Plans to improve access at railway stations axed

Plans to improve accessibility at three railway stations in the West Midlands have been shelved.

The stations at Small Heath in Birmingham, Ledbury in Herefordshire and Whitchurch in Shropshire were among 50 in the UK due to benefit from the Access for All (AFA) programme.

A government announcement in May 2024 confirmed feasibility work would be carried out to see whether step-free accessible routes could be delivered at the stations.

But on Thursday, the Department for Transport (DfT) named the three West Midlands hubs among 19 projects that would not be progressing. One MP whose constituency was affected branded the outcome a disgrace.

Labour ministers said the announcement under the previous Conservative government was made "without indicating how the delivery of such schemes would be funded".

A DfT spokesperson said: "This government is committed to a rigorous approach and only making commitments we believe are affordable and would represent value for money to passengers and taxpayers."

The government said eight of the 50 projects would progress "directly to delivery" while the remaining 23 would progress to the design stage.

Helen Morgan, Liberal Democrat MP for North Shropshire, accused the government of being "determined to disadvantage Shropshire at every turn".

In a statement publish on Facebook she wrote: "This is a disgrace and people with access needs are being discriminated against.

"For them, there might as well not be a second platform at Whitchurch."

The DfT said the rail minister had offered to meet with the MPs who represented constituencies where work was not going ahead to explain the government's decision.

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