Accessibility at Trainline

Last updated: 27 May 2025

This accessibility statement applies to:

  • trainline.com
  • Trainline iOS app
  • Trainline Android app

At Trainline, we are committed to making our website and mobile apps accessible to everyone. We believe all customers should be able to search, book, and manage their travel independently and confidently.

 

Our Principles

To ensure digital accessibility, we trust in our core principles:

Accessibility by Design

Our Trainline Design System is built to ensure that every new feature and update meets the accessibility needs of our customers. It includes a comprehensive library of custom-built components, each supported by detailed usage guidelines.

For instance, the system enforces appropriate contrast ratios to support users with visual impairments.

Accessibility through Automation

Our robust testing framework protects our website and mobile apps against regressions across key screens & web pages. This ensures that every update delivers improvements without compromising existing functionality.

For instance, our test cases cover keyboard navigation across web pages to support users unable to use a mouse or pointing device.

Accessibility through Culture

We foster an open and inclusive culture through dedicated forums to discuss accessibility and champions who help us stay aligned with the latest guidance. We also collaborate with external accessibility partners to continuously improve.

 

Our Aim

Trainline aims to make its services accessible by conforming with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at the AA standard. These guidelines explain how to make web and mobile content more accessible to people with a wide range of abilities and disabilities. You can learn more about these guidelines here: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/

Compliance

We are partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 A and AA standards. 

Audits

We evaluate our website and mobile apps through periodic accessibility audits run by external parties. Our latest audit was reviewed against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 A, AA and AAA criteria with the following scope:

  • Account management, searching for journeys and purchasing train tickets
  • PC website testing was carried out using Windows 10 on Firefox, Edge & Chrome
  • Mobile app and website testing used iPhone, iPad, Android phone and tablet devices

Our website, iOS and Android apps were last audited on 20 May 2024.

Non-Accessible Content

The audit identified the following areas of non-accessible content. We are actively working to address these to ensure the best experience for all users.

Website:

  • Navigation and Orientation: Some pages lack consistent skip links and alternative navigation methods, which can hinder users relying on keyboard navigation or screen readers.
  • Keyboard Accessibility: Certain interactive elements are not fully accessible via keyboard alone, and some components may trap keyboard focus.
  • Focus Visibility: In some areas, the keyboard focus indicator is missing or unclear, making it difficult for users to track their position on the page.
  • Content Structure: Issues were found with heading hierarchy, link clarity, and the use of landmarks, which may affect how assistive technologies interpret the page.
  • Visual Design and Contrast: Several elements do not meet minimum contrast requirements. These issues are primarily due to legacy components that predate our current design system.
  • Responsive Design: Some content does not reflow properly or scale effectively at high zoom levels, particularly in certain browsers.
  • Status Messages: Important updates (e.g., pop-ups or alerts) are not always announced to screen reader users, which may impact their ability to complete tasks.

Mobile Apps:

  • Contrast and Visual Clarity: Some text and interactive elements do not meet minimum contrast requirements, which may affect users with visual impairments. These issues are also largely due to legacy components.
  • Non-Text Contrast: Interactive elements may lack sufficient contrast against adjacent colors, making them harder to identify.
  • Orientation: The app currently supports portrait orientation only. While we understand that some users may prefer or require landscape mode, we do not plan to support orientation changes at this time.

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Feedback and contact 

Have you encountered something that didn’t work? We’re grateful when you take the time to let us know. We’re committed to supporting you and want to hear when we’re not meeting your accessibility needs.

Reach out to us in a way that suits you, either through email at accessibility@thetrainline.com, or using the feedback channels offered in our website and mobile apps. We’ll make sure you get the help you need as soon as possible.