Stoke MP calls Avanti West Coast service 'unacceptable' after being forced to sit on floor of train

A Stoke-on-Trent MP has criticised rail company Avanti West Coast after being forced to sit on the floor of a train from London.

Jo Gideon, the Conservative MP for Stoke-on-Trent Central, hit out at the West Coast Mainline operator after posting a picture of herself sat on the floor of the Avanti train, saying it was "truly unacceptable" that there were no seats available for many passengers.

Direct services between Stoke-on-Trent and London have been cut from two to one train an hour since August, with Avanti blaming "severe staff shortages" and industrial action by drivers. Ms Gideon said she would be writing to bosses at Avanti to raise concerns over the current level of service.

She said: "After a day speaking in the House of Commons, I caught the Avanti West Coast train back from London to Stoke-on-Trent Central sat on the floor.

"There are people in every seat, aisle and like me sat on the floor which is truly unacceptable.

"Stoke-on-Trent residents deserve reliable, accessible and fair-priced rail services with a guaranteed seat.

"I will be writing to the bosses at Avanti West Coast, speaking further with my colleagues in Westminster and will continue to outline concerns with the Government until I am confident residents have the services they deserve."

Newcastle MP Aaron Bell raised similar concerns with Avanti's recent performance in the House of Commons earlier this week.

Mr Bell said his constituents were having to put with a "terrible service" from Avanti, with the one train each hour frequently "being rammed".

Mr Bell said: "This is plainly not good enough...Avanti have given assurances that services should improve very significantly in December, as nearly 100 newly trained drivers have now entered the service.

"Avanti have been given a six month extension to sort this problem out (stripping them of their franchise now would not address the underlying issue, and would probably make things worse).

"I will continue to hold them to account on behalf of those Newcastle-under-Lyme constituents who rely on their services."

Avanti has blamed "unofficial strike action" by members of Aslef, the train drivers' union, for its staff shortages, with nearly all drivers currently refusing to work overtime on rest days.

But Aslef denies that this is strike action, and says the problems are down to Avanti not recruiting enough drivers.

According to an Avanti West Coast factsheet, the company has nearly 600 drivers, more than the previous franchise holder, and almost 100 new drivers will have entered into passenger service between April and December.

Avanti says it reduced its timetable to improve reliability, but that there will be a "significant increase" to services in December, which will not be dependent on overtime.

An Avanti West Coast spokesperson said: "We know we’re not delivering the service our customers rightly expect and we apologise for the enormous frustration and inconvenience caused. Our customers and communities deserve a dependable train service, and we’re working hard to rebuild our timetable in a resilient and sustainable way, as well as increase the booking horizon for weekends."