An extra rush-hour train will be introduced on the Esher to Waterloo line after South West Trains cut its busy 7.03am service from 12 carriages to 10.

The reduction was due to refurbishment works by South West Trains, and meant train-goers found themselves in sometimes cramped conditions.

The decision to implement a new train was announced at an overview and scrutiny meeting at Elmbridge Council on Thursday, January 21, where Richard Kempton, representing South West Trains, said the 7.22am service from Raynes Park to Waterloo would now depart from Esher at 7.10am.

He said reducing the amount of carriages on the 7.03am train had “made quite a difference to people’s lives” and “in light of that we’ve managed to get an additional train which is going to leave Esher at 7.10am in the morning, giving us an additional 472 seats plus standing room.”

He added: “We’ve put that in specifically to alleviate this issue that’s come from the change in trains.”

However, Walton councillor Andrew Kelly said starting the service at Esher seemed “bizarre beyond words”.

“You’re thus missing out Weybridge, Walton and Hersham. Walton and Weybridge are certainly busier than Esher.

“You’re putting on a special train for Esher residents, effectively that will presumably stop at Esher and Surbiton and that’s it, and yet those of us in Walton and Weybridge will get absolutely no benefits at all.

“It’s incredibly bizarre. If you’ve got the carriages for an extra train, put those carriages back on the 6.57am.”

Council leader John O’Reilly said he and other ward councillors felt “absolutely aggrieved and astonished at what has been happening.”

He said: “Whether you are in Surbiton or Walton, you can’t move for these wonderful posters saying 57,000 extra seats available. Where are they in our patch?

“How is it possible, as a responsible operator, for you to say that in one of the most strategic lines, almost certainly in the country, from Woking to Waterloo, at a time when you are alleging 57,000 extra seats in South West Trains, that this route is actually suffering a considerable net loss of seats?

“Is there any prospect at all that the misery and the irritation and the vexation that our residents face when they’re coming home after a hard day at the office can be at least ameliorated to some extent by South West Trains getting its act together and increasing the length of some of our trains?”

A South West Trains spokesman confirmed the 7.22am from Raynes Park to Waterloo service would start from Esher on Monday, February 8, but would bypass Surbiton, Berrylands and New Malden in order to arrive at Rayne's Park at its original starting time.

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