In the last 48 hours both Rail Partners (who represent privately owned rail operators) and the RIA (who represent railway suppliers) have issued reports – A ‘Rail Manifesto’ and ‘Research on Long-Term Passenger Growth’ respectively.
And Rail Partners has hosted the George Bradshaw Address, with both Huw Merriman MP, Minister of State for Rail and HS2 and Stephen Morgan MP, Shadow Minister of State for Rail speaking.
And, not forgetting, the Department for Transport has published the draft Rail Reform Bill.
Chris Page, Railfuture Chair said:
"There’s been plenty of food for thought in the last 48 hours. But very little on making things better in the short term. Until the government of the day, together with the train operators, decide that their core goal is to run the train service, without cancellations being the norm, without strikes and other industrial action being the norm all the time for years on end the railway won’t be able to play its proper place in the UK’s transport services.
"And there’s a need to flexibly adjust capacity to cater for events - a railway that cannot cope with sporting fixtures, music events or even smaller events is not fit for purpose. Sort out fares, stop conning passengers, and provide integrated transport as in London. And use passenger data to ensure trains are large enough to meet demand. We’ve just seen serious overcrowding on East Midlands Railway due to engineering work for services out of Kings Cross. The whole railway needs to work better to provide better alternatives for passengers whenever these sorts of essential improvements happen."
Neil Middleton, a Railfuture Director said:
"My colleagues and I were struck by the great body of talent in the room for the George Bradshaw lecture. And then a zoo metaphor popped into minds – they need to be set free to make those improvements that will give us a reliable railway. There was common consensus of too much government micro management and fixing that really shouldn’t wait until a rail reform bill is passed. Start by giving the railway professionals, who are closest to the customer (the passengers and the freight users) the remit to make change. And allow management of the margin between revenue and cost to take place close to the customer, not in the corridors of Whitehall.
"Railfuture demands that the rail industry seize the opportunity to grow its business by removing the inhibitors to rail travel. If passengers have a good experience, then they will share it with friends and travel again – and if they don't the opposite happens."
Chris concluded by observing:
"Once they have the basics in place, then the rail industry with Government need to focus their minds on growth and facing up to the need to make commitments to sustained investment in renewing and expanding our transport networks and making them energy efficient. More electric cars on the road do nothing to address the economic and environmental costs of traffic congestion, and with batteries making them heavier they cause more road surface damage and generate more particulates pollution too.
"The rail industry, with government, need to wake up and get the product right in a changed, far more flexible, world. Our Rail Action Plan sets out 10 actions to put the railways on a sustainable footing."
Editors notes
Railfuture is the UK's leading independent organisation campaigning for better rail services for both passengers and freight.
Railfuture's website can be found at: www.railfuture.org.uk
Follow Railfuture on X: twitter.com/Railfuture
For further information and comment please contact:
Bruce Williamson, media spokesman
Tel: 0117 927 2954 Mobile: 07759 557389
media@railfuture.org.uk
Neil Middleton, Director
Mobile: 07887 628367
neil.middleton@railfuture.org.uk
And Rail Partners has hosted the George Bradshaw Address, with both Huw Merriman MP, Minister of State for Rail and HS2 and Stephen Morgan MP, Shadow Minister of State for Rail speaking.
And, not forgetting, the Department for Transport has published the draft Rail Reform Bill.
Chris Page, Railfuture Chair said:
"There’s been plenty of food for thought in the last 48 hours. But very little on making things better in the short term. Until the government of the day, together with the train operators, decide that their core goal is to run the train service, without cancellations being the norm, without strikes and other industrial action being the norm all the time for years on end the railway won’t be able to play its proper place in the UK’s transport services.
"And there’s a need to flexibly adjust capacity to cater for events - a railway that cannot cope with sporting fixtures, music events or even smaller events is not fit for purpose. Sort out fares, stop conning passengers, and provide integrated transport as in London. And use passenger data to ensure trains are large enough to meet demand. We’ve just seen serious overcrowding on East Midlands Railway due to engineering work for services out of Kings Cross. The whole railway needs to work better to provide better alternatives for passengers whenever these sorts of essential improvements happen."
Neil Middleton, a Railfuture Director said:
"My colleagues and I were struck by the great body of talent in the room for the George Bradshaw lecture. And then a zoo metaphor popped into minds – they need to be set free to make those improvements that will give us a reliable railway. There was common consensus of too much government micro management and fixing that really shouldn’t wait until a rail reform bill is passed. Start by giving the railway professionals, who are closest to the customer (the passengers and the freight users) the remit to make change. And allow management of the margin between revenue and cost to take place close to the customer, not in the corridors of Whitehall.
"Railfuture demands that the rail industry seize the opportunity to grow its business by removing the inhibitors to rail travel. If passengers have a good experience, then they will share it with friends and travel again – and if they don't the opposite happens."
Chris concluded by observing:
"Once they have the basics in place, then the rail industry with Government need to focus their minds on growth and facing up to the need to make commitments to sustained investment in renewing and expanding our transport networks and making them energy efficient. More electric cars on the road do nothing to address the economic and environmental costs of traffic congestion, and with batteries making them heavier they cause more road surface damage and generate more particulates pollution too.
"The rail industry, with government, need to wake up and get the product right in a changed, far more flexible, world. Our Rail Action Plan sets out 10 actions to put the railways on a sustainable footing."
Editors notes
- Rail Partners “Rail Partners brings together independent owning groups, train and freight operating companies”. Their manifesto for rail is available at https://www.railpartners.co.uk/latest/news/rail-partners-launches-manifesto-for-rail-a-five-point-plan-to-achieve-best-of-both-worlds-rail-reform
- RIA is the Railway Industry Association “the voice of the UK rail supply community”; the report is available at https://www.riagb.org.uk/RIA/Newsroom/Press_Releases/Government_should_seize_opportunity_to_grow_passenger_rail.aspx
- The George Bradshaw Address: https://www.railpartners.co.uk/latest/george-bradshaw-address (“A recording will be available here in due course)”
- The Draft Rail Reform Bill: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/draft-rail-reform-bill
Railfuture is the UK's leading independent organisation campaigning for better rail services for both passengers and freight.
Railfuture's website can be found at: www.railfuture.org.uk
Follow Railfuture on X: twitter.com/Railfuture
For further information and comment please contact:
Bruce Williamson, media spokesman
Tel: 0117 927 2954 Mobile: 07759 557389
media@railfuture.org.uk
Neil Middleton, Director
Mobile: 07887 628367
neil.middleton@railfuture.org.uk