The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
An underpass is being considered to provide better access to the far platform at Spalding railway station.
But passengers have been warned not to expect the problem to be resolved anytime soon.
A barrow crossing enabled people with wheelchairs and pushchairs to cross the tracks at ground level, but it was removed by Network Rail as part of safety improvements.
Since that happened 12 months ago, the only means of getting to platform 2 (Park Road side) is via the footbridge over the line.
East Midlands Trains, which owns the station, told the first Lincolnshire Transport Conference that four options were being looked at:
- underpass
- lifts
- new footbridge
- additions to the existing footbridge
Customer service and commercial director Neil Micklethwaite said: “Not one of those is a cheap solution.”
He said all bar two trains per day currently come into platform 1 but that situation is “not sustainable in the future”.
Mr Micklethwaite had experienced first-hand the access problem when he helped a lady with luggage across to platform 2 during his visit to Spalding for the conference at Springfields on October 16.
Spalding district councillor Pete Williams told Mr Micklethwaite that he was waiting for a train on September 29 that came in on platform 2 instead of the scheduled platform 1.
He said: “There was no notice whatsoever. Even the guys in the ticket office didn’t know.
“We had to help an old lady across or she would not have caught that train.”
Spalding and Peterborough Transport Forum chairman George Scott added: “We would like to open up the other side (Park Road) – and that footbridge hasn’t got a light.”
Coun Williams implored East Midlands Trains to sort out the light “as a sign of good faith”.
