Northern Rail Trials New Priority Seating

Northern Rail has introduced a new range of priority seating options on board 12 of its passenger trains in a new trial across its services.

The new seats, which can now be found on six Class 156 trains and six Class 170 trains operating within the North West and Yorkshire & North Lincolnshire respectively, have been designed to be easily identifiable, with large yellow markers to designate their intended use.

Northern Rail is trialling the new seating on 12 trains across its network

Once on-board, passengers will be reminded of their presence via regular announcements, which will also provide gentle encouragement that the seats should be reserved for those in need, including disabled, pregnant and elderly passengers.

Alex Hornby, Northern’s Commercial and Customer Director, said:
As part of our important accessibility agenda, we want to make travelling for all our customers as easy as possible. This includes ensuring that priority seats are available to those who need them most.

Disabled customers have told us the current system isn’t working so we are trialling new seats with clear markings and will monitor the feedback.

We’re asking customers who do not need these seats to be considerate and leave them free, while remembering that not all disabilities are visible

Improving accessibility remains a priority as we are working to give everyone the confidence to travel by train on our network across the north.

The seats were designed in partnership with the operator’s Accessibility User Group (NAUG), which represents people with a range of disabilities, in order to best make use of the new amenity.

Mark Cutter, Chair of NAUG, said:
I am hoping it will make travel easier for disabled people and other users who need a seat.

Our objective was to create a clear symbol for priority seats to encourage their use by those who need them

It is important to remember that not all disabilities are visible, and we should not make assumptions about people who choose to sit in these seats.

Personally, when I get on a crowded train I always need to sit down, so I will ask: 'Does anyone feel able to give me a seat?' Usually, someone does.