Examination of Witnesses (Questions 680
- 699)
680. Have you seen that in the information that
has been put before this Committee?
(Dr Maynard) I have not seen all the information
that has been put before this Committee.
681. Tell me, have you seen anything in the
slides that have been prepared by Mr Berryman that are going to
be produced later on?
(Dr Maynard) I have not seen the slides
that are produced by Mr Berryman.
682. Tell me, if there were no figures, if there
was no analysis of the numbers of the mobility-restricted using
those particular stations, would that be a defective assessment
of that particular criterion?
(Dr Maynard) I am not sure that it would
be necessarily a defective analysis unless it was clear that there
was a larger disabled population in Newham. As far as I am aware,
there is no, for example, school or segregated institution for
young disabled people or college for disabled people around that
area.
683. Tell me, did you have a role in deciding
whether Maryland Station was to be upgraded or whether Manor Park
was to be upgraded?
(Dr Maynard) No, I did not.
684. So were you asked for your view on the
decision to upgrade either Manor Park or Maryland?
(Dr Maynard) No, I was not.
685. Do you think that it would have been wise
for you to have been involved in that decision-making process?
(Dr Maynard) In retrospect, yes, it probably
would have been, but it is very difficult for an organisation
to know to what level of detail they should be involving an external
consultant. It is not that straightforward and I can understand
why they might have thought in this instance that it was not appropriate.
686. If there were Petitions in respect of the
Lower House indicating the need for full accessibility, would
that have been an indicator that yes, a disability adviser should
have been involved in the decision-making process?
(Dr Maynard) As far as I am aware, there
was not a Petition in relation to these stations in relation to
accessibility.
687. Forgive me, accessibility generally. If
I put the position any differently, then I withdraw that question.
(Dr Maynard) Can I just clarify momentarily
what you mean by `accessibility' because there are two ways of
using the term `accessibility' in the transport industry, one
of which is about ease of access to transport hubs and to essential
services for everyone and one of which is about access for disabled
people.
688. Step-free access is what I am pointing
to, accessibility for the disabled or the mobility-restricted.
(Dr Maynard) To the best of my knowledge
and belief, there was not, though I do not know.
689. If there had been indications that accessibility
improvements should be made at stations, is that a reason for
considering carefully whether or not to undertake them and involve
somebody like yourself in that decision?
(Dr Maynard) If there had been, yes, it
might have been, but what might have happened was that David Bonnett
was involved because of his greater technical input in relation
to specific accessibility issues.
690. MR REED: We were told earlier on
by Ms Lieven that there was a cost-benefit analysis undertaken
as to whether to upgrade Maryland or Manor Park.
691. MS LIEVEN: No, My Lord, just so
that there is no misunderstanding at any stage, I did not say
that. There has not been, and I did not say there had been, a
cost-benefit analysis of upgrades of individual stations, and
I make that absolutely clear. I did not say it because it would
not have been true.
692. MR REED: Forgive me, if I misunderstood
the position, then I apologise for putting it to you like that.
Do you think it would have been worthwhile to have undertaken
a cost-benefit analysis as to whether to upgrade particular stations?
(Dr Maynard) On an individual station basis?
693. Yes.
(Dr Maynard) It might be. There are all sorts of issues involved
in undertaking a cost-benefit analysis. It is a huge undertaking.
I do not know whether it would have been in this instance. Actually
in relation to disabled access, access for disabled people, doing
a cost-benefit analysis would probably be the last thing you would
want to do if you actually wanted it to go ahead.
694. Can I just turn briefly then please to
the stations? Before doing so, however, I want to understand with
you the position in respect of Newham as a generality. Tell me,
have you sought to understand the numbers of disabled people within
the wards around either Maryland or Manor Park stations?
(Dr Maynard) No, I have not personally,
no.
695. In terms of what we were looking at earlier
on that Crossrail identified itself, namely the importance of
deprivation as well as disability and the need to have accessibility
to overcome those two aspects, is it fair to say, when looking
at Newham, given that it is an area of high deprivation, that
upgrading particular stations is still more significant for those
who are either disabled or mobility-restricted?
(Dr Maynard) Can you ask that question again, please?
696. I will ask it a shorter way. Firstly, dealing
with Newham generally, you are aware that is an area of high deprivation,
are you not?
(Dr Maynard) Yes.
697. Looking at those who are disabled or mobility
restricted, if they are in an area of high deprivation they are
likely to benefit still more greatly by accessible stations near
to them because they are generally on lower incomes than other
less deprived areas?
(Dr Maynard) Disabled people in a deprived
area would benefit from the presence of accessible transport so,
yes, to that extent the presence of an accessible station would
be of assistance. Transport is about getting from one place to
another, so what matters is that in terms of the overall transport
system it is easy to get around; it is easy to get to where you
need to get to. That is back to the transport industry definition
of accessibility, which is accessing key services. Therefore,
I cannot answer your question yes or no, because you are taking
a piece of the system out and saying, "Is it a good thing
to make this piece of the system perfect?" The answer is,
"Well, probably, yes, it might be a better thing", but
actually what you need to look at is the system and not the individual
chunk.
698. Can we have please a copy of the first
plan; we can either look at Mr Berryman's first plan or, indeed
one of your plans in your presentation, number 7. Looking generally
at Newham, the stations within Newham are Stratford, Maryland,
Forest Gate and Manor Park and also Custom House.[30]
Is that right?
(Dr Maynard) I will take your word for it.
699. That being the case, if one just looks
generally at the position in respect of those stations that are
accessible on the Crossrail lines, Newham has the highest proportion
of inaccessible stations of any of the boroughs within London,
is that right?
(Dr Maynard) It would appear so, yes.
30 Crossrail Ref: P8, Crossrail Line 1-Diagram 2-step-free
access to Crossrail stopping platforms (NEWMLB-53_04-001 Back
| 
