The Hawthorns railway station in Birmingham now has accessible waiting bays on either platform to help local residents and football supporters with disabilities and other mobility issues travel with ease.
It was decided by officials from West Midlands Trains that the bays would be located near to where the ramps are housed on each of the platforms at the station.
This means that local residents and football supporters on mach-day’s requiring mobility assistance to board services into Birmingham and beyond can be seen by event station staff, train crew and their fellow passengers.
The waiting bays were trialled at both stations serving Villa Park (Witton Lane and Aston) and they have proven to be a massive success since installation earlier this year.
I have a simple message for the local residents using the station now that the bays are in place and it is this, they have been installed to help you be seen when attempting to board services from the station.
I would like to repeat my message to all the baggies supporters who use the rail network on matchdays from the 26th of June 2024, now that the bays have been installed at your station please be mindful of where you stand on the platforms as your fellow supporters with mobility issues and other disabilities will need access to them at all times.
All of the signage has the wording “For Mobility Assistance, Please Wait Here” on it so that all passengers are aware of what it is for, as shown below:
If you travel by rail on a regular basis and have mobility needs, I would recommend booking your assisted travel in 1 of 3 ways:
By Phone: 0800 024 8998 or by using Next Generation Text – 18001 0800 024 8998
Online: https://booking.passengerassistance.com.
By using the app: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/passenger-assistance/id1542190496.
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I would once again like to thank the incredible team at WMT (West Midlands Trains) for making my accessibility signage dream a reality in just under a year, I have loved being involved in this project.
A thank you must also go to you, my incredible readers and followers who continually read my posts each week once they have been published, it doesn’t go unnoticed and is very much appreciated.
Cam
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