Treat the journey as a connected physical system

Schedules 10–15 and 21–24 update requirements for surfaces, handrails and grabrails, doors, lifts, stairs and escalators, toilets, furniture, street furniture and access gates. The draft chiefly moves requirements to current reference standards, adds measurable contrast and control requirements, and clarifies application to specific transport assets. It also proposes an 850 mm minimum width for access gates between paid and unpaid areas.

Functional impact

Poor slip resistance, low-contrast rails, hard-to-use door controls, inaccessible toilets or a narrow gate can turn a nominally accessible trip into a dead end. These features particularly affect people with mobility, vision, dexterity, balance, fatigue and sensory disabilities.

Provider impact

Small replacement decisions become important. A maintenance team replacing a handle, rail, floor finish, lift control or gate may trigger a new-installation requirement under the draft’s transition model.

Strategic implementation process

1. Put accessibility acceptance criteria into planned-maintenance and minor-works contracts.
2. Audit high-risk features at transfers, vertical circulation, amenities and paid-area boundaries.
3. Maintain approved product schedules with contrast, grip, force, clearance and finish evidence.
4. Use lived-experience testing before standardising a product across the network.

Build accessibility into every replacement

We can help create asset standards and project checklists that work for both capital and maintenance teams.