First Capital Connect, in a drive to further assist disabled passengers, has recently been working with a Luton based dog trainer to help guide dogs familiarise themselves with railway situations.
Dennis Peters, who is training 9-month-old Labrador-Retriever Alma, has been working with station staff at Luton Airport Parkway over the past few months on various exercises.
Training activities include teaching Alma to embark and depart from a train without pulling too hard on the lead, keeping away from the platform edge, and coping with fast passing trains.
Guide Dogs advise trainers to walk puppies as young as 6-months-old to walk along platforms to familiarise themselves with station environments but Dennis believes they should also be trained in the more difficult activities to ensure greater confidence with their owners.
Lee Millard, FCC’s Customer Relations Manager, said:
“In the past we have received correspondence from guide dog users saying how difficult their dogs found the railway environment. With this in mind we jumped at the chance to work with Dennis in helping to train his puppy.
“Our understanding of guide dog users and their needs has also increased and we look forward to working more with Dennis in the future.”
Dennis Peters said:
“I would like to thank FCC for all of their help in allowing me to train Alma at Luton Airport Parkway. The level of accessibility is invaluable when training a guide dog puppy on how to work effectively on the railways.”
