ground was smooth to walk and drive on. It felt very busy at TRNSMT this year and I don't know if it was laid out differently than 2018 but whilst walking around it was very crowded everywhere we went and I mainly just stayed around the main stage area as when I did go for a wander someone walked backwards and nearly landed on my lap. When we first got into TRNSMT we stayed on the grass area to watch 2 of the acts as it wasn't too busy. I couldn't see the act actually on the stage but I could see them on the screen, to be honest I like just being in the atmosphere and crowd without it being too crowded. Most people were cautious about going in front of me but by the end of the second act that we watched I noticed people going all the place (maybe intoxicated) and I felt it was time to going on the accessible viewing platform. The accessible viewing platform had 2 separate ramps for entering it and exiting it, this was really good as it meant you didn't have to pass anyone. It was very spacious on the platform but we didn't go up until around 5pm so we were a little further back but I didn't mind as I was at thee edge of the row so I could easily move around. You could easily stay in the accessible viewing platform all day as the accessible toilets are there, there is a water filling station at the back of the accessible viewing platform and the staff go to food stalls to collect and pay for food. This is a great service that we used and they had pieces of A4 paper stapled together with a list of what is being served at the food stalls, the only issue was that some prices weren’t written for some items. The only issue my carers had were that the seats on the platform were a little uncomfortable after a while. I didn’t visit the accessible viewing platform for the other stages so I can’t comment on them. Leaving TRNSMT was just has disorganised as getting in. I waited 10 minutes after the festival finished and as we headed to the East exit we got signalled through a barrier which ended up going through the VIP area, as we got to that exit though there was a big kerb so we had to go another way. We wandered for a few minutes and finally found staff to help us out, we ended up coming out on to a path that I think if we continued along the path the first time we would’ve ended up there. Again more signage is needed.

Toilets

As you come into TRNSMT from the accessible booking office there are some accessible porta loos but I didn't go over to them. I did look at the accessible porta loos though at the accessible viewing platform, I'd say there around 10 of them, maybe a few more. They are a little small inside though and I think it would be difficult for someone in a wheelchair to fit in them and for someone else to be there to help them. I got told that last year there was a much bigger accessible toilet that was like a stand alone hut or something but they didn't have that this year. Luckily the Pamiloo Changing Places toilet was there that is run by PAMIS. I didn't need to use it but I was definitely much more relaxed knowing it was there if I needed it and from speaking to Jenny who was with it from PAMIS I know it was very well used by people over the weekend. It's a great service to have to hire out for events, it's just unfortunate that right now there's only one of them available and it obviously can't be in more than one place at once. You can find some photos of it below but if you haven't heard of one before it's basically a van that has a tracking hoist, toilet and changing bed in the back of it that allows people to go to the toilet that can't get out of their wheelchair without the use of a hoist or who need to lie down to get more help so they don't have to lie on a dirty toilet floor. The Pamiloo has been going to TRNSMT since 2019 which is amazing but I think bigger standard accessible toilets are also needed as more than 1 person may need the toilet at the same time and if you don't need the use of a hoist or changing bed then a bigger standard accessible toilet would be perfect.

Staff

As I have mentioned I felt getting into TRNSMT was a little disorganised but the staff were helpful in directing us. On the accessible viewing platform the staff were extremely helpful in getting us a place to sit, going to collect food for us and just in general checking we were okay. Whilst on the viewing platform I noticed staff were very vigilant at checking things were okay down below in the crowd and signal to other staff if something was wrong.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

With this being an outdoor event I felt safe visiting with Covid-19 still around. I didn't notice any COVID precautions around the festival though, I didn't personally go to any of the food trucks but from a distance walking past I didn't see any hand sanitiser. I also didn't see any beside the the accessible viewing platform, but I had some with me.

Photos