The Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014

Passenger information

11.—(1) The interior of a rail vehicle must be fitted with a public address system for audible and visual announcements.

(2) Subject to sub-paragraph (4), if rail vehicles are hauled by one or more locomotives, the lead locomotive must be fitted with a public address system for visual announcements on its exterior, which includes a display fitted on its front, unless all the rail vehicles hauled have such a system with a display fitted on both sides of their exterior instead of on their front.

(3) Subject to sub-paragraph (4), if a rail vehicle is not hauled by a locomotive, it must be fitted with a public address system for visual announcements on its exterior where it—

(a) operates as a single vehicle, in which case the display must be fitted on its front;

(b) is the lead vehicle of two or more coupled together which, including itself, do not all have displays on both sides of their exterior, in which case the display must be fitted on its front; or

(c) is one of two or more coupled together, but is not the lead vehicle, and the lead vehicle does not have a display fitted on its front, in which case a display must be fitted on both sides of the exterior operates as a single vehicle, in which case the display must be fitted on its front.

(4) Sub-paragraphs (2) and (3) does not apply to rail vehicles operated exclusively on a prescribed system where public address systems for visual announcements are in operation at all stations or stops, giving details of the destination of the vehicles or, if they are following a circular route, the name or number of the route.

(5) Whilst a rail vehicle is stationary at a station or stop any public address systems required to be fitted inside the vehicle, and on its exterior, must be used to announce the destination of the vehicle or, if it is following a circular route, the name or number of the route and, in the case of systems inside the vehicle only, to announce the next stop.

(6) Subject to sub-paragraph (7), the public address systems inside the rail vehicle must be used—

(a) to announce the next station, or stop, at which the vehicle will be stopping, not less than once during the period beginning five minutes before the vehicle is expected by the operator’s staff to stop at that station or stop;

(b) to announce any delay exceeding ten minutes to the scheduled timing for that journey;

(c) to announce any diversions from the route shown in the published timetable for that journey; and

(d) to make emergency announcements.

(7) Sub-paragraph (6) (a) does not apply if the timetabled journey time between stations or stops is less than two minutes.

(8) Subject to sub-paragraph (9), in displays on the exterior of a rail vehicle the first letter of, and numbers used in, visual announcements must not be less than 70 millimetres high on displays mounted on the front of the vehicle and not less than 35 millimetres high on displays mounted on the side of a rail vehicle, and all letters and numbers must contrast with their background.

(9) In displays on the exterior of a narrow width vehicle the first letter of, and numbers used in, visual announcements must not be less than 35 millimetres high, and all letters and numbers must contrast with their background.

(10) Displays inside a rail vehicle must, when all passengers are seated, be viewable from at least 51 per cent of passenger seats, (including priority seats), and from at least 51 per cent of priority seats.

(11) A letter or number used in a display inside a rail vehicle must—

(a) contrast with its background; and

(b) in dimension, not have a height which is less than the minimum height ascertained in accordance with sub-paragraph (12).

(12) The minimum height referred to in sub-paragraph (11) (b) is—

(a) for a reading distance of 6 metres or less, the height on the vertical axis of the following graph which is opposite the point on the line shown on the graph which intersects with the reading distance on the horizontal axis (e.g. for a reading distance of 6 metres the minimum height is 35 millimetres); and

(b) for a reading distance of more than 6 metres, 35 millimetres.

(13) In sub-paragraph (12)—

(a) “reading distance” means the distance between a display and the furthest passenger space in a rail vehicle for which that display is the nearest readable display;

(b) “passenger space” means a space provided for a passenger in the passenger saloon, or vestibule adjoining an exterior doorway, of a rail vehicle, whether sitting or standing, (the distance between the display and that space to be measured from the eye level of a passenger occupying that space, assuming the passenger to be a 95th percentile man or a 5th percentile woman); and

(c) “readable display” means a display which is not positioned at such an acute angle from the line of vision of the passenger space as to be unreadable.

(14) A word on a display must not be written in capital letters only.