Senseless vandals 'kicked in' the doors of a lift at a Middleton train station - just 15 months after it was first installed. Network Rail only opened the new accessibility facilities in January last year, but the lift is already out of service from the attack.
The passenger lift was built to make the platforms more accessible for all passengers, with millions also being plunged into improvements across the network for disabled people, passengers with pushchairs and those with heavy luggage. However, vandals have kicked the doors off its mechanism and it can no longer be used.
The inside and outside doors are no longer aligned, meaning the lift cannot operate and those with access issues have to rely on ramps to reach the platform. The glass in one of the doors has also been left smashed and will cost in the region of £10,000 to fix.
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The lift is expected to be out of service for many weeks, and people who need step-free access are unable to access the second platform at the station, which goes to Rochdale. Only platform one can be used, which allows passengers to travel into Manchester.
Phil James, Network Rail’s North West route director, said: “I’m appalled that this careless act of vandalism has cut rail travel off from people with additional needs who we worked so hard to improve Mills Hill station for. This reckless crime affects real people who need step-free access to travel and also taxpayers, as the thousands of pounds needed for repairs will come from the public purse. We’re working hard with the lift engineers to get it back in service as quickly as we can.”
Chris Jackson, regional director of Northern, said: “I can’t imagine why someone would take pleasure in causing damage to new infrastructure that is designed to make travel more accessible for all. We will do everything we can with Network Rail to get these facilities back into operation as soon as possible.”
The station upgrade was part of the Department for Transport's 'Access for All' programme, which is a scheme to improve accessibility at railway stations nationwide.
