CANCELLATIONS of London Midland services are set to continue until December, the operator has warned. More than 60 trains are set to be cancelled today alone because of an acute shortage of drivers which is apparently being caused by low pay rates, while MPs are now calling for action to be taken by the Department for Transport.
The situation would be even worse if existing drivers had not agreed to work more overtime than usual.
The problems caused by the cancellations are being raised in the House of Commons. Nuneaton MP Marcus Jones has said he is seeking an urgent meeting with ministers to discuss the crisis.
The main routes affected today (Tuesday 23 October) are those between Birmingham and Coventry, Northampton, Lichfield, Redditch, Walsall and Rugeley. Another 30 journeys are likely to be truncated, with buses being deployed as replacements for missing trains.
Some other trains may also be given additional booked stops in a bid to plug the gaps left by the cancellations.
The company has blamed a 'shortfall in qualified train drivers' for the problems, which have been occurring for more than a month. At times some local lines, including those to Bedford and St Albans Abbey, have had their train services replaced entirely by road transport.
Although the company is giving few details about the causes of the crisis, Railnews has been told by an industry source that drivers have been leaving London Midland to join other operators who pay as much as 25 per cent more.
London Midland is providing a daily update of the position. In a statement, it said: 'Whilst the shortfall itself should be addressed by mid-December, we are working hard to ensure the impact on our passengers in the meantime is kept to an absolute minimum. On most days we hope to run a full service.
'We have a dedicated team focusing on delivering the train service on a day by day basis and as a result we have been able to run a near-normal timetable on all but a few days, compensating for the shortage with drivers who have volunteered for overtime.'
London Midland commercial director Richard Brooks apologised for the problems, and added: "The challenge is that it takes over 12 months to recruit and train a driver, yet we will lose drivers after three months if they choose to go elsewhere."
He also indicated that 'new ways of working' should alleviate the difficulties when new timetables begin on 9 December.