Complaints over shortcomings of North Wales station’s ‘DIY train steps’
Angry rail passengers claim they have to drag a set portable steps across a platform just to board the train at an Anglesey[1] station. They say one platform is way too low for some travellers to reach the train doors without them.
And even with the ‘DIY steps’, critics say the gap between the platform and the train is still so wide that passengers have to be ‘fit’ enough to make a significant step to get on and off. Fed-up campaigners are now calling for action to stop a potential accident from happening at Ty Croes Station near Rhosneigr.
Anna Keely told North Wales Live: “On one of the platforms at Ty Croes Station you have to step quite high up onto the train which is difficult unless you’re quite fit.
“There are steps but you have to drag them to the train. Even then there’s a gap between the steps and the train.”
Ms Keely suggested that the solution could be putting a permanent, raised section called a “Harrington Hump” onto that platform on which passengers going on the line from Holyhead[3] to Bangor[4] board and disembark. The other platform is at a normal height, she added.
A Network Rail spokesperson said it is working to make life easier for passengers. He said: “We are working closely with Transport for Wales to improve accessibility at Ty Croes railway station in Anglesey.
“Our proposal has been submitted to the Department for Transport and funding has been secured to install a Harrington Hump at the station through the mid-tier Access For All programme (which relates to small-scale accessibility improvements to stations).
“The installation of this hump will help passengers board and disembark trains despite the large platform gap. We hope to deliver this accessibility upgrade by the end of this financial year (March 2024).”