TRAIN operator Abellio has been revealed as the most criticised in the country on social media.

Travel feedback company CommuteLondon collected Twitter statistics for the last year, finding almost 500,000 negative train tweets.

Of those tweets, more than 72,000 were aimed at Abellio Greater Anglia by angry commuters, making it the most criticised of any provider.

But John Smock, chairman of Clacton and Frinton-based rail user group Ontrack, said Abellio had taken on a “poisoned chalice”.

He said: “They have been criticised for a lot of reasons, including delays and conditions onboard the trains.

“A lot of the criticism is valid, but people have to remember they were brought in as a short-term service with no money or scope to make significant improvements.

"While it has been far from perfect, I think they have done a fairly good job with the limitations they operate under.”

Mr Smock said Abellio had now started a major refurbishment of its trains.

Abellio said negative tweets were helping rail bosses improve its service.

A spokesman said: “Twitter is a positive way in which we engage with our customers.

"Our Twitter team provide immediate updates on train running matters, which they can quickly pass on to customers.

“We also genuinely appreciate the feedback we receive via social media, which helps in our efforts to improve the services that we provide.

“In 2015, we are currently investing over £30million in improving our train fleet, customer service and train performance, and in better train cleaning.”