Rail passengers 'not satisfied' with region's trains

Two rail companies in the Anglia region are among the worst in the country when it comes to customer satisfaction, a new survey has found

According to a Which? survey only 40% of passengers were satisfied with Greater Anglia and only 41% with First Capital Connect.

First Capital Connect and Greater Anglia also scored the lowest for cleanliness.

Ten of the 19 companies across the country had satisfaction scores of less than 50%, with Merseyrail (70%) the best-performing company.

The survey was conducted among 7,415 UK adults in November 2013,

Which? also asked what passengers felt would improve their journeys and what they would be prepared to pay more for.

Lower ticket prices were top of the wanted list (60%), with 80% saying fares were too high. People also wanted to see more carriages at peak times (35%), promotions on ticket prices (29%), wi-fi as standard (20%) and improved punctuality and reliability (18% - rising to 29% for commuters only.)

However, more than half (53%) said they would not mind paying more if they saw an improvement in service in return. Half (49%) would pay more for a more reliable service, and a similar number (48%) would pay more to guarantee a seat. A total of 42% would pay more if the money went towards new trains.

Which? executive director Richard Lloyd said: "Seven rail franchises end in the next two years and we want to see passengers' experiences put right at the heart of the tender process so companies respond to consumer expectations and can be held to account if they don't."