Improving the accessibility of rail transport for people with disabilities

The subject of the article concerns the issue of transport accessibility, due to the special needs of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility. The disability related to the state of health is presented numerically for Poland, including the dysfunctions occurring and also in relation to the population of Europe and the world. The presented values indicate a significant size of problems that cannot be ignored or downplayed in the context of the policy of equal treatment of all citizens. On the basis of European and Polish legal regulations, the issues of rail transport accessibility in relation to meeting the requirements specified in the technical specifications for interoperability are discussed. The conditions specified in the PRM TSI for the “Infrastructure”and “Rolling Stock” subsystems are presented in detail, including the obligation to create registers: railway infrastructure and rolling stock and requirements for the development of strategic documents, such as national implementation plans and access strategies to passenger infrastructure and access strategies to passenger rolling stock. Following the National Implementation Plan of the PRM TSI, a diagnosis of the condition and assessment of the accessibility of Polish railways for people with disabilities was discussed, as well as the functioning principles and actions taken by infrastructure managers and railway operators to eliminate existing barriers. The article also indicates the internal project carried out in the Railway Track and Operation Department of the Railway Research Institute, concerning the development of a method facilitating the preparation of a strategy guaranteeing full access to passenger infrastructure in accordance with the requirements of the TSI PRM. The proposed method uses the questionnaire of the facility, which covers all aspects related to the accessibility of the railway station for people with disabilities. This project is an offer for rail infrastructure managers who are required to have a strategy for each passenger station and are part of the state policy implemented to improve the accessibility of public space.