Cuts to trains at Wakefield Westgate made without consulting the authorities

The decision to stop trains stopping at Wakefield Westgate station was made without consulting local authorities, it has been reported.

At a meeting of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) Transport Committee, councilors expressed their frustration at CrossCountry’s decision to reduce the number of trains stopping at Wakefield Westgate during the summer months. They claimed the decision would put pressure on the local rail network and leave some communities “isolated”.

This follows CrossCountry’s decision, which means ten services a day between Scotland and the south west of England will no longer stop in the city.

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CrossCountry said this was designed to encourage passengers making shorter journeys to use other services so as to free up space for those making longer journeys. A report says this decision was made without consulting WYCA or Transport for the North (TfN).

A number of concerns were raised at a transport committee meeting on Friday 24 May. Armaan Khan, who represents Normanton on Wakefield Council, said: “I can add to my frustrations with the CrossCountry service and the changes that are coming.

“Do we know why there was no consultation with the combined authority on this? Is the decision likely to be reviewed at any point in the future?”

Dave Haskins, WYCA acting director of transport operations and passenger experience, said: “We have worked closely with the rail industry on this as much as we can.

“We recognize that when these things happen there are consequences and ultimately there are going to be some trade-offs. In some cases we think we can live with compromises. In some cases we are quite unhappy. This was one where it was quite challenging.”

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Jakob Williamson, councilor for Hemsworth, said the local network was already under pressure due to Northern reducing the number of carriages running through the district. He said: “We are now losing a significant number of these CrossCountry services in both directions every day.

“It will put significant pressure on the rest of the network. It worries me when I look at the bigger picture of transportation. Buses have been hit hard – we have serious problems with reliability and punctuality.

“All the towns and villages in the district are becoming isolated from each other. Our district is also becoming isolated from other West Yorkshire districts. We can’t go on. Train operators need to look at the rail network holistically.

“This can only be determined by profit. I think as passengers we pay over the odds when it comes to fares. Time to start giving back to passengers and taxpayers and start providing some decent service rather than cut, cut, cut. .”

Simon Warburton, WYCA’s chief executive of transport, said the authority had raised the issue with TfN. He said: “Effectively CrossCountry operates as a local service through parts of Wakefield and perhaps that is being overlooked a bit.”

Commission chair Susan Hinchcliffe said: “Part of the problem is that when the rail industry looks at trains, passenger numbers and connectivity, they don’t see the wider issues of cohesion, economic issues and regeneration issues that we all rely on on transport. It’s very damaging to our economy and they need to see the wider ramifications of this.”