KIDWELLY Labour Town Councillor and Disability Rights UK board member, Phil Thompson this week convened a meeting in Kidwelly with senior officials from Arriva Trains Wales to discuss his petition currently lodged with the National Assembly about the deficiencies in rail provision at Kidwelly.
Accompanying Phil were, Nia Griffith, Labour MP for Llanelli and shadow Secretary of State for Wales, Labour’s Welsh Assembly candidate and former director of Sustrans Cymru, Lee Waters, and recent elected County Councillor Ryan Thomas.
Arriva were represented by senior managers, Michael Vaughan, (Head of Franchise and Stakeholder Management) and Ben Davies (stakeholder Liaison Manager).
The meeting started as a site visit on Kidwelly station platform itself, focusing on the issue of the impossibility of getting on and off trains access for wheelchair users, the less ambulant, those with mobility difficulties, people with prams or shopping.
Arriva has agreed subject to agreement from Network Rail, the station owners to install a raised section the platform during 2016. This will mean that there is aces to and from a section of the train allowing those currently disadvantaged users to access the service.
Phil was also assured that the issue of lighting was planned to be helped by the installation of better brighter halogen bulbs.
The meeting then reconvened in the Kidwelly Town Council offices to discuss making the station a standard stop not a request stop and increasing the frequency of trains stopping.
The case that the lack of trains stopping, particularly when they pass through anyway impacts negatively upon tourism, the local economy and makes it difficult or impossible for, those needing to commute for work or social purposes to use the train was strongly put to the Arriva representatives.
Further, a strong case was made that the need to request trains t o stop causes confusion amongst visitors and tourists a n d a genuine worry for those using the train which deters people from using the trains, which undermines any purported counter- argument about the lack of passenger numbers.
The Arriva representatives agreed that request stops were also undesirable operationally and put additional pressure on their staff, but that Network Rail would also need to be convinced.
Speaking after the meeting Cllr. Phil Thompson commented: “I am pleased by the major progress made on access issues and the meeting was both constructive and positive and helpfully paves the way for the next stage of the campaign which is to take the arguments to Network Rail and the Welsh Assembly Government.
“I am now approaching Network Rail for a similar high level meeting to push this campaign on discuss our concerns and get the rail service the people of Kidwelly deserve.”
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