Yesterday in Parliament Telford’s MP Lucy Allan met with the new train operator in Telford, Keolis Amey which will operate under the umbrella of Transport for Wales.
The new rail franchise took over from Arriva Trains Wales last month and will serve Shropshire and Mid Wales. As part of the new deal, Transport for Wales Rail has pledged to invest £5 billion in services over the 15-year term of the franchise.
They will introduce new rolling stock from 2022 and will increase passenger capacity by two thirds to address overcrowding. The new trains which will also feature air conditioning and on-board Wi-Fi and will be totally refurbished and rebranded over the next four years.
Lucy Allan said:
“I was pleased to meet with the new operators to discuss how to deliver a train service that meets the growing needs of our town.
“The operators acknowledged that the existing service, even if operating as expected, is still inadequate for our needs. Transport for Wales will be delivering more capacity with new carriages, but it will be sometime before they are in service. The good news is we now have a commitment to a new semi fast service each hour from next May.
“I have long been campaigning for one more fast train per hour, so this is a welcome step. This will add the extra capacity we desperately need from Telford to Birmingham as Telford is a major population centre and contributor to the West Midlands economy. Train operators have agreed to work with the Telford Train Forum going forward to ensure we have a joined-up strategic approach to Telford’s rail connectivity needs.”