ORR publishes first benchmarking report on train operators’ passenger assistance and highlights areas for improvement

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has published its first annual benchmarking report on the delivery of passenger assistance by train and station operators. The findings show that while passengers are generally satisfied with the quality of assistance when it is provided, delivery is often unreliable. In 2024/25, 11 per cent of passengers reported that they did not receive any of the assistance they booked.

ORR assessed 14 train operators and Network Rail for both reliability of assistance delivery and passenger satisfaction over the period from 2022 to 2025. Southeastern, LNER and Network Rail achieved the highest reliability scores, closely followed by Avanti West Coast. Two operators who underperformed on key criteria, South Western Railway (SWR) and West Midlands Trains (WMT), were separately assessed on their capability to improve and required to provide detailed action plans.

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Both SWR and WMT exhibited sustained poor performance in delivering reliable passenger assistance. ORR conducted in-depth capability to improve assessments and asked SWR to submit a detailed action plan by 31 January 2026 and WMT by 31 March 2026. WMT has also been asked to commission an independent review of its passenger assistance delivery.

Northern Trains recorded the lowest reliability score in the benchmarking assessment. In 2025, the operator implemented an improvement plan following ORR concerns raised in 2024. In August 2025, Northern reported that around 800 passenger-facing staff had not completed disability awareness training. ORR has now opened a formal licence investigation to determine how long untrained staff interacted with disabled passengers, the circumstances that led to the training gap, and how Northern can provide assurance that its training is now effective and that similar issues will not recur.

From 2026, ORR plans to expand its benchmarking framework to include new data sources and measures, including post-assistance passenger confidence, staff training compliance, Turn Up and Go reliability, and feedback from the Passenger Assistance app.

Stephanie Tobyn, ORR’s director of policy, strategy and reform, said:
"Passenger assistance is essential for many older and disabled people. When it works well, it gives freedom and confidence. But as our reporting shows, there are too many instances where the service has not been delivered as promised, which can have serious consequences for the passenger.

“We are seeing demand for assistance grow. It’s essential that operators meet passenger needs and we’ve taken action on the poorest performing operators to ensure that the reliability and consistency of service for their passengers improves."

The report highlights the need for sustained attention to training, monitoring and operational oversight to ensure that passengers receive the assistance they require and deserve.