Rail satisfaction rates improve, watchdog finds

26 Jul 17

Rail passengers’ satisfaction with train operators either improved or remained static in the past year, the annual survey by watchdog Transport Focus has found.

It said satisfaction levels had risen with Southeastern, Gatwick Express, c2c, Heathrow Connect, Heathrow Express, Greater Anglia, and Hull Trains, with no statistically significant changes elsewhere.

The highest rating was for Hull Trains at 97% and the lowest was strike-plagued Southern at 72%.

For the congested London and south east network, 82% of passengers were very or fairly satisfied overall, up three percentage points in the past year.

Long-distance operators saw their satisfaction rate increase by one point to 89% while regional operators gained two points to 87%.

Transport Focus chief executive Anthony Smith said: “The figures for Southern in particular show a significant recovery in passengers’ experience...Southeastern also saw their overall satisfaction scores increase by 10%.

“Having said that, there is some way to go to reach a more acceptable position. So the industry needs to keep a relentless, ongoing focus on performance and reliability.”

Jacqueline Starr, managing director of customer experience at industry body the Rail Delivery Group, said: "We are pleased to see more satisfied customers.

“There is more to do which is why we are investing to improve and better connect communities across the country with major upgrades to the rail network, thousands of new carriages coming on track and 6,400 extra services a week by 2021. “

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