The managing director of Avanti West Coast, Andy Mellors, received a “summons” demanding immediate action from Louise Haigh, Labour’s transport secretary, in response to ongoing issues with the train operator’s “unacceptable performance”. They discussed figures that revealed that Avanti’s passengers experienced some of the worst travel disruption in the country. These talks marked the start of a series of meetings with the underperforming train firms, featuring rail operator Network Rail among others.
Avanti released a statement describing the talks between Mellors and Haigh as constructive. The discussions come amid calls to remove Avanti of its operating contract, which the previous Conservative administration awarded in September of last year. Haigh’s predecessor, Mark Harper, claimed that the company was “back on track”. According to the latest Office of Rail and Road data, Avanti had the third-worst reliability of all British operators in the twelve months up to March 31st, with the equivalent of one in fifteen trains (6.9%) cancelled.
Avanti currently operates trains on the West Coast Main Line, running from London Euston to Glasgow Central, with branches to North Wales, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, and Edinburgh. Its contract has a maximum term of nine years but can be terminated at any point after three years, with three months’ notice. The Department for Transport shared that these meetings were part of a concerted effort to bring together both track and train and to hold both sides accountable to improve standards.
Haigh said she “demanded immediate action to raise standards” for Avanti and Network Rail. The government plans to nationalize nearly all passenger rail services within five years, but the former Conservative transport secretary Mr. Harper has expressed the view that Labour’s plans are unfunded. The required legislation to create Great British Railways will be announced in Wednesday’s King’s Speech. Avanti West Coast announced that during the meeting, Mellors outlined “the issues that are unique to us as well as those affecting the industry a whole”. A spokesperson for Avanti West Coast said, “It was a constructive session, and we look forward to holding more discussions on how we make further improvements to the railways in the coming months.
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More