Following the disruption linked to railway timetable changes in May last year, Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), who operate Southern and Thameslink Railways, has contributed £15 million to a fund to provide tangible benefits for passengers at local stations across their network.
Alongside community rail partnerships and local rail user groups, you are invited to suggest how this money might be best used at stations in Sutton.
All GTR stations are allocated a minimum of £30,000. Stations where passengers were most affected by the timetable disruption will get either £50,000 or £80,000. This funding is in addition to any planned schemes already in the pipeline for the stations as part of accessibility upgrades or regular maintenance.
More details about the fund can be found at https://www.passengerbenefitfund.co.uk. Please note that this only applies to Sutton stations managed by GTR, and so Worcester Park is excluded as it is managed by South Western Railway.
The allocations for stations in Sutton are:
Tier 1 - £80,000 each:
- Sutton Common
- West Sutton
Tier 2 - £50,000 per station:
- Carshalton
- Hackbridge
- Sutton
Tier 3 - £30,000 per station:
- Belmont
- Carshalton Beeches
- Cheam
- Wallington
What can the fund be spent on?
- Local station improvements or projects, or projects with wider passenger benefits. GTR has provided suggestions of the kind of projects that might be of interest (listed below) but groups can also submit their own ideas. Funds can also be pooled between a number of stations to fund larger projects.
- Funds must be spent by the end of the GTR franchise period in Sept 2021.
- GTR will spend the funds (mostly via contractors). Funds will not be given to local groups or individuals.
- Most of GTR’s suggested schemes in the list below are capital schemes for investment at stations and these schemes may include an element for maintenance over a number of years. Revenue schemes may be possible, depending on operational feasibility, and approval.
Example schemes suggested by GTR are:
- Fit solar panels to the station
- Adding a 'living plant wall'/bee garden or other environmental options
- Improvements to the station toilets.
- Additional customer seating
- Additional waiting shelters
- Canopies over ticket vending machines
- Additional ticket vending machines
- Additional cycle parking facilities
- Increasing cycle security measures at stations
- Additional customer information screens (an example might be a live local bus running info screen in the ticket office or station entranceway)
Wider passenger benefit schemes (i.e. not station-specific)
- Adding delay notification functionality to the GTR apps
- Provision of real-time, relevant station and journey information either in station or through the app e.g. lifts or toilets out of service
- Improving the communication of alternative end to end journey options (like ‘Waze’ for road travel) during disruption
- Improving the information provided during and post disruption in stations or through the app
- Keeping station toilet facilities open 24/7, with accessibility via The Key Smartcard
How would you like to see your local station improved? Get in touch with us to share your views and we will pass them onto GTR.
