Summer Sensation As Train Punctuality Hits The Ninties

July 11th 2006

Summer Sensation As Train Punctuality Hits The NintiesNine out of ten trains are arriving on time and passenger numbers are continuing to rise.

The good news for railways comes in the latest edition of National Rail Trends from the Office of Rail Regulation. The report says train punctuality is at its highest level for six years with an average of 86.4% of trains on-time, compared with 83.6% the previous year.

In the period just gone, January to March 2006, punctuality surged to almost 90% (89.8%). Rail chiefs say it’s all down to railway staff working closer together.

Says John Armitt, Network Rail’s Chief Executive, “Passengers are seeing the fruits of sustained investment, efficient working and tight co-operation between all players on the railway. There is no sense of complacency, however. We must all continue these endeavours to deliver the performance improvements passengers rightly demand.”

Hard work continues throughout the summer with major maintenance planned during the school holiday season. Says George Muir, Director General of the Association of Train Operating Companies, “With 17 train operators improving punctuality, these results show that the industry is delivering. Train travel has never been more popular but we have more to do with our industry partners to sustain the gains and provide additional capacity.”

Over the last year the rail industry has added 315 extra trains a day. Passenger numbers are up nearly 3.6% this year already. SPADs and broken rails are at historically low levels.
The information will prove particularly valuable for the industry as Network Rail lobbies for more investment designed to improve capacity.

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