Britain’s railways fail, for the most part, at providing a service accessible to everyone. However, things could be a lot better, and in this video I try and outline how.
Discord: https://discord.gg/uK66HWbSg5
Credits:
[1]: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/help-and-assistance/passenger-assist/
[2}:
https://www.orr.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2022-07/passenger-assist-research-report-2022.pdf
Music:
Forest Find – TrackTribe
Photography/Imagery (in order of appearance, with a general description of the image. If not listed here, the source of images is either obvious or one of my own):
GWR route map
https://www.orr.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2022-07/passenger-assist-research-report-2022.pdf
CAPAY at nl.wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
John Thomas (1838-1905), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Lineside view of Horton in Ribblesdale Station by Stephen Armstrong, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Haverthwaite railway station footbridge by Jaggery, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Bridleway level crossing on King’s Mill Lane by JThomas, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Vera de Kok (NS Sprinter), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
WMR step – West Midlands Rail Executive(?)
National Rail (Passenger Assist page)
Put the Crippled Kid up Front (ramp being deployed on 377)
Doug Paulley (LNER video)
CrossCountry Trains (Voyager luggage space)
Rail Ombudsman
National Rail
(luggage ticket) U.S. National Archives and Records Administration / U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
(light thing on an AM96) SNCB/NMBS
(MTR platform staff) CHOADAICHONG MinuddR, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
(ERTMS Trained personell) Network Rail Wales
(BSL poster) Lucy Southwell, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
SBB app – SBB (obviously)
Bikes for Hire, Southwark Bridge Road, London SE1 by Christine Matthews, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
(EV Chargers) Gregory Varnum, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
(Elizabeth Line platforms) James Petts from London, England, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Nigel Thompson / Sugar Loaf Halt railway station, Powys
(Level boarding with legs) Atomic Taco from Seattle, WA, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
(Barcelona Metro Level boarding “hump”) Eric Fischer, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
(FLIRT at Cambridge and FLIRT at Dullingham) kitmasterbloke, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
(FLIRT ramp) Geoff Marshall
New footbridge at Canterbury West station by Stephen Craven, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Julie Berry
Accessibility can mean all sorts of different things depending on who you ask and what the context is on the railway it generally means how many people can travel what sorts of people can travel and how convenient is their Journey unfortunately Britain’s Railways don’t exactly perform well in this
Regard and there are plenty of issues that face disabled passengers as they attempt to make a Journey in the early days of the railways things were surprisingly accommodating for people with mobility issues the sheer number of Staff allowed for the transit of almost anyone or anything and the lack of health and safety regulations meant that there were just fewer boundaries in there are today
For example if you couldn’t climb stairs to cross a foot Bridge there was almost always a Crossing on the level that you could make use of however this is obviously considered too dangerous now but adequate Alternatives have not been installed in a huge number of stations
Just take a look at this gwr network map only the stations marked with green have step-free access to all platforms even if you can get to the platform though there are other hurdles that you need to jump over almost literally in Britain we have very few lowf floor trains this
Means that you often have to climb quite a considerable step to get onto the vehicle on some Modern trains like the CF cities it’s worse than it was before as a result many disabled passengers especially those in wheelchairs have to make use of the passenger assist service
To get assistance you have to call up some time in advance and then hopefully a member of Staff will be sent out to help deploy a ramp or otherwise assist with boarding however that hopefully is a big one passenger assist often just doesn’t turn up even if they do there’s
No guarantee that the journey will be possible there is an abundance of videos online highlighting all the issues that a disabled passenger could face take this one example Doug py a wheelchair user and accessibility Advocate was trying to board this lar isuma however the only door with which a ramp could be
Fitted was blocked by an escalator so he couldn’t board in the end the train was moved forward so he could get on but the train manager was quite resistant to doing this and took some persuading before they eventually reluctantly agreed even if everything goes to plan at first though there are still plenty
Of problems that can happen on the journey communication is very poor with passenger assist this was recently brought home to me when a relative of mine traveled down from Scotland to visit in South Wales she requires passenger assist and her suitcase was taken from her and put in the luggage
Storage space of the Voyager she was traveling on when she had to change trains passenger assist helped her off the train all right but when they went to get her bag the guard dispatched the train and pulled off we were told that it couldn’t be retrieved at any point
During the journey as that could risk delaying the service and it would have to be collected Ed when it finally reached its Terminus station on the other side of the UK it then took several more days to get it back to a station that wasn’t even the one we
Wanted it to be in in the first place but perhaps most tellingly neither gwr nor cross country The Operators involved in this were willing to take responsibility for the loss of a case and this is something that’s by no means exclusive to us the prevailing feeling for disabled passengers on Britain’s
