Train improvements 'a nightmare'

Katje Jobes said her journey from Brighton to London was a nightmare

Commuters are furious after changes that were supposed to improve the train journey between London and Brighton have turned it into "a nightmare".

They say extending the Gatwick Express to Brighton to give six more services during both rush hours has increased delays and added to unreliability.

"I have not yet been on a train that has run on time," said Katje Jobes, who has started a petition.

The Gatwick Express operator Southern has apologised for the disruption.

The Gatwick Express was extended last month, with extra stops at Haywards Heath, Wivelsfield, Burgess Hill, Hassocks and Preston Park.

The service is unreliable, late, the doors aren't working, the heating isn't working and there are no announcements Katje Jobes

Southern said it increased the number of seats into London by more than 10% during peak time.

But 20-year-old reconditioned trains were put on the route, which the company admits have not been as reliable as it would like.

Ms Jobes, who collected over 200 signatures on her train alone, said it was regularly between 20 and 40 minutes late.

"It has been a nightmare," she said.

"I am now catching the 7.30 train - 15 minutes earlier - and I am arriving at the same time in London or often later.

"The service is unreliable, it is late, the doors aren't working, the heating isn't working and there are no announcements."

Chris Burchell, managing director of Southern and Gatwick Express, said its engineers were working to resolve the problems as soon as possible.

"I know that our current performance on the Brighton Mainline in the peak periods continues to be extremely frustrating and inconvenient," he said in a message to commuters.

"This is reflected in the correspondence that we have been receiving and from my personal conversations with many of our passengers who travel between Brighton and London.

"I can assure you that we are putting all of our efforts into ensuring that we turn this situation around as quickly as possible and return to the standard of service that you are used to and quite rightly expect."