• Open letter to Govia

I live in Borehamwood and commute every day into London using your services. You took over the franchise in September last year and very quickly afterwards I realised that, unfortunately, the train services were not getting better, far from it. Trains are regularly cancelled at the last minute or late, are formed of four carriages instead of the previous eight carriages. First Capital Connect was far from perfect but I must say that you are a lot worse.

To top it all, the other day a member of staff handed me a printed page where Govia tried to justify the appalling service it is providing on the Thameslink line. I particularly like the stories about having to train drivers and overtime. What happened to all the drivers who used to work on this route? As for overtime, my feeling is that your company is trying to save money (the usual pathetic story) in order to make more profit. I have a job to do in London and I certainly mind having to go through this daily aggravation I get due to your inability to provide a good service.

The leaflet also mentioned that brand new swanky trains will soon be operated on the Brighton to Bedford line. In case you have not realised, these trains do not stop at Borehamwood so if your aim was to annoy all the passengers who commute from Borehamwood, you have succeeded. This is probably the only success you will have achieved this year. I am aware that my letter will have absolutely no effect on you since you obviously do not care about all the passengers who use your trains, but I had to get it off my chest.

Marie-Helene Mottarella

Kenilworth Drive, Borehamwood