Andrew Dismore

Labour London Assembly Member for Barnet and Camden Andrew Dismore AM says that it is no surprise that rail passengers in the South East are the least satisfied in the country, according to a survey by consumer group Which?.

Overcrowding, poor value for money and dirty trains were among the issues raised by the poll of almost 7,000 travellers. Southeastern was the joint worst performing operator in the research alongside Thameslink and Great Northern, with an overall satisfaction score of just 46%.

Figures released by the Office of Rail and Road last week revealed that Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) – which is responsible for Thameslink and Great Northern, Southern and Gatwick Express services – had the most delays and cancellations caused by a lack of train staff between April 1 2013 and December 12 last year, with 62,000 incidents.

Mr Dismore said:

‘Thameslink’s poor performance has been woeful for years and has got worse under Govia. They can’t blame anyone else for a shortage of drivers and trains , for example.

‘I welcome the Government’s decision to transfer control of suburban rail lines to TfL as part of the Overground network, but I question why it will take until 2021 for Thameslink to be moved over.

‘It is outrageous that hard pressed commuters who use the Thameslink service will have to wait 6 years before the line is taken over by TfL. Thameslink is the most unpopular railway line in the whole country.

‘I have been calling for such action for a number of years now, as the service has gone from bad to worse. A survey of residents I conducted last year showed overwhelming support for the plan. At last year’s election, Labour advocated the transfer too.

‘There was a golden opportunity to move Thameslink to TfL last year, when the franchise came up for renewal, but the franchise was awarded to Govia- TfL was not even allowed to bid.

‘The Conservative MP for Hendon, who chaired the all party Parliamentary Thameslink group , went out of his way to oppose the transfer, and even argued that the service would improve under Govia, compared to FCC who then lost the franchise. But almost unbelievably the service has got even worse.

‘If the Conservatives had listened to us then, Thameslink commuters would not have to wait so long for the improvements that we know TfL will deliver, as they have before.

‘There must be a strong case to cancel the franchise due to such poor performance and I urge the Government to look again at how long this is all going to take- and I also call on the local Conservatives to apologise for opposing the transfer and presiding over a service which has become utterly unacceptable on their watch.’