Train cancellations up 8% in one year

Train cancellations in England and Wales have increased by 8% over the past year, according to the latest figures.

According to data from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), the equivalent of 249,133 trains were canceled in the year to the end of March.

This represents an average of 681 per day.

Over the previous 12 months, the total was 230,799, a daily average of 632.

These figures correspond to what the rail industry describes as the cancellation score.

This counts each fully cancelled service as a cancellation and each partially cancelled service as a half cancellation.

Average train fares rose by almost 5% in England and Wales on 3 March.

A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group, which represents operators, said: “We know how important reliability is to customers and we apologise to everyone affected by the cancelled services.

“All stakeholders in the rail sector are working hard to ensure that train services are reliable and on-time for passengers.

“This includes significant investments to improve the reliability of infrastructure and rolling stock.

“Train companies have been working hard to maintain as many services as possible, but cancellations or delays can also occur due to a variety of factors; such as weather and flooding, industrial action, infrastructure issues such as track or signalling faults, train defects and external incidents such as trespassing.

“The railway continues to address these issues, and when train delays or cancellations occur, we proactively notify passengers in advance and raise awareness of Delay Repay to simplify train requests. compensation of the passengers concerned. »

Meanwhile, the newspaper reported that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s decision to scrap plans to extend HS2 north of Birmingham could lead to higher fares on main lines between London, Birmingham and Manchester.

He cited anonymous industry sources who believe the measure will be necessary to manage overcrowding.