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Record-breaking Paralympian Hannah Cockroft has praised new features of a groundbreaking app created by a »ÆÉ«²Ö¿â Leicester (»ÆÉ«²Ö¿â) graduate which will help disabled users navigate the London Underground.

British wheelchair sprinter Hannah Cockroft CBE, who currently holds four world records and three Paralympic records has said the Snowball app is “helping to give disabled users the confidence to get about easily.”

Snowball, which has been described as Trip Advisor for disabled people, was the brainchild of entrepreneur Simon Sansome, who studied journalism at »ÆÉ«²Ö¿â and was on the university’s Crucible business incubation programme.

The free app allows users to see, and rate for themselves, the accessibility of more than 100,000 business, venues and other locations all over the UK.

Now, thanks to a deal to use data from Transport for London (TfL), Snowball also features a step-free station map that shows which stations on the London Underground have step-free access, allowing users to plan a trip from start to finish in just one app.

Simon has also added a traffic light system which helps users gauge the accessibility of any tube station, with green being fully accessible, amber meaning partially accessible, and red, not accessible for wheelchair users.

These ratings were personally created by Simon who is a wheelchair user himself, and who, with his team, visited and tested accessibility at every London station to ensure the system reflects real-world experience.

Hannah Cockroft, said: “Using public transport as a wheelchair user in London has always been a complicated and usually avoided situation. Planning journeys between accessible Tube stations takes meticulous planning, and knowing what stations are staffed for assistance was a game of luck.

“Now, having all the information you might need to make a journey in one place will take so much anxiety and research out of travelling in and around London. By adding such a simple but much-needed tool to the app, Snowball and TfL are giving disabled users the confidence they need to get about easily.”

Simon Sansome, said: "Our goal is to make London more navigable for everyone, regardless of their physical abilities. By highlighting step-free stations and introducing our traffic light system, we aim to remove barriers and promote inclusivity across the city's transportation network."

The Snowball app is available for download on both Apple and Android devices, and already has around 100,000 accessible locations around the UK including, hotels, Air B&Bs, days out, accessible toilets, and changing places.

Snowball has recently been officially approved for growth and support by the government sponsored agency Innovate UK.