Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that independent alternative dispute resolution is provided in the rail sector that adequately supports passenger complaints.

Under existing arrangements, if a rail passenger is not happy with a train operator’s response to a complaint they can contact either Transport Focus (TF) or London TravelWatch (LTW) who work to resolve the issue with the train operator on their behalf. We are considering how to strengthen and build upon these arrangements, working closely with TF, LTW, the Office of Rail and Road and the Rail Delivery Group. We expect to have concluded discussions on this issue by early spring.