Welwyn Hatfield Member of Parliament Grant Shapps has stepped up the pressure on Govia Thameslink Railway to address their recent performance after the release of new figures which give an insight into the changing usage of Welwyn Hatfield’s train stations.
The statistics, published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) show that there has been an increase across all stations in Welwyn Hatfield in train usage. In the largest change, Hatfield has seen a huge increase in passengers compared to last year.
Grant has also called for a meeting with the Trains Minister in order to raise Govia’s performance and to see what solutions can be found.
After inspecting the stats Grant commented: “Govia’s service has frankly not been good enough for quite some time and I see no signs of it improving. These figures show how many people rely on trains to go about their daily lives and how vital it is for Govia to take urgent steps to improve. It also shows that with an increase in passenger numbers commuters in Welwyn Hatfield need more trains with more carriages rather that what’s currently on offer. I look forward to raising this with the Trains Minister as soon as possible. If Govia are not up to doing the job properly then I think it’s time for them to lose the franchise.”
| Station Name | 15-16 Entries & Exits | 14-15 Entries & Exits | Percentage change (Entries /Exits 14-15 / 15-16) |
| Brookman’s Park | 240,784 | 230,090 | +5 |
| Hatfield | 2,347,918 | 2,134,084 | +10 |
| Welham Green | 212,702 | 197,712 | +8 |
| Welwyn Garden City | 2,795,888 | 2,724,016 | +3 |
| Welwyn North | 598,664 | 565,696 | +6 |
Notes for Editors:
Office of Rail and Road (ORR) statistics: http://orr.gov.uk/statistics/published-stats/station-usage-estimates