Since last Saturday, 6th August, Merseyrail has been giving away thousands of free gifts to its passengers as a way of saying sorry for the recent disruptions they have endured during their travels on the network.
Until Saturday, 13th August, train staff will be handing out 7,500 envelopes containing a voucher to passengers. The vouchers are worth anything from a £150 shopping credit, to a free coffee, and are being distributed at 16 stations during morning and evening peak hours over the eight days of the exercise.
Various causes have resulted in Merseyrail being unable to meet its usual high standards during recent weeks. These include train maintenance issues and infrastructure problems created by the recent heatwave. These severely affected Merseyrail's operations, resulting in cancellations and late running of services.
The giveaways are being handed out at the stations that have been most affected by service disruptions, and are an acknowledgment of the problems faced by passengers.
About 110,000 passengers travel on the Merseyrail network each weekday. With over 600 trains running each weekday, the system is one of the most intensively used networks in the UK.
Suzanne Grant, Commercial Director at Merseyrail, said:
“Since 2003, we have taken great pride in delivering the most reliable and punctual rail service in the UK.
“However, in recent weeks we have not met the high standards we have set for ourselves and that our passengers have rightly come to expect from us. I want to apologise for the disruption on our network, and as a way of thanking passengers for their patience and loyalty Merseyrail is giving away a range of gifts across the network.
“We know that some journeys have been difficult recently and that affects passengers' plans, so we hope this gesture will make their next journey, or even their day, just a little bit better.”
Hopefully free train ride when the Class 777s have entered service and to say goodbye to the Class 507 and Class 508.