Activists Briefing - Issue 5

17th August 2005

IN THE NEWS

Railfuture director, Andrew Macfarlane, appeared twice live on TV from Irlam station on Wednesday 20 July. In his 08.20 appearance on BBC1 Breakfast Andrew drew attention to the need for more facilities at busy unstaffed stations but bemoaned the divided responsibility between Network Rail and the TOCs, which leads to buck passing. His 09.20 appearance on BBC News 24 was briefer but Andrew hopes he got over the need for investment in smaller stations.

James Rudman from the National Farmers Union has contacted us and asked for our comments on rural railways. Our Chairman, Mike Crowhurst, submitted an article for possible inclusion in NFU Countryside magazine. If any member sees any follow up in NFU literature could they please send a copy to Mike or myself.

NEWS FROM RAILFUTURE BRANCHES

The East Midlands Passenger Transport Users’ Forum (EMPTUF) is holding its first public meeting on Tuesday 6th September from 1 to 4 pm at the Miners Welfare Centre, Tilford Road, Newstead, Notts just around the corner from Newstead station on the Robin Hood line. Notts County Council is sponsoring this meeting and we understand that Nick Brown “Director of National Express Group” will be the main speaker. If we are to get a common voice for public transport in the East Midlands then it is very important this first meeting is well attended. Railfuture members in the East Midlands are urged to attend if they can. Details from East Midlands branch secretary Roger Bacon email: rbrail at btinternet.com tel: 0115 921 7814

A story in the (Newcastle) Journal on 5th August said that the SRA have recommended savage cuts in services in the North as part of the East Coast Main Line RUS. In the paper Peter Wood, of Railfuture North East, said: "This is the last will and testament of the SRA and the sooner both it and its report is buried, the better. "It doesn't seem to do anything to encourage the development of rail in this region, which the Government was elected to pursue."
http://icnewcastle.icnetwork.co.uk/thejournal/news/journalnews/tm_objectid=15822122%26method=full%26siteid=50081-name_page.html

“Growing the network” a discussion paper by Railfuture Chairman, Mike Crowhurst, is now on the members’ area of the Railfuture website. Some comments have been incorporated in the paper and others are appended to the paper. Any further comments to Mike please. http://www.railfuture.org.uk/tiki-index.php?page=Railfuture%20Members

Railfuture Lincolnshire will be taking their exhibition stand to 2 events next month. Grantham Rail Show on 3rd & 4th September - venue Central Technology College, Rushcliffe Road, Grantham 10.00 – 17.30 (17.00 on Sunday). Cleethorpes Rail Day 11th September – venue Cleethorpes station 10.00 – 16.00.

Railfuture East Anglia will be exhibiting at the Community Rail Fest at Norwich Station on 24 and 25th September.

RAFFLE TICKETS

If any members or branches need extra books of raffle tickets Chris Precey has some to spare. (Tel/fax 01455 616824)

NEWS FROM SRA

The West Midlands RUS was published by the SRA on 21st July. The SRA says that the strategy will deliver –
 Better use of rolling stock, especially in the peak;
 Longer peak time trains, where they are affordable and deliver value for money;
 Extension of off-peak services from Birmingham to provide a higher frequency to Kidderminster, Stratford-upon-Avon and Rugeley Trent Valley ;
 Changes on the Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton-Birmingham corridor to improve performance, including possibly in the future, the operation of a peak time Shrewsbury-London service.

Principal changes from the consultation document include continuation of services at Stone station, a fast coach service to replace the Wolverhampton – Walsall local service from April 2006 and detailed forecasts of where and when peak passenger service are likely to require lengthening and confirmation that demand for rail services continues to grow apace.

According to the report route capacity is likely to be sufficient to meet expected rail freight growth in the West Midlands up to 2011, except for Water Orton to Birmingham where Network Rail are developing a scheme to provide more capacity.

Railfuture West Midlands comment that “the West Midlands RUS has been written before the Regional Planning Assessment which it was supposed to serve - rather like setting the points before you decide where you are going.

With regard to the proposed withdrawal of the Walsall – Wolverhampton service the details in the RUS are more cloudy than suggested by the headlines in the press release.

Firstly it is currently a Wellington to Walsall service, which starts at Shrewsbury in the morning peak, in which the Telford to Wolverhampton section will be retained from December 2006 as part of a longer Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton local service as many passengers during the recent overtime ban preferred this.

Secondly the timings at Walsall give very poor connections from the (hourly) Chase Line service which with its common Black Country heritage is likely to provide many of the potential passengers.

Finally although the RUS says that the service should be withdrawn from April 2006, it does suggest that the service could be continued if funded locally by Centro and other stakeholders. Centro and Walsall UC were strongly supportive of this service - which also could be linked to one of the services from Birmingham which currently terminate at Walsall. Significantly there is virtually no mention of the social value of rail services in the RUS.

A far more serious threat is the proposed total withdrawal of all local services from Barlaston and Wedgwood - which are far from the most lightly used station on the network - simply to clear paths for Virgin. (2 x VWC + 2 x VXC per hour). It is small compensation that Stone has now formally been offered 6 stops per day the in VXC Birmingham to Manchester service - in place of the former 9 tpd local service!

Elsewhere we can read that demand at Polesworth was too low to merit a service even when the planned 2 hourly Northampton to Crewe service starts to call at all other Trent valley stations. (Nuneaton, Atherstone, Tamworth, Lichfield TV, Rugeley TV and Stafford although the stopping pattern is not yet known).

A final point that has not often been reported is that many of the conclusions – at least for track enhancements – in the RUS were anticipated three months ago when Network Rail’s 2005 Business Plan was published.”
NB If you want to know the infrastructure plans for your line then this is where you need to look. see: http://www.networkrail.co.uk/companyinformation/businesspublications/BusinessPlan2005.htm

NEWS FROM ORR

Model Contract for Connection Agreements
On 25 July 2005 the ORR published a model contract for connections between railway facilities, such as those between Network Rail’s network and freight facilities or heritage railways.
The model contract sets out simply and clearly the rights and obligations of the parties in respect of the ongoing maintenance of connections between two railway networks. It is flexible enough to be applied to a wide range of different types of connection, from complex and busy connections such as those to freight terminals, to basic and infrequently used connections such as those to self-contained heritage railways. It will also bring connection contracts into line with the other model contracts ORR has produced for passenger and freight track access agreements.
ORR consulted interested industry parties on a draft model connection contract in July 2004. An industry seminar was held in October of that year and ORR consulted further on the charging and liabilities provisions in April 2005. The final policy conclusions and model connection contract set out in the document published today reflects the views expressed by the industry.
Source ORR press release http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.7310

Combining safety and economic regulation – Bulletin No 2 published on 29th July 2005
This is the second bulletin produced by the ORR. It informs stakeholders of ORR’s current thinking and of progress regarding the transfer of responsibility for railway health and safety regulation from the Health and Safety Commission/Executive (HSC/E) to ORR. The Bulletin is provided for information, though ORR welcomes any comments you may care to make. The ORR expects to assume their new responsibilities as the combined safety and economic regulator in the first quarter of 2006.
Source: ORR press release http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/nav.00100700400e

In April 2005 the ORR published “Better information, better decisions: ORR's proposed strategy for developing a rail industry information network”. Copies of the responses to this consultation are now on the ORR website at http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.7303

FREIGHT ON RAIL STATEMENT BY ALISTAIR DARLING

Alistair Darling made a written Ministerial statement on Freight on Rail on 19th July. The Secretary of basically repeated previous assurances. Among other comments he said, “We believe rail therefore has a crucial role to play in goods transport alongside other modes, and we wish to see freight travelling by rail instead of road wherever this makes most sense.
This aim can be delivered most effectively by a competitive and dynamic private sector rail freight industry, and this is borne out by the growth since privatisation, which has been driven by real on-rail competition throughout the industry, including several new entrants to the market. We will not dictate to the industry how it should run its business or become involved in operational issues. Where disputes occur with other parts of the railway, they should be resolved through established rail industry dispute procedures.

But the Government do have a role to play and a relationship with the rail freight industry. Rail freight companies run on the same tracks as the publicly specified passenger railway therefore, the Government have to be mindful of their needs. And the Government recognise and wishes to encourage the important environmental and economic benefits that rail freight can bring.

We will therefore ensure that our policies and regulations do not put unnecessary obstacles in the way of future growth; we will continue to provide financial support where it is affordable and offers the greatest environmental, congestion and safety benefits when assessed alongside support for other modes; and we will ensure that in specifying the passenger railways, we recognise and take into account the consequences of our decisions upon the rail freight industry.
Source: Hansard This is a link to the full statement -
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmhansrd/cm050719/wmstext/50719m06.htm#50719m06.html_spmin5

TRANSPORT INNOVATION FUND

Alistair Darling announced the new Transport Innovation Fund on 5th July. Money from the Fund will become available from 2008/09 and is forecast to grow from £290 million in 2008/09 to about £2.5 billion by 2014/15. The Fund will be used to support innovative local plans which help tackle congestion. Proposals should combine some form of demand management such as road pricing with better public transport, including better use of buses, trams or light rail schemes, provided they offer good value for money. The Government has set aside £18m between 2005/6 and 2007/8 to support preliminary scheme development by local transport authorities.

The Government want to work with local authorities to develop and implement a pilot scheme for road pricing. No decisions have been taken on where such a pilot might take place. They hope to identify partner authorities willing to work up pilot proposals within the next year. And for them to start work on the ground with support from the Transport Innovation Fund when it comes on stream.

The Transport Innovation Fund has local importance in areas with potential light rail schemes because Alistair Darling suggested that some of the funding gaps such as with Metrolink "could" be bridged via a TIF bid. However it is notable that in the supporting documentation there are plenty of mentions for Road Pricing and buses, not a single one for trains or trams.
Link to Ministerial statement and supporting documentation: (note the "R" word in the weblink!!) http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_roads/documents/page/dft_roads_038886.hcsp

CRS REPORT - PASSENGER RAIL SECURITY – OVERVIEW OF ISSUES

The March 2004 bombing of passenger trains in Spain, and the recent attacks in London, highlighted the vulnerability of passenger rail systems to terrorist attack. The number of riders and access points make it impractical to subject all rail passengers to the type of screening airline passengers undergo. Nevertheless, steps can be taken to reduce the risks of an attack.

This report looks at the situation in the United States but has relevance to the UK. It summarises the challenges of securing passenger rail systems, options for making decisions about security funding, industry requests for funding, and legislative initiatives. One challenge is balancing the desire for and cost of increased rail passenger security with the impacts of security measures on the operating efficiency of passenger rail systems, with the potential costs that could be incurred in the event of one or more attacks, and with the costs and benefits of other options for promoting homeland security.
Source: Congressional Research Service The Library of Congress http://eb.emediaInternational.com/l/?347.499261.BQJNSOSD.0

SECURE STATIONS SCHEME CLARIFIED BY BTP

This national Scheme covers all rail and underground networks, which are policed by the British Transport Police BTP. It establishes standards of good practice and accredits individual stations, which have worked with the BTP and other local partners to implement security measures. There are four accreditation criteria:
 the design of the station must conform to standards judged by the local BTP Crime Reduction Officer to prevent and reduce crime and improve passenger perceptions;
 the management of the station must enable you to take steps to prevent crimes, respond to incidents, and communicate effectively with passengers;
 crime statistics for the station over the twelve months prior to the inspection must show that you are managing crime; and
 a survey of users must show that, on the whole, passengers feel secure when using the station.

Source: The full Scheme guidance pack can be accessed from the DfT website at http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_mobility/documents/divisionhomepage/036930.hcsp.

HOW FAIR ARE THE FARES? TRAIN FARES AND TICKETING

The Transport Committee of the House of Commons has decided to launch an inquiry into the price and availability of train tickets in the UK. Research by the RMT union in 2005 suggested that standard train tickets in the UK cost three times as much as those on comparable routes in mainland Europe. UK train operators suggest that passengers in the UK benefit from cheaper advance purchase fares, and that these can now be cheaper in real terms than those available 10 years ago. Fare types and names which differ between train operators can cause confusion, as can fares which differ depending on whether they are booked by phone, on the internet or in person.

Standard and discounted fare levels alone do not provide the full picture; the availability of cheap fares is also important. Before public holidays in 2004, some rail passengers were frustrated in their attempts to buy cheap advance purchase tickets or make seat reservations. Train operating companies apparently did not know whether they would be able to run their trains as planned. They suggested they received information from Network Rail about the timetable only one or two weeks in advance because of Network Rail's schedule of engineering works. By that time, the deadline for cheap advance purchase tickets had passed.

Under the terms of its licence, Network Rail is supposed to set its timetables at least 12 weeks in advance. It suggested that the problems followed an unprecedented amount of work on the railways, especially on the West Coast Main Line. Network Rail also suggested that the situation was now improving. During the course of its inquiry the Committee will consider issues such as:
 The comparative cost of rail travel to passengers in the UK;
 The justification for the current fare and ticketing structure, and the case for reform;
 The availability of cheaper, advance purchase rail tickets; and
 The way in which Network Rail's determination of the timetable can affect the cost of rail travel.

Railfuture Passenger Committee are co-ordinating the Railfuture response. Comments to committee chairman, Howard Thomas, by 31st August 2005.
Source: Transport Committee Press Notice 05/2005-06, dated 9 August 2005 http://www.parliament.uk/parliamentary_committees/transport_committee/trans05_06_press_notice05.cfm

CLOSURE OF ETRURIA STATION IS APPROVED

The Department for Transport has approved the closure of Etruria Station in Staffordshire. They find that the cost of replacing it following track realignment cannot be justified in view of the small number of passengers (about 22 per day whilst the bustitution was in place) Those having Adobe Acrobat software may read Derek Twigg MP's decision letter of July 21st here: www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_railways/documents/page/dft_railways_039661.pdf

Railfuture West Midlands branch advise that there is local concern that whereas the North Staffordshire Integrated Transport Study NSITS should have been completed in September with a period of public consultation it has now been presented as a fait accompli and, contrary to the local authority view, apparently sees no place for rail in the Potteries. We understand that the NSITS has not technically been published yet as none of the Local Authorities who commissioned it have given their formal approval to the final draft! It is of course difficult to challenge any of these points whilst parliament is in recess other than by resorting to a judicial review.

