Under-pressure train operator First Great Western is still one of the least punctual in the country, according to new figures.

FGW, which has faced a barrage of criticism from Oxfordshire passengers over its new timetable this week, was the last but one in a punctuality league of the 20 main rail operators released today.

Only 83 per cent of its trains ran on time between July and September, little better than the 82.3 per cent figure for the same period last year.

Sister firms First Scotrail, First Capital Connect and TransPennine Express all scored above 90 per cent.

Chiltern Railways was the third best performer overall, with 94.5 per cent of services on time, up from 92.7 per cent in 2006.

Only London to Yorkshire and Scotland operator GNER fared worse than FGW, with 82.5 per cent of services on time, up slightly from 81.9 per cent a year ago.

Virgin CrossCountry, which was replaced on the route linking Banbury and Oxford with the South Coast and the North by new operator Arriva last month, ran 86.4 per cent of trains on time, up from 80.9 per cent in 2006.

The best performing operator was Merseyrail, serving Liverpool and the Wirral, which ran 95.5 per cent of services on time.

Overall, 90.8 per cent of Britain's trains were on time, up from 88.5 per cent last year.

Anthony Smith, chief executive of watchdog Passenger Focus, said: "First Great Western and GNER are experiencing disappointing performances. These train companies and Network Rail must work hard to deliver what passengers expect and pay for - a punctual service."