National Express seat reservation charges cause outrage

May 13 2009 by William Green, The Journal

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NATIONAL Express was last night accused of “mugging” passengers by charging for seat reservations on the East Coast Main Line.

The company is set to introduce a £2.50 fee for reserving a single or £5 for a return ticket from this weekend on its East Coast and East Anglia franchises.

Union chiefs accused National Express of “bleeding passengers dry” to prop up profits as Transport Minister Lord Adonis refused to reject speculation that the current East Coast franchise could be torn up.

The industry has been awash with reports that National Express can no longer afford to pay the £1.4bn it agreed with ministers to secure the East Coast franchise. Lord Adonis confirmed “confidential” discussions were ongoing with operators about the recession’s impact, but did not reject outright speculation surrounding the franchise despite repeated questions from peers.

Gerry Doherty, general secretary of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) union, said: “That is simply mugging passengers for an extra fiver, and it will hit the elderly and families the hardest.

“They cannot risk being forced to stand on long journeys from Newcastle to London and therefore they will be forced to pay the extra.”

The union said booking staff would face abuse and did not expect Geoff Hoon to intervene because he was the “worst” Transport Secretary.

Bob Crow, general secretary of the Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, accused National Express of “bleeding passengers dry” to prop up profits and called for nationalisation of the railways.

Anthony Walker, from the North East branch of campaign group Railfuture, said he understood National Express had to “maximise” its revenues but warned its latest move would alienate passengers.

“It’s almost as if National Express, which is essentially a bus company, is determined to pursue a policy which may lead to a serious deterioration of the East Coast train service,” he said.