From the
Bath Chronicle:
A deal being brokered to run trains on the mainline between Bath and London will not see services cut the Government has pledged.
Rail Minister Theresa Villiers said the current level of the service on the Great Western network would act as the starting point in drawing up the new contract.
She stressed the need to learn lessons from the ^serious mistakes^ made in letting the current franchise by the previous government, which saw reduced services resulting in over-crowding.
It came as the government ^fired the starting gun^ on selecting the new operator to run services on the Great Western route from 2013. Tenders are to be invited next year.
Mrs Villiers also confirmed it is proposed the new franchise would run for 15-years, allowing for increased long-term investment.
Crucially, the Minister said the Government were interested in hearing from would-be bidders about proposals to roll out electrification of the mainline.
And Ms Villiers highlighted the ^great benefits^ of linking the network to Heathrow.
The Government this week issued an official public notice announcing its intention to go for a 15-year franchise.
It came as MPs▸ from across the region and parties came together at Westminster to present the Minister with a wish-list of requirements for the new contract.
These included more trains to ease over-crowding, lower fares, and station improvements.
Lib Dem MP for Chippenham Duncan Hames said the current franchise had seen cuts to services.
He told the Minister: ^I am determined that that should not be allowed to happen under the new franchise, but that instead we will see the franchise get Wiltshire moving and help people in my constituency to use the railways to get to work.^
The contract offered the opportunity to build on the success of the TransWilts rail service, which had trialled extra Sunday services between Westbury and Swindon via Melksham.
Mr Hames added: ^Demand locally has risen well above the national level of growth, and I implore the Minister to consider overcrowding once more in further franchise specifications.
^I would appreciate her reassurance that in the Great Western franchise renewal process, bidders^ proposed efficiency measures will not be looked upon favourably if they involve cutting carriages and reducing seats.
^Franchisees should be required to deal with overcrowding not by pushing down demand with increased fares but by increasing capacity.^
The new franchise also presented opportunities for services between Oxford and Bristol, said the MP.
^Quite aside from the benefits of linking such high value-added university economies, there is also the opportunity of the reopening of Corsham station, which would be served by trains on that route,^ he said.
Responding, Mrs Villiers said: ^Improving infrastructure is an important part of the way we are seeking to improve rail services on the Great Western network.^
She went on: ^Our starting point is setting the specification for the franchise will be the current level of service rather than the contracted minimum.^
^We will be asking bidders to consider how they would strengthen the reliability of services and improve stations and trains.^