Despite having a combined population of 500,000 the Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under Lyme conurbation has a minimal South to North through local rail service and no East-West rail (or Tram) routes at all. The Crewe - Derby service does provide an hourly service to Kidsgrove, Longport, (Etruria), Stoke-on-Trent, Longton and Blythe Bridge. The problem is that the railway no longer reaches either Hanley or Newcastle-under-Lyme for which Etruria was the nearest station. Of course the high frequency, 4 tph, Virgin services give excellent opportunities for residents to commute out of the City to London or Manchester.

However there is some good news. Local planners are still looking at long term plans to build a new station at 'Festival Park' which would probably replace both Etruria and Longport.

THE RAILWAYS (PENALTY FARES) REGULATIONS 2005 - REGULATORY IMPACT ASSESSMENT

This final regulatory impact assessment sets out the benefits and costs for the decision to raise the Minimum Level Penalty Fare from £10 to £20. Published: 5 August 2005
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_control/documents/contentservertemplate/dft_index.hcst?n=14258&l=2

TWO THIRDS OF THE PUBLIC ARE OPPOSED TO 60 TONNE LORRIES

Two applications have been submitted to the Department for Transport for experimental use of bigger lorries – one at 60 tonnes, the other at 84 tonnes – in the form of double articulated vehicles, known in the US and Australia as “road trains”. The current maximum weight limit is 44 tonnes, which was raised from 40 tonnes in 2001. Source T2000 press release: http://www.transport2000.org.uk/

ASLEF commissioned an opinion survey by NOP, which showed that two thirds of the public are opposed to the proposal to increase by one third the length and weight of lorries permitted on UK roads. 86% favoured the alternative of the Government, through planning policy and funding, to encourage more freight to go by rail. Only 9% said no. Details are on the ASLEF website at http://www.aslef.org.uk/C2B/PressOffice/display.asp?ID=192&Type=2

This link will also take you to a factsheet giving the case against 60 tonne lorries. Why not use the factsheet to write a letter to your MP asking him/her to oppose increased lorry weights?

PLANNING APPLICATION SUBMITTED FOR A NEW STATION AT BRINSFORD

A planning application has been submitted to South Staffordshire District Council for a large new Park & Ride station at Brinsford, about 5 miles north of Wolverhampton. The plans suggest a four track layout with a 300 metre island platform to allow Virgin Pendolinos, which currently terminate at Wolverhampton, to call; as well as local services from Birmingham etc. The site NGR SJ 921055 - once access to a large MOD Depot - is close to the M54 overbridge and about 3 Kms south of the former Four Ashes station.

KNOW YOUR ENEMY

The report of the House of Commons Transport Select Committee enquiry into the 'Future of Rail' has now been published. (May 2005). Although this dates from 2003/04 the oral and written evidence is worth reading as not only are there many well reasoned contributions; a few individuals are still promoting the Rail into Road nonsense - it always helps to know who your enemies are!
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200304/cmselect/cmtran/145/14502.htm#evidence

Activists Briefing - Issue 4

17th July 2005

IN THE NEWS

On 24th June Railfuture Chairman, Mike Crowhurst, was interviewed by Dan Leigh-Brown of Real Radio fm (Yorkshire) concerning the sweltering conditions endured by passengers on a GNER train which was disabled when the wires came down near Peterborough. Mike stressed that this was an unusual occurrence and pointed out that it was not safe for doors to be opened because diesel hauled trains could still have been running. He also said that some thought needs to be given to ventilating carriages when the air conditioning fails.

Transport Briefing contacted Railfuture President, Peter Lawrence, for our views on the re-opening of the Vale of Glamorgan line. Peter said we regarded it as excellent news and fully supported the re-opening.

NEWS FROM RAILFUTURE BRANCHES

Railfuture East Anglia Branch have been selected (subject to final decision) to take part in the transport discussion at the East of England Plan examination in public later this year. Railfuture East Anglia Secretary, Nick Dibben, would be interested to receive copies of any comments sent in by user groups and individuals. This will help answer the specific transport questions raised by the Inspector.

1) Does the strategy deal adequately with the transport needs of the region?
2) Is the strategy for sustainable transport and demand management sufficiently robust?
3) Does the Regional Spatial Strategy provide a clear, consistent and appropriate framework for responding to these demands? Are the transport objectives clearly and consistently articulated?

e-mail to nick.dibben at btinternet.com or send to 24 Bure Close, St Ives, Cambs PE27 3FE.
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Railfuture Lincolnshire Chairman, Brian Hastings, was woken by Radio Lincolnshire at 06.30 on 21st June. They wanted him discuss the ATOC “10 Year View of Strategy for Britain’s Railways“ on the breakfast show. Brian was interviewed at 07.30. Brian pointed out that far from the report being a call for closures of rural stations, as the interviewer was trying to imply, the report had positive aspects for Lincolnshire. A forecast in the report of a 28% increase in traffic in 10 years was likely to be exceeded. At least two Community Rail Partnerships are being planned and, given CRP successes in other areas, 28% in 10 years would be the minimum that could be expected for them. In Lincolnshire we are already seeing growth rates of 2.8% and 5% per annum on two non-CRP routes.

Lincolnshire branch always sends copies of their newsletter, Rail Lincs, to the local media. From the recent issue the Lincolnshire Echo have printed verbatim an article on rail travel from the female perspective and Radio Humberside followed up an item on the planned station at Robin Hood Airport by interviewing Brian Hastings.
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A public meeting to discuss ‘The Future of Rail Travel in the South East’ will be held in the Council Chamber, Guildford Borough Council, Millmead, Guildford at 19.00 on Tues 26 July. Presented by Daniel Wright, Rail Officer for Surrey County Council and organised by the Transport Working Group of the Guildford Environmental Forum there will also be an update by Tom Sharp (former County Councillor) on the scheme for opening Merrow station. Details from RDS Board member H. Trevor Jones tel: 01483-565319 email: htjones at raildev.fsnet.co.uk
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Railfuture East Anglia Branch is expected to have a stand at at Norwich Station for the Community Rail Fest on 23/24/25 September A whole programme of events are planned for these few days.

The branch are producing some new display material for the event similar to the display that CAST.IRON had at the national AGM this year. The intention is to produce to full height laminated display posters (each approx 2 x 1m ). The first will have a general national Railfuture theme so it could be used at any location around the country. The second will cover East Anglia issues. The branch are currently getting quotes. If other Branches would like a copy of the national poster please let Nick Dibben know.

If the posters go well, the EA Branch would consider helping other Branches produce similar posters. The idea would be to get a set for the entire country in the same style and format. Individual branches would provide the outline text (and the cash!) and we would arrange to get them produced.

The branch also propose to have a large regional map and invite people to add their aspirations to it. We will then send these to local authorities and train operators to say this is what people want. They will have leaflets and a special "community rail" edition of the Branch newsletter to hand out.

RICHARD MACQUEEN

It is with great sadness that we report the sudden passing of Richard on 20th June after a few months of heart monitoring. John Barfield has written the following obituary.

“Richard was for many years a television film editor with the BBC, then London Weekend Television before setting up award winning Syntaxis Video with his business partner, Sarah Vincent (an advert for which appeared in RW89 – August 2001). Shortly afterwards they had to move out of their studio under the arches of St. Pancras station due to the redevelopment for the CTRL.

Richard joined the Railway Invigoration Society in the mid 1960s and his main interest was in international affairs. With the formation of RDS he was one of the first members of the International & EU Committee (his father was for some years RDS Treasurer). He was also interested in freight and was until his death liaison officer with the Freight Committee.

Prior to the setting up of EPF he came with me to Brussels on a number of occasions to meet MEPs and members of the European Commission. He also had useful contacts in Ireland and was instrumental in setting up a meeting with an MEP and local members in Belfast.

Latterly he moved from Twickenham to Walthamstow where he took a particular interest in local affairs. He was a member of GOBLIN and was concerned about the future of services in the Lea Valley and to Chingford.

I shall miss our regular meetings in the “Goldengrove” at Stratford and his contribution to the work of the Society cannot be over-stressed.”

COMMITTEE MEETINGS

Railfuture Passenger Committee have meetings organised for 24th September (Calthorpe Arms, London), 3rd December (Carrs Lane, Birmingham), 25th March 2006 (London) and 3rd June 2006 (Birmingham).

LIFE MEMBERSHIP

Members who were at the AGM in Peterborough will recall that it was agreed that we would introduce Life Membership from 1st June 2005. Application forms are now ready and can be obtained from Railfuture Membership, 6 Carral Close, Lincoln LN5 9BD. A sae would be appreciated.

RAILWATCH BACK ISSUES

We have a quantity of Railwatch back issues available. If any branch, RUG etc would like some to use at events etc please contact David Harby (details below). They can be a very useful promotional item as they contain a lot of information about our campaigning activities.

AIRPORT RAIL LINKS

International & EU Committee are preparing a paper on Airport Rail Links. They would like to receive any relevant input from the branches concerning rail access, or lack of it, to airports in their areas. While passengers who are flying may be making domestic journeys, nevertheless there is potential to encourage international passengers to leave or arrive in the UK from their nearest regional airport. The Committee will prepare a national paper after consideration of points and suggestions from branches. Do any branches have particular views about the following:

1. Justification of a new rail link to an airport.
2. Proposed route(s) and alignment(s).
3. How existing rail access to airports could be improved.
4. Existing (if any) and proposed levels of service.
5. Where no rail access construction can really be justified, how can bus services provide better access to nearest railhead point (s).
6. Any other points relevant for Railfuture to consider.

This should not be seen as support by RF for air transport, nor for any new airport construction. We will continue to press for short-haul domestic and international passengers to travel by high-speed rail instead, given Government inducement on fares levels and general revised transport policies. However clearly it is better that those who are going to fly should reach their airport by rail rather than by car.

Comments and suggestions to Ian McDonald, 10 Douglas Road, Maidstone, Kent ME16 8ES. ianfsmcdonald at blueyonder.co.uk to arrive by 30 September 2005.

RAIL AT RISK

Rail at Risk is the latest in a series of discussion papers written by Nick Lewis and edited by Chris Burden on behalf of the Railfuture Passenger Committee. With the passing of the recent Railways Act, there are indications that the government intends, by almost any means, to reduce its financial and other support for the railways. The paper analyses the origins of rail industry cost inflation and suggests ways of reducing it, without cutting routes or services. It also shows that the appeal of 'bustitution', apparently a cheap option and one of the favoured ways of cutting local rail services, is based on flawed economics. The paper shows that in the light of the substantial and unpredicted increase in rail ridership over the last few years, and which is likely to continue with the introduction of road congestion charging, cutting services would be folly.

Contact Chris Burden f-chris-f at clara.net for details of how to obtain a copy.

NEWS FROM SRA

National Rail Trends Yearbook 2004-2005 is available from the SRA website. It contains a multitude of facts and figures that are useful when arguing the case for rail. . In this year’s Yearbook a change in methodology has occurred in the calculation of passenger kilometres (PKM) and passenger journeys. Changes have also occurred in the method of data collection for those data used to calculate ‘ Freight Lifted’ and the equivalent number of ‘ Avoided Lorry Journeys’ Comparisons with previous years and annual trends should be treated with caution. http://www.sra.gov.uk/publications

The SRA published its final Gauging Policy on 24 June 2005. The Policy is designed to ensure that the industry makes the optimum use and deployment of its existing rolling stock and infrastructure The Policy is the result of twelve months cross-industry collaboration and summarises the key findings of the cross-industry study group and their proposals. The Policy does not require substantial additional investment; instead most improvements can be realised through greater certainty and planning. The policy is available on the SRA website http://www.sra.gov.uk/pubs2/strategy_policy_planning

The final Great Western Main Line Route Utilisation Strategy was published on 24 June 2005. Its aims are to reduce overcrowding and improve service patterns for passengers by making better use of existing tracks and trains on the route, to drive improved punctuality and reliability. The Strategy covers the Thames Valley, the Cotswolds, South Wales and the West Country for the period up to 2012. Whether the RUS will benefit all passengers remains to be seen. Railfuture branches in Devon and Cornwall and South Wales think passengers from their regions will see an inferior service. The strategy is available from the SRA website http://www.sra.gov.uk/pubs2/strategy_policy_planning

An ERTMS progress report was published on 23 June 2005. Currently under development across Europe, the introduction of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) into the UK will start with a pilot on the Cambrian Coast Line (costing approx £60m), that will ‘go live’ in 2008. Further rollout across the UK network will depend on progress with development of ERTMS across Europe. Current commercial projects using “Level 2” ERTMS, which are very largely centred on new high speed lines, have not yet come into service. The availability of a proven, reliable system for complex, mixed traffic railways such as the UK is some years away. The SRA’s report suggests that the earliest realistic target for ERTMS on high speed lines is in the 2020s. This is not a matter of cost but is dependent on the technical development of the system. The full End of Year ERTMS report is available on the SRA website at http://www.sra.gov.uk/publications

SRA'S COMMUNITY RAIL UNIT MOVES TO THE DFT AND WILL BE UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT

The SRA has written a letter to stakeholders explaining that the Community Rail section will transfer to DfT Rail on 21st August within the "Rail Stakeholder and Customer" part of the organisation. It will be managed by Ian McBrayne. Chris Austin and Judy Raumann will be leaving the SRA at the end of July and moving to the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC). Chris will become Director of Public Policy responsible for making the case for the railway on a national basis, and working to improve public understanding of the benefits that are already being achieved

TWO NEW STATIONS PLANNED IN THE MILTON KEYNES & SOUTH MIDLANDS GROWTH AREA

In 2004 the government set up the £200 million Community Infrastructure Fund to fund transport projects that would bring forward new housing development in the four growth areas of Thames Gateway, London – Stansted – Cambridge – Peterborough, Milton Keynes and South Midlands and Ashford. Possible stations at Berryfields nr Aylesbury and Wixhams, south of Bedford have been selected for detailed appraisal. An announcement of which projects are to receive CIF funding will be made in the autumn.

