Station gets funding for accessible footbridge

Battle station is on the line between Hastings and London via Tunbridge Wells

A Sussex railway station has received a funding boost from the Department for Transport (DfT) to become more accessible.

Network Rail was allocated £1m from Rother District Council in July 2022 to build a new footbridge with lifts at Battle station, which is on the line between Hastings and London via Tunbridge Wells.

However, the authority said the scheme was reliant on government funding from the DfT's Access for All (AfA) programme.

Currently, Battle Station only has steps connecting the station's two platforms, which limits the use of the station by anyone requiring step-free access.

Across the country, 50 stations have been selected for initial feasibility work and, if that is successful, will be taken forward as part of the AfA programme.

Christine Bayliss, the council's economic development lead, said: “We welcome the plans to make Battle Station more accessible and were pleased to be able to allocate funding to the project.

“The government’s announcement that the station is one of 50 to be successful in bidding to the Access for All programme is great news, and we look forward to seeing the initial feasibility work get under way.”