I am partially sighted, and I have never boarded a train before. I have to catch three trains tomorrow, and I am not sure if I have to search for a button/handle to open the train door?
When the train arrives in the station the door mechanism is released by the guard or driver. It is then necessary to press a button located just to the side of the door to open it, or in the case of the Inter City 125 trains, a handle on the door. Do please ask for help from station staff at the stations where you board and alight and or the guard or train manager on the train. If on future journeys you contact the train company concerned 24 hours before your journey, they will provide specific staff members at the stations to assist you
Unlike the London Underground, mainline trains in the UK do not have automatic doors so someone will need to open them using a button (most common) or a handle. If you're not sure about operating this yourself you could ask a member of staff to assist you. Alternatively you could wait with other passengers and ask them to operate the door for you and board with them. If you do need to operate the doors yourself you will find that the doors are painted in a contrasting colour to assist you in locating them. This is a provision of the Disability Discrimination Act. The button that operates the door will be either on the door itself or to either side. Most modern trains have a yellow collar around the door buttons and the buttons themselves are lit up with orange LED's when activated by the traincrew, so they shouldn't be too hard to locate. But if you really do need assistance please don't be afraid to ask.