Source: www.gose.gov.uk/gose/docs/170192/221841/221846/MKSMNewsletter6June.pdf

NEWS FROM ORR

The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) has appointed Bill Emery as its new Chief Executive. He will take up his appointment on 19 September 2005. The Secretary of State for Transport has also appointed him to the ORR Board with immediate effect.
Dr Emery, 53, is currently Director of Costs and Performance and Chief Engineer at Ofwat where he is responsible for promoting robust asset management planning, improving efficiency, incentives, and overseeing the capital investment programmes of the sector. He is also a member of the Ofwat Board.
http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.7247

The first steps were taken on 14th June 2005 to establish an appropriate regulatory framework for the transfer of powers and responsibilities for specifying and funding railway services and high-level railway outputs to the devolved government in Scotland, and to local and regional bodies in England and the National Assembly for Wales. Proposals to devolve these responsibilities were set out in the Government’s white paper The Future of Rail published in July 2004, and necessitate a number of changes to the structure, operation and funding of the rail industry. Under new funding arrangements the secretary of State and Scottish Minister specify what they want the rail network to deliver and how much public finding is available. The ORR carries out these instructions.

The ORR is setting out its approach to dealing with these changes in a consultation document ’Disaggregating Network Rail's expenditure and revenue allowance and the future price control framework’, which includes:
 proposals to separate Network Rail’s expenditure and revenue allowances into separate requirements for Scotland, and for England and Wales;
 details of the proposed methodology for separating Network Rail’s regulatory asset base (RAB); and
 proposals for the future development of Network Rail’s price control and monitoring framework in England and Wales, and Scotland. This looks at the options for Merseyrail and discusses the implications if some funding is devolved to the WAG, the Mayor of London, PTEs or CRPs.
Source: http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.7174

RPC

The list of Board members appointed to the new Rail Passengers Council was announced by the DfT on 13th June. There are another 3 appointments that need to be made to the new RPC by the Scottish Ministers, the National Assembly for Wales and the London Assembly (the latter appointment to be drawn from the existing membership of the London Transport Users' Committee). Details of each member including short biographies can be found on the DfT website at www.dft.gov.uk/pns/displaypn.cgi?pn_id=2005_0066

RAIL: THE NEW STRUCTURE, PERFORMANCE AND CUSTOMER SERVICE

This is the title of a speech by Transport Secretary Alistair Darling to the Railway Forum on 21 June 2005. His speech concentrated on what he sees as three key areas. “First, on progress that is being made within the DfT and across the industry to deliver the new structure – and how we will plan ahead to address the capacity problems we will face in the future. Second – how we need to continue to drive up performance to continue to improve reliability, all the time keeping costs firmly under control. And third – how important it is to focus on customer service. Because all the changes that are being made are meaningless to the passengers unless they deliver real benefits – and that passengers know what is going on. Some are good at this, others are not”

“Government is setting the strategic direction of the railways. This means making clear how much public money is available as well as the size and the shape of the network it wants to buy. We are also working to reduce the number of franchises, so that they are more closely aligned with the Network Rail regions and routes, to avoid overlap and improve performance.

We have simplified the franchise template that is sent out to bidders - and the new template clearly states the level of service expected of the new franchisee. The new Rail Group within the Department for Transport is responsible for this work and will be fully operational by the end of August.”

He made it clear that DfT will be responsible for taking on the key strategic challenges that face the rail industry - and it will be responsible for planning ahead to meet the pressures we know we will face on the network in the future. As an example he used the replacement of the High Speed Train fleet. He stressed the need for greater standardisation - one type of train across the network. To properly scope and test the new design, so that it can be introduced smoothly and without causing any drop in reliability. And to ensure that we consider how all aspects of the system work together - not buy a train without any consideration of how it operates on the track, or of what passengers actually want.
Source DfT press release: http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_railways/documents/page/dft_railways_038373.hcsp

ATOC SETS OUT 10 YEAR VIEW OF STRATEGY FOR BRITAIN’S RAILWAYS

On 21st June ATOC published their plans for a way forward for the railway over the next ten years focusing on reducing costs, meeting rising demand, and improving passenger service.

Its main points are:
 The railways must consolidate their recent improved performance and reduce their costs.
 Strong passenger growth is likely to continue – ATOC estimates growth of at least 28% over the next 10 years. While some routes will become very crowded, overall the network should be capable of handling this growth through innovation and some small investments.
 While rail makes a vital contribution to national economic life, the ‘funding gap’ of the railways is too large, but with revenue growth and a focus on costs, this gap will reduce considerably over the next 10 years.

The paper also argues that additional measures will be required to handle growth during the next decade. These include:
 selective lengthening of trains;
 improved track layouts;
 timetable reviews to squeeze more train paths;
 identification of ‘pinch points’ on the network and measures to address them;
 removal of franchise requirements to run under-used trains or preserve very under-used stations which absorb capacity.
 Ultimately, the paper argues, some major capital works will also be required to meet demand.

The report can be downloaded as a pdf document from this link: http://www.atoc-comms.org/docs.asp?cat=studies
Also downloadable from the same link is an ATOC study of “European Rail Growth Trends over the last 10 years”.
Source: ATOC press release
http://www.atoc-comms.org/atocstory.asp?abstractorder=&toc=&category=&File_reference=822057

RAIL FREIGHT IN BRITAIN GROWS TO RECORD LEVELS AS CHANNEL TUNNEL TOLL DEAL IS ACHIEVED

The amount of freight moved on the rail network in Britain rose by 9.5% during 2004/05 to 20.7 billion net tonne kilometres. The increase of 9.5% means that rail freight has grown by 60% since 1995, and that the amount of freight moved, measured by billion net tonne kilometres, is at its highest level since 1977.

Future growth in rail freight is expected to continue by increasing services for bulk haulage, general merchandise and fast moving consumer goods. EWS also expects that rail freight services to and from mainland Europe will see significant growth, delivered by its European railfreight subsidiary, Euro Cargo Rail, which will operate railfreight services in France. In planning for this overall growth, EWS is currently investing £61 million during 2005/06 in new wagons, international terminals and line re-openings.

In a further boost to rail freight growth, the European Commission has announced its approval for the extension of the existing agreement between EWS International and the UK Government on freight tolls through the Channel Tunnel. This agreement, which will last until November 2006, will encourage international freight traffic and pave the way for a long term charging agreement from December 2006.

Euro Cargo Rail has been established as a company in France, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of English Welsh & Scottish Railway Holdings Limited. Rail freight in Europe currently accounts for 8% of the total freight transportation base. Following legislation from the European Commission to facilitate rail freight growth and competition, this is forecast to rise from 8% to 15% by 2020. Source EWS press release: http://www.ews-railway.co.uk/cmsystem/news_alt.asp

28,000 LORRY MILES A WEEK AVOIDED WITH NEW EWS SERVICE FOR GEEST

EWS has commenced operation of a new daily rail freight service from the Port of Tilbury to the Hams Hall rail freight terminal near Birmingham for Geest North Sea Line, the multi-modal shortsea shipping operator. The daily services will reduce Geest’s use of road transportation by some 28,000 lorry miles a week. A further 5,600 lorry miles a week will be removed once the length, and capacity, of trains is increased by 20%.

Mark Bennett, General Manager of Geest’s UK Operations, said: “Rail transportation is the obvious way to beat traffic tailbacks and also provides a positive solution to restrictions such as the EU Working Time Directive and the growing shortage of truck drivers. The Tilbury - Hams Hall service will provide shippers with a fast, direct transport mode between the Thames and one of the UK’s most densely populated regions, Birmingham and the West Midlands. We anticipate a proportion of our third-party business entering Tilbury on our vessels switching to the train service for on-carriage to the Midlands.”

Paul Swaak, Geest’s Operations Director, said: “Rail can be cost effective and highly efficient if managed correctly and we believe that with EWS we have a partner that can deliver the service our clients expect at the right price.”
Source EWS press release: http://www.ews-railway.co.uk/cmsystem/news_alt.asp

WHEEL COMES OFF THE MISGUIDED BUS IN EDINBURGH

A guide wheel has come off a guided bus in Edinburgh and damaged a taxi. The taxi driver, Mr Harrison, was quoted as saying he thought the wayward wheel was further proof that the guided busway was a misguided enterprise. He added: "What happened to my cab is just more evidence that the huge expense spent on this guided busway was completely wasted. Why didn't they just widen the road and put in an extra bus lane on either side of the road, instead of spending such a lot of money on the Fastlink? These things are obviously dangerous."

Source: Edinburgh Evening News http://news.scotsman.com/edinburgh.cfm?id=770642005

SAVE OUR SLEEPERS

A campaign to support the continued use of the Paddington-Penzance 'Night Riviera' sleeper train service has set up a website. To quote from the site "This is not a romantic campaign based on the long-gone golden age of the railway: it’s about proving to the decision makers in Parliament and Whitehall that the service is viable, and that there is widespread support across the south-west for it." The site gives10 reasons for supporting the sleeper.

There is an online petition that can be signed via the site. http://www.saveoursleeper.com/mainpage.htm

Activists Briefing - Issue 3

15th June 2005

IN THE NEWS

Railfuture Membership Secretary, David Harby, was interviewed during a local interest programme on Radio Lincolnshire on 24 May. The interview was a general discussion about the history of Railfuture and our current campaigns. This was followed by the question ‘ When did you first become involved in rail campaigning?’ When David replied ‘Whilst I was still at school we campaigned against the closures of my local stations as part of the Beeching cuts’ he then had to go on and explain about Dr Beeching and his notorious report ‘The Reshaping of British Railways’. The interviewer had never heard of Dr Beeching.

This highlights something that is often forgotten. The Beeching report was published in 1963 and a sizeable proportion of the population was not even born then. We can not assume that all our readers/listeners know anything at all about the report or the dubious statistics used to justify many of the closures implemented in the 1960’s.

NEWS FROM RAILFUTURE BRANCHES

Railfuture North East have organised a visit to the award winning Locomotion, NRM at Shildon on Saturday June 25th. Meet at 11:30 at the Welcome Building, which is on the west end of the site about 5 mins walk from Shildon Railway Station. A short business meeting of about 10~15 mins will preceed the visit. Should you wish to attend please advise Ian Walker, Secretary Railfuture North East, tel. 0191 372 0538 (answerphone), email: ian.walker2 at virgin.net, in order that he can give the museum a rough idea of the number attending

The Coastway Division of Railfuture London and South East branch have sent a response to the draft Southern 2005 Winter Timetable for Coastway eastwards of Brighton, Marshlink and Eastbourne – Victoria services. Details are available from Railfuture Coastway Division Chairman, Ivor Hueting, email hueting at euphony.net

REOPENINGS CONFERENCE

The 12th National Conference of Rail Reopenings will be held in the Memorial Hall Theatre, Barry, South Wales on Saturday 2nd July. The conference will celebrate the reinstatement of local services on the Vale of Glamorgan line. Speakers representing The Welsh Assembly, Network Rail, University of Glamorgan, Vale of Glamorgan Council, Arriva Trains and Cardiff International Airport will be present.

It seems that Royal Mail have failed to deliver some of the flyers advertising the conference (see next item). If you have not received a booking form but would like to attend just send your name and address together with your payment to John Lee, Railfuture Administration Officer, The Birches, Eye Lane, East Rudham Norfolk PE31 8RH. The attendance fee is £5 for each Railfuture member PLUS £5 each if you require a buffet lunch. John Lee must receive all bookings no later than 24th June 2005. This is essential if you require a buffet lunch as we have to order these in advance. No lunches will be available on the day for anyone who has not booked one in advance.

LOST IN THE POST

A copy of the Railway Development Society Limited Annual Report and Financial Statements was posted to every member before the AGM. Reports from members indicate that the Royal Mail have failed to deliver some of these. If you have not received your copy please notify David Harby (email david.harby at ntlworld.com). We would like to ascertain if the delivery failure could be traced to specific local Royal Mail delivery offices or further back up along the chain where the letters were posted in London.

NEWS FROM SRA

Greater Western Franchise
The SRA has published on its website a Stakeholder Consultation Document, which provides details of the bidding process and the proposed service specification. http://www.sra.gov.uk/publications

The main ‘improvements’ to the present service are:

• Segregation in Monday – Friday peak hours of use of the two pairs of tracks between Paddington and Reading (the Main Lines and the Relief Lines), with exclusive use of the Main Lines by trains capable of running at 125 mph. The purpose is to improve operational performance and to minimise the consequences of delay
• More 125 mph trains
• Additional peak hour seats into and out of London
• Improved frequency (three trains per hour) on the Slough – Windsor line
• Half-hourly service frequency between Reading and Gatwick rather than the current hourly
• Simplified service between Bristol, Plymouth and Penzance to give a more regular pattern
• New pattern for cross-Bristol services, with through services Worcester/Gloucester to Weston-super-Mare/Taunton and Cardiff to Westbury/Weymouth/Southampton replacing radial services, which currently start/terminate in Bristol, offering more through journey opportunities and improved performance
• Daily inter-city standard services between London Paddington and Newquay, reflecting the nature of passenger demand to this destination
• Extension of Paddington to Bedwyn services to Westbury

Some services are however being cut: -

• Withdrawal of Slough stops from Main Line services.
• Withdrawal of off-peak Paddington to Exeter semi-fast services (although the hourly semi-fast Bedwyn service will be extended to serve Westbury)
• Reduction of services on the Oxford – Bicester Town route to morning and afternoon only.
• Reduction of services on the Swindon – Westbury via Melksham route. (According to the SRA this is to match demand, which is mainly for commuter travel.)
• Reduction of stopping services on the Par – Newquay branch. (Railfuture Devon and Cornwall are strongly objecting to this.)

