Which? survey reveals Southern dissatisfaction

Which? says passengers remain unhappy, with those on Southern the least satisfied with their service.

The consumer watchdog surveyed 14,000 passengers to rate the 28 train operators across the UK. It said Southern came bottom with a 28% satisfaction rating, while open access operator Grand Central was top with a 64% rating.

Overall, Which? said commuters “are stuck with services they find unacceptably poor”. It added that passengers reported expensive tickets, dirty carriages and rude staff.

Campaign for Better Transport Chief Executive Stephen Joseph said: “This survey underlines the challenges facing the railways, especially with recent high fares rises. The good news is that a lot of new trains are on order, and some lines are getting investment and extra services over the next year, so passengers can expect to see improvements.

“While it’s up to the rail industry to make sure this investment genuinely benefits passengers and that there are improvements in day-to-day management and information, especially when there are delays, fares policy is mostly set by the Government. We urgently need fundamental reform of the ticketing system and a freeze on further fare rises while inflation is high.”

The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) was quick to point out that Which? surveyed 2,865 commuters online about their rail journeys over the past 12 months, equivalent to just 115 passengers per train operator, whereas 4.5 million journeys are made per day.

It said Transport Focus surveys around 30,000 people, both online and with questionnaires, covering all types of passengers and asking people about their last journey.

It added that Which? also compares long-distance operators, which may run a limited number of services each day, with far busier commuter operators, and that this approach does not compare like with like.

Jacqueline Starr, Managing Director of Customer Experience at the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), said: “The most recent survey of 30,000 passengers by the independent passenger watchdog Transport Focus found 83% of customers were satisfied with their journey, but rail companies continue to work together with a long-term plan to change and improve services further.

“The partnership railway of the public and private sectors is doing more to improve journeys, better connect communities and boost the economy.”