Legal Update: Transport for All to intervene in ABC’s judicial review

Like ABC, Transport for All has received dozens of complaints from people experiencing regular failures of assistance on Southern Rail. They are now being represented by Chris Fry of Fry Law on the matter – the very same team behind Doug Paulley’s recent victory for bus accessibility at the Supreme Court.

It is the first time that the Secretary of State’s obligations, as relates to the Equality Act and rail franchising, will come in front of the Court; meaning that the case is very likely to be precedent-setting for rail transport. ABC could not be happier to hear that such a well-respected organisation and law firm will now be joining the case.

With in-depth legal work continuing on the Equality of Access issue, we have also made some minor amendments to the case this month. Such amendments are not unusual in the judicial review process, which is rather less combative than regular litigation. This means that our new deadline for a response from the DfT is now 23rd March. Given this delay, we do not believe the Court will find any further extension requests from the DfT to be reasonable. We feel confident, therefore, that we will have their response by 23rd March, and it will then be a matter of awaiting the Court’s decision on whether the judicial review can proceed.

Statement from Transport for All

Accessible public transport is a life-line to inclusion for many disabled people who disproportionately rely on it to go about their everyday lives. The Southern Rail crisis has caused disruption and misery to disabled and older people, leaving many unable to travel to work and increasingly isolated. Yet throughout the strikes the Department for Transport has remained silent on this issue.

This case would be the first test case to the Secretary of State’s duty to uphold Disability Equality in the franchising process, and could cause a seismic shift in the Department for Transport’s approach to protecting the rights of disabled and older people.

Transport for All hope that our experience in the wide range of obstacles disabled and older people can face when accessing the transport network, and the impact of Southern Rail’s failures on our ability to travel will assist the court when they consider the case.

Transport for All’s accessible transport hotline receives dozens of calls from disabled and older people who find themselves unable to access the rail network because they simply can’t rely on assistance from staff.

“On roughly two-thirds of my journeys, when I arrive at Victoria there is no one there to assist me with a ramp, even though the staff at my home station have phoned ahead to let Southern Rail staff at Victoria know. So I end up stuck on the train” commented Chris Stapleton, a wheelchair user. “The effect of Southern’s unreliable assistance is that every train journey becomes horribly stressful, and every time I arrive at my destination I have a tight knot of anxiety in my stomach – will there be someone with a ramp to assist me? Will I be locked into the train again, or have to get random strangers to go and hunt for staff, or be forced to shout or press the emergency alarm?”

For more information or comment please contact catherine@transportforall.org.uk

Have you been affected by accessibility issues on Southern Rail?

If so, please do get in touch with Transport for All, or email Catherine directly on catherine@transportforall.org.uk.

You can also report your experience to ABC via contact@associationofbritishcommuters.com. We will then let you know when we will be taking further witness statements.

Donations to our legal campaign

Our next round of crowdfunding for the case will open after we receive permission from the Court. In the meantime, we are running a big campaign on very slim resources. If you are in a position to donate to ABC, you can do so here.