The rail regulator has pledged to investigate continued poor performance of the Midlands train operator after a series of strike and sickness related delays.

West Worcestershire MP Harriett Baldwin met with Office of Rail and Road chair Declan Collier to talk about issues with the transport network and she flagged concerns regarding the continuing issues with West Midland Trains.

The rail operator has blamed higher-than-average sickness rates and strikes for increased train service delays and cancellations before Christmas and the Department for Transport committed to monitor the franchise holder’s performance.

In previous briefings, the operator has promised to recruit enough train drivers to prevent cancellations but the issue is still not fixed two years after making the first commitment to Harriett and rail users.

Harriett also urged the regulator to help with speeding up the work to build a new car park at Pershore station and to add Cross Country services at Worcestershire parkway as well as supporting the plans to double further sections of track along the Cotswold Line between Worcester and Oxford.

Harriett said:

“Worcester Parkway is performing better than ever and clearly some rail services are doing very well, so I am keen for us to exploit the extra demand for rail journeys.

“I welcome the regulator’s pledge to look at the performance of West Midlands Trains and hope that the management will continue to press on with driver recruitment to fix their issues.

“And I’ve asked the regulator to look at how Network Rail manages smaller projects, such as the Pershore station expansion – because they seem to be slipping off the radar and getting forgotten about.

“Public transport will be vital if we are to deliver on our net zero ambitions and I welcome the input of the regulator to help us all choose the train more often.”

Photo: Harriett Baldwin MP with ORR chair Declan Collier.