Rail travel has become less accessible since pandemic and cost-of-living crises, researchers are told

There are fewer staff at stations and ticket counters and increased ticket prices since the emergence of the Covid pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis, disabled rail passengers have told researchers for a government report.

Some of those interviewed for the research* said they believed rail travel had become less accessible, which left them feeling “less inclined” or less able to travel frequently.

There were also “frequent reports” of disabled passengers who met with “negative attitudes and inconsiderate behaviours” from both train staff and other passengers, the report found.

And disabled interviewees told researchers that staff who could support them “were not always easily identified” and were often “busy or preoccupied”.

Those using wheelchairs or mobility scooters reported a “carriage space lottery”, because of the limited availability of suitable spaces, and said they often found their reserved spaces already occupied by other wheelchair- and mobility scooter-users or blocked by prams and luggage.

This usually left them with no choice but to wait for the next train.

They also described feeling they could not trust staff to be “understanding and compassionate”, or even to turn up in time, to support them in boarding and leaving trains.

One wheelchair-user told researchers: “The amount [of people] that I see in the disabled forums who are [saying] there wasn’t anyone there, or they didn’t turn up, or saying [that] because I wasn’t 10 minutes early for my train, although they’re there with the ramp, they wouldn’t let me get on.

“I [personally] have had a woman with a pushchair tell me that she’s not moving [because] there’s nowhere else for her to go with the pushchair.

“I’ve had luggage there [in the wheelchair space] and there’s no one around.

“Both of those times I’ve asked the conductor to help me, and they’ve said no.”

Reports of the Passenger Assist scheme – which allows disabled passengers to book assistance in advance by telephone, email and online – were mixed.

Those who used it successfully said they valued it highly and saw it as a “crucial source of support”, with experiences “for the most part extremely positive”, but users “often felt that the service was under resourced, and most reported instances of service failure”.

One wheelchair-user with a visual impairment said: “Often, they say we’ve radioed ahead and they’re expecting you.

“But then no one comes with the ramp, and you get left on the train.”

The Department for Transport commissioned the research last year from agency Verian to examine how disabled people’s travel behaviour had changed post-2020 following the emergence of the pandemic and cost-of-living pressures.

Researchers carried out 60 online interviews with disabled rail users and non-users, and also carried out 10 accompanied journeys with disabled passengers.

*Disabled People’s Experiences of Rail: Qualitative Research Findings

Picture by Office of Rail and Road

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