‘Anxious and unsafe’: Half of blind people fear being stranded at train stations
Paul Goddard is due to catch the train to London Bridge next week and he is already feeling anxious about what might happen.
It’s a journey that Mr Goddard, 53, who is blind, makes regularly but always fails.
He often feels nervous, insecure and overwhelmed, as he is often let down by the support of railway passengers. His journeys are often uncertain and he is stranded on an empty, dark train in the past.
In a report published on Thursday, the Royal National Institute for Blind People (RNIB) found that half of blind and partially sighted people fear being stranded at train stations, feeling stressed and confused by the unpredictability of their experience with passenger assistance.
Based on a survey of nearly 1,200 blind and partially sighted people, the charity found that three in four people surveyed reported being unable to rely on railway staff for help and information.
More than 60 per cent felt they were not consistently greeted by staff when booking passenger assistance and only 27 per cent felt they could trust staff to inform them if their train’s destination changed.
The findings are not surprising to Mr Goddard, who said aids to help him navigate stations and board trains repeatedly failed him.
She said: “It’s incredibly dangerous and makes me so anxious when I travel. I can’t relax, ‘Oh my God, am I going to be met?’ I think. And then when I get onto London Bridge I think ‘here we go’ and you shouldn’t feel that way.”
Last Thursday, the Ministry of Transport announced that it had canceled plans to make access step-free at 19 stations. Mr Goddard said it was another example of the government’s unwillingness to understand the problems blind travelers experience every day.
“I think any cancellation for accessibility is a step backwards and a complete disrespect for disabled passengers,” he said.
Mr Goddard said delays, unreliable assistance, poor quality announcements or platform changes could cause trips to go wrong for blind passengers.
“You can’t guarantee anything. It would be great to be like everyone else, get on a train, get off, have a pleasant journey and not have to worry about what will happen when you get there.”
Mr Goddard knows first-hand that this is possible, as he has seen at stations such as Crowborough or East Croydon.
Blind disabled activist Lucy Edwards, who lost her sight when she was 17, was uncomfortable walking out the front door and would sometimes cry herself to sleep after experiencing a difficult train journey.
Ms Edwards, now 30, knows first-hand what it is like to be stranded at a station and often makes train reservations two hours in advance to account for anything going wrong.
“It only takes one crack in the system and you can’t get on the train,” he said.
“I feel really frustrated because I’m a very independent person. For me, I feel like the train is a place where I don’t really feel like myself because I have to give up that independence to someone else.”
Ms Edwards said the latest findings from the RNIB were “completely and utterly correct”.
Ms Edwards believes train stations need tactile lines, textured floor surfaces to help people navigate. According to the report, 68 percent of people agreed that it would benefit them.
The government’s decision to scrap 19 step-free access stations told Ms Edwards it was “okay for wheelchair users and guide dog users to be stranded on trains”.
“It says we’re okay with people with disabilities being late for meetings and work. It says we don’t support people with disabilities and don’t value them as a functioning part of our society.”
The Ministry of Transport was contacted for comment.
