Request ID: FOI-1895-2223 Date published: 29 November 2022
You asked
Dear Transport for London,
This is a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. I would like to request the following information:
- How many station assistants are currently employed on the London Underground?
- How many station assistants, as a number and a percentage of total station assistants currently employed on the London Underground, have completed training and are qualified to operate the manual boarding ramps used to assist wheelchair users onto trains?
- How many station assistants have completed the training and re-training for the previous five full calendar years, plus any partial data available for 2022?
- How many stations on the London Underground network are equipped with a manual boarding ramp?
- The number of stations on the network that are incompatible with manual boarding ramps.
- The number of complaints received by TFL through the accessibility contact page for London Underground in the previous five full calendar years, plus any partial data available for 2022?
- The results of the step-free consultation that took place between 2nd November 2021 - 10th Feburary 2022.
I would like to receive this information in electronic format, preferably in a CSV file.
If you feel that you require clarification on any of the points raised, I would be grateful if you could contact me at this email and provide assistance as to how I could refine the request.
We answered
Our ref: FOI-1895-2223/GH
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 3 November 2022 asking for information about London Underground station assistants.
Your request has been considered under the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and our information access policy. I can confirm that we do hold some of the information you require.
- How many station assistants are currently employed on the London Underground?
We currently employ 3,322 Customer Service Assistants (CSAs) across the London Underground network.
- How many station assistants, as a number and a percentage of total station assistants currently employed on the London Underground, have completed training and are qualified to operate the manual boarding ramps used to assist wheelchair users onto trains?
It is the Customer Service Manager’s responsibility that all staff at a station where there is a boarding ramp are briefed.
Station locations that have boarding ramps have a local Boarding Ramp Briefing Champion whose responsibility it is to brief customer service staff in that location so they are familiar with the boarding ramp and how to deploy it safely for customers.
Boarding Ramp Briefing Champions ensure that any new members of staff joining the team are briefed; they also conduct boarding ramp refresher briefings to ensure everyone continues to be familiar with the boarding ramp and its safe deployment.
We do not, however, record information on staff that have received this briefing, and therefore cannot provide you with the number/percentage requested.
- How many station assistants have completed the training and re-training for the previous five full calendar years, plus any partial data available for 2022?
As explained above, this information is not recorded.
A boarding ramp briefing typically takes about 30 minutes and consists of the Boarding Ramp Briefing Champion (someone who has previously attended a briefing session for that particular type of boarding ramp) going through the following:
Showing how the boarding ramp can safely be released (and returned) to storage using a J-Door key
How to transport the boarding ramp to the required usage location on the platform (and back from when completed) and where that location is for a given line of rolling stock
Management of local crowding around the area where the boarding ramp is to be deployed when the train stops
Advising the Train Operator of proposed boarding ramp deployment and confirming to them when operation is completed
Deploying the boarding ramp and ensuring proper engagement (where required) and assisting customer on or off the train.
Once this is done there is a question and answer session and then participants are encouraged to use and deploy the boarding ramp themselves to practice using it (this is not mandatory).
Once completed all attendees can then cascade the briefing as a demonstrator to other operational colleagues as and when time and other duties allow.
Individual stations/groups nominate a “Boarding Ramp Briefing Champion” (typically a Customer Service Manager) who ensures that every group member is briefed. Staff should only attempt to use a particular boarding ramp when they have been briefed in its use.
- How many stations on the London Underground network are equipped with a manual boarding ramp?
There are approximately 101 London Underground stations that operate boarding ramps.
Eighty stations have boarding ramps as part of our step-free access infrastructure to provide step-free access routes and/or interchanges. The remaining 21 stations operate boarding ramps for other purposes (i.e. to assist local staff in ‘emergency’ situations at stations where trains are regularly terminated or reversed).
- The number of stations on the network that are incompatible with manual boarding ramps.
This information is not held.
We will install a boarding ramp if this is possible to improve step-free access and/or to improve customer safety as outlined below. They are some different boarding ramp designs including slanted ones for use in more physically challenging platform locations.
There are locations where Manual Boarding Ramps cannot be used due to excessive platform train interface step height (making the boarding ramp too long for safe use), limited platform space or possibly an obstruction (such as seating or a structural column) in the required usage location. Whilst this information is not recorded, we estimate there may be five to ten platforms where boarding ramps have not been possible for these reasons.
We have also launched a trial of a new bridging device as part of our ongoing work to make London’s transport network more accessible and inclusive. The trial will take place at eight Jubilee line stations until February 2023 including London Bridge, Canary Wharf and Green Park. The specially commissioned device has been designed to provide additional support, comfort and reassurance to customers at step free stations where there remains a small gap between the platform and train. If the trial is successful, TfL will consider extending the device across the London Underground and wider TfL network.
- The number of complaints received by TFL through the accessibility contact page for London Underground in the previous five full calendar years, plus any partial data available for 2022?
Please find below a table showing the number of complaints for London Underground received via the accessibility contact page. We only hold this information back to October 2017. Information is only provided for months where complaints were received.
Year and Month
Complaints
2018 Apr
1
2018 Aug
1
2018 Dec
4
2018 Jun
1
2018 Mar
1
2018 May
2
2018 Nov
4
2018 Oct
3
2018 Sep
3
2019 Apr
3
2019 Aug
1
2019 Dec
38
2019 Feb
4
2019 Jan
1
2019 Mar
5
2019 May
4
2019 Nov
41
2019 Oct
13
2019 Sep
11
2020 Apr
2
2020 Aug
16
2020 Dec
8
2020 Feb
32
2020 Jan
41
2020 Jul
13
2020 Jun
17
2020 Mar
15
2020 May
8
2020 Nov
13
2020 Oct
20
2020 Sep
20
2021 Apr
7
2021 Aug
33
2021 Dec
27
2021 Feb
10
2021 Jan
9
2021 Jul
26
2021 Jun
13
2021 Mar
5
2021 May
16
2021 Nov
35
2021 Oct
32
2021 Sep
34
2022 Apr
25
2022 Aug
33
2022 Feb
22
2022 Jan
19
2022 Jul
36
2022 Jun
36
2022 Mar
26
2022 May
33
2022 Nov
8
2022 Oct
53
2022 Sep
29
Total
913
- The results of the step-free consultation that took place between 2nd November 2021 - 10th Feburary 2022.
The consultation report for step-free access is published here:
