In recently released data, the railway company has recorded 4,657 requests for the Integrated Mobility Service in 2024, marking a 27% increase compared to the previous year.
This service is designed for “Customers with Specific Needs,” including individuals “with permanent or temporary limitations, such as motor, sensory, or intellectual disabilities, as well as elderly or physically challenged persons traveling with infants or in strollers, and pregnant women.” The service is available on all trains and at all stations.
For customers using wheelchairs or mobility scooters, access is limited to stations and trains equipped for this purpose, and “prior booking is mandatory,” with a minimum notice of six hours and up to 8:00 PM the day before the intended travel for trains departing between 10:00 PM and 11:59 AM.
The data indicates that in 2024, the number of accessible stations increased from 139 to 216.
“CP continues to work towards reducing and eventually eliminating the need for booking,” the company assures, emphasizing its commitment to “ensuring that customers with specific needs experience increasingly barrier-free travel.”
To this end, last year saw the installation of lifting platforms on the fleet of UTE 2240 series regional electric units, consisting of a total of 55 trains. “This modification provides universal access to passengers on the regional service lines where they operate,” the company states, adding that these units feature “universal-access WC, spaces suitable for wheelchair maneuverability, and visual and auditory passenger information systems.”
At the same time, portable ramps were purchased for trains on the Cascais Line, “increasing the number of accessible stations,” the company added.
The urban services in Lisbon and Porto are accessible to wheelchair users, with boarding facilitated by a ramp that can support up to 300 kilograms.
Additionally, the Coimbra-Figueira da Foz, Coimbra-Aveiro-Porto, Entroncamento-Coimbra, Lisbon-Covilhã-Guarda, and Lisbon-Tomar connections offer adapted restrooms and allow wheelchair travel using a lift that supports up to 350 kilograms.
In the Alfa Pendular and Intercidades services, spaces for passengers with reduced mobility are limited.
The Alfa Pendular provides two places per train for customers in wheelchairs, accessible via a lift capable of supporting up to 300 kilograms, and includes adapted restrooms.
The Intercidades service only permits the transportation of manually foldable wheelchairs, utilizing portable station elevators for access.
“Due to access size constraints, after boarding, transferring to the train’s wheelchair and subsequently to a seat will be necessary. The customer’s wheelchair will remain folded and stored during the journey,” CP explains, highlighting that a modernization of the Intercidades carriages is being planned “which includes the installation of wheelchair access lifts and adapted restrooms for individuals with reduced mobility.”
