England rail timetable disruption

An inquiry into train timetable chaos over the summer has recommended the interests of passengers should be a "central consideration" in future.

Stephen Noble, Tom Bitcliffe, Kieran TraffordCopyright: Stephen Noble, Tom Bitcliffe, Kieran Trafford

Train operators Northern and Govia Thames Link were widely criticised after hundreds of services were cancelled or delayed in May and beyond.

An Office of Rail and Road (ORR) report accused the industry of "complacency".

The regulator called for the rail operators to improve how information was provided to customers.

Northern services suffered a "summer of chaos" following timetable changes in May, while RMT staff have been staging ongoing strikes in a long-running dispute over train guards.

The extent of the problem was highlighted in the report by a huge spike in compensation claims to Northern rail.

The "chaotic" rollout of new rail timetables in May, which led to cancellations including the complete suspension of the Lakes Line for several weeks here in Cumbria, must be the catalyst for "genuine change" according to a report by the Transport Select Committee of MPs.

The committee also says the Transport Secretary Chris Grayling cannot escape some responsibility, even though he wasn't fully informed of all the serious problems the changes caused

The Department for Transport says it's already working to offer compensation to passengers affected.

BBCCopyright: BBC

Emily PerryCopyright: Emily Perry

Rail passenger complaints soared during the chaos caused by new timetables, figures show.

Northern and Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) suffered an increase in the rate of complaints of 63% and 23% respectively between April and June compared with the same period last year, Office of Rail and Road (ORR) data shows.

Both firms saw services crippled on many routes when new timetables were introduced on 20 May, with the number of daily trains cancelled reaching 470 for GTR and 310 for Northern.

The timetable change was intended to deliver huge benefits to passengers as a result of major upgrades to the network.

The ORR, which is investigating the chaos, published an interim report last month which warned of a "lack of clarity about roles and responsibilities" and stated that "nobody took charge".

The Transport Secretary Chris Grayling is to give evidence to a committee of MPs later today about the collapse of the new train timetables earlier this year.

Operator Govia Thameslink changed the time of every train in May with the aim of increasing capacity through central London.

The changes led to hundreds of Thameslink and Great Northern services being cancelled every week.

Emily PerryCopyright: Emily Perry