The SRA is requesting bidders to outline the costs of running the following services separately:

• The overnight service between Paddington and Plymouth/Penzance, which conveys sleeping coaches and seated accommodation. (Press speculation from seemingly well informed sources are that this service is to be discontinued.)
• The off-peak half-hourly services between Paddington and Cardiff

Source SRA press release http://www.sra.gov.uk/news/2005/6/greater_western

Thameslink/Great Northern Franchise

A Stakeholder Briefing Document was published on 2nd June and can be found on the SRA website at http://www.sra.gov.uk/publications

The main service change is an improved timetable on the north part of the Thameslink route with all peak trains formed of 8 carriages. There is no change on the south part of the Thameslink route or on the Great Northern route.
Source: SRA press release http://www.sra.gov.uk/news/2005/6/thameslink

RAILFUTURE NETWORK DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

At their meeting on 11th June the Railfuture Network Development Committee elected Jerry Alderson as Chairman. Jerry can be contacted by email at jerry.alderson at virgin.net or by post to 32 The Oaks, Milton, Cambridge CB4 6ZG.

ORR COMMENTS ON NETWORK RAIL’S PERFORMANCE

On 7 June 2005 The Office of Rail Regulation published several documents in its continuing monitoring of Network Rail’s operational and financial performance. The documents are:

• The second edition of the quarterly Network Rail Monitor. This covers ORR’s assessment of Network Rail’s performance against targets across a wide variety of measures for the last quarter of 2004-05, available at http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/nr_monitorq4_0405.pdf;
• A statement on Network Rail’s 2005 business plan. This assesses whether the plan meets the needs of the business, and the company’s stakeholders and forms an adequate basis to assess future expenditure needs, available at http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/nrbp_stat.pdf;
• A consultation on how ORR proposes to monitor and account for Network Rail’s underspending, if any, against regulatory assumptions in a way that ensures delivery of Network Rail’s obligations while providing effective incentives to achieve greater efficiency, available at http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/237.pdf; and
• A letter to Network Rail containing ORR’s assessment of its 1 April 2005 asset information plans, available at http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/aip_let05.pdf

Specific issues highlighted in the documents include:

• Train performance is well ahead of target - delay minutes 7% better than 2003-04 at 11.4 million minutes, Public Performance Measure (PPM) 2.4% better;
• Asset condition is 15% better than target.
• Asset failures show a 10% reduction on 2003-04. There was however a shortfall of approximately 6% in planned delivery of track renewal volumes;
• Cost control – expenditure on operations, maintenance and renewals some £0.8 billion less than 2003-04
• Expenditure overall was approximately £1 billion (15%) less than budget. Of this approximately £90 million represented reduction in payments due to better performance and possession planning. Enhancement spend was 35% (nearly £0.4 billion) below budget, due in part to lower expenditure on the Southern Power upgrade.
• There is a need to get better measurement of network availability to ensure cost savings are not being achieved at the expense of unnecessary/inefficient possessions.

Source: ORR press release http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.7156

ORR ISSUES FRESH GUIDANCE ON ROUTE UTILISATION STRATEGIES

The Office of Rail Regulation has issued fresh guidance to Network Rail to help it to prepare and review Route Utilisation Strategies. Select the appropriate heading on the following web page:
www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/nav.001007

STEWART FRANCIS RESIGNS AS RPC CHAIRMAN

In a press release from the DfT Alistair Darling, Transport Secretary, announced that because of ill health, Stewart Francis has resigned from his position as Chair of the new RPC. The Transport Secretary said he understood and supported this decision. He has written to Stewart Francis accepting his resignation from both his current appointment as Chairman of the RPC and his recent appointment as Chairman of the new RPC. "Stewart has been the key architect of the organisation's reform and his contribution over the last year in particular has been vital. His involvement in the RPC network and advocacy on behalf of rail passengers over the last 8 years must also be commended. I wish him well for the future." added Alistair Darling.

The Transport Secretary is still expecting the new RPC to come into existence in July and will keep the House of Commons informed of further developments as he continues to implement the proposals set out in the White Paper. Railfuture understands that interviews of prospective members of the new RPC have been taking place.

Source:
www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_railways/documents/page/dft_railways_038004.hcsp

"WHAT LIGHT RAIL CAN DO FOR CITIES: A REVIEW OF THE EVIDENCE"

This new report reviews evidence for the economic, environmental and social benefits of urban light rail and examines the outcomes of light rail schemes operating in the United Kingdom. It offers data on patronage and on levels of modal shift.

The authors argue that, although passenger numbers have not reached the totals predicted, patronage has increased to the extent that all systems operate at or near full capacity during peak times. They also consider evidence from Britain and overseas for the positive impact of light rail on the urban economy, including its contribution to regeneration through an enhanced city image. The 85-page report, issued last February, also looks at the role of UK light rail in promoting social inclusion and at its environmental and safety record.

Copies can be downloaded from this website
www.pteg.net/LightRailCentre/01-Whatlightrailcandoforcities.htm
Passenger Transport Executive Group, Steer Davies Gleave, 28-32 Upper Ground, London SE1 9PD.

HOUSES FOR SOCIAL/KEY WORKERS MAY BE BUILT ON DISUSED RAILWAY LAND

New government plans for housing includes building on brownfield land, including government owned, mod, railways and so on. A list of the land held in the BRB (Residuary) Ltd file can be found at http://www.brb.gov.uk/property/property_listings. You are recommended to check if land within your area is in danger. Most of the important sites were handed over to SRA/Network Rail and the remaining pockets of land are thought to have little rail potential, although some may have slipped through. The housing in question is social/key-worker, so our opposition needs to be constructive and only targeted at land that remains important to the railway.

WITHERING SUPPORT

Paul Witherington, the man behind Transport Watch, the organisation arguing for the closure of much of the rail network, contested the Northampton North constituency in the General Election. He stood as the S O S! Voters Against Overdevelopment of Northampton candidate and amassed 495 votes (1.2% of votes cast).
See: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/433.stm

TV ON TRAINS TRIAL IS OVER

The trial installations of TV’s on some c2c and Central trains services has met with considerable opposition from user groups, especially Thurrock RUG. A motion deploring the introduction of television in trains with audible sound was carried by a clear show of hands at the RDS AGM in Peterborough on 7th May 2005.

We are pleased to report that this trial is now over due to TNCI (UK) Ltd, ceasing trading. Further details can be found on the TRUG website http://www.c2c-offline.co.uk/news/tv.htm#over

A TALE OF THREE TOCS

Some readers may be aware that over the Bank Holiday weekend of 28th – 30th May football play off matches were held in Cardiff. Lincoln City played on 28th and Sheffield Wednesday on 29th. Central Trains organised special trains to take both sets of fans to Cardiff with 400 seats available from Lincoln at £57 each and 500 from Sheffield at £57 each. First Great Weston also ran additional services from Paddington for fans from West Ham and Southend.

In marked contrast Virgin Cross Country just issued a press release saying that they were unable to run any additional trains for Hartlepool supporters because all Voyagers were already in use on that day. Overcrowding is now a frequent occurrence on Virgin Cross Country services and there is no doubt that more trains are needed. At the same time 7 brand new 9-car Meridian trains, ordered for St. Pancras – Leeds services, are standing unused in sidings amid reports that they may be exported to Eire. Perhaps one of the first decisions taken by the new Rail Directorate at the DfT should be to sort this mess out and get the Meridians out of the sidings and into service carrying passengers?

CPRE LAUNCH ATTACK ON PARK-AND-RIDE

The Campaign to Protect Rural England have questioned the growth of park-and-ride sites on the grounds that they are being constructed on ‘Green Belt’ land and just shift congestion from one area to another. The documentation concentrates on park and ride followed by a bus journey into town and it is not clear whether they also object to park and ride from rail stations. The campaign follows on from the launch by CPRE last month of a report that said that after 50 years of Green Belts they were under attack as never before.
Source: CPRE press release http://www.cpre.org.uk/news-releases/news-rel-2005/35-05.htm

Activists Briefing - Issue 2

22nd May 2005

IN THE NEWS

Sheffield University Students Radio Station telephoned Railfuture President, Peter Lawrence, on 26th April for comments on the proposed strikes on Midland Main Line. Peter’s view was that we ourselves could not become involved in the industrial dispute but would urge both sides i.e. Midland Main Line and the Unions to sit down and continue negotiations until the dispute can be resolved. It was unfortunate that strikes would take place over the May Bank holiday as it would mean prospective rail travellers will have to find alternative means of transport either by coach, bus or even using the motor car.

Also on 26th April Railfuture North Midlands Vice Chairman, Paul Clark, was phoned by Radio Trent re MML strike. Paul said that whilst possibly (stressed that word) the drivers could have case, MML was now running well and customer confidence was returning, it would be a pity if this was eroded by such action. Radio Trent said that they got Paul’s details from the North Midlands branch web site. http://www.rdsnm.btinternet.co.uk/. Looking at the website log Paul noted that they spent 3 minutes on it, looked at every page and rang as soon as they came off.

On Thursday 12th May an article in the Peterborough Evening Telegraph included comments from East Anglia branch secretary, Nick Dibben, talking about the Railfuture AGM and the possible closure of Whittlesea station as part of a route utilisation study. However, the SRA say that their report on Eastern Region capacity, due out in the summer, will not include closing the station. Peterborough Evening News article: http://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=845&ArticleID=1024503

NEWS FROM THE RAILWAY DEVELOPMENT SOCIETY LTD AGM

The results of the postal ballot for Principal Officers and the Board of Directors results were:

Chairman - Mike Crowhurst 242 votes (elected), Jerry Alderson 228 (not elected)
Vice Chairman - Ray King 233 (elected), Ian McDonald 226 (not elected)
Treasurer – there were no nominations for the post so the current incumbent, Tony Sheward, has agreed to carry on in a reduced capacity while the Company seeks a suitable successor.
Membership Secretary - David Harby elected unopposed
Sales Officer - no nominations - post vacant pro-tem
Board of Directors (10 places);
Elected - Ms Clara Zilahi (356), Jerry Alderson (353), Andrew MacFarlane (333), Ian McDonald (305), David Redgewell (302), Philip Bisatt (300), Trevor Jones (298), Rowland Pittard (286), Trevor Garrod (280), Norman Bradbury (274)
Not elected - Richard Pout (270), Howard Thomas (268), Michael Harrison (230)

The meeting agreed that Annual Membership Subscription Rates should be as follows:

With effect from 1st January 2006:
a) Ordinary £20.00
b) Family £20.00 + £2 for each additional member
e) Concessionary £12.50

With effect from 1st January 2007:
a) Ordinary £21.00
b) Family £21.00 + £2 for each additional member
e) Concessionary £14.00

On renewal in 2006 members may subscribe for two years by paying in full for two years at the rate applying from 1st January 2006.

The meeting agreed that from 1st June 2005 members may subscribe for Life at the following rates:

a) Individual Life (Individual aged 18 or over) £235.00
b) Joint Life (Two individuals, both aged 18 or over, living at the same address, recorded under a single name and receiving one copy of material despatched) £255.00
c) Senior Individual Life (Individual member aged 60 or over) £115
d) Senior Joint Life (Two individuals, both aged 60 or over, living at the same address, recorded under a single name and receiving one copy of material despatched) £130

The meeting also endorsed the view of the Board of Directors that it is desirable that there should be a single Railfuture Branch covering broadly the counties of Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Northamptonshire and requested that the two existing branches take the necessary steps during 2005 to set up a combined branch which would come into effect on 1st January 2006.

The background to this is that it is expected that some transport funding will soon be channelled through Government Regional Offices with Regional Transport Boards as the likely vehicle. With this in mind the Board considers it to be desirable that there should be a single Railfuture branch for an area which falls within a single government region, is served principally by the same train operating companies and is geographically compact and focussed on the same city or cities. East and North Midlands branches had already voted at their respective AGM’s to co-operate with a view to a merger. Other minor adjustments to boundaries are envisaged with Bedfordshire (currently covered in part by East Midlands) coming wholly under London and South East Branch.

VACANCY – NATIONAL TREASURER

We are still searching for a National Treasurer. Tony Sheward has agreed to continue in a reduced capacity for the time being. This is not however an open ended commitment and there is a need to fill the post as a matter of urgency. If you are willing to consider taking on the role or have any suggestions of anyone suitable who could be approached please contact Mike Crowhurst. The Treasurer does not need to be an existing member of Railfuture.

VACANCY – SALES OFFICER

As will have been noted from the ballot results this post is also still vacant. Any volunteers please contact Mike Crowhurst. We have a quantity of obsolete sales stock that will have to be sold at a reduced price and ebay has been suggested as a possible sales route for this. If you have some experience of selling on ebay would you be prepared to consider selling some books for us? This could be done as a separate exercise – you would not have to take on the full role of Sales Officer.

