Half of blind and partially sighted people fear being left stranded at train stations
More than half of blind and partially sighted people fear being stranded, stressed and disoriented during train journeys due to the unpredictability of their experiences with rail passenger assistance.
New research from the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) found three in four blind and partially sighted people say they can’t rely on rail staff for assistance and information, while more than 60 per cent say they are not consistently met by staff at stations when they have booked passenger assistance.
Two thirds of blind and partially sighted passengers say they can’t be confident that train staff will alert them if the destination of their train changes while they’re on it.
Paul Goddard from East Sussex who was registered blind in 2008 and travels regularly to London Bridge, said: “Every time I book assistance through the passenger assistance app when I’m travelling to London Bridge, I'm very anxious because I know the assistance is going to fail. No one meets me.
“You speak to the gate line staff who are often completely disinterested, and don't even look up at you and they say ‘sorry, didn't know you were coming’. And I’m saying to them ‘but it's on the app’. So it’s a complete breakdown in the system as far as I'm aware. You've got connections to make and if you're not met, you're missing the connections.
Then it’s very difficult to claim back the money you’ve lost on those tickets and you can be left completely out of pocket. It's just completely unacceptable.”
Crucially the research found that physical safety remains a serious concern. Once they have located their train, four out of five (82 per cent) of blind and partially sighted people say that the gap between trains and the platform causes them difficulty - incidents can lead to injuries and even deaths.
Erik Matthies, RNIB’s Policy Lead for travel and transport, who has sight loss, said: “Far too many people with sight loss are frequently stuck at stations unable to board or change trains and face the stressful experience of having to seek help and locate platforms and carriages themselves.
“Blind and partially sighted people have to contend with challenging ticket buying methods, inaccessible stations, platforms and on-board facilities like toilets, and inconsistent gaps between the train and platform edges which contribute to anxious, potentially unsafe journeys.
“With the Government’s new Railways Bill, working towards the establishment of Great British Railways, now is a perfect opportunity to address these issues. RNIB is calling on the UK Government and transport bodies to make sure accessibility is embedded in Great British Railways from the very start of its development.”
The research by the leading sight loss organisation - based on a survey of nearly 1,200 blind and partially sighted people across the UK - identifies that:
- Under half - only 44 per cent – are being reliably met by assistance staff at stations and three in four say they can’t rely on rail staff.
- Only 27 per cent feel they can rely on train staff to alert them if their train is stopping in a different place to its planned destination.
The research also shows rail companies are too often failing to provide information for blind and partially sighted passengers in formats they can understand; whether that’s on ticket machines, apps or websites, or on signage and guidance for locating and navigating around platforms, carriages and facilities such as buffets and train toilets.
The report found:
- 42 per cent prefer to buy their train tickets from a person at a ticket office – twice as popular as the next most preferred option - 21 per cent who use a smartphone app.
- 68 per cent say they would benefit from tactile wayfinding, which is a tactile and colour-contrasted path on the floor that would direct a person to important station facilities: such as platforms, lifts or a point where they could meet staff.
Rail passengers with sight loss also reported difficulties in:
- opening the train doors - 67 per cent
- finding the carriage they want - 77 per cent
- finding an appropriate seat - 79 per cent
- difficulties in using onboard toilets – 57 per cent
- Difficulties in understanding poor quality audio announcements - 55 per cent
The research takes the form of a new report, ‘Platform for Change: making rail journeys more accessible for people with sight loss.'
Notes to editors:
This report presents key findings from an online survey conducted by RNIB in February 2025, and insights from two focus groups with blind and partially sighted rail users held in October 2025. 1197 blind and partially sighted people responded to the survey, and the focus groups consisted of 12 participants over two sessions.
The survey explored participants’ experiences of bus, train and pedestrian journeys; the focus groups were specific to trains. This report on rail travel is the final of three, each covering one of those transport modes.
54 per cent of survey respondents were registered severely sight impaired (blind), while 28 per cent were registered sight impaired (partially sighted), and 15 per cent have sight loss but aren’t registered.
Of the 320,000 people in the UK with registered sight loss, half are registered blind and half are registered partially sighted.
The survey results were representative of UK nations:
- 9 per cent of survey respondents live in Scotland (which comprises 8 per cent of the UK population).
- 4 per cent of respondents live in Wales (which comprises 5 per cent of the UK population).
- 2 per cent of respondents live in Northern Ireland (which comprises 3 per cent of the UK population).
Quotes from respondents
On the Overwhelming Challenge of Train Travel
"I find the entire process too overwhelming to even dare try and use a train alone."
On the Inconsistency of Assistance and Accessibility
"For me it is the inconsistency of train layout, stations, staff ability that make it all so hard to navigate."
On the Essential Role of Staff
"It is essential that train stations have staff there to purchase tickets from and to receive assistance on boarding the train as it is extremely unsafe for totally blind and partially sighted people to board a train without assistance.”
On the Cost and Accessibility of Rail Travel
"To my mind, this should mean that trains are not a luxury (as many people have to currently consider them), but are actually affordable. I would suggest, if rail is going to become nationalised, that the current bus fare rate (around £3 for a single outside of London) be applied to train tickets to ensure tickets are affordable for all passengers."
On the Impact of Unstaffed Stations
"Unstaffed stations are a nightmare for the blind."
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About RNIB
We are the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB).
Every six minutes, someone in the UK begins to lose their sight. RNIB is taking a stand against exclusion, inequality and isolation to create a world without barriers where people with sight loss can lead full lives.