Railways is that they’re dependent on the Goodwill of a few members of staff with little supervision to ensure that operators are meeting their obligations and even less consistency now yes there is the ra utsman however contacting them is a massive Hassle and burden on the passenger for things that are clearly
The operator’s fault of course things could be much better but what would improving them look like let’s start with passenger assist as annoying as it is the reservation system is probably the only way it could practically be organized though people who do turn up without booking shouldn’t be turned away
If at all possible additionally luggage or even wheelchairs could be stamped with QR codes they provided information about exactly where they needed to go and who they were traveling with it would have to be very efficiently managed though to not just be an extra layer of bureaucracy so I’m not entirely
Convinced an unequivocally positive Innovation would be the use of these sort of magnetic sticks they have in Belgium there platform staff snap them onto the side of the train and a flashing red light at the end warns the guard that they’re still on board so shouldn’t dispatch however perhaps the
Most beneficial changes will be to Authority passenger assist Personnel should be able to take charge when it comes to accessibility in Doug Pole’s case passenger assist should have been able to override the train manager objecting to moving the vehicle forward and get the driver to do it anyway there
Should also be much strict repercussions if an operator fails to provide its promised service not necessarily financially it should all be one organization after all but maybe a meeting with tea and no biscuits for the individuals involved now obviously you couldn’t do this without some proper training on accessibility and all
Passenger facing staff many already do should know how to deploy ramps deal with various disabilities and potentially even though a few very basic British sign language signs the most important transport Focus recommendations should probably be made legally binding as well another good addition would be that of a single uni
App that would do basically everything you need it to for transport in Britain at the moment there’s an ecletic mix of all sorts of different companies and organizations that you need to have an app for but one that encompassed bike hires car charging bus timetables train tickets and booking passenger assist
Would be fantastic it would clear things up massively and make the network so much easier to use for everyone but particularly the disabled in the ideal World though passenger assist shouldn’t be NE necessary at all it is possible to either raise platform Heights or lower train Heights and Achieve level boarding
This means that anyone can roll or walk on without any assistance and is incredibly liberating for people who would otherwise need it Roots should obviously be assessed on a case-by Case basis and there are probably a few stations where you’d have to make exceptions like sugar for example
However I do think it will be a very good long-term aim to introduce level boarding at all trains and stations in Britain exactly how the was done would depend a lot on the rout some would see the Alam mentioned platform raising you don’t even need to raise the entirety of
The platform length once that is desirable you can just raise a section so that there is at least some level boarding others meanwhile would see the introduction of low floor trains like the Stadler flirts now I do understand that there’s a small but vocal group of people who viciously oppose the Stadler
Flirts because level boarding isn’t applicable at all stations however it is better to have level boarding at some stations rather than none and even where ramps do have to be deployed they’re much smaller quicker and easier to put down than the full-sized ones and that’s to say nothing about the alarming recent trend
Of multiart ramps on new trains of course though it’s no good having level boarding between platform and train if you can’t even get to the platform as with level boarding there should be long-term legally binding targets to eventually require step-free access to all British stations again this would
Require a few select exemptions but nonetheless only a very small number of stations are completely impossible to modify if full stem free access would require more lifts on foot Bridges and Pathways down to roads then so be it we certainly can do it it might cost a
Little but it’s nothing we can’t afford we’ve done similar things before as recently as 2020 new legislation came into action that required all trains to be fitted with accessible toilets or none did the world collapse or train operators go bankrupt no new techniques were developed easily and cheaply
Retrofit toilets to existing trains it was not impossible at all we shouldn’t be too afraid of ambitious targets if we need to do something to make the railway better then we should do it on that note thank you for watching and I would advise you to wait around a few minutes
To hear a very special announcement a big thank you there to Julie Barry who recorded the announcement and indeed records the announcements for many train operators across the UK K and to wead for organizing this he’s from the Discord server thank you for watching GW villager please like subscribe and share
Thank you please also join our Discord server a link to it will be in the description down below
33 Comments
WOOOOOOOO NICE
It's very difficult travelling on trains as a disabled person, especially when you rely on passenger assistance that rarely works, even when booked hours ahead. I use a mobility scooter and have faced issues where staff don't turn up when the trains pull in, where ramps on trains have been missing, luggage in the wheelchair spaces and lifts not working!
The only option left is to take legal action, I have had so many issues with GWR that I have had to contact a solicitor
as soon as I saw this video pop up I thought "Level Boarding!"
The government doesn't care about level boarding since they have shut petitions for level boarding of trains. P.S in fact they were just reviewing it and it is now a petition.
