Trying times for train companies

20 teams, thousands of fans and one winner, it can only mean one thing – time to moan about the railways.

The Rugby World Cup has been a testing time for train companies who have had to tackle an increase in passengers and usage. Almost 40,000 watched Australia take on Uruguay at Villa Park in Birmingham but hundreds were left at the station as a train from Euston to Birmingham was cancelled. Those who made it onto other services complained about overcrowded carriages. The last train to Wales from London Paddington after the showdown between England v Wales at Twickenham on Saturday left at 10pm, half an hour after the match ended.

A spokesman for London Midland said ‘by and large the services we have put on have got people to the game’ and that ‘every opportunity’ had been taken to warn people that services would be busy. They further advised that an additional 11 trains with a total of extra 6,500 seats were available on Saturday.

Great Western Railway have previously said they are ‘working hard’ to get people to and from games and advised that hundreds of extra trains and thousands of extra seats would be available throughout the tournament.

Samantha Nickson from Gordons says: “Given that at the end of a match there are thousands of people leaving the stadium and that the majority are headed for the train station, it’s not surprising that rail companies have come under pressure. What seems apparent however is that they are doing all they can to alleviate the strain by making more trains and seats available.”

Click here to view the article on the Daily Mail.

If you would like to discuss this article in further detail, please contact Samantha Nickson, on 0113 227 0372 or at samantha.nickson@gordonsllp.com.