Just over a year ago in the last week of July 2025, Alfreton station's upgrade was complete.  Where previously there had been an ageing footbridge similar to Chinley's rusting structure, rail passengers at Alfreton were now able to access the railway via two  lifts, a fully refurbished footbridge, a new ramp and steps from the car park to the station entrance, and resurfaced platforms with tactile paving. Upgraded lighting and CCTV were also installed.

The completion of Alfreton station’s accessibility upgrade was funded through the Department for Transport’s Access for All scheme and delivered by Network Rail’s East Midlands route. The project cost £6.75m.

But how long did it take for this to happen? It was eleven years previously in April 2014 when campaigners for better access at Alfreton were first able to feel that progress was being made, but 5 years later nothing had happened. In April 2019 however the then Minister for access, Nusrat Ghani MP, included Alfreton in the list of stations that had been deferred from the 2014 announcement. In May 2024 the DfT added another 50 stations to its target stations for accessibility upgrades, and one year later the work at Alfreton was complete.

Chinley station was first added to the DfT's list of 50 stations to be awarded accessibility funding  in May 2024, but dropped by Rail Minister Lord Peter Hendy in January 2026 along with 18 other stations. Taking the timescale experienced at Alfreton as our guide, perhaps it will be in the summer of 2035 - 20 years after this group first campaigned in earnest for improvements - that rail users will be able to easily access the railway at Chinley without having to negotiate the dreadful, ever more rusty bridge ?