The Enduring Benefits Of Investing In Accessible Rail Services

The latest transportfocus report into motivations and barriers to train use contains some interesting findings that point to the long-term value and benefits of Access for All (AfA) schemes. Of those who reported making fewer train journeys than in the past:

• 8% gave a deterioration in their physical or mental health as the reason.
• 12% said that other forms of transport were now more convenient.

Among people who never use trains, 10% said this was because their health issues made the rail network seem inaccessible.

More Convenience Means More Passengers

Those numbers present a pretty strong business and moral case for AfA schemes if around one in ten travellers feels excluded from the rail network. On top of this, there’s extensive research from the European Transport Research Review that gives a strong indication that introducing more step-free access increases overall rail use. We also shouldn’t overlook the countless car journeys made each day, simply because people don’t much fancy the prospect of lugging push chairs or heavy cases up and down flights of stairs.

Cutting Emissions

When people opt to travel by car rather than rail it means more congestion, poorer air quality and more CO₂ emissions. A car with a single occupant emits five times more carbon per kilometre than the equivalent rail journey (source: National Rail). Every journey made by rail rather than car makes a difference.

Better For Everyone

The improvements made to stations under AfA include step-free access from the entrance to the platform, better passenger information, clearer signage and obstruction-free routes through stations. For an ‘encumbered traveller’ the overall impression when using an AfA station is likely to be: ‘wow, that was painless.’ The net result is increased passenger satisfaction among a wide group of rail users, higher usage rates and a better public perception. As well as fairness, there’s a strong environmental and economic case for stepping up the delivery of AfA schemes. Find out more about the benefits of accessible rail travel by signing up to our resource centre below.