Graham Greenhalgh presses Northern Rail to reverse train cuts

by Lib Dem team on 29 June, 2018

Cllr Graham Greenhalgh successfully proposed a motion to Stockport Full Council this evening calling on Northern Rail to restore a rail service to Gatley, Heald Green, and other stations across Stockport where they were cut in May.

The motion was seconded by Cllr Adrian Nottingham from the Heald Green Ratepayers.

The next timetable changes are in December, but it takes several months to prepare for them. (Northern Rail being late last time is what caused some of the problems).

So this is urgent. If Northern Rail – and everyone else who has a hand in rail timetables, doesn’t get the message now, it may be too late.

Here’s the motion:

Council notes:

1. The new train timetable introduced on May 20th saw the biggest changes across the UK network for more than a decade.

2. Northern Rail did very little consultation on its proposed changes. Stockport Council was not consulted, nor were rail users.

3. The new timetable has resulted in chaotic scenes with large numbers of services cancelled or delayed.

4. Even if the new timetable had worked perfectly, services for Stockport including the Manchester Airport, Hazel Grove and Goyt Valley lines would still have seen a drop in services. Stations such as Gatley, Heald Green and Hazel Grove have lost services, especially in the morning peak, and there are far fewer services stopping at all intermediate stations along these lines.

5. Politicians from across the political spectrum have been up in arms, demanding that the chaos that followed May 20th be resolved.

6. There has as yet been no clear or consistent explanation for what went wrong or how to fix it. Driver shortages, overrunning electrification works, Northern Rail slowness in timetabling and Transport for the North/Department for Transport policy have all been blamed at some point.

7. This is harming our economy and causing real problems for Stockport residents.

8. With the next timetable change due in December, time is short to resolve these issues.

Council believes:

1. While cancelled and delayed trains have rightly grabbed the headlines, the underlying problem of reduced Northern Rail services on many lines, including the Manchester Airport, Hazel Grove and Goyt Valley lines, must not be forgotten.

2. As a minimum, the December timetable change should see the services across Stockport which have deteriorated revert to the pre-May 20th number, speed and frequency of services to all stations.

3. We need to understand why this has happened so the lessons can be learned and it doesn’t happen again.

Council resolves:

1. To ask the Chief Executive to write to the following organisations: Northern Rail, Network Rail, Department for Transport, Transport for the North, Transport for Greater Manchester, GMCA and TransPennine Express.

2. That the letter requests that the local rail services across Stockport which have deteriorated including Heald Green, Gatley and Hazel Grove stations be, at the least, restored to pre-May 20th levels in the December 2018 timetable changes.

   11 Comments

11 Responses

  1. Alan says:

    Also perhaps write to the “Invisible Woman” – our MP, to engage her support?

    • bruce says:

      Alan please tell us why you made this comment? The article states all parties are seeking answers?

      • Alan says:

        All parties is a very generic statement and can just mean local councillors. I note that in the people being addressed our “local” MP- who lives 30 miles away and whom I’ve never seen, is not on the list- no matter I’ll do it myself and get the usual platitude as a response. She has never yet voted against the party by the way irrespective of her constituents views.

        • Bruce says:

          Alan – have you anything to say about Mark Hunter and tuition fees?

          Whatever criticisms you level at our local MP she never put her signature to anything whilst electioneering that she reneged on whilst in office.

          • Iain Roberts says:

            Why do I have the feeling that we’ll be here in 20 years time and you’ll still be banging on about tution fees. Almost as if you’ve nothing else to attack the Lib Dems over, Bruce 🙂

        • Bruce says:

          IAIN – other things to attack the Lib dems? I have dozens and when the appropriate subject arises I certainly will mention them. (Clue :- next one could be Gatley primary)

    • Ian says:

      The MP is working for Cheadle but you are not likely to read that here, are you?

  2. Frederick KENNY says:

    Considerable newspaper speculation that Northern Rail’s owners are to be booted out of all their franchises due to gross incompetence (inc. Thameslink) and replaced by public ownership at least in the short term (similar to East Coast Virgin now LNER).

    All staff except the useless, blotad expensive management would transfer.

    I hope that happens.

  3. Lee Griffiths says:

    So what has the motion actually achieved! Nothing! Northern Fail won’t address the timetable until December, You counteracted the argument.

    Gatley will still be never thought of and I am still awaiting delay repay from the beginning of March, with the Transport Focus Group and they are a joke!

    What are you doing now!!!!

    • Iain Roberts says:

      Hi Lee – we hope the motion will add to the pressure on Northern Rail and others to reverse the service cuts at the first opportunity – which is the next timetable revision in December. It takes months to put together a new timetable, so that work has to start now.

      In addition to this motion, we have been in contact with Northern Rail, TfGM, the Mayor and others to push for immediate action to improve the service for local travellers while those timetable revisions are being worked through.

Leave a Reply

You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>