Payback the passengers!

MAYOR SAYS NORTHERN’S SEASON TICKET HOLDERS MUST GET COMPENSATION AND TICKET PRICES SHOULD BE CUT DUE TO CHAOS

NORTHERN rail should lower its fares and offer ‘substantial’ compensation to season ticket holders, the Mayor of Greater Manchester says as commuters brace themselves for another day of travel misery.

The train franchise has been plunged into crisis over the past few weeks, having to cancel thousands of services with others delayed and overcrowded as they grapple with a new timetable.

Starting today, they have temporarily scrapped around 9,000 services over two months to try to streamline their opera- tion whilst they get back on their feet.

As a result, mayor Andy Burnham says they should reimburse season and monthly ticket holders who may have seen their regular service axed as part of the ‘emergency timetable,’ as well as instigating a lowering of fares across the board now they are offering a reduced service.

He has also called for Northern passengers on affected routes to be allowed to use their tickets on other modes of transport, including TransPennine Express trains, buses and Metrolink trams.

He is due to speak to the board of Transport for the North, the regional transport body, later today and in a letter beforehand to its Chair John Cridland, he says the Northern cannot be allowed to benefit financially from the current crisis.

And he said if they are not prepared to fund a compensation package and reduced fares voluntarily, then fines should be imposed to pay for it. Mr Burnham said: “Northern have already left people seriously out of pocket and turned their lives upside down with their chaotic services.

“I have heard countless stories of people forking out for taxis, hire cars, hotels and extra child care but unable to get compensation for it.

“Now that Northern are unilaterally cancelling thousands of services - that many season ticket holders have already paid for - passengers must be properly and fully compensated.

“There must also be a general reduction in fares for all passengers on routes affected by these changes.

“Northern are set to benefit financially from this emergency timetable. It is the company, and not the passengers, who should pay the price for their mismanagement.”

Even before the introduction of the new timetable earlier this month, customers were complaining about the service offered and reporting frequent cancellations and delays.

These were blamed by Northern on

delays to the Network Rail electrification of the line between Manchester and Preston via Bolton, exacerbated by strike action.

But when the new timetable was launched on May 20, things took a sharp turn for the worse.

Mr Burnham has been extremely critical of Arriva Rail North, which has run the Northern franchise since 2016, as well as the government department headed by transport secretary Chris Grayling who oversees the contract.

The Department for Transport has forced Northern to agree to a ‘recovery plan’ which includes sorting their issues around driver rostering and training.

Mr Burnham has called for the firm to face being stripped of their right to operate if they do not urgently improve.

“As far as I am concerned, this emergency timetable represents the last chance saloon for Northern,” Mr Burnham said. “They are causing too much damage to the economy of the north to be allowed to inflict their miserable, unreliable services on us any longer. If they are not providing the promised new May timetable by early August, then steps should be taken to strip the franchise from them.”

Northern has admitted its service in the past few weeks has been ‘unacceptable,’ says it is ‘truly sorry.’

The new emergency timetable will see reduced services on the Kirkby to Manchester Victoria line via Wigan, and the number of trains operating each day between Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge go down, alongside culling of services in the Lake District, Liverpool, Preston and Blackpool.

Bosses have promised the full timetable will be reinstated by the end of July.