FLIRTs are easily the best unit available in the UK right now and more should be following their leads. Making all stations accessible is a matter of time so we should be buying the rolling stock to meet that standard and not civities…..
As a wheelchair-using railfan, I really appreciate this video! It's such a shame that a lot of the old and characterful stations are totally off-limits for me, even with staff with a ramp, due to having no step-free entrance access. (Also, LEVEL BOARDING!!)
I would also add that as a wheelchair user on some trains (class 185s atleast) I am put in the vestibule which ends up feeling like a third class experience. With the mismanagement TPE, crowding in it has often made it a very stressful experience. Very sad to see the MK5s being withdrawn.
It is very frustrating to see no long terms plans for level access. I understand it might take a few generations of trains and stuff, but if plans were put in place now it could be done fairly hassle free over a while, like deciding on a platform height, slowly adjusting platforms, and making sure new stock works with that.
This video pretty much sums up why I always make a mention of accessiblity of trains in my railway review series and it's frankly insulting how much of a hassle it is for the disabled (not just physically impaired) to use the railways in Britain today. Mr Doug's videos really drive me up the wall with what he has to put up with and that IET ramp placement being blocked by the escalator is sooooooo symbolic of how this industry acts nowadays. Also that luggage issue you menitoned was horrific. Very much treated as a "not my problem" with the companies involved there.
Disabled passengers are still passengers and should always be treated with the same level of respect and dignity as you would with any other passenger.
2:46 I find it ironic that despite the frequent train announcements about reporting unattended luggage…
if you report that you have left luggage unattended the response is "well what do you expect us to do about it??"
Regardless of opinions regarding the FLIRTs in particular, we need a set of national rail guidelines that can allow Network Rail and TOCs to have a specification for a very precise platform height, as well as door aperture locations for Platform Screen Doors, that they can expect new Trains to meet, within set tolerances. Paired with new ERTMS, etc signalling tech to be introduced, we can come a lot closer to the Transit-style consistency of on/offboarding experience, critical to getting much of the accessibility experience right.
On the map of the GWR network, many yellow stations do have step free access to all the platforms, albeit with some limitations. Stations in the UK are categorized by their level of step free access as A, B1, B2, B3 or C. A means full step free access to all platforms with level access and lifts. B1 means some step free access to all platforms, but with interchange via the street or ramps slightly steeper than current recommendations, or if it is far to access the step free entrance. B2 means more barriers to access such as steeper ramps, a long interchange route or step free access only being available at certain times (eg if access is via a barrow crossing or if the step free entrance is only open during staffing hours). Category B3 is where a station has step free access to only some platforms, usually where access to the platform on the opposite side is with a bridge or subway with stairs. Category C is where a station has no step free access to any platform. While stations here and there have become more accessible, so many schemes have been talked about but not really come along. I don't live terribly far from Nailsea & Backwell station in Somerset which has steps up to the southbound platform and a steep ramp up to the northbound platform, and nothing has come of various proposals to put lifts in when the station is very much inaccessible. Closing ticket offices was rather a threat to accessibility on the rail network, with assistance as dysfunctional as it is now, what good could less staff in stations do for it? Some stations have literally backslid and made inaccessible quite recently: both Bodmin Parkway and Alfreton have had their barrow crossings removed recently, and they haven't put lifts in, that shouldn't be legal in the 21st century. Even when access schemes have gone ahead, some have been a bit half arsed, like Manchester Oxford road, where they put lifts in but didn't actually make all the platforms accessible
If most gaps in height between the platform and train are around 30cm, why don't we build platforms 30cm higher? Why weren't the Elizabeth Line's Eastern and Western legs retrofitted with higher platforms?
you’re welcome for the announcement!
I use a wheelchair. Most operators help me because I call Southern Trains assistance (toll free number) three days before departure and they tell me if I need to change to step free destination and then they organise a wheelchair taxi to my destination station without extra charge. And no I don't use the disabled railcard for a third off off peak travel. Simple give them three days notice and I get ramps to the train and met and assisted if I need to change trains. Plan ahead help them to help you. Video maker rent a wheel chair for a day and try trains with booking assistance 3 days in advance.