REOPENINGS CONFERENCE

All members should have received a booking form with their copy of the RDS Ltd Annual Report. The conference is being sponsored by Cardiff International Airport, Angel Trains, Arriva Trains Wales, and First Group. The main theme of the conference will be the funding, development and benefits of the Vale of Glamorgan line with presentations from speakers who have been involved in the planning and execution of the scheme. A presentation on Integrated Transport is also planned. John Lee should receive all bookings no later than 24th June 2005. This is essential if you require a buffet lunch as we have to order these in advance. No lunches will be available on the day for anyone who has not booked one in advance.

CENTRAL TRAINS OFFER DISCOUNTS TO THE OVER 50’S

Central Trains are offering discounted off-peak travel for the over 50’s between selected stations from May 3rd to July 29th. If you are over 50 and are thinking of attending the Re-openings conference in Barry some substantial savings may be on offer. For example a Saver from Lincoln to Cardiff is reduced from £58.50 to £10. Details are on the Central Trains website at http://www.centraltrains.co.uk/.

ARRIVA TRAINS WALES CONSULT ON DRAFT DECEMBER 2005 TIMETABLE

Arriva Trains Wales are consulting on their proposed Standard Pattern Timetable, which is to be introduced in December 2005. The timetable is now on the Arriva Trains Wales website at http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/en/news/news_releases2.php?categoryID=46&article=714&sub_subnavID=&subnavID=134. The final date for responses is 30th June 2005. Railfuture Wales are co-ordinating the Railfuture response and all comments from other branches should be referred to them before sending to ATW. Comments by email to Peter Clark or by post to Rowland Pittard, 61 Chantal Avenue, Penyfai, Bridgend, Glamorgan CF31 4NW to arrive by 15th June 2005.

NEWS FROM SRA

Have you ever wondered how busy your local station is? There is now a link on the SRA website to an Excel file listing the passenger figures for all stations for the financial year 2002/3. Go to http://www.sra.gov.uk/pubs2/statistics

COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN AND BRANCH LIAISON

At the RDS Board meeting on 21st May 2005 the following appointments were made:

Committee Chairmen
International and EU – Andrew MacFarlane
Network Development – to be confirmed
Freight Service and Development – Gary Tinsey
Passenger – Howard Thomas
Policy, Lobbying and Campaigns – Mike Crowhurst
Railwatch Editorial Board Joint Editors – Ray King and Robert Stevens
Internal Affairs – Mike Crowhurst

Branch Liaison
Devon and Cornwall – David Redgewell
East Anglia – Peter Lawrence
East Midlands – David Harby
North Midlands – David Harby
Lincolnshire – David Harby
London and South East – Ian McDonald
West Midlands – to be confirmed
North East – Mike Crowhurst
North West – Andrew MacFarlane
Severnside – David Redgewell
Thames Valley – Norman Bradbury
Wessex – Trevor Jones
Yorkshire – Mike Crowhurst
Scotland – Mike Crowhurst
South Wales – Roland Pittard
North Wales – Roland Pittard
Cambrian Lines – Roland Pittard

POST ELECTION RESHUFFLES

Alistair Darling has been left in post as Transport and Scotland Secretary. Minister of state is Dr Stephen Ladyman and
Parliamentary Secretary with responsibility for rail is Derek Twigg. The previous Railways Minister, Tony McNulty, is now a Minister of State at the Home Office.

The Conservative Shadow Transport Minister is now Alan Duncan. The previous incumbent, Tim Yeo, has resigned from the shadow cabinet.

The Liberal Democrat Shadow Transport Secretary is Tom Brake. Tom Brake has previously served on the Transport Select Committee. The previous incumbent, John Thurso, is now Shadow Scottish Secretary.

CAMBRIDGESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL'S COSTS FOR PROGRESSING GUIDED BUSWAY ARE DOUBLE ANTICIPATED AMOUNT

A Railfuture member used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain the costs incurred by Cambridgeshire County Council to progress the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway to the public inquiry stage. These show that £2.2m has been spent to date. The information was issued in a press release by CAST.IRON and generated an basic article in the Cambridge Evening News. The Hunts Post acted upon the press release and contacted Bob Menzies, project director, at the county council for a quote.

He revealed that the inquiry cost more than twice the amount it had budgeted for because nearly 2,750 people raised objections - significantly more than TWA Order applications. It spent £1.675 million on lawyers and consultants, compared with a budget of £800,000 for the year. The extra £875,000 has been funded from other parts of the integrated transport budget. This has delayed implementation of a real-time information system for bus passengers. The council is now trying to persuade the Government to increase its contribution to the £86.4 million busway part of the scheme beyond the £65 million promised when the cost was estimated at £73 million. It hopes that government will pay at least £78.4m (£13.4m more), so that it still only has to find £8m.

The CEN web-site held an online poll asking if too much money had been spent on the guided busway: 81% of respondents voted 'Yes'.
CEN Article: http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/region_wide/2005/05/05/41851e42-8aa0-45ba-b76e-d7795a113618.lpf.
Source: Railfuture East Anglia branch Snippets 12 May 2005 http://homepage.ntlworld.com/martin.thorne1/RailfutureEA-Snippets

TRANSPORT (WALES) BILL

The Transport (Wales) Bill, which gives the Welsh Assembly new powers over transport issues, ran out of time in the last session of Parliament. In the Queen’s Speech 2005 the government announced that it will be reintroduced in this session. The SRA cannot be finally wound up until new arrangements for Wales are in place. It is expected that the Bill will include clauses that could affect services from Wales to the South West, North West and West Midlands.

EMAIL DISCUSSION GROUP FOR RAILFUTURE YORKSHIRE

Railfuture Yorkshire branch now have a discussion group for Yorkshire rail issues. To join go to Yahoo Groups at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/railyorks/

Railway Cuttings - Issue 84

16th March 2005

IN THE NEWS

BBC Radio Norfolk telephoned Railfuture President, Peter Lawrence, on 22nd February for his comments on the latest very good performance figures announced by 'One'. Good results despite the radical change to the new timetables introduced in December 2004. The new timetables have caused problems in some areas because of retimings and tweaking of times, which should bring improvements to services for passengers, will take place in the June 2005 timetable changes.

Peter also represented Railfuture East Anglia Branch at the official opening of The Rail Tech Training Academy, Ipswich on 4th March 2005.

Clara Zilahi, Railfuture Officer for Disabled Persons represented Railfuture at a Rail Passenger Council Public meeting in London on Wednesday 9th March 2005. The meeting discussed the Disability Discrimination Act and also provision of passenger information and the problem of advance timetable information (T-12). The lack of advance timetable information is of special concern to those disabled travellers who need to book assistance with their journey.

NEWS FROM RAILFUTURE BRANCHES

At their AGM on 19th February East Anglia branch elected a new Chairman, Peter Wakefield, and Vice Chairman, Peter Lawrence. For several years the Branch has been without a Chairman and Ivan Ivanovic was outgoing Vice-Chairman. Ivan decided not to seek re-election as Vice-Chairman or to continue on the Branch Committee this year due to his many other commitments. As part of the East Anglia team his input will be missed.

At their AGM on 5th March South Wales branch also elected a new Chairman, Guy Hardy. The outgoing Chairman, Peter Clark, is now Vice Chairman.

The March 2005 issue of Railfuture Scotland’s branch newsletter is on their website www.railfuturescotland.org.uk

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

Readers may recall that in issue 82 of Railway Cuttings I mentioned that it had been suggested that Railway Cuttings would benefit from a change of name to something that better reflects the contents. Thank you to the members who sent in suggestions for a new name. The name that best reflects the contents seems to be "Railfuture Activists' Briefing" so the next edition of this newsletter will be "Railfuture Activists' Briefing" no 1.

YOUR RIGHT TO KNOW

The Freedom of Information Act gives you the right to request information from public bodies and certain private organisations. Friends of the Earth has set up a website to guide you through the process. From the homepage, you can select an Information Request Generator which produces a request letter. See www.righttoknowonline.org

INFLATION FIGURES FROM THE DfT

Real increase in cost over 25 yrs since 1980, nationally...
- bus fares is 43.1%
- rail fares is 35.7%
- motoring costs is minus 7.5% (ie decrease)

ELECTION OF OFFICERS FOR 2005/2006

There will be ballots for Chairman, Vice Chairman and Board of Directors. David Harby is returned unopposed as Membership Secretary and there are no candidates for Treasurer or Sales Officer. Ballot papers and full details of the AGM will be distributed with Railwatch in the next few days. All completed ballot papers should be returned to the Returning Officer, John Lee, and must arrive no later than 23rd April 2004.

COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

Membership of Committees is confirmed at the first Board meeting after the AGM. Committee Chairmen will be asking existing members if they wish to continue. If anyone else would like to serve on a committee (International, Network Development, Freight, Passenger or Policy) they should inform John Lee by 1st May.

FANCY GETTING PAID TO TRAVEL BY TRAIN?

This interesting advert is from the March edition of Modern Railways.

“We are looking for a small team of enthusiasts to help us assess access and facilities at stations and on-board trains operating within the UK. Please write a short note to:

Colin Coleman & Company – Chartered Engineers
Carpenters Barn
Sampford Courtney, Okehampton
Devon EX20 2SX

Your letter should be marked for the attention of Rita Hoile, stating the hourly rate requested and SRA Rail Franchise Region which would be your first and second choice, and the days and number of hours you would be available each week.”

RAILWAYS BILL 2005

Railfuture Board members have been lobbying in the Houses of Parliament for changes to the Bill. Amendments suggested by ourselves and other like minded bodies were put down for debate in the House of Lords and assurances were given by the Government on some of our concerns. Railfuture Vice President, Lord Peter Snape, spoke in support of some amendments. The latest information that we have is that the Bill is expected to be discussed by the House of Commons on 4th April.

With the Railways Bill nearing completion thoughts are turning to what happens next. When the Regional RPC’s are wound up their members may be lost to rail campaigning. It has been suggested that branches should consider approaching enthusiastic and capable RPC members and invite them to join Railfuture and become part of their local branch committee. If they wish to continue passenger representation at a local level this is probably their best hope of doing this effectively.

Some branches have good contacts with their local media and journalists already turn to them for comment on rail issues. Their are however other journalists who usually turn to their local RPC. Branches may wish to discuss this and perhaps make plans to write to selected media explaining about the RPC demise and saying that Railfuture is aiming to fill the void as much as possible.

In the current climate it also seems inevitable that, despite assurances given by Transport Ministers, service cuts and station closures will be on the agenda once the General Election is out of the way. Railfuture needs to be ready when the cutbacks start. Initially it is suggested that branches should try to identify where the cutbacks and closures are most likely to occur and start to prepare anti-cuts campaigns so that we are ready to act quickly when they are announced.

SRA PUBLISH WEST MIDLANDS ROUTE UTILISATION STUDY

To quote from the Executive Summary, “A Route Utilisation Strategy has been developed for the West Midlands region to ensure that best use is made of available capacity and to address the following issues:
 Performance on the rail corridors into Birmingham is poor. The Strategy examines the structure of the timetable to identify where this could be changed to deliver better performance;
 There are significant commuter flows into Birmingham and there is crowding during the peak periods, although over a shorter time and to a much lesser extent than in the South East. The strategy considers how crowding can most effectively be managed;
 Further passenger and freight growth is forecast and plans need to be put in place to take this potential growth into account; and
 There are a number of train operators in the region, and it is believed that centrally co-ordinated changes to the specification of train services developed in this Route Utilisation Strategy can lead to more efficient operations and a better service to customers.”

Some proposals are:
 Extending some existing services from Birmingham to provide a higher frequency to Kidderminster and Stratford-upon-Avon in the off-peak
 A possible peak Shrewsbury – London service
 Revise the specification of Network Rail planned track and signalling renewals to improve a freight bottleneck between Water Orton and Landor Street.
 Make better use of the Walsall – Rugeley Trent Valley route to provide for freight growth and engineering diversions.
 More off-peak services to call at Bromsgrove.
 Longer station platforms to take longer peak hour trains.
 Route all long distance CrossCountry services via Coventry and Birmingham International to free up capacity via Solihull to help improve operating performance as freight volumes grow.

There are however some disbenefits:

 Withdrawal of the Walsall – Wolverhampton and Stoke – Stafford local services.
 Reduce local journey opportunities between some pairs of lightly used stations on the Coventry – Birmingham – Wolverhampton corridor.
 Use pricing mechanisms for train services and car parks to better manage peak demand. I.e. increase fares and car park charges for peak hour commuters.

It is important that Railfuture speaks with a joint voice on this. The Railfuture response will therefore be lead by Railfuture West Midlands branch and all comments should be sent to Branch Chairman, Ian Jenkins, at 283 Stafford Rd, Wolverhampton WV10 6DQ, email: ianbaggie at yahoo.co.uk. Ian must receive all response by 1st May 2005.

Link to the SRA document: http://www.sra.gov.uk/pubs2/consult_new/West_Mids_RUS/West_Mids_RUS_Homepage.doc

BRANCH OFFICERS FOR WHO’S WHO 2005/2006

Following their AGMs, all branches are asked to let John Lee know full details of their Officers (i.e. names, addresses and contact emails/numbers for Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary & Treasurer) immediately thereafter. The list should make clear which name should appear in the 2005 "Who's Who" for contact purposes.

TRANSPORT COMMITTEE REPORT ON RURAL RAILWAYS

The Transport Committee's Report on Rural Railways (HC 169-I), was be published on Tuesday 15 March. The text of the report is available on the Committee's website http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmtran.htm
Source: Transport Committee Press Notice 16/2004-05, 11 March 2005

NO FREE LOCAL RAIL TRAVEL FOR PENSIONERS IN THE BUDGET

The Budget announced that free local area bus travel in England will be extended to all people aged 60 or over and disabled people during off peak hours with effect from April 2006. There is no mention of free rail or tram travel. Encouraging pensioners and disabled to switch from rail and tram to bus is hardly going to improve the viability of loss making rail services. Members may wish to point this deficiency out to their MPs.

