25. The Department aims to improve the accessibility of the railway for people with disabilities through its franchising approach. Train operating companies and Network Rail are required by their operating licenses to establish and comply with disabled people's protection policy (DPPP). The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is responsible for approving these policies and monitoring compliance.47 The Department told us that it had provided additional funding to the rail industry to improve station accessibility and in 2018 published an inclusive strategy which focused on the accessibility of railways because this was a particularly challenging area.48 It also told us that it wanted train operating companies and industry to show leadership on this issue and fully consider how they can better serve passengers with disabilities. Network Rail acknowledged its role, as the manager of large stations, and said it was committed to showing leadership in this area.49
26. The Department told us that the number of passenger journeys that were via stations with step-free access to, and between, all platforms had increased from 50% in 2006 to 75% in 2018. It similarly told us that the percentage of trains that were built or refurbished to incorporate the latest accessibility requirements has increased from 75% in 2017 to 87% in 2018 and continued to increase. However, there is still variability in the support people are getting during their journeys and pre-booked assistance does not always materialise. Network Rail acknowledged that current service levels were not acceptable. The Department told us that in September 2018, the rail industry had started trialling a new app, which it hoped would make it both easier for passengers to order help, and for that help to be provided.50 In November 2018, the ORR launched a consultation on its proposals to significantly revise guidance for train and station operators to make the railway more accessible for all. In particular, the ORR's reforms to DPPPs aim to bring greater quality, consistency and reliability in assisted travels.51
27. The Department stated that if train and station operators do not provide help on an individual basis, the new rail ombudsman service that came into force in November 2018 had the power to make sure that appropriate action is taken and that compensation is available to passengers affected. The Department told us that if train companies were not providing contracted levels of services it had several contractual levers that it could use, but did not set out the details of these. However, it told us that it only monitors the levels of complaints that help was not provided, which it accepted was not the same as the number of times passengers fail to receive the support they require. The Department wrote to us after our evidence session to confirm that, for more systemic weaknesses, the ORR is responsible for holding operators to account and can require an operator to complete additional reporting, carry out an audit of the operator, or require a review of DPPP policies that could ultimately lead to change in the operator's DPPPs or practice. It told us that if an operator does not comply with its license obligation, then the ORR can take enforcement action and impose a maximum penalty of 10% of the licensee's, or relevant operator's, turnover.52
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47 Qq 38-40; Office of Rail and Road, Disabled people's protection policies - a regulatory statement, July 2014
48 This strategy sets the government's ambition that by 2030, there will be equal access for disabled people using the transport system, with assistance if physical infrastructure remains a barrier. Department for Transport, The Inclusive Transport Strategy: Achieving Equal Access for Disabled People, July 201
51 Q 38; Office and Rail and Road press release: 'ORR consults on wide-ranging proposals to make the railway more accessible for all', 14 November 2018
52 Qq 35, 38, 40, 41; Letter from Bernadette Kelly to Meg Hillier MP - Follow-up from evidence session, 19 December.