AIBU to think this is at best dangerous and worse lethal

[Mammajay]

Yesterday we took grandchildren by train and had to change at Clapham Junction ( London) and the gap between the train and platform was huge..about 40cns. Trying to get off with a baby in a buggy and a toddler on foot was frightening. Please share your experiences. AIBU to think this is a danger for many people.. including the less able;elderly;mum's with buggies and children etc. I had to jump across the gap,not being tall like my husband,as did my little granddaughter. I saw a lady on TV last week who had fallen between the train and track and lost an arm and leg as a result of the accident. Surely something can and should be done to improve this.

I did not know that!

Agree that the gap at Clapham Junction between train and platform can be huge. I witnessed an elderly lady too scared to get off the train at Clapham, although other passengers were offering help 😞

I think all you younger mums and dads and all of us not so young grandparents should start making a fuss about safety and accessibility on trains. When we had one granddaughter, now have two, we had to carry her and buggy up the stairs at Wimbledon Park station and someone who used it often said the lift was always broken.

I once saw a kid fall down the gap at Richmond station. It was terrifying! They were fine though.

Agree.

Norbiton station is terrible too.

My Mum met me there once as I had to go to Kingston hospital nearby when pregnant with my son.

She vowed she was never going to meet me there again as she practically did the splits getting off the train and on to the platform.

Its very bad as it is so dangerous.

All they would need to do is retrofit a retractable ramp from the trains. Like they do in many other countries. Would that really be so difficult?

Yep the gap is huge at Clapham. I still hate getting off there even though I’ve got no young kids now. I always reversed the buggy off but other passengers always offer happy to help

Rayners Park station is equally terrifying. A few years back I had to change there when on crutches after an operation and I literally couldn't get off the train. Two very kind men had to lift me off or I would have been stuck!

Raynes Parked

Ffs! Raynes Park!

The gap at Clapham is notorious. I have actually seen a drunk guy fall down a gap like that (not at Clapham) and thankfully he was unhurt when they got him out. So I agree there is a risk, but short of relaying the tracks and rebuilding the platform, what can be done?

Stations I'm familiar with there didn't used to be such big gaps - in both height and distance from the platform. I don't know whether it's due to new types of trains, or the way the track has been relaid after maintenance work, or a bit of both.

Platform 8 at Clapham Junction isn't allowed to be used now as the gap is so wide. Trains can only stop for passengers if their is an emergency.
A man was crushed to death falling down the gap at Waterloo also. It was during lock down and no one was left on the platform to notice and help him and he got struck by the next oncoming train.
I think tubes should have some sort or ramp that unfolds as they pull in at stations to cover the gap.

yes i worry about people with mobility issues

On Southern and most trains through Clapham I think, it's the carriage with red on the door.

I always used to get on that carriage with a buggy as there is a seat next to the space for wheelchairs and if no one in a wheelchair needs that space, it's perfect for parking your buggy in.

(The downside is it's next to the toilet so if you have a sensitive nose it might not be for you!)

I totally agree. To my horror I saw this at Birmingham New Street a couple of weeks ago. A father had a baby in one arm and a small child around aged 4 and was trying lift the older child onto the platform but the child fell through the gap and was dangling until myself and another man about to board the train took the child and lifted them onto the platform. Terrifying! It's made me really wary of them now.

I've not used Clapham for ages but I would hate it.
On the train I get for work depending on where you are along the platform the gap can be quite wide. (Maybe not quite as wide as CJ from your desription) A blind woman with a white stick was about to disembark. Lots of people offered help but she declined. I'm sure she was familiar with it but I was panicking she would fall (she didnt)

OP, something can and should be done, but the UK's structure for rail and lack of investment makes it unlikely. In other countries in Europe, new trains have retractable mini-platforms that mean there is no gap between train and platform. Often that requires upgrading both platforms and trains, but I have seen it done, even in small regional stations. You would have thought Clapham Junction, with its traffic, would be a priority, but there are so many different rail companies operating there that I doubt anything will get done unless and until there is a serious accident.

So I agree there is a risk, but short of relaying the tracks and rebuilding the platform, what can be done?

Provide a ramp ?

Did you submit any feedback to the station?

It's not ideal. I was at my local station last week waiting for a train and a small 150 type train showed up with the double sliding doors. As there was no step to climb up my 4 year old freaked out about the very large gap and didn't want to climb up. I had no choice by to abandon the heavy stuff I was carrying with two hands on the platform lift her across and find a seat then abandoned her and run back for my stuff.

I agree with this especially re Clapham Junction. Catford is another station with a big drop - I took two classes of children on a school trip changing at Catford. It was downright terrifying watching them get off the first train. After that first alighting, I asked the station staff to put up the wheelchair ramp for the children to board the train - much safer and faster.

Ridiculous comment all my local stations have lifts and easy to get on. Clapham junction has all curved platforms so it is known for the gaps. And I don’t think national rail will be rebuilding it… they can’t even pay staff enough

My local station in Rayleigh has a huge gap. Now I travel from Norfolk and was amazed that the trains are platform level, AND they have a ramp that shoots out when the train stops and meets the platform, getting rid of the teeny gap!

This is going to blow your mind so you might want to sit down but London is bigger than your local stations 😁

Bank station has massive gaps where the train stops at a curve on the central line. First time I got off there I got a shock.

it’s a lesser gap as you walk up and the train is straighter.

I do think the tubes/trains need ramps like on busses to prevent injury.