South Western Railway criticised for lack of wheelchair access at Hampshire station
The train operator has been told to fix it by May 2021.
South Western Railway has been criticised for a lack of wheelchair access at Liphook station.
The Office of Rail and Road has instructed the train operator to comply with its legal duty at Liphook in ensuring that people using wheelchairs can board and leave from trains.
Action was taken after the regulator identified South Western Railway was failing to provide a boarding device (such as a ramp) when required.
Currently the gap between train and platform means wheelchair users cannot board or leave a train independently.
The regulator says SWR "is forcing passengers who use a wheelchair to travel to another station or to simply not use the train."
Stephanie Tobyn, Deputy Director, Consumers at ORR, said:
“All passengers who need assistance to travel must be able to do so safely and with confidence.
“Our recent updated accessibility guidelines set a benchmark for train and station operators to deliver better passenger assistance and we have seen improvements, but where this isn’t happening we will take action.
“Helping wheelchair users to get on and off a train is a fundamental duty for a train operator and a vital service for passengers. That is why we’ve taken action to ensure SWR fulfils this essential accessibility standard.”