Commuter crush: Seven out of 10 most overcrowded trains in Britain go to London
The latest figures from the Department for Transport show that of the 10 most overcrowded train services in Britain, seven are London-bound. All of the worst journeys started at or ended in the capital last spring.
Services running during spring and autumn of 2012 were monitored by the government, and this top 10 list represents those with the highest "load factor", the number of standard class passengers on a service expressed as a percentage of the maximum stated standard class passenger capacity for that service.
The only non-London service to make the listsis the 6:23am Manchester Airport to Middlesbrough, with a load factor 162 per cent last Autumn.
Spring 2012
7:44am service from Henley on Thames to London Paddington – load factor 184%
7:14am service from Didcot Parkway to London Paddington – load factor 173%
4:48pm London Euston to Birmingham New Street – load factor 166%
6:08pm London Bridge to Wimbledon – load factor 159%
6:13pm London Euston to Birmingham New Street – load factor 158%
7:14am Alton to London Waterloo – load factor 156%
7:17am Banbury to London Marylebone – load factor 154%
7:10am Haslemere to Waterloo- load factor 152%
6:18pm London Paddington to Oxford – load factor 150%
7:32am Woking to London Waterloo – load factor 149%Autumn 2012
8:27am Heathrow T1, 2, 3 to London Paddington – load factor 165%
6:13pm London Euston to Birmingham New Street – load factor 165%
6:23am Manchester Airport to Middlesbrough – load factor 162%
6:00pm London Waterloo to Portsmouth Harbour – load factor 161%
7:17am Banbury to London Marylebone – load factor 158%
6:19am Birmingham Moor Street to London Marylebone – load factor 155%
7:32am Tattenham Corner to London Bridge – load factor 154%
6:15am Portsmouth Harbour to London Waterloo – load factor 150%
7:09am Henley-on-Thames to London Paddington – load factor 149%
7:10am Haslemere to London Waterloo – load factor 149%
Transport Minister Norman Baker said:
I urge train operators to do what they can on these particular trains. The department is working closely with the industry to ensure this issue is tackled.