There are 96 train stations in Greater Manchester and fewer than half are fully accessible to people who are wheelchair users or who have walking or mobility impairments.
In recognition of this year’s UK Disability History Month (14 November-20 December 2024), the Together Trust charity is collaborating with grassroots campaigner, Nathaniel Yates, on a campaign for better accessibility in Greater Manchester’s train stations.
In 2018, Nathaniel Yates, a former student of Stockport College, started a grassroots campaign focused on making local train stations accessible for all, including people with visible and invisible disabilities.
After years of tireless campaigning, Nathaniel’s local train station, Reddish North, was awarded funding to make it fully accessible in 2021.
“I started a campaign because I noticed that there was a lack of step free access at train stations,” says Nathanial. “I am now working closely with transport for Greater Manchester and they are trying to make good progress.”
This month, the Together Trust visited Levenshulme train station alongside Nathaniel, who shared his campaigning journey to make the station accessible. The
Nathaniel points out that 96 train stations in Greater Manchester – fewer than half – are fully accessible to people who are wheelchair users or who have walking or mobility impairments. This inaccessibility also impacts travellers with buggies or luggage.
The inaccessibility of train stations prevents many people with disabilities from using the rail network. This barrier directly impacts their ability to access employment, education and health care, and participation in leisure, social and commercial activities, which can result in loss of social independence.
Railway accessibility could enable the increase of the employment rate amongst adults with disabilities. Based on research, a 10% rise in the employment rate amongst disabled adults could contribute an extra £12 billion to the Exchequer by 2030.
The Together Trust are calling on people to sign Nathaniel’s petition to Stockport Council, ‘How accessible is your local train station?’. Members of the public are also invited to take photos of their local train station and share its accessibility status using the hashtag #GMRailAccess.
