Exasperated commuters have learned that Southern Rail will not change their reduced Covid timetable, meaning trains going from London Bridge through Peckham and Dulwich will not become more frequent, writes Herbie Russell…
In July 2021, the operator introduced a timetable with fewer regular trains, citing the ‘pingdemic’ as the culprit. Nine months later, little has changed, with Southern Rail blaming the “legacy” of the pandemic.
Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat assembly member and chair of the transport committee said: “I don’t dispute that Covid has had an impact on Southern, but what cannot be overlooked is that driver shortages existed long before the start of Covid and the railway company has not had the resilience of other train companies.
“Southern train timetables appear to have been cut back far more than has been the case with many other train operators.
“As for the future, Covid cannot be used as an excuse for permanently reduced timetables.”
As far back as August, Caroline Pidgeon was saying she was “totally unsatisfied” with the service being provided.
Pandemic timetable chaos: Trains cut by half in south London blamed on COVID
Train users have been letting off steam on social media.
Twitter user @planetotgrapes tweeted Sadiq Khan saying: “Arrived at London Bridge at 23.02. Next train to East Dulwich? 23.54. And you tell us to use public transport? What a f**king joke.”
Michelle Celik tweeted: “You leave the office and get to London Bridge at 18.48. The next train is 19.14. I live in East Dulwich in zone 2? @SadiqKhan why??”
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is not responsible for the service, and he has been calling for the service to come under Transport for London’s control.
Cllr Catherine Rose, Southwark Labour’s cabinet member for transport, parks and sport, told LondonWorld: “Southern Rail has consistently let rail users in Southwark down by hiking up prices whilst continuing to reduce services.
“Southwark Labour is calling for the government to end this failing franchise and bring it back into public ownership as it has done with LNER, Northern and Southeastern.
In an official statement posted online, Southern Rail has blamed “a backlog of training for drivers, meaning fewer are available than is ideal” for the reduced service.
“We are safeguarding key services such as those for schools and rural communities with limited public transport alternatives, meeting demand for commuting and leisure, and then supporting the largest off-peak service that we can.”
Southern Rail hopes to announce an updated timetable in May.