As of 11 December 2011, the new Metropolitan Line timetable has come in to effect. London Underground Limited (LUL) took it upon themselves to withdraw all off-peak fast services to and from Moor Park and as a result, all off-peak trains now stop at every stop in and out of London. This is not only an inconvenience for Three Rivers District Council residents but it could also affect the livelihoods and the family lives of many of our residents who rely on that service for business and family purposes. I remember when my daughter was younger the train I depended on most to get back home for her bath/bedtime was the first off-peak train from Baker Street. Thankfully I no longer need that service because if I did, I would never have been able to make it home in time. My heart goes out to the many, mainly (but not exclusively) fathers who are in that position. Notwithstanding, whether you have children or not, after a hard days work, the last thing most people want is an additional 15 minutes (or s0) added to their journey. To make matters worse, the alteration to the schedule was done with no consultation with residents, no consultation with local government authorities/representatives and no impact analysis or modelling, etc. LUL simply imposed it.

So after discussion with our Leader , she asked me whether I was happy to propose a motion to full Council on 13 December 2011, to register on behalf of our residents our displeasure at the change of service. This I was happy to do and I am pleased to say that this, my first motion, was carried unanimously with vocal support from all sides of the chamber. Letters have now been sent to Mike Brown, MD of LUL and the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson. Given that Three Rivers District Council is outside of London, and therefore Boris Johnson does not rely on our votes in the forthcoming Mayoral election, I’m not sure what good the latter will do but I’m assured by members of the Conservative opposition group (some of whom claim to know him personally) that they will be making additional representations to him about the change to the schedule. Let’s see what happens, but rest assured I will not let this rest. Having taken the off-peak service a few times since its introduction, I can reliably inform readers and residents that the journey that took half an hour when I first moved to Rickmansworth now took almost 50 minutes – on average 9 minutes slower than in 1922! How about that for progress… I’ll keep readers informed on progress through these pages.

My speech to the Council was as follows:

As of Sunday December 11th as I’m sure all members are aware, London Underground introduced a new Metropolitan Line timetable. According to their own ‘propaganda’ LU proudly proclaim that there will be two extra southbound trains per hour during peak time but there is only a brief mention of how the new timetable will affect the off-peak service. LU in their wisdom have decided that it is necessary to make all southbound off-peak trains run slow from Rickmansworth meaning that they stop at every stop (Moor Park, Northwood, Northwood Hills, Pinner, North Harrow, Harrow on the Hill, Northwick Park, Preston Rd, Wembley Park and Finchley Rd) to Baker St. whereas before, they only were fast from Moor Park to Harrow on the Hill and fast again to Finchley Rd. This means that the Rickmansworth to Baker St. journey that used to take 36mins will now take up to 45mins.

To make matters worse, LU imposed these changes without consultation with our residents or TRDC, no scientific modelling or impact analysis and no trial run. I know I for one will now seek to use the Chiltern Line whenever possible and put up with even more cramped conditions that already existed before the timetable change took place. Like many of our residents, I am someone who often travels during the off-peak times with a small child in a pushchair, so this is something that I like many other residents am not looking forward to.

Over the years, Three Rivers has benefitted and prospered from increasing numbers of people who live and work in London moving to our area (myself included). They have been drawn to our towns & villages due in part to our fantastic schools, our open spaces, our low crime rate, not to mention of course our award winning and excellently run District Council. Access to and from London has also been a major factor and this change to the timetable could have a knock on effect on by making us comparable with towns that on one hand might be further out and have less regular rail service, but on the other, offer a faster service with cheaper house prices…

In conclusion, this timetable change was imposed on us with no consultation seemingly designed to make life easier for those who live closer to London (and therefore have access to alternative tube lines and buses), will see a dramatic reduction in the quality of service enjoyed by our residents for years, and it does not take in to account the impact it will have on the already crowded Chiltern Line. I therefore ask that this motion be agreed by all members and thereby send a message to LU that the residents in Three Rivers believe the new timetable and subsequent changes to our Met Line service to be unacceptable.