Passengers have been "right" to be disappointed by trains, and improving "reliability and punctuality" is a priority, the managing director of rail operator Great Western Railways (GWR) has said.
GWR managing director Mark Hopwood CBE faced questions and complaints from passengers in the South West during an appearance on BBC Radio Cornwall. He outlined the operator's plan to improve future services, including tackling delays, cancellations, breakdowns, overcrowding and fares.
"There's a lot of work to do – we've got to work jointly with our friends in Network Rail and we've got some challenges we're well advanced on addressing," he said.
"We are working really hard on this. I'm really unhappy with the last period of performance," said Hopwood.
He said performance data still showed 78% of trains were within three minutes of their target times.
"But, when it goes wrong, people are not happy and quite rightly so," he added.
"We've got some challenges, particularly with our rolling stock. We've got a recovery plan… it is something we are firmly focussed on."
He said the company was working closely with Network Rail, which manages the tracks, level crossings, signalling and infrastructure.
In March 2025, GWR announced plans to boost its fleet with 26 Class 175 trains inherited from Transport for Wales. Hopwood said at the time they would "increase resilience".
But he conceded they had seen "more faults and failures than we would like" since their roll-out, amid passenger complaints of cancellations and delays.
He said: "I'm disappointed and I think our customers are right to be disappointed. We're absolutely determined to sort this out."
He said many passengers had given positive feedback about the comfort of the carriages but added they were working with manufacturer Alstom on technical issues.
"What I want for people… is new trains and we're working hard. But, even if I get to a point where I can persuade people to sign off an order, we're not going to see those trains for four or five years, so we have to make sure the trains we have are working as reliably as they possibly can be."
He said it was "top of everyone's agenda" to get the trains working more effectively.
Source: BBC — Read the original article
Customers ‘right’ to be disappointed with GWR