Media centre

Tuesday 9 Jun 2009

CUMBRIA TOWN TAKES ITS PLACE IN RAILWAY HISTORY

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With a population of just 6,000 you would not expect a seaside ‘resort’ little bigger than a large village to take its place among the giants of railway history – but that is what is about to happen.

The name of Harrington will be forever remembered thanks to a pioneering innovation that was successfully trialled in the coastal town and that is set to revolutionise rail travel.

Nicknamed the ‘Harrington Hump’, it is a system for raising the height of platforms which in the past have been too low for all but the most able-bodied of rail travellers to use. Now, thousands of passengers throughout the country who have previously been denied access to the railway network could have untold journey opportunities opened up to them.

Developed in a joint initiative between Network Rail and Cumbria County Council, the new system is to be known permanently by its nickname. It can be custom built to suit the needs of the particular station and installed in a matter of days at a fraction of the accepted cost of rebuilding the platform.

Jerry Swift, head of corporate responsibility for Network Rail said: “It’s really exciting that working with colleagues in Cumbria County Council, DfT and Northern, we have been able to make a real difference for passengers at Harrington, and for a fraction of the cost of conventional methods. I look forward to more “Harrington Humps” across the country.”

John Kitchen, rail officer at Cumbria County Council added: "We have quite a few low platforms in Cumbria and the Harrington Hump is an effective low cost solution to the problem. We look forward to working with our partners in the railway industry to install many more of these simple and innovative structures for the benefit of Cumbrian passengers."

Railways first came to Britain almost 200 years ago. Different stations were built by different railway companies and there was no uniformity in their design. Consequently, the height of the platforms varied considerably.

This has left a legacy of stations for the modern-day railway that simply cannot be used by the elderly, by parents with children in buggies, by those with lots of luggage, and of course, the disabled.

The answer is a glass reinforced polymer – more commonly known as plastic – hump that comes in sections so it can built to any length. It is also variable in height so it will suit any platform, no matter how large the difference in height between the platform surface and stepping board of the trains. And, all important, it comes with ramps, making it ideal for anyone to use.

Development costs funded by Network Rail and the council were in the region of £60,000 but future production could be as little as £25,000 per installation. This compares with about £250,000 to rebuild a basic platform to bring it up to standard.

Low platforms are a typical problem for rural stations, such as Harrington, where they are only served by a handful of trains a day but are regarded as the lifeblood of the community. Unfortunately, finding half a million pounds to rebuild two station platforms simply cannot be justified in most cases.

Now it can be done for as little as a tenth of the cost, making it much more affordable. This is in turn means more people can use the trains, and the increase in passenger numbers can be the catalyst for further investment in the local railway, enhancing it even more to meet the increased demand.

The Harrington Hump is set to make life easier for passengers in St Albans Abbey, Hertfordshire and Aberdovey, Wales where Network Rail is working with the local authorities and communities to install the system.

Network Rail fully expects more orders to follow.