Plymouth rated among worst railway stations for cancellations and …
One out of every 20 train services was cancelled at Plymouth’s railway station this summer, new figures show. Plymouth Labour MP Luke Pollard called the situation “simply unacceptable”.
Statistics collated by the On Time Trains website showed Plymouth was the 184th busiest station in the country, with an average of 5,666 passengers a day this summer. But it was only the 2,207th best, out of 2,616 stations, based on service, punctuality and frequency of cancellations.
The website’s analysis of National Rail data revealed that in the past 12 weeks Plymouth station saw 5% of trains cancelled – that’s one in every 20. Weekend cancellations ranked higher at 8%, with fewer than half of train services on time during weekends (45%).
Across the week, more than one in 10 services (13%) were more than 10 minutes late. Plymouth station ranks in the bottom 500 nationally for performance since June 2023. Mr Pollard, Sutton and Devonport[1] MP, said the high rate of train cancellations at Plymouth station was “simply unacceptable”.
He has urged ministers to sit down with the rail unions to end the strikes which have been causing disruption[2] to train schedules this summer. Mr Pollard has also been campaigning to save Plymouth train station ticket office from closure[3] after the Government pushed forwards with a consultation to shut nearly all rail ticket offices across the country.
Mr Pollard said: “Whilst these figures are not as bad as elsewhere on the network, cancelling one in 20 trains is simply unacceptable for people in Plymouth who are already being priced off the railways despite services remaining slow and unreliable. Labour will end the managed decline of our railways by bringing services back into public ownership, bring track and train together and put passengers first.
“Rail workers do a great job for passengers. We need transport ministers to get a grip, stop boycotting talks, and speak with rail unions in order to end these strikes.”
Mr Pollard has campaigned for the Government to improve rail services in the South West since he was elected in 2017. He also successfully campaigned with Plymouth Youth Music Service for funding from Great Western Rail to install a “people’s piano” in Plymouth train station, installed in November last year.
References
- ^ Devonport (www.plymouthherald.co.uk)
- ^ the strikes which have been causing disruption (www.plymouthherald.co.uk)
- ^ save Plymouth train station ticket office from closure (www.plymouthherald.co.uk)