James Sunderland asks the Transport Secretary what he is doing to work with South Western Railway to improve the rail service on the line between Bracknell and Waterloo where figures for November and December last year show that more than 90% of trains ran up to 15 minutes late.
Railway Modernisation
James Sunderland (Bracknell) (Con)
8. What assessment he has made of the potential merits of modernising the railways. (903140)
The Secretary of State for Transport (Mr Mark Harper)
I agree with my hon. Friend that the railway is in urgent need of modernisation of both its working practices and the way in which it is structured. The lasting consequences of covid-19, industrial action and the financial challenges facing the railway have made the case for reform stronger, and I will shortly set out the next steps for that reform process.
James Sunderland
The South Western Railway line between Bracknell and London Waterloo is a really important link between Berkshire and London. Even though passenger numbers are now increasing back to pre-pandemic levels, South Western Railway’s own figures for November and December last year are that more than 90% of trains ran up to 15 minutes late. It is not acceptable. Will my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State please outline to the House what he is doing alongside South Western Railway to improve the service?
Mr Harper
The level of services remains constantly under review. As passenger numbers increase, both the Department and the operator can look at that to see whether more needs to be done. On performance, the operator is contracted to deliver our operational performance benchmarks, and it is penalised financially if it delivers below those benchmarks. The Department has a right to request a mitigation plan if it fails to meet those benchmarks consistently. Now that my hon. Friend has raised that with us, we will keep an even closer eye on the performance of that railway.