Rail operator to restore axed services

THOUSANDS of commuters will be hoping for a better rail service after Southern Rail promised to reinstate a third of previously cancelled services.

The beleaguered rail operator, which cancelled 341 services on July 11 has promised it will restore 119 trains by Monday.

The services will come back into operation just as a planned strike hits the railway. A walkout is scheduled for Sept 7 and 8 over changes to the way conductors work on trains.

Passengers have suffered delays and cancellations for months because of a dispute over changes to the role of conductors, and staff shortages – blamed by the company on high levels of employee sickness. The rail firm, which serves London, the South Coast, East and West Sussex and Surrey, responded by withdrawing 341 trains.

The RMT strike next week coincides with a second walkout by workers at Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), which runs the Southern franchise, in protest at ticket office closures.

Charles Horton, GTR’s chief executive, said: “We’re pleased that we can restore a large chunk of our train timetable for our passengers on this date but we will not be satisfied until the full timetable is running, and running in a punctual way people can rely on.

Mick Cash, RMT general secretary, claimed the initial introduction of the emergency timetable was due to Southern’s “gross corporate mismanagement”. He added: “The fact is that services wouldn’t have been slashed in the first place if GTR had employed enough staff to fill the rosters.”