All change on the trains

SUNDAY 12 is D-Day. Rail timetables face the biggest shake-up in nearly 40 years as South West Trains introduce the first radical changes since steam trains were seen at Southampton. Old slam-door carriages are being phased out and railway bosses are heralding a new era of train travel. But can the sweeping changes entice people out of their cars? Claire Moriarty puts South West Trains' commercial director Rufus Boyd on the spot about the new timetable - and the future of travel in Hampshire.

Q: What's behind the new timetable and why is it being introduced?

A: The last major change was in 1967 - bear in mind that in 1966 Southampton had steam trains. There have been changes since, but the fundamental structure has been the same.

Why change? First of all, we have new trains. Secondly, in the 37 years since it was drawn up, a lot has happened but it's never really been acknowledged.

For example, some stations have grown extraordinarily. We can't just keep growing the railways without doing something.

So we decided to start again with a blank piece of paper and think about what it takes to create a timetable that's appropriate for now.

Our criteria were, firstly, we would take people where they wanted to go.

Secondly, there would be a standard to train services. They would be every half-hour or hour - the same frequencies - and trains on Saturday would be the same as Monday to Friday.

Thirdly, we wanted a better performing timetable.

That process started two years ago, it went to consultation, and this is what we have come up with.

Q: Who are the winners and losers under the new arrangement?

A: All the big towns, I believe, have genuinely better services. Those without an enhancement have a good service - and all people have a better performing network.

Not everyone is going to be an out-and-out winner. Some people are going to feel hard done by, and speaking to them, they have very convincing arguments.

But we are the only people who can make the trade-off, looking at the whole network - which means I am the most hated man in the south-east at the moment.

But I can live with that because I can see the whole picture.

People's lives can revolve around the time of the train, whether it comes at 7.57am or 8.03am. To be honest, I don't have an answer to those people.

Q: How is it being introduced?

A: When the old timetable was introduced in 1967, anecdotes say it was a shambles. It took some weeks to get things on track.

Now we will do everything we can to make sure there's no reasonable excuse for not knowing your train time.

It's going to have an impact on drivers, guards, signalmen - and customers.

We have made a big effort to get the timetables out early and get staff briefed. Our campaign, Know Your Numbers, is saying we're not kidding.

No single time is the same as it used to be.

On Sunday, December 12, we will have 60 managers on the stations making sure we have a grip on what's happening.

That's not just station managers - that people like me. I've cancelled all meetings for the week.

At the moment I'm 98 per cent sure it will work. I need that two per cent of doubt to drive me to make sure it does.

Q: But will people still have to stand during their journeys?

A: Depending on the route you're on, for the most part, there will be more seats available.

In the morning peak, there will be an increase over the network of 12 additional trains into London.

Q: Will we ever see a move to Continental-style train travel, where tickets are sold on a seat allocation so nobody has to stand?

A: In order to have a time when people don't stand on trains we have to have compulsory seat reservations.

They are fine if people want them. But one of the things people value about a ticket is that you can get on any train.

We could go to reservation-only trains, but it would have to be changed by the industry regulator and that will only happen if the great British public want it.

Q: Can motorists be enticed out of their cars on to trains?

A: I believe we now have an offer that could do it. In terms of ambience, the new trains have air-conditioning, they are more comfortable and easy to clean and they are equipped with closed-circuit TV, so they're safer.

The timetable will also make a big difference. People can get the trains where they want to go, at the time they want - with better frequency and better performance.

All that is a big feather in the cap of rail. Yes, the south does have an excellent motorway network, but look at the problems with the M25, how crowded the M27 is - and the increasing price of petrol.

Q: But it's possible to get a return 45-minute flight to Manchester from Southampton for £40 - and rail fares are to increase by an average four per cent next year. Can trains ever compete?

A: We're not reducing price of travel. We work on a pricing structure that allows people cheaper travel depending on the time of day. If customers are prepared to be a little flexible, they can do it very cheaply by rail.

If you try to get a train before 9am on Monday it will cost more, but try to book a flight then and it will be sold out. Compare like with like and we still remain very cheap.

Q: Why have you asked for an extension on phasing out the slam-door trains, deemed to be dangerous in crashes?

A: Look at any station now and you won't see a slam door train. They have been eliminated very quickly from most routes, and will be substantially clear from the network from March and totally gone by June.

"We would have like to have made the original deadline for getting rid of the trains but there's no point getting rid of them if you haven't got replacements.

I am entirely comfortable with that because we have fairly aggressively removed these carriages at every opportunity.

Q: Will stations be improved?

A: It's absolutely true that stations are our shopfront and we ignore them at our peril. That's why we have spent money making sure they are fit for purpose, with new waiting rooms at Winchester and Southampton.

Over the last year we have been working on 75 stations on our estate - 45 per cent in total. But we have to concentrate on the ones where people travel from, and those that are historically run down.

Stations don't have to be wonderful, just fit for purpose. I don't know how much is set aside, but we are investing in stations.