Great trip travelling to and from York Station
4
4
Date of visit: October 2026
Overall Rating
Good
York Station is quite a large station with a number of different train line operators. There are a total of 11 platforms throughout the station and there are footbridges to travel between platforms and lifts that connect to an underpass that connects them too. There are a number of shops and food vendors available in the station. There is also a large ticket office, an Assistance Desk, a first class lounge, a family lounge, and a waiting room. There seemed to be a decent amount of seating around the station as well. I was also impressed with the signage around the station. The information boards that display individual train information had BSL interpretation on every single board which I’ve not seen before. Usually there is only one BSL board that runs through different train information, so it was great that every board with each train had that available. I also noticed that the signage around the station had Braille on lots of it which was also great to see. There was also a tactile map of the station available. This station also has a Changing Places toilet as well as a standard accessible toilet. I had really good experiences travelling in and out of the station. Staff were waiting with boarding ramps when I arrived at the station and they were very attentive, friendly and informative when I returned to travel home.
Disabled Access In and Around
Good
There are a few entrances to the station, it seemed that there might be one entrance that didn’t have step-free access as I spotted some public signage that gave directions for the step-free route to the station. The two entrances I used were level with the street and easy to navigate in my wheelchair. The flooring throughout the station was pretty smooth and I didn’t notice much in the way of inclines or gradients around the station. There was really good signage around the station and I noticed a fair amount of it having Braille too. On some of the platforms there were large painted directions on the floor of the platform which pointed the way to the lift which was really helpful. Like I mentioned earlier too, there was also BSL available on all the information boards where train and platform information was being displayed. There were lifts that connected the various parts of the station together via an underpass. There were also footbridges with stairs available as well as the lifts. The edges of the platforms all had tactile markings on them as well as a painted yellow line. There was an assistance help desk in the main part of the station where staff were on hand to help with any assistance queries or bookings. There were also lots of staff around the station and on each of the platforms which was really reassuring to see. There was a decent amount of seating throughout the station and even some parts that were in slightly quieter parts of the station which was really nice.
Accessible facilities: Step-free entrance, Lift to all areas, Seating at regular intervals, Step-free access to most areas
Parking & Transport
Good
I travelled to this place by train
This station has a number of services operated by a number of different operators, including CrossCountry, TransPennine Express, Grand Central, LNER, and Northern Trains. Across these providers, there are trains to London, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Inverness, Middlesbrough, Plymouth, Glasgow Central, Reading, Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Airport, Liverpool Lime Street, Scarborough, Saltburn, Sunderland, Hull, Blackpool North and Leeds. The station had a small car park connected to it which had a small number of accessible parking spaces but there wasn’t a lot of parking. There was a lot of bicycle parking available. There is a taxi rank outside the front of the station where taxis are able to pick-up and drop-off passengers. There are also a number of bus stops outside the station as well.
Accessible facilities: Dedicated on-site parking, Drop-off or pick up point
Accessible Toilets
Good
There was a standard accessible toilet available in the station but they also had a Changing Places toilet as well. Both of these toilets required a RADAR key to access them. The standard accessible toilet was quite nice and well maintained for a station toilet! It had space for a right-side transfer although there was a large bin that was being stored in the area and could obstruct the space slightly, especially for those with larger wheelchairs or powerchairs. The toilet had grab rails around it, including one that could be raised and lowered as needed. There was a firm, plastic backrest behind the toilet and the toilet paper dispenser was on the wall right next to it. The flush was a lever flush with a rounded end and it was mounted on the wall behind the toilet. It was placed on the same side as the transfer area so you did not have to reach across the toilet to use it. In front of the toilet was a small sink with a single tap mounted on the right. The tap was manually operated and had a long lever handle, which seemed like it could be operated with a fist or elbow. The tap twisted to control both the temperature and flow of the water. Above the sink was a manual soap dispenser and there was a grab rail on either side of it. To the left was an automatic hand dryer. There was also a baby-change table on the wall in here. The red emergency cord was hanging to the floor, it had been placed behind the toilet paper dispenser slightly but likely wouldn’t have stopped anyone from being able to call for help. I did make sure to let it hang freely before I left and attached a Euan’s Guide Red Cord Card. The Changing Places toilet was really large and had all the equipment you would expect. There was a height-adjustable sink, a ceiling hoist, a height-adjustable changing bench with shower facilities and a toilet. The toilet was a standard toilet from what I could see, there were no bidet facilities or any alternative flush systems. It had grab rails on either side including one on each side that could be raised and lowered as needed. The toilet paper was also stored on these adjustable grab rails so it was in easy reach. There was transfer space on either side of the toilet. The sink was height adjustable using a lever on the right of the sink. It was a wide sink with a single tap in the centre. The tap was manually operated and had a long lever handle, which seemed like it could be operated with a fist or elbow. The tap twisted to control both the temperature and flow of the water. To the right was an automatic hand dryer and to the left was a manual soap dispenser and a paper towel dispenser. The height-adjustable changing bench was adult sized and was working well. There was a sign on the wall with information about how to operate the bench. There were also some shower facilities available at one end of the bench. There was a safety rail that could be raised on the outside edge of the bench if needed. The ceiling hoist was kept in the far corner and also had a sign on the wall with details on how to operate it. It seemed to be in good working order. In addition, there was also a small colostomy shelf by the toilet and a privacy screen available. There were two emergency red cords in the toilet. One by the toilet itself and the other on the opposite side of the room, by the door. They both had Euan’s Guide Red Cord Cards on them when I visited which was great to see.
Facilities: Accessible toilet, Changing Places toilet, Changing Places toilet with shower
Staff
Excellent
The assistance staff at York Station were really wonderful. Travelling on the train as a wheelchair user always makes me a little bit nervous. They were ready and waiting for me when I first arrived and when I was travelling home again I was met with an incredibly friendly and helpful guy called Dan. He really went above and beyond to make sure I was looked after and had everything I needed and got me on my train with lots of time to spare.
