Greater Anglia Franchise Extended

The Department for Transport (DfT) has today announced that the Greater Anglia franchise run by Abellio is to be extended to October 2016.  It had originally been due to expire in July 2014.  This has come about as part of a review of the whole franchising process following the West Coast main line debacle that has seen many franchises extended.

Full details of the DfT announcement can be found here.

Greater Anglia Named Best Train Operator(!)

Less than two weeks after being voted second worst operator (worst amongst commuters) in the UK by Which? Magazine, Greater Anglia has been awarded Train Operator Of The Year at the annual Rail Business Awards.  The independent judging panel - who judging from the feedback that we have been getting from regular travellers have never been on a Greater Anglia train in their lives - praised GA's improved punctuality, higher customer service standards and engagement, and station improvements.  Special mention was made of the excellent performance during the Olympics but nothing about the poor state of the trains on the Great Eastern main line.

Extraordinary

Which? Passenger Survey Results Different To Passenger Focus

Which? Magazine has published results of a survey which suggests that less than 50% of passengers are satisfied with the service provided by their train operating company.  This is a sharp contrast to to those figures published by Passenger Focus recently which suggested satisfaction levels of 85%.  The Which? results however are more in line with feedback received.

The Passenger Focus survey questioned 31,626 passengers in their survey to Which? Magazine's 7,500 passengers.  However the Which? survey questioned regular travellers.

Job Track Scheme Launched

Greater Anglia has launched a new 'Job Track' scheme - a free rail ticket scheme for job seekers in the region. The scheme will help the unemployed by offering free train tickets to travel to job interviews and, when successful in gaining employment, further help is available - with a free season ticket for their first two months in work. 

It is a new initiative, aimed at helping the unemployed find work and enabling them to broaden their horizons to consider employment opportunities outside of their immediate local area, but within reasonable commuting distances.  

Greater Anglia will offer those joining the scheme a maximum of six day return tickets to attend job interviews at locations within the train operator’s network and, on securing work, eligible applicants can apply for an initial two-month season ticket free-of-charge. This will provide those successful in securing employment with a month to establish themselves in their new job, followed by a second month of free travel to assist them in putting their finances on a firm footing. 

The scheme is being promoted and publicised at Job Centres and applicants meeting the required criteria to qualify for the scheme, will be able to apply for tickets through the Greater Anglia website.

ERUF To Lobby The ORR For Investment In Local Rail

Following on from the East Anglian Rail prospectus published last year, Greater Anglia has asked over 200 interested parties to lobby the government for greater investment in the region's railways.  The prospectus was prepared with input from county and district councils, user groups and Greater Anglia themselves and is possibly the first time all interested parties have been calling for the same thing!

Specifically, interested parties are being asked to look for investment in three particular areas:

1. Improvements to infrastructure to allow for faster journey times on the Great Eastern Mainline and West Anglia routes
2. Additional track to the north of Chelmsford - ideally long passing loops parallel to the existing tracks in the vicinity of the proposed Beaulieu Park station
3. Extension of the third track from Stratford to at least Angel Road and ideally Brimsdown on the West Anglia Route

As a contributor to the original prospectus ERUF will be lobbying the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) for the necessary investment to achieve these aims.

To view an ITV Anglia news item on this please click here.

Weekly Seasons - Advanced Purchase

There is a strange ATOC (Association of Train Operating Companies of which Greater Anglia is a member) ruling that says Weekly Season tickets cannot be purchased in advance - something you are able to do with other types of ticket.  However it seems that in certain cases staff can override this restriction.  Have you ever been refused such a ticket when trying to purchase one in advance?  Perhaps you could let us know please at info@eruf.org

Thanks.

Discount Ticket For Couples

Greater Anglia has launched the Duo ticket to mark the end of regular weekend engineering work, which has seen bus replacement services operating on The Great Eastern line on Saturdays and Sundays for some years.

The Duo is available from all mainline stations south of Manningtree, including Colchester, Clacton, Harwich, Braintree and Chelmsford.

It can be used when two adults buy a super off peak day return. The second adult’s ticket is charged at half the usual price.