Lift failures and associated flawed or inaccurate information is a continual topic of annoyance raised by Disabled rail passengers. The Office for Rail and Road note that lifts enable access to the railway for Disabled passengers and others, and they have concerns about the number of faults that are occurring and an apparent decline in performance over time.
Network Rail manage 1,331 passenger lifts at 491 stations. In the year from October 2022 there were over 8,600 faults. This is an average of more than 6 faults per lift, or 24 faults each day on the network. Each fault takes an average of over 20 hours to repair. In the same year passengers got trapped in a lift 601 times.
The ORR have launched a review of Network Rail’s monitoring and management processes for lift maintenance and repairs, which will report later in 2024.
Stephen Brookes, DR UK Transport Policy Adviser, said ‘I can confirm by personal experience that in spite of systems which were supposedly brought in to assist and notify speedy information on lift operations and processes there are far too many fails which effect stations where notice is just not being correctly applied or advised late in the day and Disabled passengers are left with accessibility problems and massive additional delays.’
Disability Rights UK fully endorse a review which will ensure that any problems are notified to Passenger Assistance and Station staff so that alternative plans can be made and that Disabled passengers don’t suffer from lack of information and support when lifts do fail.