Last week, the Government announced the welcome news that rail passengers will soon be able to claim compensation if their train is more than 15 minutes late under an improved scheme.
For the many residents of Rochester and Strood who often share my frustration with the delays during our daily commutes this will provide some fairness and hopefully some much-needed service improvement.
‘Delay Repay 15’ will be introduced within months on Govia Thameslink Railway services and then rolled out across the country, including on Southeastern. Passengers will be able to claim 25% of the cost of the single fare for delays between 15 and 29 minutes. The existing compensation thresholds will apply for delays from 30 minutes with passengers able to apply for compensation through the train operating company.
The existing Delay Repay thresholds are as follows:
- 50% of the single fare for delays of 30 to 59 minutes;
- 100% of the single fare for delays of 60 minutes or more;
- 100$ of the return fare for delays of 2 hours or more.
All franchise competitions let by the Department will include requirements to introduce the policy during this Parliament.
I continue to be updated regularly by commuters on the ongoing issues suffered and I remain engaged with Southeastern, ministers and regional colleagues to determine how best improvements can be made. As a regular user of the Rochester to London line I see often the poor quality of service and the impact this can have on people’s work and life balance so it remains one of my main priorities to see vast improvements very soon.
Rail works and signalling update
From National Rail:
"The East Kent Re-signalling scheme is being under-taken will allow better use of the rail network in Rochester and the surrounding areas. The work at Rochester station was being undertaken as part of this scheme. The new loop line which runs through Platform 3 at Rochester is now operational and will improve reliability and capacity in the area. A new platform has also been opened at Rainham station. Up until now the only place a 12-car passenger train or a longer freight train could terminate or be overtaken was down the line at Gillingham, meaning that congestion could build up and delay passengers.
The railway through the Medway Towns has been a pinch-point since it was built and this extra track will help us run a more reliable and flexible service. Furthermore, the separate signal boxes at Rochester, Gillingham, Rainham and Sittingbourne have now been closed and staff now control more than 30 miles of railway and 250 signals from the East Kent Signalling Centre at Gillingham, and this is the April 2016 milestone I believe you are referring to. Moving all of our signalling operations to one integrated control centre will improve reliability and efficiency, and the new signalling will also allow us to potentially run more trains through Medway. Overall, the East Kent Re-signalling 2 project has seen the commissioning of 30 miles of new signalling, from Longfield to Sittingbourne and out onto the Isle of Sheppey."