With the implementation of the December 2006 First Great Western (FGW) timetable on Sunday approaching I thought I should update you on the campaign for a decent service to Maidenhead and Twyford.
In August I announced that following sustained pressure FGW agreed to add to the timetable a 0704 and 0726 fast service, stopping Twyford and Maidenhead. The 0726 service will commence at Twyford and therefore will be empty when it reaches the station. I would be interested to hear whether this dedicated Twyford and Maidenhead to London service makes a positive difference to your morning commute.
However this small concession is not enough and obviously there are still major gaps in the new timetable. This is despite the 2,500 signature petition which was presented to the Department of Transport.
Therefore I have continued to meet with Network Rail and FGW to press the need for a full reinstatement of all fast and semi-fast services to Maidenhead and Twyford. It was interesting to note that both organisations were aware that the December 2006 timetable is insufficient to meet the volume of commuters from Maidenhead and Twyford. However neither were willing to take responsibility for the downgraded services and preferred to point the finger at one another.
I have also raised the issue in a meeting yesterday with a Transport Minister, Gillian Merron, which I attended with other MPs and local businesses to discuss the need to improve transport infrastructure in the Thames Valley.
In my recent meeting with FGW they revealed that they will be spending£150 million on refurbishing their rolling stock which they expect to be completed by December 2007. They will replace a lot of the slower and smaller capacity trains and we will have to start campaigning now to ensure that this will make a positive difference to the services to Maidenhead and Twyford in the December 2007 timetable.
Sadly the battle has to continue; indeed no sooner is one timetable introduced than we need to think about the new timetable for December 2007.
FGW tell me that they will not be holding a proper consultation on the December 2007 timetable because the volume of complaints for 2006 was more than they could handle. This is obviously unacceptable and just another way in which they intend to force us to settle on an insufficient service. If you would like to have your say on the sort of service you would like in the December 2007 timetable, I urge you to write to Richard Rowland General Manager for the Thames Valley area at Richard.Rowland@firstgroup.com copying me in at mayt@parliament.uk. Your complaint needs to be in by 18th January 2007 as FGW have told me that comments after that will be ‘difficult’ to incorporate into the December 2007 timetable.
Rest assured that I will not accept this short timetable for consultation and will continue to raise this issue until we have a satisfactory timetable for next December.
If you would prefer to meet Richard in person, he will be at Maidenhead on the evening of Monday 11th January between 4-7pm, Twyford on Tuesday 12th between 4-7pm and London Paddington on the 14th between 4-7pm.
Alternatively on Monday 11th December I shall be at Twyford and Maidenhead stations during the morning peak and will be happy to speak with any of you about the new service and discuss improvements we can insist on for the future.
I can assure you that I shall continue to press FGW, Network Rail and the Department for transport for not only for a realistic timetable, but for reliable services with sufficient carriages to transport the large number of commuters that travel every day from Maidenhead and Twyford to Paddington. I shall also be raising these issues once again in the House of Commons to ensure that the Department of Transport is made aware of how insufficient the December 2006 timetable is and furthermore that we are not willing to simply accept such a reduced service.
Thank you very much for your continued support of the campaign. The new timetable will come into force on December 10th and I am aware how concerning this is for many of you. As ever, please feel free to keep me informed of your experiences with FGW. I shall continue to campaign for a better service such as that we have enjoyed in the past, and I shall continue to keep you informed of the progress.
Sincerely,
Theresa May
