12 new passenger assistance buggies have been introduced at London Euston railway station, which replace their predecessors that have given 18 years service.
The first four buggies were introduced in 2004, and six more were added in 2010. During their 18-years service, the ten vehicles are estimated to have made 1,000,000 journeys between the main concourse and platforms.
On average, 240 passengers use the buggies each day, which means 87,000 passengers use them to get to and from their train each year.
With each trip around a third of a mile, between them, the buggies have ferried passengers and their luggage over 330,000 miles, further than the moon, which is 238,885 miles away from Earth.
In a £200,000 investment, the old buggies were retired on Friday, 12th May and replaced with 12 new electric machines, which have boosted the fleet by 20 percent and will reduce maintenance costs and breakdowns.
Passenger Assist allows people to request assistance in advance. This will ensure that train company staff will be on hand to help with things like navigating a station, boarding a train, or arranging a ramp on and off a train.
Since 1st April, people need to give just two hours notice before their journey is due to start for them to book assistance at any time of the day and any day of the week. The reduction in booking times is a result of rail companies last year introducing a new app, Passenger Assistance by Transreport, which speeds up the process to request assistance.
For more details on how to download the app, click here.
Passengers can also book assistance by phone, text, or online by clicking this link.
Gareth Parry, Network Rail station manager at London Euston, said:
“These new buggies will continue to play a vital role in getting passengers to and from trains who need extra help. The old buggies have served us incredibly, and it's out of this world to think of together they've travelled further away than the moon!
“These new vehicles will be much more reliable, have a longer battery life, and can continue to serve passengers for many more years to come.”
Very nice. About time as well.