Calls for rail travel to be made accessible in Dorset

Dorset remains a county largely inaccessible to disabled passengers wishing to travel by rail.  

Out of 22 train stations in Dorset, just one, Yetminster, is fully accessible for disabled passengers.

Network Rail classifies five stations as category C, meaning they provide no step-free access to any platform.

Earlier this month, the Rail Minister Lord Hendy confirmed the future of 50 train stations that the previous government started feasibility work on.

Projects deemed feasible receive Access for All funding to improve their accessibility to disabled customers.  

The decision was that eight of the stations’ projects will progress directly to work, with 23 progressing to detailed design.

This choice completely scrapped the other 19 projects. 

In Dorset, only Dorchester South appeared on the list. The government will fund detailed design work at the station, bringing it one step closer to having lifts installed.

But the focus of campaigning for several years has surrounded efforts to make Pokesdown station easier for disabled passengers to access.

Currently, neither platform is accessible for wheelchair users, requiring passengers to climb a set of stairs to access. 

In 2018, the government announced plans to install lifts as part of a £90 million investment programme.

Despite this, they have continued to delay the work to this day.

In August 2025, local MP Tom Hayes confirmed that design work for a new lift is in its final stages and work could begin in spring 2026.  

Abbie Harrington is a student from Bournemouth and uses a wheelchair due to a genetic condition called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.

She has previously been unable to access Pokesdown station and needed a taxi to take her to the nearest accessible station instead.  

“Quite often it leaves you feeling left out,” she said, “you’re traveling a lot with family and friends and are not able to get places with them.” 

The added accessibility barriers mean that disabled passengers like Abbie often have to plan journeys ahead of time to book assistance from station staff, taking away their ability to be spontaneous.  

Another station marked by accessibility concerns is Parkstone, in Poole.  

The Member of Parliament for Poole, Neil Duncan-Jordan, has been campaigning for accessibility improvements to Parkstone. 

He wants a small ramp installed on the road behind the inaccessible platform.

However, he claimed that “not much” progress has been made on talks.  

Duncan-Jordan continued:

“The sticking point is that the access area that we would need to put a ramp into is privately owned.

“So it’s not owned by the council, which would be an easier discussion to have between a railway company and the council.” 

Currently, wheelchair users can only access the platform for trains to London Waterloo.

Passengers requiring step-free access returning from London are unable to use the station. 

Duncan-Jordan added:

“The bottom line is in the 21st century we should be making all our public services accessible to everyone. 

“Legally, from my point of view, I think it’s probably unacceptable that a private owner can just say we’re not doing this. 

“I think the council should really have a few more powers to ensure that transport is accessible to everyone.”