Tanni Grey-Thompson urges severe penalties after train ordeal

Train companies which fail to help disabled passengers should face “severe penalties”, Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson has said.

It comes after the 11-time Paralympic champion complained she had been forced to “crawl off” a train at London King’s Cross station when assistance failed to arrive for 20 minutes.

Operator LNER is investigating the incident, which took place on Monday night.

Speaking to BBC News, Baroness Grey-Thompson called on the government to “make a commitment to bringing about real change”, as her experience had “woken up a lot of people”.

She also warned that at the “current rate of change” there would not be step-free access in rail stations in the UK for 100 years.

“That’s just not good for anybody,” she said. “We’ve got to be a bit more creative in finding solutions.”

The Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee estimated in 2022 that it would take about 100 years to make all UK rail stations step-free to new-build standards, costing at least £3.75bn.

On Monday night, Baroness Grey-Thompson boarded the 19:45 train from Leeds rather than the 19:15 on which she had booked assistance. But she said staff who helped her board knew she would be getting off in London.

She called for a system where “missed assists” – where a staff member does not arrive to help a disabled passenger – can be easily reported to the Office of Rail and Road, rather than the current lengthy system of suing for compensation.

“We’re at a point now – and I’ve never been quite in this place before – where there needs to be severe penalties on the train companies for failure because that might be the only thing that changes it,” she said.

She also said the website passengers use for booking assisted travel for all train firms was “chaotic” and rail staff need training on disabled peoples’ “legal right to turn up and go” on any journey.

The Office of Rail and Road, which enforces accessible travel policies – a condition of station operator licences – says that passengers can turn up at any station and request assistance from a member of staff, providing there is availability.

Baroness Grey-Thompson also called for level-boarding trains – where there is no gap between the carriage and platform edge – to feature in legislation coming soon to Parliament, which aims to establish new public body Great British Railways.

The Disability Discrimination Act 2005 required that all trains were to be made accessible by 2020, but many carriages still do not comply with the rules.

Since first speaking about her train ordeal on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Baroness Grey-Thompson said she had heard from “quite a lot of people”, including wheelchair users who have “had to get themselves off trains” like she did.

“There’s always a worry that you’re not going to be met,” she said of assistance at stations. “Sitting in the doorway shouting to people on the platform, trying to wave to get someone’s attention, is stuff that I do, yes.”

She said she had also received some “hate mail” which had left her shaken. “It is shocking and a little bit scary – they’re not at the level where they’re reportable to the police but there’s a level of threat that makes them extremely uncomfortable,” she said.

ParalympicsGB’s chief Penny Briscoe said what happened was a “disgrace”.

Earlier this week Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said Baroness Grey-Thompson’s experience was “unacceptable” and there “should be a basic requirement” for accessible facilities on all public transport.

Baroness Grey-Thompson is part of the BBC Radio 5 Live team in Paris – you can follow BBC Sport coverage here.