Published: Thursday, 27th March, 2008 12:00
Rail station plan hits the buffers
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Iain Gray MSP
RAIL campaigners in Prestonpans, who have suffered a setback, will continue to fight for better disabled access at the town’s train station.
County MSP Iain Gray met with Transport Minister, Stewart Stevenson, last week after he received a “disappointing” letter from Transport Scotland.
The letter confirmed that there was not enough money at this time to provide overhead access between the platforms at Prestonpans that would be suitable for people with disabilities.
It also advised that it could take up to seven years before such work was done.
Work on providing additional parking spaces, including five for disabled users, adjacent to the Edinburgh-bound platform is almost complete.
There will also be ramp access to the platform, and traffic lights and a new footpath on the road that links the two platforms.
However, passengers still have to negotiate the quarter-mile to their vehicles when they return from Edinburgh, or other stations west of the town – still making access problematic for disabled travellers.
The letter from Transport Scotland to Mr Gray confirmed that Prestonpans would be considered with other stations that do not have step-free access between platforms in a 10-year rolling programme. This work is not due for completion until 2015.
Transport Scotland confirmed that such work would not be done at Prestonpans at this time because “providing lifts and ramps is considerably more expensive than the First ScotRail Station Improvement Programme funding allows”.
The letter continued: “The average cost of removing obstacle to step-free access is working out in excess of £1.5 million per station at today’s prices.”
Mr Gray confirmed that he would be working with East Lothian Council and other interested parties to ensure that there was improved accesss between platforms for disabled users as soon as possible.
He said: “The letter from Transport Scotland was disappointing, so I took the matter up with Stewart Stevenson last week as there is a new tranche of funding available in Scotland at the beginning of the next financial year, next month.
“He told me that there are a lot of stations that are making cases for improved access.
“I will therefore be asking East Lothian Council, Prestonpans Community Council and the East Lothian Access Panel to work with me to prove that Prestonpans should be a priority case.
“We would be looking at factors such as how many people with disabilites use the station, and how much inconvenience is caused to them by using the station as it is now or using an alternative, such as Wallyford.”
Alan Torrance, chairperson of the East Lothian Access Panel, said although he had yet to speak to Mr Gray since he received the letter from Transport Scotland, the group would welcome working with him on the issue.
He said: “We have already taken the matter up with the Scottish Disability Equality Forum.
“This is obviously disappointing news from Transport Scotland, but we will continue to campaign until there is appropriate access to the station at Prestonpans for people such as wheelchair users.”
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