One of Yorkshire’s most famous beauty spots – once known as Trouser Town because of its huge textile industry – is now extending an even bigger welcome to Persons of Reduced Mobility (PRM) thanks to a major Network Rail initiative in which HBPW has played its vital part.
Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire is a tourist hotspot and has been featured nationally and internationally as ‘Little San Francisco’ and one of the country’s most vibrant gay towns.
However, its outdated rail station has up to now, meant that certain groups within the population – the elderly infirm, mothers with prams and PRMs – were disadvantaged in terms of not being able to properly use the facility.
Partner Paul Monaghan, said: “As with many old stations across the UK, Hebden Bridge station simply had steps to one side of the platform descending to an underpass, with just a ramp leading to the other platform which is fine if you have no mobility issues be they infirmity, carrying kids or pushing a pram.
“There were also two parcel lifts – little more than manually operated dumb waiters for moving mail sacks – however, in the absence of comprehensive lift access lots of people were being excluded creating the scenario where some individuals – unable to physically use Hebden Bridge station – had to travel to the next stop then take either a train or a taxi back.”
The West Yorkshire station was identified as one of over 200 priority sites selected for improvements as part of the Great North Rail Project with one of the key aims being to construct two new lift shafts designed to provide step-free access to platforms. “We demolished the old parcel lifts, using the resulting spaces to create two new 16 person lifts either side of the track,” said Paul.
However, this element of the project was just part of a wider programme of improvements that are now enabling customers travelling through Calder Valley to benefit from longer trains, thanks to extended platform length, step free access, an additional 46 car parking spaces and more reliable journeys.
“HBPW also played its part in upgrading the underpass running between the two platforms, and a raft of new signage means that Hebden Bridge station has not only been given a new lease of life, but will support, brilliantly, people from all walks of society visiting this scenic part of West Yorkshire,” added Paul Monaghan.
The Government’s ‘Railways for All’ strategy, originally launched in 2006, committed politicians to spending £370m on a programme of station accessibility improvements across the rail network.
Branded as ‘Access for All’ the scheme has been managed and delivered by Network Rail in line with the Equality Act 2010.