Mobility Scooters on Train Journeys- your experiences please

easy

Please can you give me your experiences of travelling by rail using a mobility scooter, including which rail company you use.

I have a lightweight scooter (Sterling Little Star) which happily fits in most hatchback cars with no problem.
Last week I needed to go to London from Nottingham. As my Sister regularly travels between Gloucester and London by GWR train, taking her car-boot scooter with her, with no problems (in fact she gets lots of help) I thought it would be great for me to go by train. Less stress, no parking worries, better for the environment.

So on Sunday, 4 days before my trip, I rang East Midlands Trains passenger assistance number to make whatever arrangements needed making. This is where the fun started. East Midlands Trains insisted that I would need a special pass to take a scooter aboard a train. OK, how do I get a pass? "Fill in a form" they said. Ok, so I got them to email me the form, which has a page of information with it, including some specifications for scooters they will accept.

• a maximum length of 1000mm and width of 700mm and
• have a maximum speed of 4mph and
• do not exceed 250kg when it is carrying its user and
• Have a free-wheeling facility for use in case of power-failure.
• Have sealed batteries
• Must negotiate gradients of 8 degrees or more.
• Or is a scooter that can be folded down to a size that can be accommodated as hand luggage.

With the form, they also require a photo of the user, and the manufacturers spec page for the scooter.

Please bear in mind that my sister has never had to submit any such information, no-one ever questions her about her scooter.

I returned the form immediately with all the accompanying bits, and I booked my rail tickets through Trainline (£125 for hubby and me).

Sooo. Wednesday dawns, no pass has arrived, so I call East Midlands Trains to see if I can collect the pass the following day from the station as I embark on my trip !

This is when I am informed that I will not be allowed to take my scooter on the train. So as far as East Midlands Trains are concerned, I'm now going nowhere. They tell me they will refund my fares ... this will take 2 weeks to be paid to my bank account.

I asked why I can't have a pass. Apparently it doesn't conform to their standards -
OK, one issue was that the scooter has to be safe to climb an 8 degree incline. This is so that it is safe to ride up the ramp into the train. According to the specs my scooter is rated for a 6 degree incline (altho' it does manage higher than that - some dropped pavements in the city centre are very steep, it's never thrown me off yet). I explained that I can walk a little, and board the train on foot with my husband's help. My husband can lift the scooter on/off the train if necessary, so I say "given that, may we put the scooter on the train please?"

No.
Apparently there are 2 additional specifications which were not given on the form.
My scooter apparently doesn't have a small enough turning circle, and, although my scooter fits within the measurements given on the form, they require it to magically shrink down to 900mm in length once it is on the train, so it can be stowed in the luggage area - My sister's scooter normally occupies a wheelchair space on her journeys - only once was this a problem, when they moved it to fit slightly diagonally in the luggage area, with no problem to other passengers.

So, East Midlands Trains had only given me 1/2 the information I needed to meet their criteria anyway.

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I'm not generally a vociferous complainer, but I am afraid I feel very discriminated against by this train company. As it happens I can drive down to London, and I have the resources to find and pay for parking in the city. But plenty of people wouldn't be able to do that, and I also feel I should have the choice of going on the train.
Transport for London will accommodate the scooter on their buses, and the black cab drivers have all been really helpful about loading the scooter into their cabs.


I am going to make a formal complaint to East Midlands Trains about this. I would like to get information from other disabled travellers about other train companies before I embark on this.

Thanks in anticipation.

nannytone_2

youve been treated badly without a doubt.
i also use east midlands trains when travelling from chesterfield to london and am a guide dog owner.

my experience has been that they bend over backwards to accommodate disabled customers

mrcol1000

Read Doug Paulley's blog https://www.kingqueen.org.uk/ He is a wheelchair user and travels by public transport. He has a lot of problems trying to arrange accessible travel on trains. It might be worth contacting him as he might be able to give you advice on complaining.

Cyclamen

I use GWR trains with a wheelchair (power or push) and some South west trains.. it is hit and miss on turning circles and I ofetn have to fold foot rests in to manouvre. However the staff have always been great. I ahve a friend who uses GWR with her scooter (small boot scooter) and have checked she doesn't have a pass for the trains but needed one for the buses that even included a mini 'driving test' to board.

Sadly it seems like a lot of disabled things its a postcode lottery.

I think you have been treated badly. They gave you the wrong info and handled this badly. Good luck with your complaint.

w06

Not travelled by train in a year or two but Lime Street (Liverpool) used to be fantastic, to the point that I'd have to make sure they knew I wasn't actually travelling if I went on the platform to see someone off because they were so on the ball they'd arrive promptly with a ramp. Most of the rail companies are receptive to constructive feedback