The government will never do this, because their globalist masters (of which they are puppets) will never allow them to do so, partly because of issues relating to climate change – they want people confined to 15 mins smart cities, not allowed to travel long distances nor into rural areas, while making them entirely dependent on public transport – and air travel and taking cruises will soon be part of history – much of this will also impact on disabled people and all of this is in line with the Great Reset & Agenda 2030 – in the post-Covid era, once restrictions ended, we saw constant industrial action on the U.K. railways and delays to flights, all of which was deliberate and intentional – I also noticed this on my previous visits home to family in Ireland from the U.K. where I’ve lived for 21 years in August and October 2022
My local station is a example for a slap done job, it’s step free Execpt the footbridge and has 2 step free entrances for a platform respectively. But it’s on a curve, if we raise the platforms for a universal type of train then we could implement a nyc subway system which goes outward for the train and makes it almost step free. however, it can connect onto the train with the train having a tiny ramp for each door.
Accessibility is such an important issue but far too often people think that accessibility means providing help to someone in a wheelchair. Of course that's important but it doesn't stop there.
Being autistic, I've lost track of the number of times I've been let down by train operators or left in a difficult situation because help hasn't been available. The issue I face is that I can travel by train entirely unassisted, assuming everything goes right. I book services, i reserve seats if i can and that's all fine. The minute something goes wrong though, a missed connection, a cancelled train, a failed reservation system or whatever and i ask for help with making sure i still have a seat to go to i get told they can't do it and that in future i should book passenger assist, completely ignoring the fact that i didn't need assistance until there was a problem.
Half the time the issue is that assistance is so inflexible, my partner has a plate in his hip but also has massive social anxiety. Like me, he needs to know he has a seat to go to. The number of times I've tried to just reserve a seat with EMR but been told that they don't offer seat reservations on weekends or on their Liverpool to Norwich services – why on earth not?! What's the point in having priority seats if you can't book them? Every time i get told that we should speak to passenger assist and have someone meet us at the station to take us to the train and find us a seat which is totally unnecessary. We just need a piece of paper putting on a seat – how is that difficult?!
Can't
Actually
Function
I think it will be better if we use extendable platforms at stations. That way we don't need a ramp or buy new trains with level boarding. It will solve height and gap issues
1:22 nice thumbnail 😊
What happens at unstaffed station on DOO lines, does the driver operate the ramp or is the passenger just not able to travel?
With stations like Sugar Loaf you could put a car park spiral styled ramp down to one of the ends of the platform
3:01 same issue with assistance where they closed the doors and left, but on mine they left with my CHILD.
I would add:
Compulsory to provide wheelchair space in first – on many trains I have no option to upgrade.
Compulsory at seat service for wheelchair passengers if walk up catering is provided (or ideally actual access to the.
I have no idea how we can put humans in space but cannot come up with a better ramp than the one we have. The staff look like they're going to break their backs and their fingers operating these death traps.
As a partially sighted person, one simple improvement that could be made to long distance rolling stock would be much larger seat and coach numbers. Particularly with seat numbers, I don't see why these can't be printed 10-15 cm high numbers.
Thank u for making this video I'm disabled and it's nice to know that people are wanting to see change if I may not necessarily for trains but I do believe that all busses should have audible announcements also just so it's one less hurdle to overcome
There is a standard platform height and there is no sensible reason why trains could not be built to provide level boarding. The Crossrail platforms in Central London have all been built to an even higher level (with matching trains) so level boarding is not then possible beyond London. Wonderful, award winning design!
Hi there, this video was recommended to me all the way here in Australia shortly after I received a pretty nasty letter from Sydney Trains about accessibility. Everything that you said is absolutely correct and is the exact same problems I experience everyday here in Sydney! Some examples are on my channel. The only difference is that nobody here in Australia is talking about it and the few that do are immediately shut down. Please keep doing more of these and I’d be happy to give you further information about my experience as someone with a hidden disability with family members who are in a wheelchair full time if you ever make a video about accessibility in Australia!
I have been to railway stations that don’t have step-free access but I think it’s now going to happen. As the government is spending money on improving the railways and allowing trains and stations to fit the requirement for disability. With people on wheelchairs who are using trains more often as well parents with babies on push prams.
I had a huge problem this week. Every person I spoke to gave a different reason why it happened – all my fault of course. Unbelievable. Not one person tried to solve the problem. Told there was no such train at that time, there was no passenger assistance for that day… I haven’t started a complaint yet because I’m so angry. Just left on freezing cold platform for two hours… THEN I found that m train DID exist and DID leave on time – without me on it! None of this would have been so bad if it hadn’t been for the stroppy, defensive bint who was apparently the Passenger assistant.
Promo-SM 😭
I regularly see people with mobility issues boarding and leaving buses with little trouble. As many will know, most buses have a ramp fitted to the doorway which can fold out and allow step free access. Why is this not possible for trains? You could argue cost, but some reasonable size sets already have extending ramps, and for shorter trains it would be easy to implement.