Warwick and Leamington MP, James Plaskitt, has today welcomed the announcement by Transport Minister Tom Harris MP that Henley station has been included in the Access for All programme, designed to provide obstacle-free accessible routes to and between platforms.

Mr Plaskitt has raised this matter on a number of occasions with ministers following complaints made by disabled constituents. The funding is part of an annual commitment of £35 million to improve access to the rail network for disabled travellers. The work will be undertaken during the period 2012-2015.

Currently, disabled travellers wishing to travel northbound from Henley, i.e. towards Birmingham, are unable to access the platform. This means that disabled people have to make alternative arrangements, or even travel further north to an accessible station and then use alternative transport to get back to Henley.

Access is also restricted on the southbound platform because of the bend in the line, causing stationary trains to be tilted away from the platform edge, leaving a step of over 12 inches from platform to carriage.

Mr Plaskitt said, “The access restrictions at Henley station are unacceptable. I have been pushing the Department of Transport and Network Rail to carry out improvements and I’m delighted we are now in the Access for All programme. This will make the station compliant with the law on access”.