Mayor reacts to "dire" punctuality of local train services

Responding to recently released train statistics which show that West Midlands Trains and Avanti West Coast had some of the worst punctuality statistics in the country and had declined significantly in the last year, Elected Mayor Peter Taylor said:

“These statistics are dire for both Avanti and West Midlands Trains. Residents and visitors to Watford deserve so much better. People heading to and from work or school need to be sure that they will arrive on time. Unless action is taken to sort out these problems, people’s jobs could be on the line.

“The fact the situation is getting worse over the last year is a damning indictment on the train company bosses and the government’s mismanagement of train services. Urgent action must be taken to improve the punctuality of local train services.”

The figures, which cover July to September 2022 show that only 56.8% of trains run by West Midlands Trains ran on time, a drop of 11.1% on the same period. For Avanti West Coast, fewer than 2 in 5 trains (38.8%) were on time, a drop of 17% on July – September 2021. Avanti West Coast also had the worst percentage of cancellations in the country at 12.2% of services, an increase year on year of 9.3%.