Phoebe Tesoriere, who has hereditary spastic paraplegia, a condition causing weakness and stiffness in the leg muscles, said her family specifically asked the assistance desk if a ramp and assistance would be waiting at Bath Spa and were assured it would be. During the journey, staff checked multiple times which station she would be getting off at, but she was not told that the carriage she was directed to would stop beyond the platform.
GWR has admitted it let her down, saying in a statement: "We are really sorry and we let her down, both when we helped her board and at several points during her journey." Ms Tesoriere told the BBC she spent almost nine months "fighting to get an answer" from the rail operator.
The incident has raised concerns about accessibility on the UK rail network, particularly the practice of directing disabled passengers to specific carriages without ensuring those carriages will align with platforms at every station. Ms Tesoriere described having to crawl on her hands and knees through the train, an experience she found humiliating and distressing.