Good experience, but tiny lift
4
4
Date of visit: November 2025
I am a disabled person. I have experience of challenges around: accessing toilets and moving around.
I use or have experience of: disabled toilet, wheelchair
Overall Rating
Good
The James Street metro station is on a road that has a bit of an incline. I was able to navigate it well enough in my wheelchair but it is a noticeable incline. The station is rated an “A” on the metro’s step-free access system. This means there is step-free access from the street to the train. I found the station easy to navigate for the most part. The signage was large, clear and easy to understand. The staff were really helpful and even radioed ahead to ask someone to show me to my platform when I mentioned it was my first time using the metro. I travelled in two lifts to get to my platform; one was really large and would hold quite a lot of people, and the other was tiny. The smaller lift I struggled to fit into, and I have quite a small wheelchair. I had my power attachment on the front of my wheelchair and with this I found it really tricky to get in the lift properly so that the doors could close behind me. When I reached the platform, a second set of doors opened in front of me. Because of the angle I had to put myself into the lift, it was then really awkward to get out again. I found the metro trains really easy to board as they have a sliding-step to bridge the gap between the train and the platform. There is a large wheelchair on the side of the train to show where the most accessible place to board is, there is then an access spot that has been really well designed, in my opinion, for those in wheelchairs or with any accessibility aids to sit. This station provides services to most of the Wirral line so it’s a good station to use for most destinations. I was impressed overall with the accessibility so I have given it a rating of “Good” for my experience. But I would be concerned about the size of the smaller lift for anyone with larger mobility equipment or wheelchairs, or needing to be accompanied in the lift. An alternative may be to use Liverpool Central or Lime Street metro stations which often provide services to the same locations.
Disabled Access In and Around
Good
The entrance to the station is step-free and had automatic sliding doors. Once you enter, there is a small shop on the right, ticket barriers on the left, and a ticket desk straight ahead. The ticket office is around standing height but there is a lowered counter where the card machine is located which was really helpful. There is a wider gate that a member of staff opened for me, and then there was a bank of lifts to take you to a level below. These lifts were quite large with button panels on either end of the lift and doors on either end too. On the level below, there were then signs, more lifts, and stairs that took you to the platform you wanted. The lift to travel down from this middle level to the platform I wanted was really small. I actually struggled to fit myself in, and I have quite a small wheelchair. The lifts had tactile buttons that also had Braille on them. Once on the platform, it was really easy to board the metro. There was an overhead digital display with information about the next trains, their arrival time, and their destinations. There were seating options spaced evenly up and down the platform. The edge of the platform was marked with tactile paving, then a yellow painted line about a foot from the edge, and another white painted line marked the very edge of the platform. The new metro trains are level with the platform and also have a sliding-step which bridges the gap between the train and the platform, so I could get on and off the trains without any assistance. There was a large wheelchair on the sign of the train to show where the accessible boarding point was on the train, and this led to a spot on the train which had a well-designed wheelchair space. The space was large and had a plug socket, two USB cable ports, an emergency call point with Braille, a small shelf with two circular dips for cups, and two fold-up seats at one end of the space. The way this space has been designed means it works well for someone in a wheelchair, like me, but the fold-up seats at the end of the space means it is also a great option for someone with a walker, someone who cannot bend their legs much, someone with an assistance dog, and lots of other scenarios that often get overlooked.
Accessible facilities: Lift to all areas, Step-free entrance, Seating at regular intervals, Step-free access to most areas
Parking & Transport
Good
I travelled to this place by walk or wheel
This station is on the Wirral line of the Liverpool metro system. There are a number of different destinations that you can get to via trains from this station. There are regular services to Liverpool Central, West Kirby, Chester, New Brighton, and Ellesmere Port. This station provides a quick journey to Liverpool Lime Street Railway Station. Liverpool ONE bus station is roughly 450 metres away from this station and there are a wide range of bus and coach services available from here. These include: X2, X4, N1, N18, 2, 4, 4A, 6, 10A, 18, 26, 27, 75, 79, 80, 80A, 82, 82A, 86, 86A, 86C, 136, 170, 171, 204, 421, 423, 500, 550, 551, 926, 927, 929, B7, CF4, D3, GMA, IOM2, K09, MC1, S5, UK021, UK072, UK074, UK930, UKN21, and W11. There is no dedicated parking for this station. There are a number of paid, public car parks nearby including: - Q-Park Liverpool ONE: 1990 total spaces, including 81 accessible parking spaces and 31 EV charging bays. This is roughly 200 metres from the station - Q-Park John Lewis: 581 total spaces, including 28 accessible parking spaces and eight EV charging bays. This is roughly 750 metres from the station - Q-Park Hanover Street; 554 total spaces, including 30 accessible parking spaces and eight EV charging bays. This is roughly 800 metres from the station - NCP Liverpool Rumford Street: 78 total spaces, but no accessible parking spaces or EV charging bays. This is roughly 550 metres from the station.
Accessible Toilets
There were no accessible toilets at this station.
Staff
The staff were super helpful from start to finish. The ticket office was really helpful in making sure I got the right ticket, and there was always at least one member of staff at the wider gate to let people through. I really appreciated it when someone radioed a colleague asking them to meet me after the first lift to help show me which way to go when I said it was my first time using the metro. There always seemed to be a member of staff on each train monitoring people getting on and off. This was reassuring to me in case I needed any assistance.
