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Revolutionary lift brings the number of accessible Tube stations to 67

Transport for All

TfA members welcome the Tube’s first ‘incline lift’ installed at Greenford (West London), ending a 68-year wait for accessibility...

TfA members welcome the Tube’s first ‘incline lift’ installed at Greenford (West London), ending a 68-year wait for accessibility.

 

Innovative design

A revolutionary lift that runs up a slope on miniature rails has been unveiled at Greenford station, six years after TfL pulled the plug on funding to make the station accessible by 2010. The new design, which is a first on UK transport, resembles a funicular. It travels on a gradient alongside the escalator and stairs.

According to Transport for London, this innovative lift is easier and cheaper to install, as it saves the cost of excavating a lift shaft. It also uses 50 per cent less power than a conventional lift and can be installed on an existing escalator space. You can see the lift in action with this video from The Londonist:

On top of this, Greenford station has also seen the installation of a new escalator and construction of a staircase. The men’s toilet on the platform has also been replaced with a unisex accessible toilet and more lighting and better signage has been installed. Greenford opened in 1947 and until last year had the Tube network’s last wooden escalator.

TfA welcomes the good news. The lift is a fantastic example of a clever innovation that has opened up this station to older and disabled people, and will also benefit passengers with luggage or pushchairs.

 

Only 5 step-free stations out of 48 on the Central Line

Ealing Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport and Environment, councillor Bassam Mahfouz, said: ‘It will mean the world of difference for thousands of local residents, especially those who are disabled or travelling with young children, some of whom will now be able to access London for the first time in their lives because of this new lift’.

TfL had originally planned to make Greenford stepfree in 2010, but in 2009, TfL cancelled the funding , claiming it would cost £10m to make the station accessible. But Cllr Mahfouz commissioned independent research which suggested that a lift could be installed for just £2.2m. The project got the go-ahead with the council contributing £200,000, with the remainder paid for by the council.

But the problem is that with only 5 step-free stations out of 48, there aren’t many accessible travel options for disabled and older people on the Central line. TfA member Sally O’Connor tested the lift. She noticed that the first accessible station she can alight at in is Stratford which is in the East of London; that’s a 48 minute journey.

The situation will change by 2018, when Bond Street and Tottenham Court Road will be made fully accessible and Crossrail opens; customers from Greenford will have a step-free rail route into the heart of the West End, with interchanges to Crossrail and the Jubilee and Northern lines.

Future plans

Although the new lift is not suitable for every location across the Tube network according to Transport for London, similar lifts are already being installed as part of the Crossrail stations at Farringdon and Liverpool Street. TfL also mentioned that they are examining where else they could be introduced on the Tube in the future. “I am hopeful we can introduce this innovation elsewhere on the Tube network in the future”, said David Waboso, London Underground’s Director of Capital Programmes.

Greenford is the 67th step-free station, leaving 203 Tube stations to go until the Tube is completely stepfree!

According to TfL, around forty more Underground and Overground stations will become step-free over the next 10 years as part of a £326 million investment, which includes funding from the Mayor and London Underground. This will include major stations such as Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Vauxhall and Victoria and those delivered through the Step-Free Access Partnership Fund.

A man standing in front of a painted brick wall smiling at the camera. He is holding a cane and is wearing glasses, a black jacket and a grey t-shirt. A man standing in front of a painted brick wall smiling at the camera. He is holding a cane and is wearing glasses, a black jacket and a grey t-shirt.

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