Community Rail Lancashire is pleased to share the findings from the On Track for Inclusive Train Travel Discovery Report, which explores disabled people’s experiences of travelling by train and highlights opportunities to make the railway more inclusive.
On Track was a partnership project delivered by Community Rail Network, Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), Community Rail Lancashire and Gloucestershire & Oxfordshire Community Rail Partnership, funded by Motability Foundation. Over the past year, the project brought together the experiences of disabled people alongside perspectives from colleagues across the rail industry to better understand what helps, what gets in the way, and where opportunities exist to improve the experience of rail travel.
Community Rail Lancashire played a key role in engaging local communities throughout the project, working with disabled people, community groups and rail partners to gather insight through focus groups and conversations about rail travel. The experiences and perspectives shared through this work formed an important part of the evidence behind the report.
One of the clearest messages to emerge is that, while disability awareness training remains important, it alone does not guarantee a consistently inclusive passenger experience. Experiences are also shaped by the systems, operational pressures and organisational culture within which staff work.
The findings suggest that many of the building blocks for improvement already exist. Greater impact may come from strengthening communication and feedback, embedding lived experience into decision-making, and using co-production to shape services and support.
Katie Douglas from Community Rail Lancashire said: “One of the things that struck me most during this project was how willing people were to share both the frustrations and the positive experiences they’ve had using the railway. The people we spoke to wanted staff who listened, showed empathy and were willing to help. The findings remind us that disabled people are experts in their own journeys, and that listening to those experiences has to be part of how we improve rail travel in the future.”
The project was originally intended to continue into a second phase of testing and piloting. While further funding was not secured, the Discovery findings provide an ‘important evidence’ base and identify opportunities for future action across the rail sector.
Community Rail Lancashire would like to thank everyone who contributed their time, experiences and expertise to this work. Your honesty, openness and generosity in sharing your experiences have helped build a better understanding of both the changes needed and the good practice that already exists to create a railway that works better for everyone.
You can read the reports and summaries here:
To find out more about the wider On Track project, visit Community Rail Network’s On Track webpage on this link https://communityrail.org.uk/reports-and-research/on-track/.