Menston station upgrade work completed

A £7.8m project to create step free access and upgrade facilities at Menston station has been completed.

The work included installing new lifts and a new footbridge, as well as better waiting facilities and improved CCTV.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the official end of the project took place on Friday.

Chris Wright from Network Rail said the upgrade was "already making a real difference for passengers, particularly those with reduced mobility or travelling with prams or luggage".

Other improvements include upgrading passenger information systems and refurbishing an accessible footpath, the train operator added.

The project was delivered in partnership with Northern, West Yorkshire Combined Authority, the Department for Transport and contractor Amco Giffe.

Labour MP for Shipley Anna Dixon said: "It's fantastic to see the completion of the new accessible lifts here at Menston station. They will make such a difference not only to those of us who have disability or mobility issues and find the stairs difficult but also for anybody who's got a buggy and small children."

She added: "There are so many ways in which this opens up public transport and use of the trains to everyone."

The work took place near to The Railway Children nursery and preschool, with contractors making sure the children were as unaffected by noise as possible.

Network Rail said the schedule was designed to fit around nap times while children were provided with ear defenders while they were outside.

Founder Zandra Monroe-Cochrane said: "They made the children gifts for our outdoor area, including a wooden train, and have become friends, really, over the past year or so."

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