Rishi Sunak MP has welcomed a Government decision to spend around £2.5m to make Northallerton Station fully accessible.
Northallerton is one of 73 railway stations around the country to benefit from the Government’s £300m Access for All Fund.
Although the station platforms have access ramps, the steepness of the inclines have made them difficult to use for those in a wheelchair.
Mr Sunak said: “On the face of it Northallerton Station looks as if it is accessible with ramp access to both platforms. But I have seen and helped wheelchair users struggling with the steepness of the ramps so I was keen to press for Northallerton to be included in this latest round of national improvements.
“We want the 13.9 million disabled people in Britain empowered to travel independently and I’m very pleased that this investment has been secured for our local station.”
Design work on the Northallertion scheme is to be finalised but it will include:
- Construction of a new lift and stairway to Platform 1 and removal of non-compliant ramp
- Construction of a new lift to Platform 2 from the subway and some minor levelling works to the subway
- Replacement of existing ramp from the subway to Platform 2 with compliant stairs
- Also, some alterations to the lighting, CCTV and a new power supply are likely to be required
The Access for All programme was first launched in 2006 and has delivered better access at 200 stations around the country.
Stations to receive the funding were selected on a range of criteria including footfall weighted by disability by area, value for money and other local factors.
