Britain's Wonderful New Rail Infrastructure
Britain's Wonderful New Rail Infrastructure
![the background blur](https://hexbear.net/pictrs/image/9f31a4db-0dc4-4513-b28f-1e5b69c3cd86.png?thumbnail=256&format=webp)
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This is Thanet Parkway.
No ticket office, no information point, no staff, about as wide as a balance beam and less vibrant than a self-storage complex. It was supposed to cost £11m but somehow ended up spiralling to over £35m.
Southeastern Railways is on Twitter trying to answer or deflect angry questions, predominantly from disabled people, explaining the ever more complicated and absurd ways disabled people can 'request' assistance in using the station.
It's important to note that most of their answers rely on just saying that the trains on that line have conductors on the trains themselves who can help, at a time when both the government and the rail companies are pushing for DOO trains (Driver Operater Only i.e. no train staff apart from the driver who is not allowed to leave their cabin).
They've also been asked numerous times for the dimensions of the platform so that disabled users can check if there is enough space for their wheelchairs / mobility scooters. This is the only question they have repeatedly ignored.
It also appears that the station, which many local politicians have argued was not required, may have been promised as part of a deal with a housing developer to increase the value of the development they were building. Which is a whole other can of worms.