Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Johnson of Marylebone and Bim Afolami

Thursday 24th May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Bim Afolami (Hitchin and Harpenden) (Con)]

12. What steps his Department is taking to respond to rail passenger concerns on the introduction of the new timetable for peak-time services in Hitchin and Harpenden.

[The Minister of State, Department for Transport (Joseph Johnson)]

The new Thameslink timetable started on Sunday. It brings more frequent and better connected journeys for passengers across London and the south-east. As part of this, rail passengers at Hitchin and Harpenden now have a more regular train service throughout the day than they did previously. The Government, along with the rail industry, are monitoring performance of the new timetable, as well as passenger feedback.

[Bim Afolami]

On Monday, the first day of the timetable for commuters, 24% of Hitchin’s services were cancelled and more than 50% were delayed. Please will the Minister reassure me and my constituents that the Department will do everything it can to force Govia Thameslink to improve its performance drastically or be stripped of its franchise?

[Joseph Johnson]

We are grateful to my hon. Friend for bringing all the issues facing his constituency to our attention, and we look forward to working closely with him in the coming weeks. This week’s timetable changes are the first phase of a totally recast timetable, which will deliver, in time, the full benefits of the £7 billion Thameslink programme.

Transport

Debate between Lord Johnson of Marylebone and Bim Afolami

Tuesday 24th April 2018 Ministerial Corrections

[Bim Afolami]

First, when was the decision made to make changes to East Midlands trains that would impact Harpenden? At what stage were changes to Harpenden’s services considered and decided upon?

[Joseph Johnson]

This has been one of the biggest timetabling changes the system has ever undertaken and, as I have said, it will not have satisfied everybody in its first iteration. However, December is coming along in not too lengthy a period of time, and hon. Members are always welcome to put suggestions to the Department and to their operators for consideration.

The impact of the midland main line works only became apparent to us in November 2017, as I mentioned. This short timeline meant that a specific consultation for Harpenden passengers was simply not a viable option.

[Official Report, 18 April 2018, Vol. 639, c. 437.]

Letter of correction from Joseph Johnson:

An error has been identified in the response I gave to the hon. Member for Hitchin and Harpenden (Bim Afolami) during his Adjournment debate on Thameslink Upgrades.

The correct response should have been: