Former rail boss says South Western Railway's timetable changes 'don't add up'
Campaign group RailFuture claim it's not staff sickness levels that have forced changes on Weymouth to Waterloo route
Last updated 18th Jan 2022
A former rail boss is calling into question changes to South Western Railway's timetables.
As of Monday, services no longer go direct from Weymouth to London Waterloo - instead passengers now have to change services at Bournemouth.
South Western Railway said the 'temporary changes' have been brought in due to reduced demand and staff sickness, both attributed to the coronavirus pandemic.
But Stewart Palmer, former South West Trains managing director said:
“There is no evidence from recent weeks that the levels of sickness by staff from Covid has forced these changes on SWR on these two routes."
Instead, he's calling for increased service on behalf of RailFuture, a national campaign group. He says customers are finding different ways to their destinations because of poorer service from SWR.
"SWR have already reduced the attractiveness of these services by reducing frequencies, extending average journey times and the withdrawal of on-train refreshments. They seem to display a cavalier disregard for the needs of rail users.
"These changes will just drive passengers away to higher carbon means of transport. Rail users and their elected politicians, both local and national, need to make their voices heard to reverse this madness."
Commenting, SWR’s Managing Director Claire Mann said:
“The spread of the Omicron variant has had a significant impact on our railway, with fewer people using the train and staff shortages impacting on our ability to consistently deliver the current timetable.
“Having assessed demand and spoken to our industry colleagues, we believe this new timetable is the most effective means of ensuring our customers receive a reliable service, with short-notice cancellations minimised.
“Journey planners will be updated on a week-by-week basis, with updates taking place towards the end of each week. Customers should check their journey as close to their time of travel as possible.”