Plans to slash rail services have been challenged by MP Munira Wilson in talks with South Western Railway last week.

The Twickenham MP, who represents Teddington in parliament, said there is widespread concern and alarm at the proposed permanent cuts to services to stations across Richmond

The planned cuts come at the same time as commuters have been warned of steep rises in the cost of tickets, which are due to come into effect in the New Year.

The MP said St Margarets station in Twickenham is set to suffer the biggest cuts to services, while Whitton, Teddington, Hampton Wick and Strawberry Hill will also lose peak time services.

Ms Wilson detailed her concerns on Twitter and called on residents to make their concerns about the planned cuts clear to the rail company, which is carrying out a consultation on the cuts.

She wrote: "I met with SWR @SW_Help representatives today to express my and local residents' concerns and alarm at the proposed permanent cuts to train services across the area, and clarify station-specific changes.

"I made it very clear that now is absolutely NOT the time to make decisions about long-term changes to frequency of local services, when many commuters don't yet know their future working patterns. The consultation has been run over the summer holiday period when many are away.'

Setting out the changes, she said: "St Margarets is set to be hardest hit with services halved – down from four to two trains per hour - due to Hounslow loop no longer running between Twickenham and Waterloo. This is an unacceptable slash in the service for a busy zone 4 station.

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"Whitton will also lose the Hounslow loop service to Waterloo off-peak, though it will run to Twickenham (ie. 4 trains ph to Twick from Whitton), where passengers wanting a stopping service will need to change. Whitton will also lose one of its extra peak trains from Aldershot."

She added: "Teddington, Hampton Wick and Strawberry Hill will all lose 2 trains during the morning peak."

The MP concluded: "I urge local residents to join me in responding to the consultation, making clear now is not the time to make these big decisions on our local train services."

Respond to the SWR consultation here

South Western Railway says the plan to cut services is part of an initiative to 'build back a better railway for the future'.

The company said: "We are acutely aware that in the past we have responded to ever growing customer demand by increasing the number of trains on the SWR network, often at the expense of the performance and reliability of our services.

"But, as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, we have a unique opportunity to build back a better railway for the future.

"Since March 2020, we have been supported by the Government to run a reduced service that has kept key workers moving.

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"This period has shown that our performance improves significantly when we are able to run fewer trains while still meeting customer demand for our services.

"Even though passengers are now returning to the railways, all the forecasts suggest they will not return to pre-Covid levels for the foreseeable future.

"The December 2022 timetable is our opportunity to plan for a long-term timetable that will retain the reliability improvements we've made, meet the forecast demand and provide value for the taxpayer while balancing other local and national priorities."

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