Stalled Access for All programme could restart this spring

The long-standing Access for All (AfA) programme to provide level boarding for all railway users is poised to undergo a fresh start - potentially this spring.

It follows the production of a report by consultant AtkinsRéalis, which recently completed a detailed accessibility audit of all 2,577 stations across Great Britain, after the Transport Secretary ordered a review.

The AfA programme started in 2006, and semi-regular announcements have added further stations.

Funded directly by the Department for Transport, 50 stations were added to the list in May 2024, in one of the Conservative’s government’s last acts.

They were to be funded by part of the £350 million released from budgets by the cancellation of HS2 Phase 2, from Birmingham to Manchester. However, the ‘small print’ of the announcement merely revealed that the 50 stations had been “selected for initial feasibility work and if that is successful, will be taken forward as part of the AfA programme”.

They have now disappeared from lists, prompting repeated parliamentary questions from numerous MPs on all sides of the House, wanting to know when their local station’s projects will start. One of the requirements to get past the first stage was for the project to be supported by the local MP.

Now, RAIL has exclusively obtained an up-to-date list of all projects in the AfA programme, which reveals that of the 109 stations involved, 47 have been upgraded while work continues on a further 28.

It shows that the £810m programme (of which £435m is already spent or committed to current construction) also has 28 more stations that are now stuck at the ‘design’ stage (valued at £187m), plus two in the earlier ‘development’ phase and four that have been withdrawn.

It is unclear how much of the future of the AfA programme relies on the outcome of the new government’s pan-department Comprehensive Spending Review, due to report in “late spring”.

The DfT told RAIL: “The government is committed to improving access to the rail network and we will provide updates on the Access for All programme in due course.”

Westminster watchers have detected a recent change in the approach of Local Transport Minister Simon Lightwood to answering questions on the subject.

On January 9, he told Parliament: “The Rail Minister [Lord Hendy] is carefully considering the decisions made by the previous government in relation to the AfA programme.

“We will shortly update the House on our approach to AfA, but we are committed to improving the accessibility of the rail network, recognising the social and economic benefits that that brings.”

Previously, he had stuck rigidly to the line that “we are unable to comment on next steps” adding: “Once we can confirm our approach to AfA programme, we will ensure MPs and stakeholders are informed.”