Arriva replies after criticism

ARRIVA has hit back after Transport for Wales (TfW) blamed it for “not doing enough”.

The chief executive of TfW said the operator has been struggling to recover after losing more than 20 trains because of wheel damage.

James Price told AMs on Thursday the network was almost back to having the 103 trains in service needed for a “normal” service – out of the total possible of 127. Mr Price said that from 2015, the rate of problems doubled and he said that this year it has “gone through the roof”.

Asked if Arriva could have done more, Mr Price responded: “I am almost certain if any operator had a contract running for three or four years longer, they would have done things like fit wheel slip protection and maintenance. Would there have been any commercial incentive to do that? No”.

But Arriva hit back, saying it left the network in a “much stronger and safer condition”.

An Arriva spokesman said: “More than £30m was invested by Arriva into the railways in Wales over the past 15 years and we have left the network in a much stronger and safer condition than we found it.

“We have acted in good faith as the franchise has come to an end and actively invited TfW and the new franchise holder to work with us to ensure as smooth a transition as possible. We provided access to our fleet and staff for many weeks prior to the handover and worked in an open and transparent way with all parties to develop a mutually agreed handover plan.

“This year we delivered our autumn preparedness plan in full and, in doing so, increased spending on train maintenance relative to previous years. In this instance, and others, we have gone above and beyond our contractual obligations.

“All spare parts and tools within our control were transferred to the new franchise holder with all parties having access to take stock reviews prior to transfer.”