Ofsted's redefinition of satisfactoryperformance as unsatisfactory had been "both a distortion of the English language and a profoundly depressing judgement for many heads, " he added.
The task of delivering asatisfactory service is complicated by the split between track and train operations with both sides blaming one another for poor performance.
"Overall the performance figures we have for our Crisis Teams right across the trust indicates that they are performing to asatisfactory level, " he said.