 ROUTE changes could cause major problems for passengers at Birmingham New Street station, one of the busiest railway stations in the UK, a rail watchdog body has said. As part of the new Cross Country franchise, the Department for Transport has proposed to cut the number of direct services operating on Cross Country routes in preference to boosting the central areas of the network. The Passenger Focus group is concerned about the effect the changes will have on Birmingham New Street station. The Birmingham Mail has led a high profile campaign calling for the urgent up-grading of New Street, which has won the backing of key figures such as Prime Minister Tony Blair. Passenger Focus said commitment for funding for improvements at the station are still uncertain. Passenger Focus passenger link manager Susan Tibbett added: "We remain concerned that the station will not be able to cope with the numbers of passengers that might change at the station. "Passengers need to know what the alternatives are and need to be encouraged to change trains at stations other than Birmingham New Street." Passenger Focus on Monday released a report which includes a survey of almost 10,000 passengers' journeys, looking into how customers could be affected by the new Cross Country franchise which will start later this year. The report said more seats are a top priority for passengers on Cross Country, which is currently run by Virgin Trains and whose serpentine routes cover large swathes of England and Scotland. Ms Tibbett said: "It is absolutely essential that the radical increase in longer and more trains, leading to a 30% increase in seats as put forward by the DfT, becomes a reality so that passengers might then be able to get a seat on the more crowded central areas of the Cross Country network. "While we don't like to having to make trade-offs between long distance and shorter distance commuter passengers, if the proposals for the new franchise do go ahead, it is crucial that the proposed increase in services is procured. "However, if more passengers do still want to change trains at Birmingham New Street it will not be able to cope, so what is 'plan B'?"
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