Aston Villa haven’t played a home game in the European Cup or UEFA Champions league since 1983 (40 years ago), so this evening will be the first time in many years that has seen us welcome the disabled supporters of a major European side to B6.
Witton Lane station which is situated just a 5 minute walk or wheel away from Villa Park is ready to welcome Bayern Munich’s disabled supporters by rail later. I started campaigning for better access at the station on behalf of the disabled football supporters and local resident using the station in February 2023.
It was time to wheel up and say enough is enough, we as a community who are using the the station on a regular basis need to receive an acceptable level of service from the rail operator who manage the station just like our able-bodied peers.
I wrote to Aston Villa about the issue of accessibility at station for those using wheelchairs, mobility scooters and other walking aids and they passed my letter on to the team at WMT (West Midlands Trains).
Senior officials from the operator agreed to meet with me at the station in November 2023 so that they could see for themselves the issues that I and others were facing post match when travelling home by rail from the station.
After sharing my experiences with the team I asked if it would be possible for them to install signage at the station in a bid to improve our match-day experience and much to my surprise, they agreed to this suggestion.
I returned to the station with some of the team to help determine where the signage would be positioned on the 19th of December, last year. fast forwarded to the 31st of January this year andf the signage was finally in place and comes in three different forms:
- A wall sign that is mounted on a brick station shelter in the form of a square which is blue and white and has a white wheelchair logo and the words “for mobility assistance, please wait here” inside.
- A fence sign that is mounted to a wooden platform fence in the form of a square that is blue and white and has a white wheelchair logo and the words “for mobility assistance, please wait here” inside.
- A blue and white box that is painted on the station platform floors with a white wheelchair logo and the words “for mobility assistance, please wait here” inside.
Those who require assisted travel when attending this evening match and book it in the following ways:
By Phone: 0800 024 8998 or by using Next Generation Text – 18001 0800 024 8998.
Online: https://booking.passengerassistance.com.
Using the App: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/passenger-assistance/id1542190496.
if you enjoyed reading this morning’s post about the accessibility of Witton Lane station for those using wheelchairs, mobility scooters and walking aids ahead of Aston Villa’s clash with Bayern Munich this evening then why not subscribe and receive my posts direct to your inbox within minutes of publication.
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I would once again like to place on record my thanks to the incredible team at West Midlands Trains who delivered on what I suggested in November 2023 as fast as was physically possible, it hasn’t gone unnoticed and is very much appreciated.
A thanks must also go to you, my loyal readers and followers who take time out of there busy schedules each week to read my latest post, again it doesn’t go unnoticed and is of course very much appreciated.
Cam
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