Overview

King's Cross Station is one of London's busiest rail terminuses, which serves local communter lines, the Midlands, North East England and Scotland. It is also connected with the King's Cross/ St Pancras tube station. I visited on a quiet Sunday morning to see what changes had been made to King's Cross Station. I did not travel that day, these are just my observations about the outside concourse and entrance to the station. Therefore it is not a full review but I hope my comments and photos of an uncrowded station, will be helpful to disabled people who going to the station after shielding/ post lockdown.

Transport & Parking

The railway station is a major transport hub, as well as trains, there is an accessible tube station serving several lines. There are also several bus routes that serve the station and stop outside the entrance or close by.

Access

Generally there is very good access. There are other Euan's Guide reviews which will comment about that in more detail. I've reviewed the changes to the layout of the station since lockdown has eased. There are no obvious changes to the station's layout when you approach the station from the outside concourse. There are no barriers in place and the bus stops and bus shelters with seating still remain as the did pre-lockdown. The only obvious change was that Henry Moore's sculpture as been removed. As I approached the station I saw that the automatic doors facing the concourse, which have always been exit only doors. Either side of the doorway was a sign. One had a red and white no entry sign and the words exit only and a navy blue background. The other said National Rail entrance this way and there was a green arrow and a navy blue background. There was also a red no entry sign on the pavement outside the door. With view to the size of the poster itself and the text on it, neither were particularly large. Granted many people commute through King's Cross Station daily and would already be familiar that these are meant to be exit only doors. However, a strict in and out route has never been in place before. Previously I have entered by these doors when it has been raining, as I find the concourse paving very difficult to manage with my crutch when it is slippy. As I walked round the outside of the station I noted that the stairs and Lift C had a locked metal grill along the entrance. I found this particularly concerning, as quite often when I use the station lift D it is out of service and I have to make my way to Lift C. On the pavement of the concourse there are blue masking tape with arrows, marking out the direction from the station to the entrance of the tube station. There are no arrows in any other direct, ie the reverse route, or how to get to the station or tube entrance from the local area. The tube station entrance is by the stairs next to lift C. Again there is a very small sign on the wall either side of the stairs saying station entrance and also one the floor by the top of the stairs. Again white writing on a navy blue background. The middle set of stairs has been blocked off with black and yellow tape and small wet floor cones have been placed either side. The third set of stairs has a no entry sign on the floor. Lift C next to the staircase has blue and white circular stickers saying please stand here in front of the lift. Next to the lift is a small Lift Capacity sign which says maintain 2 metres distance where possible. There are 4 stick figures above the writing and non of them are a wheelchair user or someone with a visible disability. By the entrance to the stairs and lift into the tube station is a large poster saying "You Must Wear a Face Covering on Public Transport" Then in smaller font the words "For everyones safety face coverings must be worn at all times when traveling on TFL services. Let's make sure everyone's journey matters #LondonTogether".

Toilets

These are inside the station and I didn't visit them during this visit.

Staff

I didn't have any intereaction with the staff. I saw a couple of them by the exit doors to the station.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

I'm deeply concerned about the lack of thought given to disabled access with the new station layout. The signage is very poor. It's very small and it is very difficult to see from a distance or when the station is busy. There is no tactile floor signage or other assistance to assist people with a visual impairment to navigate the new layout. I am extremely concerned about Lift C being closed off and out of use. I don't use the station often maybe 3 - 4 times a month, but quite frequently the lift I usually use is out of service, and therefore I'm concerned what this next happens. Will lift D be opened for step free access or will disabled people be turned away. I appreciate that we all need to adapt in the new covid-19 world but while there is still so much inaccessible public transport, closing off a lift in one of the few step free tube stations in London is disproportionately disadvantaging disabled people. I'm also very troubled by the about the face coverings posters for excluding to mention exemptions. There has already been several instances reported in the news of disabled people being harassed by members of the public for not wearing face masks and more who are worried about being targeted. I would go as far as saying the new layout is hostile to disabled people's access and safeguarding needs. Wheelchair users and those with a mobilty impairment are going to find it difficult to navigate the new routes. I'm also concerned in a one way system, what happens if the lift breaks down does it mean that the station becomes unaccessible, or do they have a contingancy plan to avoid this. People with a visual impairment have not been considered in the new signage plans and the taped off top of stairs at waist height could possibly be unsafe, as there is no safety warning in place at ground level that a long cane would pick up on to pre-worn the person. I am very concern and disappointed about how these new changes will impact on disabled people.

Photos