Network Rail installs new £700,000 footbridge that is inaccessible to wheelchair-users

Accessible transport campaigners have expressed shock and alarm at the decision of Network Rail to install an “innovative” railway footbridge that is completely inaccessible to many disabled people.

Network Rail described the opening of the prototype bridge (pictured) as a “major safety boost” to people at Wistanstow, near Craven Arms, in Shropshire, even though it cannot be used by anyone who is unable to use steps.

A Network Rail manager said its teams had “gone above and beyond to create a quicker and more sustainable option for the future of the railway”.

But Sam Jennings, who campaigns on accessible transport and uses a powerchair, said the bridge should never have passed the design stage.

She said: “The Disability Discrimination Act came in 1995, the Equality Act in 2010, so why on earth in 2023 is infrastructure for public transport even being considered that isn’t accessible?

“It should have been rejected automatically and never got beyond the drawings stage.

“It just confirms for me that the Department for Transport is complicit in disability discrimination and is allowing people to be ‘disabled by the railway’.

“We shouldn’t even be having conversations about whether access is possible. If it’s not, then don’t build it.”

Alan Benson, another leading campaigner on access to public transport and also a powerchair-user, said: “We are constantly told how accessibility is a priority across the rail sector, about how we need new approaches.

“This bridge makes these aspirations ring hollow.

“In developing a new concept for the 21st century, designers have tackled cost, weight, installation and materials but explicitly made accessibility an afterthought.

“The crossing that this bridge replaces was undoubtedly unsafe, but it was level.

“Access has been thrown under the bus in this necessary upgrade.

“What I find most disappointing is the ableist attitudes expressed by industry professionals when challenged over the inaccessibility of this new design.

“The refusal to acknowledge this fundamental failing demonstrates how far we still have to go in altering attitudes in the sector.”

Fellow accessible transport campaigner Tony Jennings was also critical of the new bridge, adding: “Inclusive design should be integral from the start, not an afterthought.”

The publicity released alongside the opening of the bridge suggested the design would provide “a faster, more sustainable, and affordable option to assist with the closure of dangerous railway foot crossings around the UK”.

Network Rail said it had replaced an “extremely high-risk level crossing” that closed “a number of years ago after it was deemed unsafe for use”.

The bridge costs about 40 per cent less – at an average of £700,000 per bridge – and weighs about half that of a traditional steel bridge, while Network Rail claims installation can take place without disruption to passenger services.

But it is only now that Network Rail is looking at “fully accessible versions” of the prototype, with ramps and lifts.

Asked why it was building new bridges that were inaccessible to many disabled people, including wheelchair-users, Network Rail claimed that it builds new bridges “that meet the accessibility requirements for the specific sites” after carrying out “diversity and inclusivity assessments”.

A Network Rail spokesperson said: “This was done for the Wistanstow site where there is no accessible route to the bridge but a level accessible crossing of the railway is nearby.”

Andy Cross, programme manager at Network Rail Wales and Borders, said the footbridge was a prototype of an “innovative design” that “has the potential to transform railway crossing safety in an affordable, sustainable and efficient way”.

The Network Rail spokesperson added: “We started looking at accessible versions once we had established that the design concept would work.

“Now we have completed the installation of the prototype FLOW bridge we can focus on the development of the production version which will allow for fully accessible bridges.”

But Network Rail had failed to say by noon today (Thursday) whether it would be installing other inaccessible versions of the prototype bridge around the country.

Picture: Network Rail

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