Looking through my old mail, I came across the following that was written just before Christmas 2006, from Andrew Griffiths. It's a circular letter, so it's very much in the public domain.
Dear All
Although the December 2006 timetable is not yet two week old, the process has already started for planning the December 2007 timetable ... [snip] ... all observations and suggestions are very welcome.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your input and support during the early days of the new franchise. It has not all been plain sailing, of course, but everyone at FGW is looking forward to delivering real improvements in 2007, and creating stronger partnerships with you our stakeholders.
Best wishes for a happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year,
Andrew
Regional Manager, Central (Severn & Solent)
Taking as a "base point" the franchise when First Great Western took it over, has it improved? Did we see any real improvements on the TransWilts between 21st December 2006 (when he wrote the letter) and the end of 2007?
My own view is that the five trains a day / cancelaltion rate of about 2% of services under Wessex Trains has been replaced by a significantly poorer service - two trains a day with a 7% cancellation rate (over a three month period this winter which is the last I analysed) is NOT a significant improvement and indeed I feel it would be peverse logic for anyone to describe it as such.
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