The rail service between Cardiff and Manchester has been branded 'truly appalling' after a passenger enduring regular journeys on cramped two-carriage trains.
Pensioner Tim Lowe travels regularly on the inter-city route to attend charity meetings.
Speaking to the MEN he said that on his journey this week the train became loaded with passengers forced to stand or sit on the floor.
Read more: Fighting and arguments break out on 'bonkers' crammed train after Wales international in Cardiff
He described sitting next to an elderly lady who daren’t drink for the fear she wouldn’t be able to get through the crammed carriage to reach the toilet.
And he said he had to assist a blind woman who couldn’t navigate her way past the hoards to get to the door of the Transport for Wales service.
Tim, who lives near Marple and took these pictures during his journey last Friday (November 5) morning, told the Manchester Evening News : “People were already standing through lack of seats as the train left Piccadilly station, some of them going beyond Cardiff.
“The alleyways were blocked with people and luggage so there was no chance of a refreshment trolley and a trip to the toilet near impossible.
“The elderly lady next to me dared not drink from her flask as to negotiate a route to the toilet, that for the less than firm was impossible.
“Getting off at Hereford I helped a young blind lady stepping over bodies and bags to reach the door.”
Describing a sign advising two-metre social distancing as 'laughable', he added: “I could hardly see it for bodies.
“The announcement that the refreshment trolley was back caused ironic cheers as it could not move along the train.”
Tim says the carriages are regularly this crowded, adding: “They are packing people in like sardines. I’m triple-jabbed but I can see people are worried.
“Why on earth do they run trains with two carriages between Manchester and Cardiff?
“I want to talk about this because I think the operator should be answerable to somebody. This was truly appalling service."
r Lowe says he has since written to both the CEO and chairman of Transport for Wales to express his concerns, but has heard nothing back.
He added: “The daft thing is a drive from Manchester to Hereford is three hours and the train is only two so it should be brilliant but it’s such a badly run service and I don’t know why.
“I dread it.”
What Transport for Wales say:
“In recent weeks demand for our services has been increasingly high across the network, particularly at peak times and as passengers return to pre-pandemic activities.
"We’re working hard to meet this demand, and we regularly review our timetable and the number of people travelling to ensure our carriages are used in the right places.
"Whilst our services are still operating differently due the impact of the pandemic, all of our available carriages are in use.
"We’ve also implemented as many safety measures as possible to help keep passengers safe and comfortable, including enhanced cleaning regimes on trains and at stations, adding additional services or road transport where possible, and ensuring people wear face coverings, unless they are exempt.
“Whilst all our available train carriages are in service, we advise passengers to plan ahead. Passengers can consider whether they want to travel on trains that are likely to be busy, based on information from our Capacity Checker tool.
“We’re due to begin introducing brand-new trains to the network next year which will provide more capacity than our current trains, as well as better facilities for our customers.
"This major investment is part of our work to transform rail services in Wales and the borders, which also includes station improvements, more frequent services and better integration between modes of transport across our network.”
The capacity checker is available on their website here.
