Around one third of Greater Anglia trains failed to show up on time, according to figures released by Network Rail today.
The statistics show that just 71.8 per cent of trains ran on time in the year up to August 17, when compared against Network Rail's 'right time' figures, which measure when a train is early or up to 59 seconds late. But Network Rail and Train Operating Companies officially use and are regulated by the Public Performance Measure (PPM), which classifies a short-distance train being 'on time' if it is delayed up to 4m 59s – and a long-distance train as 'on time' if it is delayed by up to 9m 59s - before it is classed as late. Under the PPM figures, Greater Anglia, which took over the franchise from National Express in February last year, had 92.5 per cent of its trains on time. Essex's other train company, c2c, which operates services between Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness, had 84.9 per cent of its trains on time under the 'Right Time' figures – and 97.3 per cent when measured by PPM. Nationally, long-distance company Virgin Trains, which operates trains between London and Scotland, had the worst figures - with 83.1 per cent as arriving on time when judged by the PPM figures, but just 47.4 per cent arrived within a minute of their advertised time.
