The 40-mile disabled train station exit

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The 40-mile disabled train station exit DISABLED rail passengers at a busy station are being forced to make a 40-mile detour just to reach the exit.

Published: Fri, July 19, 2013

 

 

 

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Marlene Bennett is just one of the 212,000 passengers who use Alfreton station every year

Steep stairs to the footbridge mean those with wheelchairs or crutches who want to cross to the other platform have to continue 20 miles along the line before heading back on another train.

Despite promises of Government funding for a lift at Alfreton station in Derbyshire, the work is not expected to start for another year.

Marlene Bennett, who suffers crippling arthritis, is one of 212,000 passengers who use the station every year. She said: “The steps are very steep and slippery. A month or so ago I was returning from Blackpool with heavy cases. I had to struggle up the steps one at a time.

“By the time I got over, I had to sit down and recover for about half an hour.”

The alternative is to carry on the journey to either Nottingham or Sheffield and get another train back, a detour which takes an hour.

It’s a 40-mile round trip for some to get from one side of the station to the other

John Walker, local councillor

Local councillor John Walker said: “It’s a 40-mile round trip for some to get from one side of the station to the other. There is no exit on the south-bound side.”

Campaigners had tried to secure funds to fit the footbridge with a stairlift for disabled people. But the council had recently been told funds for the project had been redirected, he said.

MP Nigel Mills said the station was “high up on the list” to receive funding to be announced next April.