AccessibilityUnlocking London for All

Christopher UpfoldAccessibility and Inclusion Manager

London Underground

•Profile of our Disabled Customers

•Step-Free Network–The past–The present–The future

•Constraints

•Our Customer Requirements

•Procurement

•Conclusion

Agenda

•15-20% of Londoners are disabled

•500,000-800,000 Londoners have a Mobility Impairment–200-400,000 Londoners significant difficulties with steps–35-40,000 wheelchair users in London–4-6% of LU customers have medium or heavy luggage–2-3% of LU customers use a stick or walking aid

•100,000-120,000 Londoners have a Visual Impairment–4,000 are guide dog users

•500,000-800,00 Londoners have a Hearing Impairment

•Disabled people spend £45-50 billion / yr in the UK

Who are our Disabled Customers?

6%

17%

30%

22%

5%

13%

16%

14%

20%

36%

23%

29%

52%

29%

18%

24%

17%

4%

13%

12%

Black cab

Bus

Tube

Train

Totally Unable With great difficulty With some difficulty Totally able Not stated

Disabled People - Ability to Travel - All

•Same research shows ~ 40% all disabled people (walking, hearing, seeing, understanding) are totally unable to use the Tube

Accessibility Strategy - “Unlocking London for All”

LU commitment to accessibility including

core network of step-free stations

First published – 2002

New version of strategy this summer

Why Improve Access?

•It’s the Law (Disability Discrimination Act - 1995)

• DDA Part III

–Since October 2004 - Compels service providers to take reasonable efforts to overcome physical obstructions which make it unreasonably difficult for a disabled person to use a service

–From 2006 Public Authorities have duty to promote equality

•It makes business sense

•It’s the right thing to do

•Our stakeholders demand it (not an option)

Step-Free Network

45 stations are presently “step-free” out of 275

Current step-free plans and works− 5 stations delivered in last 2 years– 5 projects on site– 16 step-free stations through PPP– London Underground responsible for rest

• Many more stations for adequate step-free network– Outline plan (“Unlocking London for All”) in place– Aspirations to expand - detailed planning being done– Aspirations estimated to cost £1.5 bn+ (£100m / yr for 15 yrs)– Must deliver origins and destinations customers want / need

Step-Free Aspirations

• Attempts to strike balance between complex central stations and less complex outer stations to deliver a high proportion of step-free trips

• Network selection agreed to 2013 – 47 additional stations

• Aspiration to expand step-free provision to 50% stations by 2020: more than 45 stations on top of 2013

• Approximately 200-250 lifts

• Cost estimated to be £1.5bn+ spread over 10-15 years

• Serious engineering considerations and constraints

Step-free Network - 1999

Step-free Network - 2006

Step-free Network - 2013

Step-free Network – 2020?

Step-Free Constraints

• Very expensive (in time and money)

• Complicated station geography

• Very limited space – for access and on platforms

• Limited scope for station closures

• Legacy problems with platforms and building fabric

Station Example - Clapham South

What we will require from lifts

• Same as everyone else – good accessible design

…but also…

• Reliability– Very few lost hours– Maximum cycles per day– Ease of fault rectification

• Minimal footprint (maximum interior space)

Reliability

• Space for a single lift– No redundancy

• Current reliability ~98%

• Each lift out of service ~100 hours / year

• Confidence is critical for disabled people

• Lifts often used continually – Need to be in service 20 hrs / day– Heavy and bulky bags– Minimal overnight time for maintenance

• Ease of fault rectification

Minimal Footprint

• Space on platforms often very constrained

• Millimetres make the difference– Some platforms only 6-8 metres wide– <2.5 metres between lift and platform edge – safety risk– 2 metres has been accepted in some locations

• Still needs to be big enough to handle wheelchairs– Which are getting larger and larger…

Procurement Options

• Directives 2004/17/EC & 2004/18/EC apply– Even greater obligations in UK and London– Accessible design integrated into first principles

1. PPP contract for some lifts (30 year contracts)– Although only 16 stations in the contract– Even those companies will still need to purchase from lift

suppliers

2. Purchase indirectly through 3rd party (company construction scheme)

3. London Underground purchase directly and provide to 3rd party

Conclusion

• London Underground embarking on large expansion of step-free station

• Expansion will require hundreds of new lifts– Cost of lifts marginal compared to cost of programme– 3 options for procurement

• Only space for 1 lift in most circumstances– No built in redundancy– Each lift critical to step-free route through station

• High Reliability Crucial