Posted 27th August 2024 | 3 Comments
Paralympian describes ‘crawling off’ a train at King’s Cross
A Paralympian who missed her booked assistance on LNER and had to ‘crawl off’ a train at London King’s Cross has described how there was no one at the station who could help her.
LNER has launched an investigation.
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson said she had booked assistance on the 19.15 LNER service from Leeds to London last night, on her way to Paris for the Paralympics, which start tomorrow. However, she missed her train and travelled on the following 19.45.
When she arrived in London she waited for 20 minutes, but no one arrived to help her. Cleaners on the train said they could not give her any assistance because they were not insured to do so.
She told the BBC this morning how she had to manage for herself.
The athlete, who has won 11 golds, four silvers and a bronze medal at five Paralympics, said: ‘There was no one there to meet me and I waited five minutes before putting anything on social media because you're meant to leave five minutes. After 16 minutes of waiting at King's Cross, there was no one in sight.
‘There were a couple of cleaners but they're not insured or able to help me off. So I decided that I would crawl off the train.
‘I'm going to Paris later today, I've got a few bags. I chucked them on the platform, I had to get out of my chair, sit on the floor by the door which is not pleasant and then crawl off.’
‘Legally I am allowed to turn up and ask to get on a train. We were meant to have level boarding in the UK on 1 January 2020 under the Disability and Discrimination Act but government has kicked the can down the road.
‘I can just about get off the train if I need to, but there are loads of people that can't. I can't really crawl but sit on the floor and drag my legs. There was no one around and I was very angry last night.
‘If the train manager hadn't seen me crawling off, I would have had to pull the emergency cord and I would have delayed the train going north.’
LNER responded: ‘We are sorry to understand there has been an issue at London King’s Cross station on Monday evening.
‘We are in the process of investigating this and are in contact with the customer directly.’
Reader Comments:
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Douglas, swansea
She could have used the lner app and requested passenger assist at KGX.
If you have a disability that means you need assistance from our staff, then you are able to book assistance at 03457 225 225, through our web form, in an LNER Travel Centre. Where possible, please let us know at least two hours before you journey or where your journey takes place in the morning, by 22:00 the day before. If you cannot book in advance you can let station staff know on the day. There is also a dedicated app.
Download the Passenger Assistance app or book online
Simply download the app onto your smartphone or visit our booking website to begin your fuss-free travel experience. Our app and website have been designed in consultation with disabled people and is suitable for screen-readers. The app is available on iOS and android smartphones.
As KGX is run by Network Rail. I guess they sort out dissabled assist off or on the train.
James Hutton, Oxford
We all sometimes miss a train and surely Kings Cross is a big enough station to be able to cope with the unexpected happening.
king arthur, buckley
I'm sure it was a very irritating situation but she missed her booked train. I wish she would do the decent thing and take responsibility for it instead of playing the discrimination card and trying to get rail staff in trouble.