Audio guide that describes fleet of trains provides confidence for blind passengers

Thameslink has released an audio guide that describes its vast fleet of 115 trains, written with the help of a blind passenger, Dave Smith, from Redhill in Surrey.

Millions of trips are made on Thameslink Class 700 trains every year. They connect stations north and south of the River Thames as far afield as Bedford, Brighton, Cambridge, Horsham, Gatwick Airport, London St Pancras, Peterborough, Sutton, and Sevenoaks.

The ‘Thameslink Class 700 train audio description guide’ is available on the Assisted Travel pages of the company’s website.

Thameslink’s accessibility engagement manager, Antony Merlyn, who wrote the guide with Dave’s input, said: “Dave has a unique insight into the challenges for blind or partially sighted travelling by train. We hope this audio guide gives people the added confidence to travel with us and regain their independence.”

Some of the features the guide describes include accessible carriages that are always in the centre of the train, with wheelchair spaces and an accessible toilet; level boarding at stations between London St Pancras and London Bridge; doors that open into a pocket in the train wall and make a bleeping noise before closing; handrails with good colour contrast to hold while getting on and off; a central grab pole in the vestibule; and large luggage racks.

Other features include seats two-by-two with wide corridors and open access between each carriage; automated announcements throughout the journey; toilet layouts, including where to find the washbasin, flush button, and lock lever; where to find the button to speak to the driver; and how to sound the alarm.

Dave sits on Thameslink’s Accessibility Advisory Panel to help it improve services for disabled people.

Dave commented: “I use these trains all the time but for someone else who is blind or partially sighted it can be incredibly daunting. When you can’t see, it’s difficult to understand your environment and what’s around you.

“Anyone can log onto the Thameslink website and listen to this audio guide before setting off, helping them understand the train layout before they travel, helping reduce any anxieties.

“It describes such things as where they might find a toilet – and its layout – and where and how to contact the driver in an emergency. The guide gives them access to information that sighted travellers take for granted.”

More audio guides are set to follow. Govia Thameslink Railway, which runs Southern, Gatwick Express, and Great Northern trains, as well as those by Thameslink, has made a grant available to national sight loss charity Thomas Pocklington Trust to create audio guides for a further three train types, as well as to trial audio guides of six stations: Eastbourne, Brighton, Sutton, Blackfriars, Stevenage, and Luton Airport Parkway.

An accessible Changing Places toilet recently opened at Lancaster station to ensure disabled people and carers have access to a dedicated space and changing facility while travelling to or from the station.