Chris Atkinson, Head of Communications at c2c presented the report to Members and report that:

·         1,600 more Thurrock station passengers now get a seat compared to September 2016.

·         85 per cent of Thurrock passengers were now seated despite the increase of 5.6 per cent of Thurrock passengers in the last six months.

·         c2c trains are less crowded at their busiest periods.

·         c2c punctuality was better now than last autumn.

Chris Atkinson commented on the latest Thurrock passenger numbers comparing them from March 2016 to February 2017 and explained the availability of seats at the AM and PM peak times.

The latest passenger satisfaction survey undertaken by Transport Focus on 30,000 c2c passengers indicated an 87 per cent of passengers were satisfied with the service with key crowding metrics being scored the best results for last three years.

Chris Atkinson stated that punctuality had been the main issue affecting satisfaction scores in September 2016. The 83 per cent punctuality satisfaction was c2c worst figure in recent times but was still far higher than the United Kingdom train operator average of 69 per cent.

Chris Atkinson informed Members that c2c had been purchased by Trenitalia who were Italy’s main rail operator. He confirmed to Members that it was business as usual for c2c and passengers and that further announcements would likely to be made over the coming year regarding technology and ticketing.

Councillor Rice thanked Chris Atkinson for the report.

Councillor Gerrish commented on the levels of crowding especially at Barking Station and asked what steps c2c were putting in place to monitor this. Chris Atkinson stated that Barking to West Ham had always been the busiest area. C2c had to balance the needs of all passengers and continually monitored the situation.

Councillor Smith stated that the report did not seem to reflect the feedback received from passengers. Chris Atkinson explained that c2c had not become complacent. It had addressed the issues and improvements had been made. Compared to this time last year significant changes had been made to address overcrowding.

Councillor Smith questioned why the new trains had not been allocated to the Thurrock network. Chris Atkinson stated that c2c had been clear throughout that the new trains would not be coming into Thurrock and that the trains were designed for longer distance journeys. This had freed up more carriages for Thurrock which were standard 15 years old carriages.

Councillor Gerrish questioned whether the length of stopping time at Barking Station could be reduced based on feedback received from passengers. Chris Atkinson stated that 90 seconds was the intended time for the train to dwell to ensure sufficient time to allow passengers to get on and off the train. Barking Station was the busiest station and that c2c would continue to monitor these times.

Councillor Rice stated that Members found the coloured AM and PM peak seat availability tables useful and looked forward to future reports and updates.

RESOLVED

That the c2c Update Report will continue to be presented to the Planning Transport and Regeneration Overview and Scrutiny Committee on a six monthly basis.

Chris Atkinson left the committee room at 7.20pm.