As the revised December timetable looms, Welwyn Hatfield MP Grant Shapps has hauled the new Govia CEO Patrick Verwer into a meeting in Parliament to demand urgent improvements to the service.
Following the shambolic introduction of the May timetable by Govia Thameslink Railway, residents of Welwyn Hatfield have suffered an unacceptable service with fewer scheduled trains and more cancellations.
Grant commented, “My meeting with Govia was constructive, but I made it very clear that the current service is untenable and nothing less than a huge improvement will be acceptable. The newly released December timetable, with additional services from Welwyn Garden City, goes some way to repairing the damage inflicted by GTR but not nearly far enough. I won’t rest until the service is back to where it was before May’s disastrous time table changes and, as such, demanded a follow-up meeting on 19th November. Although it’s encouraging that the new CEO is coming back to see me with further proposals, I remain concerned that services will not match pre-May levels. Looking forward, I am pushing hard for Oyster to be introduced along the line and I am hopeful that we can find a long term solution that works for the people of Welwyn Hatfield.”