§ 75. Mr. J. E. Haireasked the Minister of Transport if he is aware of the continued dissatisfaction which is felt by persons travelling from Marylebone to High Wycombe and Princes Risborough owing to the late running of trains; and whether he will take steps to improve the service.
§ Mr. BarnesI am informed that timekeeping on the Marylebone-High Wycombe line is not good, owing to204W shortage of locomotives and to difficulties in locomotive maintenance on the L.N.E.R. Every effort is being made to improve the general locomotive position.
§ 82. Mr. Dribergasked the Minister of Transport if he is aware that the 5.42 p.m. train from Liverpool Street is regularly between 15 and 4o minutes late on arrival at Witham and that on some occasions recently this 38-miles journey has taken 110 minutes and if he will take steps to improve this service or to amend the schedule so that it is not misleading to passengers.
§ Mr. BarnesI am informed that between 4th and 15th November the average late arrival at Witham of the 5.42 p.m. train from Liverpool Street was 18 minutes. The late running is due almost entirely to poor locomotive performance. The company is endeavouring to raise the standard of maintenance of its engines, a considerable proportion of which has had to be kept in service beyond the normal state for replacement, owing to the exigencies of the war years. Meanwhile attempts to re-adjust timetables to irregular and unpredictable delays would reduce the incentive to improve timekeeping and deprive travellers of the advantage of faster journeys on those occasions when adverse conditions do not obtain.
§ 96. Mr. Ellis Smithasked the Minister of Transport if he will arrange for an improved train service between Stoke-on-Trent and other centres, in particular, between Stoke, Liverpool, Manchester and other large centres.
§ Mr. BarnesI understand that the services now in operation are adequate to carry the traffic, and that, in present circumstances, their augmentation would not be justified.
§ 97. Mr. Ellis Smithasked the Minister of Transport if he will arrange for improved transport facilities in all industrial centres between 6.30 a.m. and 8 a.m. and between 5 p.m. and 6.30 p.m.
§ Mr. BarnesRoad and rail passenger transport is, in general, at full stretch during the peak periods. I am, however, always ready to investigate any specific complaints.
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§ 100. Mr. Sorensenasked the Minister of Transport if he will take steps to improve the train service between Leyton and Liverpool Street stations, in view of trains being overdue for leaving by half-an-hour or more and the unwarned cancellation of services.
§ Mr. BarnesThe L.N.E. Railway Company are short of serviceable locomotives. This delays services and sometimes makes it necessary to cancel trains at short notice. Every effort is being made to improve the position.