New Passenger Assistance Points installed at 40 Northern stations to give disabled customers the confidence to travel by train

Passenger Assistance Points have been introduced over the last year at 31 stations.

Each point is located close to the ticket office, where customers should check in first. They are then invited to take a seat in the designated area so a member of staff can meet them when it is time to go for the train.

The last one was installed at Harrogate station on Wednesday, 26 March.

As part of a trial, another nine Meeting Points have been installed at unstaffed stations, including Headingley, Horsforth and Hornbeam Park.

Disabled customers can wait in the marked area so they can be seen by a conductor when a train arrives and then be offered assistance.

Northern’s Accessibility User Group (NAUG), which represents people with a wide range of disabilities, worked with the operator to develop and deliver the project.

Mark Cutter, who chairs NAUG, said: "Anything that makes it easier to access passenger assistance can only be a good thing.

"I am particularly interested to see how the new Meeting Points work in unstaffed stations. I hope they will give more people the confidence to travel and use passenger assistance.

"Travelling from an unstaffed station can be stressful for anyone, but for disabled people and those requiring assistance it can simply be a reason not to travel."

Alex Hornby, Northern’s commercial and customer director, said: “The introduction of new meeting points at 40 of our stations demonstrates yet further progress in our mission to improve accessibility across the network here at Northern.

“We would encourage anyone who requires assistance to make use of them.

"We know that travelling by train can be difficult for some people and this is just one of the things we are doing to make their journeys easier.

“Making stations and services across our network more accessible remains a priority and we are constantly reviewing feedback from customers who want to share their experiences so we can continue to make improvements."