Ranked: These are the UK’s best and worst train firms rated on passenger satisfaction
It's the moment you've been waiting for, beleaguered commuters.
Independent rail watchdog Transport Focus spoke to 27,000 passengers to find out which services are on track, and has today released its bumper survey assessing passenger satisfaction with train operators.
Read more: Crossrail 2 boost: Mayor and DfT agree next steps for £31bn rail route
Here are the UK's train operators ranked best to worst:
| Train operator | Percentage of satisfied passengers |
| Heathrow Express | 97 per cent |
| Hull Trains | 97 per cent |
| Grand Central | 94 per cent |
| Merseyrail | 94 per cent |
| Chiltern Railways | 92 per cent |
| Virgin Trains | 92 per cent |
| Virgin Trains East Coast | 91 per cent |
| ScotRail | 90 per cent |
| London Overground | 90 per cent |
| Heathrow Connect | 90 per cent |
| c2c | 89 per cent |
| East Midlands Trains | 89 per cent |
| Gatwick Express | 88 per cent |
| CrossCountry | 88 per cent |
| TfL Rail | 87 per cent |
| TransPennine Express | 86 per cent |
| London Midland | 84 per cent |
| Arriva Trains Wales | 83 per cent |
| Northern | 83 per cent |
| Greater Anglia | 83 per cent |
| South West Trains | 82 per cent |
| Great Western Railway | 81 per cent |
| Southeastern | 81 per cent |
| Great Northern | 79 per cent |
| Thameslink | 75 per cent |
| Southern | 72 per cent |
On the plus side, most London operators recorded a percentage increase in their overall passenger satisfaction scores.
However, many still lingered at the bottom of the rankings for passenger satisfaction. The overall percentage of passengers satisfied with the level of service was 82 per cent in the London and South East sector, compared to 89 per cent for long-distance and 87 per cent for regional.
Read more: The 17 Tube stations facing severe overcrowding by the early 2030s
Overall, train passenger satisfaction has reached its highest level in four years though, edging up three percentage points to 83 per cent. And no train firm's overall satisfaction figures declined.
Anthony Smith, chief executive of the independent watchdog, noted that passenger satisfaction in London and the South East has improved – from 79 per cent last year to 82 per cent this year, but he added "there is some way to go to reach a more acceptable position".
He said:
Southern, Thameslink, Great Northern and Southeastern have the lowest scores.
These green shoots are fragile and need nurturing.
This recovery will be under pressure from upgrade works, industrial relationship problems and rising passenger numbers. So the industry needs to keep a relentless, ongoing focus on performance and reliability.
Jacqueline Starr, managing director of customer experience at the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train operators and Network Rail, said: "There is more to do which is why we are investing to improve and better connect communities across the country with major upgrades to the rail network, thousands of new carriages coming on track and 6,400 extra services a week by 2021.
"We will also continue to work hard to provide better information to our customers, simpler fares and a more accessible railway for all."
Read more: Revealed: Britain's best airports (as ranked by passengers)