'No guarantees' on rail travel; Train firms reject compensation claim.

Byline: BY DAVID HIGGERSON Daily Post Staff

TRAVELLERS have no guarantee they will get to their destination by rail when they buy a ticket at a train station, the group representing operating companies claimed last night.

The Association of Train Operating Companies made the bold claim while waving away calls by a North West travel watchdog for passengers forced to use rail replacement buses and coaches to be given financial compensation.

Travelwatch North West made its plea after producing a report into the effects of rail replacement buses have on passeng ers.

The modernisation of the West Coast Mainline led to large sections being closed at weekends, with passengers instead ferried between stations by coach or bus.

It is now standard practice within the rail industry for sections of railway to be closed entirely whenever work needs to take place, and such closures have hit virtually every rail line in Merseyside and Cheshire over the past few years. But, in carrying out its research, Travelwatch found that replacing trains with buses meant longer journeys for passengers, confusion over which bus to catch and hardship for those with limited mobility because of the extra transfers.

It has now called for Network Rail, the company which runs the rail network, to end so-called "total blockade" closures in favour of partial closures, with a limited timetable of trains running along a reduced number of tracks on any given route. That would reduce the need for rail replacement buses. But in cases where there is no alternative but to cancel trains, several buses should be hired so passengers are taken directly to their station rather than having to visit every other one on the way.

And those passengers who do have to use buses instead of trains should be compensated or given a reduced-price ticket.

But when asked by the Daily Post about the recommendations in the report, an ATOC spokesman said: "The only guarantee made when a ticket is sold is that the train operating company will get the passenger to their destination.

"The issue of compensation has not been raised before and ultimately when buses are laid on to replace trains, it is not the fault of the train operating company.

"Operating companies try to ensure passenger disruption is kept to a minimum."

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Call for end to total closures of lines