MPs hit out at First Capital Connect performance
Charles Walker MP - Credit: Nils Jorgensen / Rex Features
Frustrated rail passengers could lose a whopping 230 hours each year because of delays, an MP has told Parliament.
MP James Clappison - Credit: Archant
Charles Walker, MP for Cuffley, Goffs Oak and Northaw, as part of his Broxbourne constituency, made the comments following a special report in last week’s Welwyn Hatfield Times into rail operator First Capital Connect’s (FCC) performance.
First Capital Connect train passes through Welwyn North Station - Credit: Archant
He joined a Parliamentary debate last week on services from Cuffley and on the rest of the ‘Hertford Loop’. In that discussion he said: “If the trains are not running well, as is often the case, they [passengers] will spend another 230 hours waiting for the train to arrive.”
MP Grant Shapps - Credit: Archant
The ‘230 hours’ referred to the yearly cumulative delays on the line.
Tory MP for Enfield North Nick de Bois - Credit: Archant
Enfield North MP Nick De Bois added: “That 230 hours a year is equivalent to about 10 days – or, if we are more realistic, 20 daylight days –which, over a working life of 40 years, is a year spent on a train.
“A commuter from my constituency will pay £1,560 annually for the privilege. Is it any wonder that our constituents rightly consider it a major issue?”
Mr Walker went on to describe a brief put out by FCC as “beyond parody”, for including “10 tweets from customers congratulating the rail service on its wonderful performance”.
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Welwyn Hatfield MP Grant Shapps told the Welwyn Hatfield Times: “As a regular FCC commuter on the line from Welwyn Hatfield to London, I have to say that I’ve noticed the service has been less reliable this past year.”
And Potters Bar’s MP James Clappison, himself a regular rail passenger, called for more fast services stopping at Potters Bar.
He said: “I think Potters Bar is of sufficient size and usage to justify a faster service, particularly in and out of London at peak times.
“We do have fast trains, but not enough of them.”
A spokesman for FCC said: “In December 2018, the final part of the Thameslink Programme will deliver the following benefits at Potters Bar: up to 20 per cent more trains in the off-peak, 25 per cent more trains in the peak and new direct links across London.”
He added: “The exact stopping patterns of the trains are to be determined by bidders for the new TSGN [Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern] franchise that will replace the franchise we operate today, so we can’t be specific about the stopping patterns.”
