Station lift plans submitted after 15-year campaign

A 15-year campaign to improve accessibility at a Dorset train station has moved a step closer to success, after new plans to install lifts were submitted.

Network Rail has applied for permission to convert goods lifts into passenger lifts at Pokesdown Station to Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council.

The proposal follows a campaign to have elevators installed at the station which began in 2011, but has faced numerous delays due to funding.

BCP Council withdrew its £2.6m funding commitment to the improvements earlier this year, before local Labour MP Tom Hayes stepped in - convincing the Treasury to foot the bill.

Network Rail's plans, submitted on 13 April, centre around the conversion of current goods lifts to make them suitable for passengers.

Additional infrastructure to provide an accessible route from the station entrance to both platforms and between platforms is also proposed in the plans.

The works also include the installation of canopies between the existing platform, as well as canopies to the lift entrance to "ensure those using the lifts are protected from adverse weather conditions".

It is expected that a decision on the application will be delegated by the council to its officers and will be made after a consultation period has concluded.

The planning application comes after BCP Council withdrew its financial support for the project in February - saying it could not justify the expense.

But Tom Hayes, MP for Bournemouth East, said he persuaded the Treasury to part-fund the project for what he calls a "truly accessible Pokesdown station".

The 42 steep steps at Pokesdown Station have caused injuries and proved a barrier to wheelchair users and others during the station's four decades without a passenger lift.