Activists Briefing - Issue 1

16th April 2005

IN THE NEWS

Railfuture East Anglia branch secretary, Nick Dibben, did an interview for BBC East on 22nd March following the GNER franchise award. He noted that it was a mixed message from a rail user viewpoint. The additional services, staff and station improvements are welcomed but there would be concern over the £1.3bn premium payout to the government that amounted to a tax on train travel.

Nick added that rail users would want to know how much would be returned to the region in investment and that the Government could no longer claim there was no money for works to relieve pinch points such as Hitchin and Welwyn Viaduct. The premium payments contrasted with the Government's approach to car tax and airline tax that gave a confused message regarding sustainable transport and climate change.

Railfuture President, Peter Lawrence, took part in a "phone in" on BBC Radio Shropshire on 31st March. The other members of the panel were from the RPC and also a local rail user group. There was a mixture of questions. Reopening and private purchase of the line from Gobowen to Llanyblodwel, a possible new railfreight depot at Wellington, the high cost of rail fares and other local and general questions on Network Rail's plans announced on the same day.

Peter made the point that we were disappointed that there was no mention in Network Rail's plans to upgrade the Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth route. One thing that came out of this programme was the lack of future strategic planning and development for UK railways.

BBC TV contacted Peter on 30th March about the announcement of Network Rail’s plans. In Peter’s opinion quite a positive document. Certainly better than previous statements from Railtrack and also from the SRA. Peter was able to arrange for Board member, Norman Bradbury, to be at Paddington station at 9am the next morning. Norman did a short interview for BBC News 24.

NEWS FROM RAILFUTURE BRANCHES

Peter Cousins of West Midlands branch and the Lichfield Rail Promotion Group reports that Cannock Chase District Council have recently approved a planning application for a Container Handling Depot at the former Mid Cannock Coal Disposal Point. This is adjacent to existing rail sidings north of the A5 and just south of Cannock station. A condition of the approval is that the company shall close their two existing sites at Longford and Burntwood.

The company currently owns 140 lorries of which 60 are dedicated to an overnight flow 7 days a week to Felixstowe and about 20 to Liverpool. The company is keen to divert much of the overnight flow to rail but would need the Chase Line to be cleared for 9ft 6in containers.

Although upgrading the route via Nuneaton into Bescot is currently programmed by Network Rail, clearing the Chase Line is not; and has been estimated at £5 million for which funds are not available. The 7-day operation of this flow may require the alternative (non-WCML) route via Peterborough to also be cleared for the containers.

RAILFUTURE ADMINISTRATION NOTICES ETC

Following the imminent closure of the London office the registered office of the Railway Development Society Limited is now 18a Grantham Road, Bracebridge Heath, Lincoln LN4 2LD. Would everyone who uses Railfuture stationery etc please amend accordingly? Company Secretary, John Lee, is arranging for the printing and supply of new stationery.

A reminder that all address labels are now being printed by David Harby to whom requests for labels should be sent. Can all branch secretaries/contacts please ensure that this information is circulated to all that need to know within their branches? Sending requests to the London office, as some are still doing, will almost certainly result in a delay in the labels being printed.

A reminder that if you require a Hot Buffet Lunch at the AGM in Peterborough on 7th May it must be booked and paid for in advance. Bookings must be returned to John Lee by 29th April at the very latest.

A reminder that all completed voting papers should be returned to the Returning Officer, John Lee, at the address shown on the voting paper to arrive no later than 23rd April 2005.

A reminder that membership of Committees is confirmed at the first Board meeting after the AGM. Committee Chairmen will be asking existing members if they wish to continue. If anyone else would like to serve on a committee (International, Network Development, Freight, Passenger or Policy) they should inform John Lee by 1st May.

If they have not already done so would branches please let John Lee know full details of their Officers (i.e. names, addresses and contact emails/numbers for Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary & Treasurer). The list should make clear which name should appear in the 2005 "Who's Who" for contact purposes.

RAIL FREIGHT GUIDANCE FOR LOCAL TRANSPORT PLANS

Freight on Rail has written a briefing paper to help local authorities make adequate provision for rail freight in their Local Transport Plans, due for submission to the Government in draft form this June. The Department of Transport guidance for Local Transport Plans made minimal reference to any mode of freight distribution so this work is designed to fill this vacuum in terms of rail. Integration of land use planning and transport is a key objective and the group is highlighting the importance of setting the right regional and local framework for rail freight so that the industry has the confidence to invest.

The Freight on Rail guidance outlines that regional economic, transport and spatial strategies and at the local level Local Transport Plans and Local Development frameworks must all cater for rail freight and be cross-referenced.

Its recommendations include
 Allocation of funding to improve road access to existing and new rail freight interchanges plus provision for proper road signage to these facilities.
 Promotion of new terminals and the upgrade of existing ones that have good road access with the advice that expansion of existing sites is commonly a faster and simpler way to increase modal shift.
 Promote mineral strategies to use rail as the preferred mode.
 Promote waste strategies to use rail as the preferred mode for access to larger landfill, incinerator or recycling centres.
 Make provision to understand rail and road freight better through collection of meaningful statistics and enhanced monitoring.

The guidance includes the following statistics highlighting rail freight’s economic, environmental and social benefits.

 Research shows that rail freight’s external costs, i.e. excluding congestion are eight time less per tonne kilometre than air freight and four times less than road
 An aggregates train can remove 120 HGVs from the roads
 Rail freight produces about one tenth of the emissions per tonne kilometre of HGVs .
 Research indicates that heavy goods vehicles only pay for around 58 – 69 per cent of the costs they impose upon society
 Lorries are almost entirely responsible for road repairs – a 40 tonne 5-axle lorry causes tens of thousands of times more damage than an average car.

Source: Freight on Rail press release A copy of the Freight on Rail press release and the briefing paper is available at http://www.freightonrail.org.uk/PressRelease11-2-2004.htm

DfT Guidance – Full Guidance on Local Transport Plans - 8 December 2004

ARE THAMESLINK 2000 AND EAST WEST RAIL LINK BACK ON THE AGENDA?

Business Weekly is reporting that Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott’s team has stepped in to resuscitate both these schemes. They seem to have realised what Railfuture among many other interested organisations, have been saying for ages. Namely the planned Sustainable Communities plan in the Milton Keynes and South Midlands area will not be possible without these schemes to provide the appropriate transport and communications infrastructure.

Source and link to full article: http://www.businessweekly.co.uk/news/view_article.asp?article_id=9316

__NEWS FROM SRA_-

National Rail Trends, October to December 2004 (Quarter 3) was published on 17 March

Key findings are:-

80.3% of trains ran on time in Quarter 3 (October to December 2004), an increase of 3.9 percentage points, from 76.4% in the same period in 2003.
19 out of 24 train operating companies showed an improvement in performance during this period, of which 9 improved by five percentage points or more. Five operators showed a decrease in performance.
The most improved performers were Midland Mainline (up 21.3 percentage points), Thameslink (up 13.4 percentage points), ONE (InterCity) (up 10.6 percentage points), First North Western (up 9.6 percentage points), c2c (up 8.8 percentage points), South West Trains (up 7.1 percentage points) and South Eastern Trains (up 6.3 percentage points).
Passenger kilometres (PKM) increased by 3.4% in October to December 2004 compared with October to December 2003.
Freight moved increased by 13.6% in October to December 2004 compared with the same quarter in 2003.
The National Passenger Survey (NPS) shows that at a national level, overall satisfaction ratings are at their best since Spring 2000. 76% of passengers were very or fairly satisfied with their overall journey in the Autumn 2004 survey, compared to 73% in Autumn 2003. This improvement is being driven by the London and South East sector, which accounts for the majority of journeys made.
Complaints per 100,000 journeys between October and December 2004 decreased by 12.1% compared with the same period the previous year. London and South East operators showed a decrease in complaints of 11.7% over the same period and Long Distance operators showed a decrease in complaints of 23.8%.
The average age of rolling stock decreased by approximately one year between 30 September and 31 December 2004.

National Rail Trends and the National Passenger Survey are available on the SRA website www.sra.gov.uk (under ‘ Publications’).
Source: SRA press release

FRANCHISE NEWS

As everyone will now be aware GNER have been awarded the East Coast franchise for 7 years with an automatic 3-year extension if targets are met. The SRA press release and details are on the SRA website. Sea Containers, the GNER parent company, have a more details of the financial aspects of the deal on their website at http://www.seacontainers.com/

The shortlist for the Greater Western franchise is National Express Group PLC, FirstGroup plc and Stagecoach Group. The new Greater Western franchise will be made up of the existing Great Western, Great Western Link and Wessex Trains franchises and will run from April 1st 2006 for a period of 7 years plus 3 extra years automatic extension if agreed performance targets are met.

The shortlist for the Thameslink/Great Northern franchise is National Express Group PLC, FirstGroup plc; Stagecoach Group; MTR /John Laing plc and Danish Railways (DSB) / English, Welsh and Scottish Railways (EWS). The new Thameslink/Great Northern franchise will be made up of the existing Thameslink franchise and the Great Northern network, which is currently the WAGN franchise. The franchise is expected to begin operations on April 1st 2006 for 4 years plus 2 years with an automatic extension for 3 years if agreed performance targets are met. The franchise is structured in this way to allow for potential work on the Thameslink 2000 project.

Source: SRA press releases

RAILWAYS FOR ALL CONSULTATION DOCUMENT

This consultation document, published by the SRA, seeks views on how best to make the railway more accessible. The SRA is consulting on this Strategy under section 206 of the Transport Act 2000. Following the consultation, responsibility for taking forward the elements of the final Strategy will transfer to the Department for Transport, the Scottish Executive, the Office of Rail Regulation, Network Rail and the rest of the railway industry.

In his forward to the document SRA Chairman, David Quarmby, says that the Strategy is about the access needs of customers in the broadest sense. Accessibility concerns not only step-free access but also measures such as accessible information, assistance and training. We live in a diverse society. Disabled people make up a significant and growing part of the community. As many as 10 million adults and 700,000 children in Great Britain are likely to be covered by the provisions of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

Fairness for all is the basis for a healthy society, for economic prosperity, and for the effective delivery of public services. Accessibility therefore matters to all of us.

There can be commercial incentives to invest in improved accessibility. The number of disabled and mobility impaired people will grow due to ageing of the population. The rail industry needs to respond to this changing demography. If the railway is more accessible for disabled passengers, it is more accessible for everybody. The emphasis in this Strategy is therefore on ‘accessibility’ rather than ‘disability’.

Progress is being made, with more accessible rolling stock and stations and improved customer care. But there is a pressing need for much more to be done. This consultation document sets out proposals for making rail travel more accessible. It describes how accessible Britain’s railway could be in ten years time, depending on the choices that are made. It states that priorities have to be established. Not everything can be done at once and the SRA need everyone’s help to determine the priorities.

He points out that an integrated transport system and partnership with a wide range of public and private bodies is therefore essential for delivering accessibility objectives. The SRA wants to see fewer barriers and more opportunities for disabled passengers. A more accessible railway won’t be achieved overnight or by the SRA and its successors alone. The challenge is for everyone to work together to achieve this Strategy.

IF THEY WANT YOUR VOTE

This is an edited version of an article by John Rogers in the Spring 2005 edition of Rail Wales (Newsletter of the Welsh branches of Railfuture) that I thought benefits a wider circulation.

“With a Westminster general election, and council elections in some areas, upon us now is the time to badger the parties and candidates. Of course, putting pressure on politicians is something we should be doing all the time, so that when the time comes to draw up a manifesto, they realise that transport needs more than just a vague, pious reference to its being ‘a good thing’. Whatever powers over railways, or public transport as a whole, different levels of government eventually have, the Westminster, regional or local context is vital, which in turn is linked to Brussels.

“It will help to push transport up the political agenda if more and more of us write to MPs and county councillors urging general and specific measures to enable rail and bus to thrive as we want them to. If you feel you don’t have the detailed knowledge to urge specific measures, don’t worry; just ask for railways in your county/region/Britain to be improved and bus services to be integrated with them. We need to make transport something constantly on politicians’ minds. Both major parties would be very happy if transport was never mentioned during the election campaign - it would avoid them having to answer awkward questions!

“Not many politicians are knowledgeable about railways, and this is also true of many media reporters. Some welcome the kind of briefing which Railfuture can give them; it shows them a practical way ahead. The South Wales branch committee has several times succeeded in influencing policy through our meetings with key figures, our briefings and urgings, our policy documents and so on. Railfuture is of course non-party political; but it would be incredibly naive to lose sight of the fact that politicians rule railways. And, to be a little cynical, politicians fear one thing above all – losing their seat!”

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

Saturday 30th April 2005
Railfuture North East branch meeting, Brunswick Methodist Church at 14.00 Speaker - Doug Hamilton on the role of Locomotion NRM in Shildon plays in reviving the fortunes of the Wear Valley.

Saturday 7th May 2005
Railfuture AGM, Bull Hotel, Peterborough

Thursday 12th May 2005
Railfuture North East branch meeting, Durham at 19.00. Speaker - Steve Butcher one of the new Regional Directors at Northern Rail.

