She was 2 last summer and needed to use a stroller as a wheelchair
I'm assuming this means that you were at WDW last summer.
I'm sorry for your bad experience.
I DO know that they did a revamp of the GAC card since your last trip, so even if you had not written, you should find things better. They didn't really change the way it works or what the messages are; they did make it less word-y and added pictures to it so that CMs can more easily tell what assistance you need (previously, there was a long messae the CM needed to read - now they can just glance and know what it means). They also did a round of education for CMs so that they would know what the GAC means for
their particular ride/attraction.
We found things working well when we were at WDW in March 2004; the CMs were well educated and seemed to know what to do right away when they saw the GAC.
But we did have some problems in March 2003. The message stamps on the GACs were hard to read and some CMs didn't take the time to read them. Our GAC had a message on about alternative entrances for those rides where there was Mainstream Access (ie, the line is totally accessible to wheelchairs). In 2003, we had some CMs tell us that we could not use DD's GAC at their ride because their ride was not Mainstream Access. I had to show some of the CMs the listing in the Guidebook for Guests with Disabilities to "prove" to them that their ride was Mainstream.
Some of the things you listed might have been misunderstandings or situations where they should have explained things, but didn't. Some of it may have been that people were seeing "small child" not "small child with disabilities".
She was not allowed on the train at MK,
On our trip last March, they were not fastening down occupied wheelchairs in the car that can transport a wheelchair. Previously, they were fastening down wheelchairs and the fasteners didn't accomidate strollers, so people with strollers used as wheelchairs needed to fold them.
DH and I were on an adults only trip in July and saw they were still fastening them down then. Non-folding strollers can't go on the train, so if you had a rented park stroller or a non-folding special needs stroller, that's possibly why they said she couldn't go on the train. Or, it's possible that the CM did not see that you had a GAC that allowed the stroller and just saw the stroller. For small kids with a folding stroller, the child is usually carried onto the train and the stroller is folded. People who can get out of their wheelchairs to board the train and then have the wheelchair folde and put on are often asked to do that so the 2 occupied wheelchair spots can be saved for people who can't transfer out of their wheelchair.
we were asked to park in regular parking and carry her,
A handicapped parking permit is required to park in the handicapped parking area. If you don't have one, you might get a ticket if you park there. If you had a handicapped parking permit, no one should have questioned you. There is no tram service for the handicapped parking area, those planning to rent a wheelchair or
ecv who have a small child are often routed to the regular lot. Sometimes the parking lot attendants ask a "stock" question -"Do you have a wheelchair?" and if you answer "no" , you might be routed to the regular lot. The reason is because of the lack of tram service, but CMs don't usually explain that.
One day, when the lot was particularly full at Epcot, we were also asked whether DD's wheelchair folded and if she could get on the tram (no to both questions), even though we had a handicapped parking permit. We thought the quesztion was strange until we got to the lot and saw how full it was. What they were trying to do was use their parking most effectively, but if we had ended up in the regular lot, we would have thought we just got a cranky CM.
several cast members told us we would have to allow
ECVs and "more" handicapped people in front of us at parades if the park was full.
That should not have happened.
My DD got her first wheelchair when she was 2 and 1/2 years old. The PT was pushing for one of the strollers and I was in favor of a wheelchair - not just because I thought DD would be able to push it herself, which she could. I have to admit that one of my big reasons was that we planned yearly trips to WDW and I didn't want there to be any confusion about whether DD had a mobility device or not.
We have not always had wonderful treatment from CMs, but WDW does try to make things work and each trip, we have seen improvement, so in general, it's a great place to visit.
