Transport Select Committee Challenges Aspects of GBR Rail Reform

Commenting on the letter, which can be accessed here, the Chair said:  

“We welcome the Government’s careful approach to establishing Great British Railways and its recent consultation. However, in contrast with the previous Government’s draft Rail Reform Bill, we note with concern that the latest consultation omits any reference to placing a duty on Great British Railways to have regard to accessibility. Services that work for those with disabilities work better for everyone, and we urge the Government to put this perennially overlooked issue at the heart of every aspect of its plans to revitalise rail.” 

In endorsing the statement Disability Rights UK has regularly complained that Disabled people’s voices have been ignored or undervalued by the train operating companies working in silos leading to chaos with unreliable and inconsistent support leading to many Disabled people reporting disrupted or poor services.

We noted that Rail Minister Lord Peter Hendy brought long overdue changes to make rail accessible to the attention of the House of Lords adding that he was ashamed of the way the rail industry treated passengers who need assistance.

Stephen Brookes, DR UK’s Rail Policy Adviser said ‘We had hoped that the government would begin to work with Disabled people to explain the actions intended to take to improve things for those requiring assistance in advance of GBR being set up. But needs differ, and there is very little to show how competing needs will be balanced. The insignificant addressing of disability access in the consultation is a worrying feature of the draft consultation paper, so we would remind the Minister that he proposed an amendment to the government’s passenger railway services (public ownership) bill, which would amend the Equality Act to make it clear that publicly owned train companies are subject to the act’s Public Sector Equality Duty."