Saturday 21st May 2005
Railfuture Board meeting, Birmingham

Saturday 4th June 2005
Railfuture Passenger Committee, Carrs Lane, Birmingham at 13.00

Saturday 11th June 2005
Railfuture Network Development Committee, FOE Warehouse, Birmingham **Note revised date**

Saturday 25th June 2005
Railfuture Policy, Lobby and Campaigns Committee, Birmingham
Railfuture East Anglia branch meeting, Bury St Edmunds Library

Saturday 2nd July 2005
Re-openings Conference, Barry Memorial Hall, S. Wales

Saturday 5th November
Rail Users’ Conference, Mechanics Institute, Manchester

Railway Cuttings - Issue 83

16th February 2005

IN THE NEWS
On 30th January the Morning Star telephoned Railfuture President, Peter Lawrence, seeking his views on passengers claiming compensation for delayed journeys. His opinion was that compensation is available to passengers but the onus is on passengers to obtain a claim form from Senior Conductors or Station Staff.

On 2nd February Peter received a telephone call from the Windsor Star/Slough Observer. It would appear there is interest in the setting up of a Community Rail Partnership for the Windsor to Slough line. Peter’s comments were positive. Clearly from past experience in many parts of the country there have been success stories with increased passenger numbers. Peter said that he believed a CRP for this line would be a good idea and could boost tourist numbers visiting Windsor.

NEWS FROM RAILFUTURE BRANCHES
The news that the SRA is appointing consultants to review Northern Rail services was greeted with concern by Railfuture North East. Branch spokesman, Peter Wood, was quoted in The Journal as saying: "We certainly wouldn't wish to see any changes within the North-East. I think we have a very limited range of services already. "The principle of a review we can't object to. But the Durham Coast line through Sunderland, along the Tyne Valley through Hexham to Carlisle and from Bishop Auckland to Saltburn are all important services and people rely heavily upon them."
Source: http://icnewcastle.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/thejournal/tm_objectid=15147726%26method=full%26siteid=50081%26headline=rail-services-and-prices-face-threat-name_page.html

Some of you may have noticed that Railfuture's East Anglia Branch Snippets website at http://freespace.virgin.net/martin.thorne/snippets is no longer there. Snippets can now be found at http://homepage.ntlworld.com/martin.thorne1/RailfutureEA-Snippets/

NEWS FROM THE SRA
The SRA issued their Stakeholder Briefing Document for the Integrated Kent Franchise on 18th January. This includes proposals to close Swale and Beltring stations in Kent. Press release and link to Stakeholder Briefing: http://www.sra.gov.uk/news/2005/ikf_franchising

RAILFUTURE DELEGATION MEETS TRANSPORT MINISTER, TONY MCNULTY MP
President Peter Lawrence, Vice-President Michael Caton, Chairman Mike Crowhurst and Policy Secretary Norman Bradbury met with Railways Minister Tony McNulty MP and three members of the DfT Rail Team on 10th February. They had about 50 minutes, followed by a further 20 minutes or so informal chat with the team members. Topics covered included (inevitably) the Railways Bill, but also the need to grow the network and to protect essential land and formations in the meantime, as well as some points not included in the Bill, such as ROSCOs, the need to put all stock to best use, real integrated transport, diversions vs bustitution, RPCs, Users’ Forums and passenger representation, and Transport Safety bodies. We also spent some time discussing cost escalation and how to control it, making the point that many of the contributory causes are direct, artificial consequences of current and previous government policies. The Minister was receptive to many points, but denied any intention to encourage or simplify closures, and any link between urban rail cuts and quality bus contracts. We will of course continue to campaign on the three key elements of the Bill: closure procedures, PTE powers and the absence of a duty to promote rail transport.

ROGER ELLIS 1947 – 2004
Members were saddened to learn of the sudden death of Roger Ellis in December, at age 57. His contribution to this organisation, especially in Wales, over many years was immense. His encyclopaedic knowledge of public transport, timetables and fares was legendary, and this enabled him to make a unique and very valuable contribution to the public transport cause. He will be remembered particularly for his editorship of Rail Wales over the past eleven years. The branch was represented at his funeral by the president, chairman and secretary.

Roger was working on the next issue of Rail Wales at the time of his death. As a tribute to Roger, one article, which he had completed, is reproduced exactly as he wrote it in the Winter 2005 edition. I have a copy in Word format that I can email readers on request to david.harby at ntlworld.com.

SUCCESS FOR SUDBURY HILL HARROW CAMPAIGN
The best Monday-Friday off-peak service at Sudbury Hill Harrow station for over forty years was celebrated on 14th December 2004 with a visit from Santa Claus. Apart from a couple of gaps due to track capacity, the station will have a roughly hourly service, offering journeys times of less than twenty minutes to Marylebone, as well as direct trains to Gerrards Cross, the Chilterns and High Wycombe, with connections to Aylesbury, Banbury and Birmingham. The last time the station had an all day service was in the 1960’s.

This improved service has been a long-standing campaign objective of Railfuture’s London and South East branch. Graham Larkbey, LTUC and Railfuture member, who has played a major part in persuading Chiltern to provide it has a letter in RAIL 507 calling on them to now provide evening an weekend services.

Sources: LTUC press release and Graham Larkbey

GREATER WESTERN ROUTE UTILISATION STUDY
A reminder to branches in the GW area that Martin Smith, Thames Valley Branch Sec. is taking the lead on co-ordinating our response to the SRA (deadline 8th April). All other branches should therefore refer to him before making any response of their own to the SRA or inputting into responses by other bodies.

OFT PUBLISH DETAILS OF IT’S ICEC FRANCHISE DECISIONS AND COMPETITION COMMISSION LAUNCH ENQUIRY
Details of the Office of Fair Trading decisions regarding the Virgin/Stagecoach and First Group bids for the East Coast franchise are now on their website. (See http://www.oft.gov.uk/News/What+is+new+on+this+site/default.htm 7 February 2005)

Briefly the Stagecoach/Virgin bid has been cleared following various undertakings that have been given. These include an offer from Virgin to withdraw from the Cross Country franchise and not bid again when it is re-tendered. Stagecoach have also promised to continue with the current GNER ticketing mix and all the current fares.

The decision to refer the First Group bid to the Competition Commission (CC) was because of competition issues. The CC inquiry group intends to concentrate on issues relating to the overlap between rail services operated by ICEC and Hull Trains (between Hull and London) and on issues relating to the common ownership of the ICEC franchise and local bus services serving ICEC train stations, such as whether the owner would be able to use its position to disadvantage other operators of bus and train services. The CC would like to hear from all interested parties, in writing, by 23 February 2005.
Source: www.competition-commission.org.uk/press_rel/2005/feb/pdf/10-05.pdf

RDS ELECTIONS
Readers are reminded that all nomination papers for the election of Officers and Board Members must be completed and returned to John Lee by 28th February 2005. Since Elisabeth Jordan did not seek re-election as Membership secretary last year there have not been any female members on the Board. Nominations from female members would therefore be especially welcome, as would nominations from younger members, and from branches that currently do not have a Board member. Board meetings are held every two months and currently usually alternate between London and Birmingham/Leicester. Alternative locations could be chosen if these are more convenient for the new Board members.

Members are reminded that our Treasurer, Tony Sheward, has announced his intention not to seek re-election. Many campaigners look upon this post as ‘boring’ and ‘a job for someone else’. It is however a key post in our organisation. Without a Treasurer Railfuture could not function and there would be no funds to campaign with. Any prospective Treasurers are welcome to contact Tony should they wish to find out more about the duties involved.

DEVELOPING THE RAILWAYS: OBSTACLES AND OPPORTUNITIES SEMINAR
The above seminar will take place on Tuesday 22 March 2005, from 1 – 5pm at the Belmont Room, 1st floor Betty’s Café Tea Rooms in York. The programme will feature presentations on:

 "Growing the Railways" - Stephen Joseph, Director, Transport 2000
 Community Rail: Growing the railways from the bottom up - Paul Salvesen or Neil Buxton, Association of Community Rail Partnerships (ACoRP).
 Wensleydale Railway: A success story. - Ruth Annison, Wensleydale Railway

The seminar will also provide an overview of recent rail developments and the future of rail in the UK; update you on the SRA’s Regional Planning Assessments and the future of passenger representation; and outline an assessment of rail cost escalation and government criteria of economic viability.

Cost (includes a buffet lunch provided by this legendary York eatery and afternoon refreshments) is Community groups - £10 per person and Local authorities/private sector representatives - £35 per person. To book a place contact Pauline Lewis at Transport 2000 on 020 7613 0743 ext. or at pauline.lewis at transport2000.org.uk. If you would like further information please ring Denise Carlo on 01603 503037 (answerphone) or email her at denise.carlo at btinternet.com.

If there are sufficient numbers it is hoped to make up a party to visit Wensleydale Railways on 23 March. Details form Pauline Lewis as above.

GENERAL ELECTION
A reminder to branches and User Groups to lobby candidates as soon as they are announced notably on the need to grow the railway and oppose closures. Other suggested topics are Climate Change and sustainability and the need to tackle the practical implications for transport, e.g. restrain road traffic growth, tax aviation, rail freight grants, competition barriers to rail freight (see RFG items below) etc. It is suggested that branches might care to write to party regional HQ’s asking for policy statements on transport.

COMPETITION ABOVE RAIL EUROPE-WIDE WILL DELIVER GROWTH
This was the theme of a talk by RFG Chairman Tony Berkeley at the Eurorail Conference in Berlin on 26th January. He compared the success of UK domestic rail freight (up 50% with market share up from 8.5% to 11.5% in the last ten years) with continental experience, where overall market share fell from 20.1% in 1970 to 8.1% in 2000 and by 4.5% 2003/2001. Rail freight tonnages carried were constant and reliability was still often poor. He pointed out that these figures did cover wide variations of growth and performance, with the best route, North South across the Alps, and the performance of private operators on the continent, showing very good performance and growth. Elsewhere, the situation was often bleak.

Worst was the Channel Tunnel, with no competition, no one access and a charging regime which put the costs rail freight probably two or three times the costs by road and which, coupled with poor performance, had resulted in traffic levels one tenth of their potential.

To encourage competition, there must be:
 0pen access terminals on non-discriminatory basis
 Independent supply of wagons and traction
 Fair allocation of capacity on network to all operators:
 Confidentiality between all freight train operators and infrastructure managers
 Long term capacity reservation for freight and
 Independent regulation - it is no good having the regulator being part of the same state organisation that funds passenger services

Tony Berkeley called on the UK Government to take initiative during the UK Presidency (from July 2005) to ensure total and consistent compliance with open access directives throughout the EU, and set an example by adopting them in the UK before July 2005! This is already two years late.

He concluded: ‘the competition, road or waterway, does not have to worry about these railway problems, and the customer does not want to know about them. All he wants is for his goods to arrive in good condition on time. ‘It is up to the logistics and railways entrepreneurs to achieve this, and to member states to enable it, fairly and without delay. With competition above tracks, and some investment in infrastructure, rail freight is set to increase dramatically – because the customers want it in preference to the increasing delays on roads – but only if it is competitive, flexible and efficient. We have all got to work together to make it happen, particularly during the next few years until the competitive market has developed.’

Tony Berkeley’s PowerPoint presentation at the Eurorail Conference, RFG’s submission on the European Commission’s Third Railway Package and European Rail Freight Customer Platform Position Paper on Third Railway Package are all available on www.rfg.org.uk:
Source: RFG press release

RFG EXPRESS DISMAY AT DRASTIC GOVERNMENT CUTS IN GRANTS FOR RAIL FREIGHT
On 1st February the Department for Transport announced a new structure for rail freight grants within a ‘Sustainable Distribution Fund’. This fund is designed to bring together rail freight and water freight grants with the Road Haulage Modernisation Fund (RHMF) into one fund, on which a common appraisal methodology and values will be used for all types of grant applications.

This new structure and the statement that current levels of rail freight grants are likely to be retained for the next two financial years (05/06 and 06/07), possibly with an additional £2m per annum have been welcomed by the Rail Freight Group. However what is not so welcome is that the amount of money forecast to be available in 07/08 is being cut from about £60m (or £85m if one includes current support for Channel Tunnel rail freight services) just over a year ago to £25m today – for road, water, Channel Tunnel rail freight and the RHMF. Figures in the future will also have to include any ongoing assistance to Channel Tunnel rail freight, currently running at about £25m per annum.

Commenting on this announcement, RFG Chairman Tony Berkeley said ‘We welcome the merging into one pot the various sustainable freight grant programmes and we are confident that rail freight efficiency will ensure a significant slice of the funds available’. However ‘This drastic reduction in the amount of environmental benefit that the Government wishes to buy from transferring freight from road to rail or water is surprising in view of the Government’s recent emphasis on the importance of reducing global warming. Given the high level of private sector contribution, such grants are one of the most efficient ways of achieving an improvement in sustainable transport. Clearly the Government’s commitment to this does not extend to freight transport.’
Source: RFG press release. The DfT document http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_freight/documents/page/dft_freight_035188.hcsp

RAIL FREIGHT GROUP NEWS JANUARY 2005
The latest edition of RFG News reports on comments by Transport Minister, Tony McNulty MP, at last year’s RFG Christmas lunch held in London on 8 December. At a time when the Government is implementing its’ rail review Mr. McNulty reassured his audience that the Government does not want to do anything that will impinge upon the success of the sector. RFG News reveals yet more evidence of that success, highlighting an 11.1% increase in rail freight from July to September 2004 compared to the same period in 2003.
RFG News gives a comprehensive update on implementing the rail review and reports on new services – a new multi-user service between Mossend and Fort William operated by EWS – and new innovations in low deck wagons. In addition to a wide range of other stories, there are also special features on Crossrail and interoperability.
RFG News is available on www.rfg.org.uk.

RAIL DEFENCE FUND AND ANNUAL DRAW PROCEEDS
A reminder to branches and affiliated User Groups that they may make application for grants from these funds.

