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Disabled campaigners are backing demands for major rights-based changes to the government’s railways bill that would target the poor state of accessibility across the network. Disabled-led organisations and allies including Disabled People Against Cuts, the Campaign for Level Boarding and The […]
The rail regulator has been asked why it has failed to do more in an annual report to stress disabled people’s right to “turn up and go” when accessing the railway network. The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) released new […]
The government is to investigate claims that rail companies are using “mystery shoppers” who are pretending to be disabled as a way of providing data on the accessibility of their services. One campaigner said the concerns could have “huge consequences” for […]
Figures passed to the rail regulator by train companies have repeatedly inflated the success of the industry’s pre-booked passenger assistance service, potentially adding weight to the push to close ticket offices and cut station staff. The data showed the number of […]
The information commissioner has backed the government’s refusal to release its assessment of how plans to close nearly 1,000 ticket offices across England would have affected disabled people and other groups protected under the Equality Act. The Information Commissioner’s Office ruled […]
The right of disabled people to enjoy spontaneous travel on the rail network is under “serious threat” because of the planned closure of nearly 1,000 ticket offices across England, campaigners warned this week. One disabled activist warned that the time for […]
The equality watchdog has taken action under the Equality Act against both the Department for Transport (DfT) and the rail regulator over concerns that cuts and reforms to train services are making the network ever more inaccessible. So far, the Equality […]
The UK’s largest rail operator has admitted that it has been breaching access laws for more than 10 years across large parts of its rail network, a leaked document has revealed. The Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) document shows the company* has […]
Publication of a report that called on ministers to invest billions of pounds in removing access barriers to the rail system was delayed by the government for nearly a year, emails released under the Freedom of Information Act have revealed. The […]
The rail regulator is investigating why an industry body appears to have tried to ensure all assisted travel bookings for disabled passengers were cancelled during Storm Eunice in February. Even though many rail services continued through the storm on 18 February, […]