Why Leeds is on a list of the country's 20 worst travel hotspots

Nearly half the trains out of Leeds Station since the beginning of the year have been late or cancelled, according to figures out today.
PIC: James HardistyPIC: James Hardisty
PIC: James Hardisty

The city is on a list of the country’s 20 worst travel blackspots, compiled by the consumer group, Which? Its information is based on data from the performance tracking website, On Time Trains, which records all delays of a minute or more – in contrast to the industry’s official figures, which consider services to be “on time” even if they arrive at their final stop five or 10 minutes late.

Some 45 per cent of trains through Leeds have been late this year, Which? said.

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In York, the situation is worse still, with nearly two-thirds of services late or cancelled – a figure second only to Manchester’s Oxford Road station.

Which? said even minor delays could impact on the lives of passengers, especially those trying to catch connections.

Alex Hayman, the organisation’s managing director of public markets, said: “Passengers have told us reliability is hugely important to them. People have been left deeply frustrated at the unacceptably high levels of delays and cancellations which impact on their everyday lives.”

Robert Nisbet, regional director at the Rail Delivery group, which represents the rail industry, said it was “improving awareness” of compensation schemes, adding: “We will continue to push for big, bold reform.”