Media centre

Wednesday 9 Mar 2022

Key accessibility improvement completes at Burley-in-Wharfedale station

Region & Route:

Eastern

| Eastern: North & East

Network Rail has completed key work to make Burley-in-Wharfedale station more accessible, improving safety and allowing more people to travel independently.

Over the past three weeks, Network Rail teams have installed over 175 metres of raised, tactile paving slabs along the full length of both platforms.

Tactile paving has a textured surface, which helps visually impaired passengers know when they’re close to the platform edge, improving safety and giving more people the confidence to travel by train independently.

This project is part of a £10m scheme, funded by the Department for Transport, to install tactile surfaces at 200 stations in Britain. Improvements at two more sites in West Yorkshire are planned – Dewsbury and Denby Dale.

Matt Rice, Route Director for Network Rail’s North & East Route said: “We know that many people rely on tactile paving to use the railway independently, so I’m pleased this work has now completed and will benefit people using Burley-in-Wharfedale station.

“Improving accessibility is really important to us, which is why we’ll be carrying out similar work at two more stations in West Yorkshire, enabling even more people to travel with confidence.”

Tony Baxter, regional director for Northern said: “Our customers are the heart of everything we do, and we are dedicated to making Northern’s services accessible to everyone, and to having a positive impact for the north.  These improvements will give our customers added confidence when using our services and they are very much welcomed.”

ENDS