A COMMUTER group said it “struggled to understand” how First Great Western has won a major industry award.

The rail operator was named best overall Rail Business of the Year at the Rail Business Awards 2014.

FGW also scooped awards in customer information and service, best marketing campaign for the I’m a Great Westerner promotion and in engineering excellence.

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But regular commuter Dennis Tan, of Oxrail Passenger Group, said: “I struggle to understand how they won the award for information.

“The First Great Western app is often not linked up with the information boards you see at the station.

“The app might tell you the train is delayed but the boards tell you it’s on time.”

Mr Tan continued: “It’s not unusual for trains to be downgraded from eight to five carriages at peak times, which is bad – and sometimes eight to three, which is simply horrendous.”

As for the Great Westerner campaign, he said: “It really should say I’m a captive audience because I don’t have a choice travelling from Oxford to London.”

A Which? survey published this month said a third of FGW passengers suffered delays last year.

And a study published last September listed three FGW services from Oxford to London as being the most overcrowded.

Passengers suffered a week of major disruption in October when signalling equipment was damaged in Slough and faults occurred between Twyford and Maidenhead.

The floods last winter also caused severe problems for FGW and their award last week was partly for continuing to run services in the face of adversity.