Govia Great Northern set to visit Hertfordshire for crisis talks
Govia Great Northern is coming to Hertfordshire for crisis talks - Credit: Archant
Govia, which operates Great Northern and Thameslink train services, is visiting Hertfordshire after county council calls for improvements to the rail service.
Hertfordshire County Council’s cabinet member for transport, Derrick Ashley, has invited representatives from Govia and the Department for Transport to County Hall, Hertford, to discuss how a workable timetable can be put in place on services north of London.
Since the franchise was awarded two years ago, passengers have faced delays and cancellations to services that make it impossible to journey plan with any certainty.
Mr Ashley said: “Tens of thousands of residents of Hertfordshire and other authorities north of London regularly use these services and for the past two years have endured appalling levels of service.
“Repeated last minute cancellations leave them inconvenienced, without compensation and unable to plan their journeys with any certainty.
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“At the meeting on Friday we will call on Govia and the DfT to act in the interests of passengers and introduce a reliable timetable that will bring an end to the misery our rail users face on a near-daily basis.
“The failings of Govia’s Southern rail franchise have been well-publicised and I welcome the Association of British Commuters announcement this week that it will work to fund a Judicial Review into the Department of Transport’s failure to act to improve the situation.
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“With the Government announcing a £20m fund to tackle delays on Southern Rail services and Govia’s co-owner Go-Ahead announcing profits of nearly £100m last week, we want to know who has been picking up the tab for this disruption.”
The meeting will be attended by Stuart Cheshire, Thameslink’s passenger service director, and the new rail minister Paul Maynard MP has been invited.
Hertfordshire County Council’s campaign already has the backing of a number of local authorities including Luton Borough Council, Central Bedfordshire Council and East Hertfordshire District Council.
