Rail accessibility and inclusion news – Page 5
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Rail Business UKGTR undertakes station accessibility improvements
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway has completed a £600 000 programme of small station improvements to make the Southern, Thameslink and Great Northern networks more accessible. The works included installing improved customer information points at Three Bridges and Caterham stations, with wide, automated doors, and counters set ...
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Rail Business UKGreat Anglia launches virtual tour of Norwich station
UK: Greater Anglia and Virtual Tour Experts have created an online interactive virtual tour of Norwich station to help people with reduced mobility check how accessible their journey would be. The virtual tour consists of a series of 360° photographs linked by clickable markers, with a ...
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Metro Report InternationalSliding steps to improve Tyne & Wear Metro accessibility
UK: Tyne & Wear Metro has unveiled the first of the automatic sliding steps that will close the gap between its new Stadler trainsets and platform edges to improve accessibility.
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Rail Business UKAudio description devices installed in station toilets
UK: ‘Talking toilet’ devices which provide visually impaired users with bespoke audio descriptions of the facilities are being installed in the accessible toilets at 44 stations served by Northern.
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Rail Business UKDisabled Persons Passenger Charter under development
UK: The government is working with charity Scope to develop a Disabled Persons Passenger Charter covering trains, buses, coaches, taxis and private hire vehicles in England. This will bring together a range of information to provide people with a clear explanation of their rights and advice ...
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Rail Business UKAutism-friendly guide to travelling by train
UK: Network Rail has worked with the National Autistic Society to produce an online guide help autistic people travel by train independently and with confidence. The guide shows the sights and sounds passengers could experience during every stage of a journey, from purchasing tickets, to getting ...
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Rail Business UKTransPennine Express unveils accessibility initiatives
UK: TransPennine Express has introduced the GoodMaps app, which guides blind and other users around stations to help them find features such as platforms, toilets, ticket offices and coffee shops. The app uses LIDAR and image recognition data, and does not require ...
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Rail Business UKNetwork Rail aims to increase the number of disabled people it employs
UK: Network Rail is aiming to increase the number of disabled people it employs, after figures showed that less than 3% of its 44 000 staff have declared a disability or long-term health condition. ‘Around 20% of the population is disabled, and yet less than 3% ...
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NewsSwedish station announcements to be silenced
SWEDEN: Station public address announcements will in future only be made if trains are delayed or there is a platform alteration, Trafikverket has decided.
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Metro Report InternationalLondon Underground consults on accessibility priorities
UK: Transport for London has begun a public consultation to help it prioritise works to make London Underground stations more accessible. It is seeking feedback on whether to focus on upgrading a single, complex central London station, or divide the available resources between small and medium-sized ...
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NewsTanzanian railway project offers accessibility examples for Africa, disability body says
TANZANIA: The SHIVYAWATA federation of disabled people’s organisations says organisations across Africa can learn from the provision of facilities for people with reduced mobility on the Dar es Salaam – Morogoro standard gauge railway. On October 30 the SHIVYAWATA board toured the 202 km first phase ...
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Rail Business UKVirtual reality simulation aims to ‘empower people to use public transport’
UK: A virtual reality simulation is being developed to enable disabled passengers to take simulated journeys where they can experience trains and stations, and interact with on-board staff to find out about the support available. Northern’s Commercial & Customer Director Mark Powles said the aim is ...
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NewsUIC to host Rail Accessibility Day
ACCESSIBILITY: The International Union of Railways is to hold an online Rail Accessibility Day to raise awareness of the importance of inclusion, highlight the efforts being made to improve accessibility and discuss challenges which the industry faces. The event on October 5 will include representatives of ...
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Metro Report InternationalAccessibility training at Lucknow metro
INDIA: Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corp has worked with the Handicare Indian Association of Persons with Disabilities to organise an inclusive public transport workshop to help senior staff as well as new recruits understand the needs of disabled passengers Handicare was established in 1986 as a ...
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Rail Business UKStation navigation technology aims to provide people with the confidence to travel
UK: Briteyellow has been awarded up to £120 000 from the Department for Transport’s Accessibility Transport Research & Innovation Grants programme to develop its BriteWay journey planning and station navigation system which aims to provide disabled people with the confidence to travel.
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Rail Business UKDisabled trainer-led courses for all GTR staff
UK: All customer-facing Govia Thameslink Railway staff have now participated in disability equality courses delivered by experts who are themselves disabled, and the programme is being expanded to all the operator’s staff including the board. The courses are delivered by a company owned by wheelchair-using accessibility ...
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Rail Business UKAssisted boarding points cut assistance notice time to 10 min
UK: South Western Railway is reducing the advance notice needed for assisted travel services to 10 min, with the roll out of assisted boarding points at stations where passengers can contact its customer service centre which will then let the guard on the next available train ...
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Rail Business UKDfT launches rail accessibility programme
UK: The Department for Transport has announced a range of initiatives intended to remove the barriers to public transport faced by disabled people. In the rail sector, work has begin on an audit of all stations to support the development of a public database which, along ...
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NewsFundación ONCE advises Alstom on disability inclusion
ALSTOM: Alstom and Spain’s ONCE Foundation for Co-operation & Social Inclusion of People with Disabilities have renewed a collaboration framework agreement which aims to improve the usability and comfort of trains for people with disabilities and the elderly. Projects which have benefited from the original 2019 ...
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Rail Business UKPassenger information displays incorporate sign language interpretation
UK: Network Rail has begun deploying 20 LB Foster fixed and mobile touch-screen passenger information displays with in-screen British Sign Language interpretation at London Euston station, and a large screen is to be provided beside the departure boards on the main concourse. Network Rail has ...