§ Mr. Donovanasked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware that the 8.54 a.m. train from Alton to Waterloo left Alton station on Sunday, 13th October, at that time, notwithstanding that the 7.59 a.m. train from Winchester, which is advertised to connect with the first-mentioned train, arrived in Alton station at 8.55 a.m.; that in consequence nearly 100 passengers lost their London connection; that similar occurrences are not infrequent at Alton station; and whether he will take steps to remove this cause of complaint.
§ Mr. BarnesI am informed that on 13th October the7.59 a.m. train from Alton to Waterloo was delayed by engineering work. To have held the electric connecting service to allow for the transfer of passengers would have caused a delay of about six minutes. The electric trains run to a very close schedule and this delay 23W would have caused difficulty at Woking where this train is joined up with through coaches from the Portsmouth line. It would also have affected the return services owing to the short lie-over times at the London and country terminals and caused reactionary delays on the Ascot and Reading services. The following electric train left Alton half an hour later.