Troubled Southern franchise to axe hundreds of trains a day, union tell MPs

The number of rail services serving routes to the southern coast, Surrey, and west London to be reduced?

The Rail, Maritime and Transport Union has outlined to Parliament how the Southern franchise plans to cancel a further 350 trains a day due to a shortage of staff and industrial action.

The franchisee Govia Thameslink Railway has blamed high levels of staff sickness but RMT took to the media to blast a "savage attack on passenger services that has nothing to do with staff sickness and everything to do with gross mismanagement of this franchise and failure to emply enough guards and drivers". The claims were made as the Commons transport committee holds an evidence session today to investigate the causes of disruption, amid calls for GTR to be stripped of the franchise.

Dyan Crowther, chief operating officer, GTR, this morning set out the remedial measures the company has introduced and the firm's perspective on industrial action by the union.