Sir Nicholas requested a meeting with the Minister following a large number of complaints from constituents about Southern Railway’s very poor performance recently, and in particular in December.
Sir Nicholas said; “A formidable presentation was given by Edward Vermeer, a much put upon commuter from East Grinstead and Councillor Norman Webster, Cabinet Member for Planning and an East Grinstead District Councillor.”
Among the issues raised were; major works at London Bridge, dismal passenger communication, compensation, staff unavailability, driver training, delays and cancellations, criteria for declassifying trains, capacity of the Brighton main line and population growth and infrastructure.
Sir Nicholas said; “This was a very useful and productive meeting and we were grateful to the Minister for her time. She was well briefed and very receptive and it was clear that she is determined to see this deplorable service improved despite the difficulties with London Bridge. The Minister will be writing to the Chief Executive of Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) concerning the issues raised and she will be reporting back to me.”
“The rail network is witnessing record levels of investment by the Government; £38 billion, but we all agreed with the Minister that the industry does not think collectively about the passenger’s convenience.”
The Minister has called a rail submit in February for Members of Parliament to meet with rail operators from the south east, Network Rail and officials from the Department for Transport where a number of other issues will be raised and which Sir Nicholas will attend.