A VOLUNTEER has called for action to be taken against drivers using disabled bays at Blackrod railway station — after claiming they are stopping him from travelling to work.

Harry Raj says he has been forced on more than one occasion to abandon his travel because he has been unable to park in the blue badge spaces — because drivers without badges are using them.

The 64-year-old has now called for action to be taken and has criticised Bolton Council, Northern Rail and Transport for Greater Manchester, who have all passed on responsibility for enforcement to each other.

He said: "I have a disabled badge for my car but when I try and park at the station there are other cars parked in the disabled spaces.

"My wife has checked and mostly they don't have blue badges. I contacted Northern Rail and they told me they have no control over who parks in the spaces.

"I got in touch with Bolton Council who said it wasn't their problem so I went back to Northern Rail and they said it was either Bolton Council or Transport for Greater Manchester.

"I got in touch with both of them to explain the problem and they said it wasn't their responsibility."

The former psychiatric nurse said that on several occasions in the past few months he has had to give up trying to get to his volunteer job — working with disadvantaged young people in Manchester — because he cannot make it to the station.

He added: "I struggle to walk so when I get to the station I need at least 30 minutes to walk from the disabled bays to the platform because it takes so long for me to walk.

"It's not right because I'm really struggling and I have to ring up and apologise that I'm letting people down."

He added: "I suspect people know no one is monitoring the car park so they park there. I wish there was some enforcement there."

Bolton Council said Transport for Greater Manchester was the station manager.

A spokesman for TfGM said the management of the station was the responsibility of Northern Rail.

But a Northern Rail spokesman told The Bolton News the station was not their responsibility to manage.