Lewes councillor calls on National Rail to end lift closures

The lifts at Lewes Station have repeatedly been out-of-order, causing difficulty to people who use wheelchairs. 

Lib Dem councillor Sean Macleod claimed passengers have been forced to travel to Brighton and back so as to leave the station from a different platform.

National Rail have apologised saying there has been a delay to having the lifts repaired due to problems with getting parts from mainland Europe.

Lewes railway station

Cllr Macleod, who represents Ouse Valley and Ringmer, said: “I honestly feel like this is a never ending story.

“There has to be a reason for their constant failures, and given the rise in ticket costs passengers face, the current situation is simply not acceptable.

“There is a lack of information to tell passengers that the lifts are broken, and you only find out when you get to the lift."

The lifts on platforms one and four at Lewes railway station have been left needing repairs, meaning they are often closed to the public.

The lift on platform four is the only way to exit the station for people who cannot use steps.

Cllr Macleod said that passengers in need of a step-free exit must travel to Brighton and catch a train back to Lewes to leave via another platform when the lift is out of order.

Councillor Sean Macleod

National Rail said the situation with the lift on platform four had been exacerbated by supply chain issues. 

While the lift on platform one has not been affected by this problem – instead there was a delay with getting a mechanic.

A spokesman for National Rail said: “We’re really sorry for the ongoing problem with the lift that serves platform one at Lewes, caused by a need to calibrate a safety-critical piece of equipment.

“Although we’re confident it will be fixed imminently, we know that’s no help to people who cannot travel without it, and we apologise for the disruption.

“Most of the components used in our lifts come from continental Europe, and with well-publicised holdups in the supply chain, it is now taking much longer to source parts for repairs."

National Rail said that the lift on platform four has been working for 99.9 per cent of the time since April this year. 

While the lift on platform one has seen 99.82 per cent availability in the same period.

This is an improvement from last year when, platform four’s lift was open just 92 per cent of the time, with platform one’s open 99.65 per cent.

Lifts at Lewes station can often be found out of order

The spokesman said that parts previously taking one or two days to arrive, now take two weeks, but that stocks are being replenished to avoid repeated issues.

“We did have a series of issues with the lift on the other platform four last year, and we carried out some improvements as a result,” he said.

“Sadly, the most common cause of failures in lifts is vandalism.”

Meanwhile rail provider Southern said that, while National Rail is responsible for the upkeep of the lifts, accessibility at stations is a priority.

It also said that concerns over passenger information have been noted, and an increased number of posters have been placed around Lewes Station.