Watford train passengers promised ‘newer, longer, better’ trains by the end of the year

Following a meeting between Watford Mayor Peter Taylor and Liberal Democrat councillors, Ian Stotesbury and Kennedy Rodrigues, rail bosses have promised more capacity on train services between Watford and London Euston.

A new train timetable will be introduced on 2 June and this will see more of the modern class 730 trains on the route and more carriages, including on Saturdays when passengers have complained about overcrowding.

By the end of 2024 the rail operator, London Northwestern Railway, has committed to increasing capacity on routes to and from London Euston as they roll out their new Class 730 fleet. Initially this extra capacity will be provided by the temporary deployment of more three-carriage “West Midlands Railway” branded trains (forming six or nine carriage trains), resulting in running longer trains. From the autumn, passengers can expect to see the arrival of five-carriage London Northwestern Railway branded Class 730s (forming five or 10 carriage trains).

Watford’s Liberal Democrat Mayor, Peter Taylor, welcomed the news saying, “I am often contacted by passengers who are frustrated by unreliable and overcrowded train services. I am pleased that London Northwestern recognise that things need to improve and are committed to increasing the capacity on the services between Watford and London this year. It is really important that we see these improvements as soon as possible so that there is far less overcrowding on local train services.”

Cllr Ian Stotesbury is Watford Council’s cabinet member for Transport. He added, “Both locally and nationally the Liberal Democrats are pressing for significant improvements to train services. Too often we see cancellations, delays and overcrowding. It was positive that the operator recognised that things need to improve and has given a clear commitment to deliver newer, bigger, better trains for local passengers this year. Ultimately if train operators fail to provide a high-quality public service to their customers, they should be sacked. We need a government that invests in our railways and tackles the signalling failures.”

A petition by the Watford Liberal Democrats setting out improvements to local services can be found at www.watfordlibdems.org/trainspetition.