Support for disabled passengers at East Renfrewshire’s train stations has been slammed as “woefully insufficient” after it was revealed none of them has step-free access at all times across all platforms.
New figures from ScotRail show stations such as Barrhead and Neilston do not offer full access, whilst Williamwood does not have step-free access to any platform.
And no stations in East Renfrewshire have been earmarked for Access for All funding from the UK Government, with nearby Johnstone being one of only two stations in West Scotland that are set for improvements.
In total, just a third of all stations in the electoral region are deemed fully accessible.
Labour MSP Katy Clark, who represents East Renfrewshire as part of her West Scotland remit, is writing to the UK Government to call for more funding to be made available and is also asking Transport Scotland to make recommendations based upon the stations in most immediate need.
She told the Barrhead News: “Constituents have been in touch with me to express their concern that disability access at their closest stations is lacking.
“Having now obtained the raw numbers from ScotRail, it is clear access is woefully insufficient at a number of stations, despite it being a legal requirement.
“Public transport in the 21st century should be fully accessible to all. The Access for All fund is vital for improving infrastructure to this end but it appears very few projects are planned.
“This fund is managed by the UK Government but the Scottish Government and Network Rail make recommendations. I will be writing to all three to demand greater levels of investment.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We believe our railways should be fully accessible for all. Unfortunately, responsibility for accessibility is reserved to the UK Government.
“Scottish ministers have repeatedly called for this matter to be devolved.
“However, until that happens, we continue to invest in improvements at our stations beyond that provided by the UK Government’s Access for All programme, including trying to ensure new and refurbished stations are barrier free.
“ScotRail also has arrangements in place for passengers to access our railways at any station by making use of the passenger assist process.”
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