If you were commuting from Rye last week and found yourself getting hot under the collar as services were delayed or cancelled, you were not alone. Figures compiled by Delay Repay (an online service which collects compensation for delayed commuters) suggest that cancellations and claimable delays peaked last week at an annual high. On July 1 alone, there were nearly 1,050 journeys for which commuters across the country could make a claim as a result of the heat. That’s nearly double the second-worst day so far this year (caused by fallen trees on the line around the aptly-named Forest Hill). If you add in delays not eligible for a reclaim, the number leaps to one out of four train journeys.
And which train company was the worst culprit this time? Yes, it was Marsh Link operator Southern Rail, who were responsible for 230 trains that were significantly delayed or cancelled altogether. The average was 48 cancellations and the next highest after Marsh Link was Northern Rail with 101 and Southeastern with 74. Local commuters can only dream of Merseyrail with just two trains delayed or cancelled, or Chiltern with three.
And Southern Rail may be in the firing line again next week. Their engineers are planning to stage a five day strike from July 12, RMT has confirmed. The action has been scheduled to start at 4:59pm on Sunday July 12 and will run until the same time on Friday July 17. Members have also been instructed not to work any overtime between July 10 and July 12. The transport union claimed there had been a “comprehensive breakdown in industrial relations with the company”.
The franchises for running Southern and Southeastern Railways, which is held by parent company Govia, were renewed by the government last year despite a long catalogue of problems on their lines.
Photo: Richard Comotto