Office of Rail and Road calls for better Assisted Travel services
More needs to be done to improve the reliability, consistency and awareness of assistance available to passengers, says the Office of Rail and Road.
Its latest research, published on November 15, reveal high levels of satisfaction among passengers using Assisted Travel services, with 85% of those who pre-booked either satisfied or very satisfied. For those who didn’t book in advance, the figure was 71%.
However, the ORR also found that 12% of passengers did not receive any of the assistance they booked. In some cases, staff did not turn up, while others reported cases where staff were unable to relate to their needs or concerns.
The regulator is calling on rail companies to improve reliability through better communication within and between them, to ensure passengers receive the assistance they have asked for at all points in their journey.
It also wants increased awareness of the travel assistance available, through improved written and online material and closer working with disability agencies, better staff training to make journeys easier for those with disabilities (particularly those with ‘hidden disabilities’), and enhancing its own monitoring to assess how train companies are meeting their obligations and to hold them to account for poor performance.
It is hosting a series of events, including a meeting with disability representative groups, to discuss how to improve travel assistance.
ORR Deputy Director of Consumers Stephanie Tobyn said: “When travel assistance works as intended, passengers find it a good service, but clearly more needs to be done to make it more reliable and consistent.
“A growing number of people with disabilities are travelling by train, and we want to make rail travel easier and more straightforward for them.
“That’s why we’ve carried out this research and identified where the service can be strengthened. We’re looking forward to working with industry and passenger groups to make improvements to this important service.”
David Sidebottom, Transport Focus director said: “We know that passengers with disabilities experience a mixed response to their requests for help. While many of them report getting a good service, more needs to be done to ensure that all booked help arrives, and that the right help is provided.
“This report develops the work we have done with passengers and we are pleased to see the regulator building on our recommendation on how to audit the industry. It is important that passengers with disabilities can travel freely on the rail network.”