Make it easier to ride the Sleeper

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Fri 16th Jun 2006

Falmouth and Camborne MP Julia Goldsworthy has welcomed news that First Great Western are considering adding an extra carriage to the Penzance to Paddington sleeper service, but called for the company to make it easier to buy tickets.

The sleeper service was saved from closure last year after a major campaign highlighted its importance for the Cornish economy. However, there are still concerns that the booking process is too complicated and not enough is being done to promote the service to new users. A new visitor to the website can go through a dozen pages of registration and timetable selections before reaching the message "Unfortunately you cannot book this service online."

Ms Goldsworthy commented:

"The sleeper service is a great way to travel to London, and it can be good value too when you consider that it saves paying for a night in a hotel.

"The recent publicity for the sleeper has been very valuable in raising public awareness of the service, but First really needs to streamline the process for buying tickets. Even putting the phone number on the front page of the website would be an improvement!"