By Jessica Frank-Keyes
Train passengers in Britain have faced record levels of disruption over the last twelve months, with new figures revealing 2022-23 was the worst year ever for rail cancellations.
Passengers have faced record levels of disruption after the past year was the worst on record for train cancellations, figures from the Office for Road and Rail (ORR) have revealed.
Statistics released by the Office for Road and Rail (ORR) state that for April 2022 to March 2023 the “cancellations score for the latest year was 3.8 per cent, the highest since the time series began”.
It follows months of rail and transport disruption thanks to strikes by unions over the cost of living crisis and a pensions and conditions dispute with government and rail companies.
More than 40,000 rail services were cancelled across Britain in the latest quarter.
Just last week, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak ditched plans to include legislation for the Great British Railways in the upcoming King’s Speech, as first reported by the Times.
‘Spiral of decline’
The Labour party has branded the Conservative’s approach to the railways as overseeing “a spiral of decline”, after government was forced to take control of the failing Transpennine Express.
Shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh said: “The state of our railways is shocking, and passengers are desperate for change across the network. But the government has given up on reforming our railways even as they continue to fail passengers across the country.
“The next Labour government will reform our railways by bringing operators back into public ownership; bring track and train together and put passengers at the heart of the system.”
The Department for Transport has been contacted for comment.
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