Passenger Focus has published Official Statistics on passenger satisfaction with rail travel from the National Passenger Survey for spring 2009.
- Nationally the percentage of passengers satisfied with their journey overall was up by 1% compared to Spring 2008 (81% were satisfied). 80% of passengers were satisfied overall with their journey in Spring 2008.
- At a national level, the proportion of passengers satisfied with punctuality/reliability was 80%. This is not significantly different compared to Spring 2008.
- The percentage of passengers satisfied with most service areas at a national level was generally up compared to Spring 2008. Satisfaction with seventeen service areas improved (the rest were unchanged).
- The proportion of passengers satisfied with value for money for the price of their ticket nationally was 40%. This was not significantly different compared to Spring 2008, when it was also 40% satisfied. Satisfaction with sufficient room for all the passengers to sit/stand improved (up 4%) to 66% satisfied (62% in Spring 2008).
- For London and the South East operators 80% of passengers were very or fairly satisfied overall, not significantly different compared to Spring 2008. The percentage of passengers satisfied with most train and station factors was generally not significantly different compared to Spring 2008. But satisfaction improved for eight factors (the rest were unchanged).
- For the long distance operators the proportion of passengers who were very or fairly satisfied overall was 85% (2% up compared to Spring 2008 when it was 83%). Passenger satisfaction for the various train and station factors was mostly unchanged compared to Spring 2008, but satisfaction improved for eleven factors. Satisfaction did not decline for any factors.
- For regional operators 86% of passengers were very or fairly satisfied with their journey overall, not significantly compared to Spring 2008. 84% were satisfied in Spring 2008. For most service areas passenger satisfaction was unchanged compared to Spring 2008, but for nine areas it improved (no attributes declined in satisfaction).
- Comparing the percentage of passengers satisfied for individual train operating companies with Spring 2008, four have significantly improved (c2c, First Great Western, First TransPennine Express and London Overground), and none have significantly declined. Sixteen TOCs have had no statistically significant changes in their overall satisfaction results compared with Spring 2008.
- The lowest ratings for overall satisfaction were given to London Overground (75%), National Express East Anglia (76%), First Capital Connect (76%), Southeastern (76%) and London Midland (78%).
- The highest ratings for overall satisfaction were achieved by Heathrow Express (92%), c2c (91%), Merseyrail (91%), Chiltern Railways (90%) and Heathrow Connect (90%).
Full results of the Spring 2009 wave of the National Passenger Survey are available to download from : http://www.passengerfocus.org.uk/news-and-publications/document-search/document.asp?dsid=2911