East Coast passengers get punctuality apology

The firm apologised to East Coast passengers after publishing punctuality figures that showed its responsibilities covered 70 per cent of delays on routes between Yorkshire, the North East, Scotland and London.

About one train in six operated by East Coast was late between August 18 and September 14, making the state-owned operator the least punctual in the country during that period.

Nationally, Network Rail’s remit covered six out of every 10 delayed services as punctuality on the railways decreased to 92.3 per cent from 94 per cent in the same period last year.

The company said: “Network Rail would like to apologise to East Coast’s customers for the disruption caused by these infrastructure failures and the company is redoubling its efforts to improve the reliability of this critical piece of railway infrastructure.”

The firm said deaths on the line and other external factors accounted for a fifth of the delays to East Coast services while the longest related to three separate overhead wire failures.

Network Rail is responsible for maintaining Britain’s railway tracks, signalling, bridges, tunnels, level crossings, viaducts and 17 stations. Delays within the organisation’s remit were caused by factors such as weather, trespass and vandalism, and cable theft.

First Transpennine Express had a punctuality rating of 88.7 while Northern Rail’s score was 93.1 per cent. East Midlands Trains scored 91.3 per cent.

A spokesman for the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) said: “Train companies will continue to work with Network Rail and focus efforts on providing passengers with an even better service.”