Thameslink changes haven’t pleased everyone…
Thameslink is rightly celebrating its first automatic trains running through central London’s core between St Pancras and Blackfriars, but there’s trouble down the line at Harpenden.
That’s because Thameslink’s May timetable cuts two morning trains and one evening train, according to the company, as a result of changes to East Midlands Trains services. The local rail commuters’ group disagrees. It says that Thameslink is cutting five morning trains and one evening train.
With changes to calling patterns, Harpenden (3.3 million entries and exits last year) loses seven fast/semi-fast trains, which the group says equates to 52 carriages towards St Pancras in the morning peak between 0631 and 0831.
From their perspective, that’s bad enough. But they’re also annoyed at the lack of consultation over these proposals, reporting that Thameslink said it didn’t have enough time for it. The group says that Thameslink promised at a meeting with the local MP on March 14 to provide an extra 0725 fast train.
“This promise was short-lived and is not included in the published timetable,” writes group chairman Emily Ketchin to Govia Thameslink Railway Chief Executive Charles Horton.
Her group accuses GTR of misleading passengers because it claimed on February 21 that it was only cutting one morning peak train towards London, but that all trains would be 12-car. The reality is very different, according to Ketchin, with the group claiming that ten of 18 morning trains would be eightcar units and the rest 12-car.
She writes: “Additionally, for Thameslink to portray a stopping service as being equivalent to a fast service is both disingenuous and intellectually lightweight. If Harpenden commuters were to take these slower services, it would then cause capacity issues for stations down the line with implications for boarding times, comfort and safety.”
There’s also the prospect of trains carrying former EMT passengers from Bedford and Luton, adding to crowding.
This is all strong stuff, but Harpenden’s commuters are not just complaining. They have also put forward suggestions to fix the problem. They’ve noticed that autumn timetables have trains leaving three minutes earlier than normal. Do this through the rest of the year, and it gives trains time to stop at Harpenden.
“We consider that this option is imminently feasible and would enable Thameslink to deliver its promises of a better service,” writes Ketchin.
She’s also written to Transport Secretary Chris Grayling to warn that the group is taking legal advice about GTR potentially breaching its franchise agreement by not consulting.
Harpenden is not the only loser from Thameslink’s improvements. Welwyn Garden City (3.0 million entries and exits) loses its fast trains to King’s Cross from May. In place of today’s 0755 taking 20 minutes, for example, the best that the new timetable can offer is a 28-minute journey at 0752.
Perhaps it’s naive to think that all stations on Thameslink’s routes should expect improvements from the £7 billion project, but it’s disappointing to see that services for some worsen so dramatically.