Government will take Northern Rail back into public ownership from March 1 after months of disruption
- Ministers confirmed today Northern Rail would be stripped of its franchise
- Grant Shapps said public-sector operator would take over running of Northern
- Yesterday it was revealed the railway was voted the worst train company in UK
Northern Rail will be brought into public ownership following months of disruption.
Ministers were scheduled to confirm today whether the Arriva-run railway would be stripped of its franchise and effectively renationalised following delays, cancellations and strikes.
Transport minister Grant Shapps said in a written statement on Wednesday that a public-sector operator would take over the running of the railway contract from March 1.
‘I am determined that Northern passengers see real and tangible improvements across the network as soon as possible,’ Shapps said.
Transport minister Grant Shapps said in a written statement on Wednesday that a public-sector operator would take over the running of the railway contract from March 1
Passengers on Northern Rail have had to endure years of problems, with high levels of delays and cancellations due to strikes, driver shortages, timetable issues, delays to the delivery of new trains and old, creaking infrastructure.
Yvette Cooper, Labour MP for Normanton, Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley, and chair of the Home Affairs Committee, tweeted: ‘About time. Delays & cancellations under Northern Rail have been getting worse and worse and worse.
‘But Govt also needs a proper plan to invest in our northern railways, trains and stations so we get a fair deal.’
Yesterday it was revealed the railway had been voted the worst train company in the country with just 72 per cent of passengers saying they were satisfied with the operator’s performance over the autumn.
The dismal score, from a survey of 28,000 by the Transport Focus watchdog, was the lowest in 20 years.
In the customer survey, TransPennine Express, the other major rail operator in the North, was the joint fourth worst, with only 79 per cent of passengers satisfied.
West Midlands Trains was the second-worst operator, with 73 per cent of passengers satisfied, while South Western Railway was third-worst with 74 per cent.
But the survey found that overall satisfaction is at 82 per cent, up from 79 per cent last year.
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