Student petition for longer train

STUDENTS who travel to The Henley College by train are calling for an extra carriage due to concerns about overcrowding.

Ivy Higley, who works at the college, has launched a petition for the carriage to be added to the Great Western Railway service from Twyford to Henley during peak travel times.

It comes after students spoke of having to wait for a later train due to there not being enough room for passengers in the current two-carriage trains.

Students also said the delay had caused them to be more than an hour late for lessons and that the number of people “squeezed” into carriages caused them to feel unwell. The petition has so far been signed by more than 200 people. Sophie Spence, 17, travels from Reading daily to college and says the journey can be “uncomfortable”.

She said: “Luckily, I’ve not missed the train because of overcrowding but I’ve been really crammed in by the door and I’ve seen other people miss their train because of it.

“It’s possible to add another carriage, especially because they have done it during the royal regatta. The service just needs improving.”

Clem Foley, 16, who also travels from Reading, said: “Two weeks ago, they had a different train and that was fine because I was able to get a seat every morning but then they switched it back at the beginning of last week and it was just back to being crowded and cramped. It’s irritating.

“I think lots of people are uncomfortable.”

Miss Foley said every morning she sees “at least three people” miss the 8.25am service because of capacity issues.

She said: “I’ve been pushed up against the door because of overcrowding and I’ve been told before that I’ve had to wait for the next train.

“I’ve been late for college
10 times. One time, my friend and I were smushed up against the door and someone opened the door to get on and they couldn’t even get in.

“Their bag wouldn’t be able to fit because it was just so crowded.

“It does make me frustrated.”

Neil Gunnell, who set up the Henley Trains user group, raised concerns about the college having a capacity problem which he said has put pressure on train infrastructure.

He said: “I understand it’s not Great Western Railway’s fault that the college is bringing in more people than the infrastructure can support. The real problem is there’s only a certain number of trains to go around.

“As I understand it, there’s generally one spare train at the depot in Reading for any breakdowns on any of the seven lines that they are used on. There isn’t the infrastructure at the moment to be able to do it.”

He added that the Henley branch line was due to be electrified several years ago which would have meant four carriage trains would be possible, alleviating capacity issues.

However, these plans were cut back.

Mr Gunnell added: “It’s impossible to ‘magic up’ 30-year-old diesel trains because they are no longer manufactured and adding individual carriages isn’t feasible as trains operate in two or three fixed-carriage sets.”

Henley MP Freddie van Mierlo, who last year wrote to Mark Hopwood, the managing director of Great Western Railway, said he “absolutely” supports the call for change.

He said: “When I get on the train and go to London in the morning, I often see The Henley College students coming off and I see crowded trains. It looks very uncomfortable.

“Fundamentally, the problem that has been described to me is a lack of rolling stock.

“There is a lack of carriages available overall within the system and if they were to put an additional carriage in Henley, that would be taking it away from somewhere else that may also need it or have an even higher demand.

“I have fought really hard to get additional rolling stock.”

Simon Spearman, principal at The Henley College, said: “Henley is fortunate to be well connected, with a range of transport options across the Thames Valley, and we welcome our students showing initiative and civic awareness by constructively raising their experiences through this petition.”

A spokesman from Great Western Railway said: “We understand how frustrating it can be if a service is busy and customers need to stand.

“We’d love to add an extra carriage to this service but the reality is we’re working with a limited pool of trains.

“Running a longer train here would mean a shorter one somewhere else, potentially creating the issue for more passengers elsewhere.

“Looking ahead, we are working with the Department for Transport to review our long-term fleet requirements, giving us greater flexibility to respond to demand where it’s needed most.”