Petition to make Bescot Stadium Station accessible

On Tuesday, 24 October, I presented a petition in the House of Commons on behalf of residents of the United Kingdom. I said: 

“This is a petition of the residents of the United Kingdom And there are 474 signatures to the petition in similar terms.
Who say that Bescot Stadium Station served over 90,000 passengers between 2021 and 2022.
and that passengers can only access the platforms via stairs to a footbridge without any accessible route from the platforms to the station car park other than by stairs.
The Petitioners say that Perry Barr and Witton Station, on the same line, have been upgraded for the Commonwealth Games making them accessible.
The petitioners therefore request the House of Commons to urge the Government to recognise the need for lifts at Bescot Stadium Station to make it accessible and to work with the appropriate body such as Network Rail.“

The petition is now forwarded to the Department for Transport for their initial consideration. If the petition falls within their remit the associated observation will be tabled in their name. In accordance with the resolution of the House on 25 October 2007:

• “substantive petitions should normally receive a response from the relevant government department”, and this should normally be within two months of the petition being presented.
• Petitions and observations on petitions from Government Departments will be printed in Hansard. Petitions will appear on the day they are presented. Observations will be printed, along with a copy of the petition they relate to, as soon as possible after they are received.

Walsall FC Supporters Trust contacted me to say a disabled fan could not leave the Station as it only has stairs leading to a footbridge that connects it to the car park. While the car park has disabled parking spaces it is impossible for passengers in wheelchairs, or with mobility issues, or parents and travellers with prams to access the Station. 

The Government has an obligation under the Equality Act 2010 not to discriminate against people with disabilities. Section 29 of the Act states that service providers have a legal obligation not to discriminate against people on the basis of a protected characteristic and have a duty to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ for people with disabilities.