"8/10 OF LONDON'S TOP TOURIST ATTRACTIONS WILL LACK DISABLED TUBE ACCESS FOR 2012 GAMES" - DOOCEY

12.07.15pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 9th May 2007

Liberal Democrat research has revealed that eight of London's top tourist attractions will not be accessible to disabled visitors by the time of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Top sites identified by Visit London, such as the Tate Galleries and the British Museum, are not on the programme of refurbishment to include disabled access until 2020.

Commenting on the findings, Liberal Democrat Olympics Spokesperson on the London Assembly, Dee Doocey, said:

"In six years time, London will be hosting the greatest of all sporting events.

The Mayor talks a lot about an inclusive London, so why isn't he working flat out to get key stations like Charing Cross and Tottenham Court Road accessible to all passengers?

'Disabled athletes and visitors to the Games travelling on the Javelin trains from Stratford to St Pancras will not be able to continue their journey into central London to visit the capital's top attractions because most of the Tube stations either have steps or escalators. They won't even be able to use Piccadilly or Oxford Circus.

'The Mayor plans to make 27 Tube stations step-free by 2012 - most of them are in outer London. It is time he ordered a major re-think on priorities and got work started on the stations that will really matter for the Olympics."

ENDS

Notes to the Editors

1. Visit London sites as the top 10 attractions in London:

• The British Museum

• The National Gallery

• Tate Modern

• The London Eye

• The Natural History Museum

• The Science Museum

• The Tower of London

• Tate Britain

• The Victoria and Albert Museum

• The National Portrait Gallery

http://www.visitlondon.com/city_guide/attractions/f_top_attractions.html

2. Station access and refurbishment plans per attraction:

NO STEP FREE ACCESS DURING THE 2012 GAMES (8/10)

q British Museum

Access via Holborn and Tottenham Court Road (step free by 2020), Goodge Street (no step free access planned)

q The National Gallery

Access via Leicester Square (step free by 2020), Charing Cross (step free by 2020)

q The Natural History Museum

Access via Gloucester Road (no step free access planned), South Kensington (step free from 2020)

q The Science Museum

Access via Gloucester Road (no step free access planned), South Kensington (step free from 2020)

q The Tower of London

Access via Tower Hill (step free by 2020)

q Tate Britain

Access via Pimlico (no step free access planned)

q The Victoria and Albert Museum

Access via South Kensington (step free from 2020)

q The National Portrait Gallery

Access via Leicester Square (step free by 2020), Charing Cross (step free by 2020)

ACCESSIBLE DURING THE GAMES (2/10)

q The British Airways London Eye

Access Via Westminster (currently step free) and Waterloo (step free by 2010)

q Tate Modern

Access (as recommended on Tate Modern Website) via Southwark (currently step free) but not via Blackfriars (step free by 2020)

3. In a written answer to Geoff Pope, the Mayor listed all stations which will have step free access before 2012, none of which include the top 10 attractions' stops.

Step-free Access Programme

Tube Station Refurbishment

Question No: 1231 / 2006

Graham Tope

Please give a current list of London Underground stations planned for

refurbishment which includes the provision of step-free access to be

completed before May 2012.

The stations planned for refurbishment which include the provision of step-free access are:

Brixton

King's Cross St Pancras

Acton Town

East Putney

Edgware

Golders Green

Greenford

Hainault

Harrow-on-the-Hill

High Barnet

Ladbroke Grove

Leytonstone

Morden

Newbury Park

Oakwood

Pinner

Rayners Lane

Roding Valley

Heathrow T5 (New Station)

White City (New Station)

Euston Square

Finchley Central

Hendon Central

Shepherd's Bush (Central)

Southfields

Green Park

Baker Street (Metropolitan, H&C, Circle lines only)

4. In a previous answer to a question from Geoff Pope in December 2005 the Mayor made the following policy commitment about step-free access [Question 2353/2005]

"Every station that London Underground (LU) owns will be refurbished over the first 7.5 years of the PPP contract. During these refurbishments significant improvements will be made at all stations including induction loops and visual information for deaf and hard of hearing people; improved colour and contrast to steps and stairs, highlighting obstructions, tactile information and audible information for blind or partially sighted people and improved handrails and steps for people with walking or mobility impairments. Step-free access for every station was not made a part of the PPP refurbishment programme that LU inherited and LU has had to prioritise which stations will be made step-free in the short and medium term utilizing funds from the prudential borrowing programme to supplement the PPP investment. The planned TfL investment of more than £10 billion over the next 5 years contains firm commitments to increasing the number of step-free stations to at least 25% of the network by 2010 (an addition of more than 25 stations). LU is still working on a detailed programme and plan for delivery of a more extensive step-free network beyond 2010 and LU will consult on its plans and programmes in 2006, whilst recognising that longer term targets are subject to on-going funding."

5. Seventeen of the twenty seven Tube stations scheduled to be made step-free by 2012 are in outer London. TfL figures for the refurbishment of 27 stations by 2013 is estimated at £1.2bn. If new priorities were established, work could be ordered to begin on five key stations (servicing each of the main attractions) in central London ahead of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. These are Tottenham Court Road for the British Museum; Leicester Square for the National Gallery; South Kensington for the Natural History Museum, the V&A and the Science Museum; Tower Hill for the Tower of London and Pimlico for Tate Britain. It is recognised that work to provide step-free access to central London stations might be considerably more expensive than those in outer London.