GTR retains franchise
Govia to retain Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern contract to avoid “further and undue disruption”.
GOVERNMENT will not strip Govia of the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern contract.
Secretary of State for Transport Chris Grayling, speaking in the House of Commons on December 4, said the Department for Transport had concluded “that a termination of the franchise would cause further and undue disruption for passengers, and is not an appropriate course of action”.
He said DfT was instead holding Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) to account for its role in the poor performance following the introduction of the May timetable. He said the operator would make no profit from its deal in this financial year, and that Government had capped the amount of profit it could make for the remainder of its deal, which expires in September 2021.
Grayling added: “Furthermore, GTR will be contributing £15 million towards tangible improvements for passengers. This is in addition to the £15m the operator has already contributed towards compensation for passengers since the May timetable disruption.”
GTR has agreed to work with the rail user groups representing passengers of Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern, which will determine what improvements this package will fund.
Grayling finished his speech by saying: “Performance after the May timetable change was unacceptable. This action announced holds GTR to account appropriately and will benefit passengers.
“The Department will continue to monitor closely the performance of GTR, particularly during the upcoming December timetable change. These measures do not make GTR immune from further sanctions in the event of any subsequent failure to perform.”
Transport Focus Chief Executive Anthony Smith said: “This fine on Govia Thameslink Railway will take some of the sting out of the frustration many passengers have felt as a result of problems created by the timetable chaos and poor performance by the rail industry.
“It is good that those who have suffered should feel the benefit of the fine money, rather than it simply going back into Government coffers, with the focus on improving performance and disruption management.”
Lilian Greenwood, chairman of the Transport Select Committee, said: “Our report said the DfT was complacent in its attitudes towards them [passengers] and still today, the Secretary of State hasn’t got the message. People will be understandably sceptical that the DfT is forcing GTR to spend £15m on ‘improvements for passengers’. This has been tried before and failed.
“The penalties on GTR and promise of benefits do not reach passengers directly. And there’s nothing in today’s announcement for rail users in the North.
“We’ve recommended discount 2019 fares for the worst-affected season ticket holders, so that passengers are guaranteed a tangible benefit. Ministers need to listen and think again, urgently.”
“A termination of the franchise would cause further and undue disruption for passengers, and is not an appropriate course of action.”
Chris Grayling, Transport Secretary