Valerie Vaz MP raises passenger accessibility at Bescot Stadium Station with Minister

“I have written to the Secretary of State for Transport (Rt Hon Mark Harper MP) to raise the issue of access to Bescot Stadium Station. My constituents, including parents with pushchairs and the Walsall FC Supporters Trust are alarmed that the only access to and from the platforms is by stairs.

The issue could be easily resolved by the construction of two lifts on either side of the footbridge and the addition of a direct path from the station carpark to the platform southbound.

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.

The issue of access to Bescot Stadium affects many of my constituents, including supporters of Walsall FC and Aston Villa Women FC, who use this station to visit the Saddlers for matches and visitors to the market on Sundays and to the Town Centre.

I am calling on the Government, and Transport for West Midlands to support my constituents and visitors to Walsall by providing the necessary funding to improving accessibility to the Station and comply with making reasonable adjustments for accessibility.”