Stagecoach to bid for Connex routes

A rail company sacked for failing commuters may be replaced by one with an even worse time-keeping record, it emerged today.

Stagecoach - owner of South West Trains - wants to take over the Connex routes when the Frenchowned company's franchise expires in six months.

Connex was sacked by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) on the grounds that it "failed to deliver on financial management issues".

Bus and coach giant Stagecoach is understood to be "seriously" considering the bid. It is the poor performance of SWT which will most concern the 120,000 commuters who use the Connex routes each day and leave them with the feeling that they have jumped out of the frying pan into the fire.

The latest SRA statistics show that Connex ran more services on time, both during the peak period and all day, than SWT last year.

SWT had one of the worst records of all 10 operators serving London with just 71.3 per cent of peak-time trains - fewer than three out of four - on time compared with Connex which ran 77.5 per cent on schedule.

When all-day figures, which include off-peak, are compared, SWT could only manage 72 per cent on time compared with the 81.2 per cent for Connex.

There was jubilation among commuters when the SRA announced it had axed Connex - joy that will now be drastically tempered.

David Cook, who commutes from Dartford to his office near Bond Street, said: "This is the last thing we wanted to hear.

"Connex deserved to go because of persistent poor performance. We desperately need someone to improve time-keeping, not let it get even worse."

A spokesman for the SRA said it was not yet known who would bid. He said: "We are working on the contract specifications now - we want some strong bidders." SWT may face a fight for the franchise from another major industry player, First Group, which operates the Great Western and Great Eastern rail franchises.

Richard Bowker, the SRA chairman, has already made clear that he wants to see fewer rail operators controlling the franchises serving London.

This would indicate that Stagecoach or First Group would stand a better chance of securing Connex.

Mr Bowker, however, would not want a situation where an operator which is among the worst performers was "rewarded" with another franchise.

Meanwhile Olivier Brousse, the chief executive of Connex, said the company may yet seek a judicial review to challenge the SRA decision.

He said: "When you take drastic action over a company for financial reasons it's when a report says there are major risks, major cashflow problems. That is not the case with Connex."

The crux of the SRA decision to remove Connex - currently working a six-month notice period - was that the company had been "non-compliant" with the strict terms and conditions on the use of £58million of extra taxpayer funding it received last December.

Connex was also understood to be after £200 million more.

The SRA raised the possibility that public money could have been diverted out of the company - a claim also strenuously denied.

M Brousse stressed at the time: "I would like to put the record straight that no public money has been used to fund or subsidise any of our other group companies."

In an interview with Transit, the trade magazine, M Brousse confirmed that Connex had employed sister companies to carry out some work for the franchise including on-train cleaning and staff training, but denied they had been given any "taxpayers' money."