Written evidence from Helen Barker (TSR
01)
I write in your capacity as chair of the Transport
Select Committee. I know you are due to take oral evidence
from the Transport Secretary on 24 November and I want to raise
an issue I hope the committee will put to him on Department for
Transport procurement of rolling stock for mainline train services.
I commute daily from Brighton to London and have
done so for the past seven years and until recently the service
was fine, generally arriving and leaving on time, or thereabouts.
- In September Southern changed the rolling stock
of several of the early morning services to London from 357 Southern
carriages to 442 old-style Gatwick Express carriages. This change
is part of Southern's core Franchise Agreement specified by the
Department for Transport.
- The changes have resulted in delays to services
both to London Victoria and London Bridge. I catch the 7.33 London
Bridge service each day and this has not arrived on time once
since the carriages were changed.
- The average delay is 10-15 minutes which may
not sound like much, but which is a significant addition to a
journey meant to take just over an hour.
- Southern informed me that the decision to use
the 442 Gatwick Express coaches is to increase capacity. I don't
doubt that this was the aim, but the train is as full as ever
with people standing from Preston Park station (just outside of
Brighton) which is the same situation as with the Southern carriages.
- They have also confirmed that the delay is caused
by the additional time it takes passengers to get on and off these
carriages at stations (the dwell time) as the doors are situated
at the end of each carriage and are only single doors (as opposed
to double doors on Southern carriages) which means the services
loses around 2-3 minutes at each station to let people on and
off.
- Southern have also confirmed to me these carriages
are not designed to be used on stopping services for this reason
which is why they are suited to the 442 Gatwick Express route
which only have one final destination.
- Southern states in an email "The 442 rolling
stock wasn't as efficient as we'd hoped on the 06:24 Eastbourne
service due to its slower acceleration compared with the 377 rolling
stock. The number of station stops on the Eastbourne journey is
15 compared with the nine calling stations on your 07:33 train.
The 442s are more suited for fewer stops and starts which is why
they are better used on your service."—If these trains
are better suited to less stops and starts they should not be
used on a route with nine stops.
- I along with many other passengers on this train
are very frustrated that a service which worked fine and ran on
time is now a daily morning chore simply because of a decision
taken by DfT to procure dated rolling stock which is not fit for
purpose on a busy commuter route and Southern's subsequent decision
to deploy these carriages on peak services which stop at multiple
stations meaning the service incurs delays. It would be more sensible,
if Southern are sticking with these carriages, to move these coaches
to the non peak services from Brighton to London which only call
at East Croydon and Clapham before arriving in London.
- I attach an email from Southern[1]
which states that both they and the DfT acknowledge the 442 Gatwick
Express coaches need full refurbishment as they are over 20 years
old. It is astonishing they have been put into service on an incredibly
busy route before they had been updated to a necessary standard.
- Southern state in the attached email[2]
that "Class 442's performance has been on a steady growth
of improvement over the past months" I can assure that that
this is not the case with the 7.33 to London Bridge which is late,
every single day usually by around 10 minutes or more.
- My season ticket is £3,556 (until it rises
in January 2011) and whilst it is very expensive I have been sanguine
about the cost while the service was on time. Now Southern, through
their own actions, are not delivering an adequate service I do
not see how they can be permitted to raise fares.
I would be most grateful if you could raise this
issue, direct from an affected consumer, in your session with
the Secretary of State on 24th November. I have copied in
Norman Baker MP in his capacity as a transport minister and Lewes
MP who regularly uses Southern services - although probably doesn't
have to ensure the dated Gatwick Express coaches. He may wish
to raise this issue with Southern directly.
November 2010
1 Not printed. Back
2
Not printed. Back
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