End of the line for first class
Grayling to ease rush-hour pressure by stopping ‘segregation’ of commuter trains
FIRST-CLASS compartments will disappear from crowded commuter trains, the Transport Secretary has pledged, as he said passengers should no longer be “segregated”.
Chris Grayling, who commutes by train to Whitehall every day, told The Daily Telegraph he understood what a “total pain” it was for passengers who have to stand in packed standard-class carriages while first-class compartments are empty.
He said he was “absolutely” committed to scrapping first class on commuter trains and also expected to see fewer first-class carriages on inter-city services over the next few years.
Mr Grayling added he was working towards nationwide “smart ticketing” which will involve paper tickets being replaced by tap-in, tap-out points at every station, with automatic compensation for any journey that is delayed by more than 15 minutes.
Separately, the Transport Secretary has also announced a new UK Aviation Strategy that could create airport bag check-ins in town centres and electronic “forcefields” to stop drones being flown near airports.
In an interview with The Telegraph, Mr Grayling also predicted that Theresa May will remain Prime Minister until at least 2020, and could even fight another general election.
The issue of half-empty first-class carriages on packed rush-hour trains was first highlighted in an investigation by this newspaper in 2013, after which many operators reduced the number of first-class carriages on inter-city trains.
But Mr Grayling wants train operators to go further, and intends to make it a condition of future franchise awards that commuter trains scrap first-class compartments if that is the feedback from passengers.
He said: “I absolutely understand what a total pain it is if you are standing on a train for 20-30 minutes on the way to work. I don’t really see a case for a short-distance journey for there to be any division between first and second class. There should just be one class on the train.
“We have got rid of it on some of the trains in south-east London as part of the new franchise... people will see less first class in the future as we start to say that on busy suburban trains you can’t start segregating.”
He said new hybrid trains that will start running on electrified main line services later this year will have fewer first-class seats than current trains, but it would be up to individual operators on long-distance services to choose whether to provide a first-class option.
Mr Grayling has also promised a crackdown on the illegal use of drones, with jail sentences for the worse offenders, and mandatory exams on safety for those who buy larger models.
At present the maximum fine for using the flying machines to endanger life deliberately is £2,500, but Mr
Grayling said he wanted courts to have the power to jail people who have “palpably endangered life”. He said: “Let’s be frank, if you are knowingly flying a drone in the flight path of an aircraft just above a runway then you should face pretty serious consequences.”
It comes amid soaring sales of drones and growing fears that people may be sending them into “no-fly zones” surrounding airports.
To stop this the Department for Transport (DFT) is planning to install signal-jamming “forcefields”, known as geofencing, around airports.
The forcefield plan is also likely to be extended to the area around prisons. The Transport Secretary explained: “You can jam a mobile phone and this effectively has the same effect that stops a drone moving to a particular place.” He announced plans for a national registration scheme for larger
‘You can jam a mobile phone and this effectively has the same effect that stops a drone moving’
devices so they can be tracked, and mandatory exams on drone safety for anyone who buys a drone weighing more than 250g. A number of drones available on Amazon weigh upwards of 399g. Descriptions on the shopping site also state that the drones are suita- ble for children aged over six years.
According to the DFT, safety tests will have to be undertaken by the person who has bought the drone, leaving uncertainty over the situation for those bought as presents. In addition the department said it would consider an age limit for people taking the test, meaning children may be banned from flying drones over the weight limit.
The rules, which are still subject to consultation, are expected to be in place next year.
Mr Grayling also asked the public for their views on a series of ideas including airport bag check-ins in city centres and a “luggage portering” service to take the bags to airports.