Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the answer of 21 November 2025 to question 91075, how much has been spent on the display of (1) on-screen human interpreters and (2) artificial intelligence creations of British Sign Language at railway stations.

The Department and its public bodies have not yet directly taken steps to develop or use artificial intelligence (AI) approaches to British Sign Language. However, as described in both our Transport artificial intelligence action plan - GOV.UK and our DfT science, innovation and technology plan 2025 - GOV.UK, the Department has used its First of a Kind funding programme to support innovative AI projects like Signapse Ltd’s mobile app that uses AI to turn timetable and station information into British Sign Language for deaf customers.

The Department’s Transport Research and Innovation Grants (TRIG) programme provides early‑stage funding for proof‑of‑concept transport innovations. To date, only one TRIG project has focused specifically on British Sign Language and passenger communications: the 2022 Luna Personal Sign Language Avatar Assistant, which developed a prototype enabling passengers to access wayfinding and journey information in BSL on their own devices. This project received a £30,000 grant from the Department.

The Department does not hold information on the amounts spent by train operating companies or other station operators on these systems. Network Rail have advised that they currently use pre‑recorded British Sign Language (BSL) videos rather than AI‑generated signing, following feedback from the Deaf community. Network Rail has also indicated that it has invested in providing BSL content in stations; however, the Department does not hold verified figures for this expenditure.