Rail bosses to meet unhappy passengers
8:00am Wednesday 28th January 2009 in Search Module By Andrew Greaves
UNDER-fire rail bosses are to run the gauntlet of Bolton’s angry commuters over the state of the trains. Managers from Northern Rail have agreed to meet the travelling public at Bolton railway station during the evening rush hour.
They will take on board comments and answer questions during the two-hour sessions, on the station concourse between 5pm and 7pm next Wednesday, February 4.
A Northern Rail spokesman said: “Our passengers’ feedback is vital to help us improve services and facilities, and these sessions are a great opportunity to listen first-hand to passenger comments and concerns.”
Meanwhile, the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority has put forward recommendations for the winter 2009 timetable.
Cllr Keith Whitmore, the authority’s policy committee chairman, said this year’s changes would not be as drastic as December’s, which have not been well-received by passengers. He said: “Greater Manchester has an incredibly busy rail network with little room for manoeuvre — and demand continues to grow.
“However, we are committed to working with train operators and Network Rail to improve services at every opportunity.
“The 2009 timetable changes will not be as dramatic as last year’s which had to take into account the West Coast Mainline upgrade. But they will offer a chance to achieve some of our short term aspirations for local rail service improvements.”
Train operators such as Northern Rail and First Trans Pennine will have to submit their initial timetable requests by Friday and these will be discussed with the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive and Network Rail before refined timetables are submitted in April.
The changes will come into effect on December 13.
l Don’t forget you still have time to submit your question for Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon.
Mr Hoon has agreed to answer readers’ questions about the commuter chaos and we will pick the best ones we receive and publish his responses in The Bolton News.
You can submit your questions by writing to: Questions to Mr Hoon, Newsdesk, The Bolton News, Newspaper House, Churchgate, Bolton, BL1 1DE.
Alternatively, you can email newsdesk@theboltonnews.co.uk with the subject Hoon Questions.
Please include your contact details and try to keep questions concise. The last date for accepting questions is Friday.
