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> Earlsfield Station Campaign
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Since my
election in 2005 I have been
campaigning for much needed improvements at Earlsfield
Station.
Local residents have been complaining about
the lack of lift or escalator facilities at Earlsfield
Station for decades, so one of my priorities was to secure
funding for access improvements.
I
raised this issue with the Secretary of State for Transport,
other Government Ministers, Network Rail, train operating
company South West Trains and on the Public Accounts
Committee on which I sit.
Last year I
secured funding for development to begin in 2010.
However,
local residents and I were concerned about
the long wait and so I continued lobbying ministers and
Network Rail for work to begin sooner.
On 28th June 2007 the Minister for Transport,
Tom Harris MP, agreed that Earlsfield Station will be
installed with a lift in 2009, the earliest possible time in
the Access For All development programme.
further problems to do with
cycle parking, security and graffiti at the station have
also been raised There
have also been concerns about not being able to use Pre-Pay
Oyster cards at the station. These issues are discussed
below.
Access
As well as securing funding for
a lift at the station and moving the development forward by
a year,
I have
recently secured a significant improvement for further disabled
access to the station. South West Trains have installed
the first ever Disabled Person’s Help Point. Although
it looks similar to other Help points that are situated in
railway stations, this has been developed for the benefit of
disabled passengers who cannot access railway platforms. Now
a free taxi will be ordered for physically disabled
passengers to their next accessible station along their
desired route. Other improvements to the station include
hand rails up the steps towards the platforms, new ticket
machines that can be used by wheelchair users and improved
lighting on the platforms. This is an important step, but I
am still lobbying for a full re-development of the Station
site.
If you need
to order a free taxi, call South West Trains Customer
Services Team on 0845 6000 650.
National Station access Campaign
The
problems at Earlsfield Station are very important to me and
they have raised serious questions about how many stations
around the UK have full access to platforms for passengers
with limited mobility. I have therefore tabled an
Early Day Motion
which raises the issue of disabled access to railway
stations. This will hopefully lead to a full debate on the
issue in parliament. I have already got over 100 other MPs
willing to support my campaign and I am proud that I can
represent my constituency in this way.
As part of
my lobbying to improve services around the UK I initially
had a meeting with Karen Buck MP, a Minister from the
Department for transport with responsibility for rail.
Earlsfield and Tooting residents came along to tell the
Minister how difficult it is to access the platforms and
give their views on the lack of staff or working ticket
machines at the station.
Following
this meeting and my EDM I have been continually meeting with
people interested in my campaign including UNITE, the
largest occupational pensioner organisation in the UK (http://www.pensioneronline.co.uk/index.asp),
the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) (http://www.drc-gb.org/),
Network Rail and other train operating companies. The
Director of the DRC was very supportive. He recently showed
his support by writing to every MP asking them to sign my
EDM to put pressure on the Train Operating Companies to
start taking disability rights seriously.
Following
this support I realised that there was not enough joined up
thinking between all those who truly wanted to see
improvements in our railways. So I set up and chaired a
meeting with representatives from 13 different organisations
including from the Disability Rights Commission, South West
Trains, Disability Action, Help the Aged, Home Start UK and
others. By working with these organisations we can all work
out how best to secure better facilities for Earlsfield
station and other UK stations. Following this meeting there
is now a coalition group set up to examine and decide on
best ways to move on these issues.
Pre-pay
Oyster cards
The
Government has now issued an invitation to tender for the
South Western Franchise, which means that other train
operating companies, other than South West Trains, can bid
to run the line that passes through Earlsfield. In taking on
this franchise, the companies will have to manage Earlsfield
station. I have, therefore, been in correspondence with the
four short-listed companies to ensure that they demonstrate
how they will achieve an improved service and access to
Earlsfield station.
As part of
this invitation to tender Alistair Darling has announced
that re-franchising bids will now include a requirement to
provide the full range of Oyster cards at all stations. This
means that Earlsfield will soon be one of the stations where
pre-pay can be used.
Cycle
Parking
When
cyclists chain their cycles to the railings outside the
station, the pavement gets severely obstructed. When people
are rushing to and from the station, or queuing for tickets
- there is simply not enough room. I have asked Wandsworth
Council to investigate how they can improve the situation on
the pavement and in the meantime asked that signs are
erected that direct cyclists to the other racks - that are
located around the corner on Magdalen Road.
Security
The
security in the station is less than adequate, especially as
the station is un-manned most evenings and weekends. This
gives hooligans the chance to graffiti the station and make
it unpleasant for the rest of us. During the Public Accounts
Committee session, it emerged that £50 million a year is
available for Network Rail to spend on minor enhancements at
stations, and that the cost of improving lighting, signage
and close circuit television cameras at Earlsfield station
would not be overly expensive. I will continue to press for
these changes to happen.
Please
email me with your
concerns about Earlsfield Station so together we can
continue to campaign for improvements.
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