South Yorkshire Mayor calls on East Midlands Railway to scrap first class amid train shortage
The Sheffield to London route has seen a signficant reduction in services over the past week, with EMR blaming reliability and maintenance problems.
Last updated 24th Jul 2026
Mayor of South Yorkshire Oliver Coppard has called on local rail operator East Midlands Railway to scrap its first class carriages, after a train shortage caused cutbacks to EMR's timetable.
The Sheffield to London route has seen a signficant reduction in services over the past week, with EMR blaming reliability and maintenance problems.
South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard said: “Because of the problems on EMR, too many people are facing cancelled trains, overcrowded carriages and longer journeys because of problems completely outside their control.
“At a time when too many passengers are being left standing, squeezed into carriages and crowded around doors and toilets, it simply makes sense for the whole of the trains capacity to be used as a matter of course.
"For as long as EMR are operating a reduced timetable, they should make every seat available by declassifying their First Class carriages. We all have a right to expect a safe, comfortable and dependable journey when we travel by rail.
“Until services are back to normal, common sense should prevail. If there are empty seats available in First Class, people should be able to use them. Protecting the profits of EMR can’t be a good enough reason for them not to take a sensible, pragmatic decision that would give more people peace of mind.”
An East Midlands Railway spokesperson said: “Train Managers on board already have the authority to declassify First Class where operational circumstances warrant it, exercising professional judgement based on real-time conditions such as disruption and crowding."
"That operational flexibility provides an effective and proportionate response, without the need for permanent declassification."