Calling for an end to overcrowding on East Surrey Trains

I met up with the Managing Director of Southern Rail, Chris Burchell, on Tuesday 8th June in an effort to resolve the recent problems on the East Grinstead, Uckfield and Caterham lines which serve thousands of East Surrey commuters. Joining me in the meeting were neighbouring MPs Wealden's Charles Hendry and Tonbridge and Malling' Sir John Stanley.

East Surrey residents are having to endure disruption to their lives at critical commuting times because of the reduced services on the back of the introduction of the East London line by Transport for London (TfL). This has been done without proper consultation by Southern and without consideration by TfL or the Department for Transport for the residents of East Surrey.

As a result of the timetabling changes, commuters in rush hour face vast overcrowding on the East Grinstead and Uckfield line trains, with some people even being left behind on the platform; and those coming from Caterham now have to wait at Purley to connect to another train before continuing into London.

Southern have now agreed to review the situation and are exploring a number of options in the short term, including altering the number of carriages to compensate for the rush hour traffic. I welcome their openness to take seriously the concerns of customers and looks forward to a swift resolution.

As well as finding a solution to this mess as quickly as possible, we need to make sure the interests of East Surrey residents are not being ignored in the drive to expand London's rail network. My colleagues and I will be raising these issues with TfL and the Department for Transport in order to ensure East Surrey commuters are getting a fair deal.

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