Redoubling proposal for Cotswold Line announced at meeting in Charlbury
A brief report on last night’s meeting with FGW for those who were unable to attend.
The meeting, chaired by David Cameron, was attended by Andrew Haines, Mike Carroll and Richard Rowland from FGW, Dave Ward (Route Director, Network Rail) and about 50 members of the public.
AH was the first to address the meeting. The points he raised are as follows:
• FGW appreciate that there are lots of problems on the Cotswold Line (CL) and they are not in denial about this.
• 50% of FGW directors have joined the company in the last 6 months.
• Reliable trains are the number one priority, followed by reliable information and adequate capacity.
• The cancellation rate is currently half what it was 1 year ago.
• A customer information system (CIS) will be installed soon at a cost of £20-30 million.
• £5 million has been set aside to refresh the Turbo fleet.
• Compensation for delays/cancellations has been doubled.
MC updated the audience on progress since the January meeting:
• In the 4 weeks prior to the last meeting, 61% of CL trains were on time. The latest figure is 79%. This still makes the CL the worst-performing FGW route.
• Punctuality and performance are crucial.
• Trains serving Charlbury are being monitored and substantial improvements have been noted.
• A key task now is removing “irritants”, e.g. problems with stowing bikes and CISs that are invisible when the sun shines.
DW then addressed the meeting, principally with regard to the proposed redoubling of the CL:
• The latest plan is to redouble 20 miles of track between Evesham and about 1 mile west of Oxford. This scheme should provide 95% of the benefits required for about one-third the cost of complete redoubling.
• The Department of Transport have the final say and a decision from the regulator is expected in the first week of June.
• If the scheme is approved, work should begin in Jan 2009 with completion expected by May 2010. An hourly service on the CL would be possible with this scheme.
• Network Rail are very much behind the scheme but vigorous lobbying from passengers will be needed to get it through. DC said that he would be writing to all MPs whose constituencies include part of the CL to enlist their support.
DC then asked for questions from the floor. A few points that arose from the Q&A session are as follows:
• Standard class carriages will be platformed from 18 May.
• A major staff training programme will take place shortly (some staff have had no training for many years apparently!).
• In general, freight trains are not give preference over passenger services.
• Network Rail will look into the possibility of increasing car parking at Charlbury to coincide with the redoubling scheme.
More on the redoubling proposal can be found in today's Oxford Mail: www.oxfordmail.net/news/yourtown/oxford/display.var.2172240.0.rail_improvements_on_track.php#comments
Derek Collett · Sat 5 Apr 2008, 16:19 · Link