A motion, carried on a show of hands at the 2000 AGM in Croydon moved “That applications for monies from the Rail Defence Fund be considered where RDS branches or affiliated User Groups are campaigning to prevent the threatened obstruction, removal, loss or curtailment of rail formations, infrastructure or services, whether passenger or freight.” The Passenger Committee administers grants from the fund and applications for grants should be made to the Committee Chairman, Howard Thomas.

Proceeds from the Annual Draw are used for route protection, re-opening campaigns and network extensions. The Network Development Committee administers this fund and applications for grants should be made to the Committee Chairman, Richard Pout.

MEETING DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Railfuture Board – 12th March, 21st May, 16th July, 10th September, 12th November
Railfuture Policy Committee – 25th June
Railfuture Passenger Committee – 5th March, 4th June
Railfuture Network Development Committee – 18th June,
Railfuture Freight Committee - 9th April, 30th July, 24th September, 17th December.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS
Saturday 19th February 2005
Railfuture East Anglia Branch AGM, Ely Maltings at 13.00. The regional transport group STEER are holding their own AGM at the same venue later that afternoon.
Saturday 26th February
Railfuture West Midlands Branch AGM, George Fox Room, Priory Rooms, Bull Street, Birmingham.
Saturday 5th March 2005
Railfuture Passenger Committee meeting, Calthorpe Arms, London
Railfuture South Wales branch AGM, Cardiff Quaker Meeting House, 43 Charles Street, Cardiff. At 13.30 Speaker TBA
Railfuture East Midlands branch AGM, Corn Market Hall, Kettering at 14.00. Speaker Adrian Lyons of the Railway Forum
Railfuture Wessex branch AGM Pavilion Theatre, Weymouth at 13.30
Saturday 12th March 2005
Railfuture Board meeting, London
Railfuture Devon & Cornwall branch AGM, Unitarian Church, Notte Street, Plymouth, at 13:30
Railfuture North Midlands branch AGM, Hucknall Library, by the Market Place, at 11.00
Saturday 19th March 2005
Railfuture Yorkshire branch AGM and luncheon, Huddersfield at 11.00 approx.
Railfuture Lincolnshire branch AGM, St. Mary Le Wigford Church Hall (alongside station), Lincoln. Probably 11.45
Saturday 2nd April 2005
Railfuture International Committee meeting, Carrs Lane, Birmingham
Saturday 9th April 2005
Railfuture Freight Committee meeting, Birmingham
Saturday 7th May 2005
Railfuture AGM, Bull Hotel, Peterborough
Saturday 21st May 2005
Railfuture Board meeting, Birmingham
Saturday 2nd July 2005
Re-openings Conference, Barry Memorial Hall, S. Wales
Saturday 5th November
Rail Users’ Conference, Mechanics Institute, Manchester

Railway Cuttings - Issue 82

18th January 2005

IN THE NEWS
The Eastern Daily Press ran an article on Friday 17 December 2004 concerning the punctuality figures for 'One' railway. The SRA had published punctuality figures for the whole UK network and said that "One" train performance on the London to Norwich Line had achieved 88.8 per cent compared with last year’s figure of 76.7. An increase of 11.4 per cent.

Our President was quoted in the paper as follows:
Peter Lawrence, Norwich-based president of rail user groups' group Railfuture, said; "I think this increase has shown that 'one" is performing well. We are very pleased there has been an improvement, but with the new timetable the slightly longer journey times are not welcomed by users."

On Saturday 18 December 2004 the Eastern Daily Press ran another story. This time there had been a suicide at Brentwood that caused the cancellation of three Norwich to London trains. Peter’s previous day’s comments were also repeated.

When new fares were introduced on 2nd January 2005 the Saver fare from Wymondham, Attleborough, Thetford and Brandon to London was expected to rise by nearly 10% to £27.40. Due to a mistake an incorrect fare of £33 was published instead. ‘One’ admitted the mistake but said it would take a week for the fare to be corrected on the Internet and NRES systems. Peter Lawrence was quoted in the EDP. “It is certainly a nuisance for rail passengers and we hope that ‘one’ will put this right as soon as possible”.

NEWS FROM RAILFUTURE BRANCHES
Over the Xmas period Brain Hastings, Chairman Lincolnshire branch, was interviewed by BBC Radio Lincs and Lincolnshire Echo concerning the Central Trains/ASLEF dispute and bus replacement services. Brian said that it should be possible to devise a way to resolve these sort of disputes without always inconveniencing the passengers. The part of the interview in which he said that there is also a need for much better publicity at unstaffed stations, where passengers are often not aware of the replacement bus times, was also carried on all the BBC Midlands local radio network.

Wessex branch are hoping to make progress towards forming a Heart of Wessex line user group at their AGM.

Railfuture Wales branches have expressed their concerns about passengers facing broken connections, longer journey times and higher fares. These have come about because the Arriva Trains Wales timetable was not altered to tie in with new Great Western timetables. Our concerns were expressed twice in the Western Mail and also ensured that branch members were interviewed in Radio broadcasts highlighting the disadvantages of the new timetable.

The RDS Wales publication “On track for the 21st Century – A development plan for the railways of Wales and the Borders” has been well received. Meetings have been held with Welsh Assembly politicians, rail operators and other interested parties. RDS Wales were pleased to hear members of the Welsh Assembly quote from the Plan at a WAG Economic Development and Transport Committee meeting on 13th January.

NEWS FROM THE SRA (1) - Great Western Main Line ‘Route Utilisation Strategy
The SRA launched their Great Western Main Line ‘Route Utilisation Strategy’ consultation on 12 January 2005. The Strategy aims to deliver:
 Over 800 more seats for peak-time Thames Valley commuters into London Paddington station – another 4% capacity increase over and above that introduced in December 2004;
 More frequent off-peak local services between London and Slough;
 Improved local and regional services across the wider Bristol, Cardiff and South West areas, including additional peak seating capacity, more regular pattern timetables and greater cross-Bristol journey opportunities;
 Further improvements to journey times on services between London, Exeter, Plymouth and beyond.
Many of the changes could be introduced with the start of the new Greater Western rail franchise in 2006; some could be introduced sooner. The proposals build on the improvements already introduced in December 2004 through the ‘wider benefits’ timetable, agreed between the SRA and First Group as a result of the new First Great Western Link (Thames Trains) franchise.

In order to deliver the Strategy’s benefits there would be a limited number of downsides:
A reduction in First Class seating capacity on some Thames Valley commuter services (to increase standard class capacity); reduced off-peak train frequencies on the lightly used Paddington – Greenford service (some trains diverted to increase Slough – London frequency); and a small reduction in the overall number of trains between Bristol and Penzance (eliminating duplication and introducing a more even-interval timetable).
The draft Strategy covers the short to medium-term period up to around 2012. Longer-term issues will be dealt with by the SRA’s Regional Planning Assessment for the South West, due to be published later in 2005.

The consultation document ‘Consultation – Great Western Main Line Route Utilisation Strategy’ can be found on the SRA’s website, www.sra.gov.uk, under ‘Publications’.

Railfuture Thames Valley branch will be leading our response. If other branches send a response to the SRA they must liase with Thames Valley and any other branch whose services may be affected by the comments so that the SRA do not receive conflicting views from different parts of Railfuture. South Wales branch wish to point out that it is important that their Development Plan for Wales is not compromised by any comments from elsewhere in Railfuture. Responses must with the SRA by 8 April 2005.

NEWS FROM THE SRA (2) - National Rail Trends July to September 2004 (Quarter 2)
On 16th December 2004 the National Rail Trends July to September 2004 (Quarter 2) were released. They highlight the best performance for four years. 83.3% of trains ran on time in Quarter 2, an increase of 2.5 percentage points, from 80.8% in the same period in 2003.

Other headline results:
 18 out of 24 train operating companies showed an improvement in performance during this period. The long distance sector showed the best improvement in performance figures, up by 12.1 percentage points to 79.0%, from 66.9% in July to September 2003. London and South East Operators (all day) increased performance by 4.7 percentage points, from 79.7% to 84.4%. Regional Operators showed a decrease of 1.5 percentage points, from 83.7% to 82.2%.
 Passenger kilometres (PKM) increased by 1.2% in July to September 2004 compared with July to September 2003. Passenger journeys increased by 1.5% over the same period.
 Freight moved (measured in net tonne kilometres) increased by 11.1% compared with the figure for July to September 2003. Total freight lifted, which accounts for weight but not distance moved, decreased by 2.3% over the same period.
 Complaints per 100,000 journeys between July and September 2004 decreased by 24% compared with the same period the previous year. London and South East Operators showed a decrease in complaints of 41% over the same period.
 The average age of rolling stock decreased by approximately one year between 30 June and 30 September 2004.
 The National Passenger Survey (NPS) shows that at a national level, overall satisfaction ratings are at their best since Spring 2000. 76% of passengers were very or fairly satisfied with their overall journey in the Autumn 2004 survey, compared to 73% in Autumn 2003. This improvement is being driven by the London and South East sector, which accounts for the majority of journeys made. The SRA say that passengers in this sector are traditionally the least satisfied and although this remains so, the gap narrowed significantly in autumn 2004. The proportion of passengers in London and the South East very or fairly satisfied with their journeys is at its highest level since the survey was set up in autumn 1999 (74%).

Source: SRA press release. National Rail Trends and National Passenger Surveys are on the Publications section of the SRA website www.sra.gov.uk

BIDDING PROCESS STARTS FOR GREATER WESTERN AND THAMESLINK/GREAT NORTHERN FRANCHISES
On 17th December 2004 the Government announced that Expressions of Interest have been invited for the Greater Western and the Thameslink/Great Northern franchises. Each of these franchises is planned to commence in April 2006 following expiry of current agreements.
The Greater Western franchise will have duration of ten years, of which the last three will be conditional upon achieving specified performance targets.
The Thameslink/GN franchise will be for a period of up to nine years:
- Continuation into years five and six will be dependent upon achieving set performance targets
- Continuation for up to a further three years will be dependent upon the progress of the Thameslink 2000 project.
Potential bidders must submit Expressions of Interest by 2nd February 2005.
The announcement states that as part of implementing the Government’s White Paper on the Future of Rail (July 2004), the Pre-Qualification process for these two franchises, and future franchises, will place a stronger emphasis on the past performance of the companies making Expressions of Interest.
A Supplier Accreditation Pack of documents is available on the SRA website: www.sra.gov.uk/pubs2/Fran_Replace
Source SRA press release

BRANCH AGM’s
I now have details of 9 Railfuture branch AGM’s. These are listed in Forthcoming Events. Would the other 8 branches please let me have their dates as soon as they are fixed?

GET A COPY OF “THE CASE FOR RAIL” ABSOLUTELY FREE
Thanks to sponsorship from South West Trains we are able to offer all members the chance to obtain a free copy of “The case for rail” by Norman Bradbury. All you have to do is introduce a potential new member to us and tell myself (David Harby) that you wish to claim your free copy. I will send you your copy as soon as I receive their membership application form. Thanks are also due to Martin Cobley of Beeston for submitting a letter to Rail magazine recommending the booklet. His letter is published in Rail 505.

A SUCCESSFULL START TO ISLAND LINE RAIL-LINK BUS
At a recent Isle of Wight Quality Transport Partnership meeting Councillor Ernie Fox, Transport Portfolio Holder, reported that the new rail-link bus (Wightbus service 16) connecting Shanklin station with Ventnor, which had started operation on 4 October, had carried 5000 passengers in its first 10 weeks of operation and declared it to be "a resounding success". (To be a commercial success it needs to carry about 1200 passengers a week, but is expected to achieve this as its first 10 weeks of operation have been at a quiet time of the year for tourists.) Steve Wade of Island Line reported that the Ventnor bus link would be added to the national rail fares system in January and it would appear on rail maps in the summer, and was pleased that it had attracted additional passengers to the railway.

The only bad news is that the service ceased to serve Bonchurch village after just 2 days after some buses had been unable to pass badly parked cars on the narrow roads and the decision was made to divert the service away from the village to ensure rail connections at Shanklin are maintained. Bonchurch residents signed a petition protesting at this and continue to campaign for their rail link (their first since the "Ventnor Rocket" horse-drawn stagecoach was withdrawn when the railway was originally extended to Ventnor!) to be reinstated, but so far unsuccessfully.

RDS ELECTIONS
Nomination papers for the election of Officers and Board Members are now available from John Lee. All Nominations must be completed and returned to John by 28th February 2005. Since Elisabeth Jordan did not seek re-election as Membership secretary last year there have not been any female members on the Board. Nominations from female members would therefore be especially welcome, as would nominations from younger members, and from branches that currently do not have a Board member. Board meetings are held every two months and currently usually alternate between London and Birmingham/Leicester. Alternative locations could be chosen if these are more convenient for the new Board members.

Would all branch Chairmen and Secretaries please spread this information among their branch members.

Members are reminded that our Treasurer, Tony Sheward, has announced his intention not to seek re-election. Any prospective Treasurers are welcome to contact Tony should they wish to find out more about the duties involved.

RAILWAYS BILL 2004
We are continuing to lobby for changes to be made to the Railways Bill. A full-page letter from Mike Crowhurst and Richard Pout is published in Rail 505. Individual members and branches have written to their MP’s and received a variety of responses from basic acknowledgements to requests for more information. Other members with political affiliations have raised the issue within their respective parties. A delegation from Railfuture will be meeting Minister of State at the DfT, Mr Tony McNulty MP, shortly and the Bill is one of the topics we will be raising.

The response I received from my MP, who is a Labour member of the Standing Committee considering the Bill, consisted of a ‘Factsheet’ which made no mention of any of the issues I had raised in my letter to her. She has been sent another email asking for a proper reply.

Please continue to raise the issue with MP’s and Peers whenever you have the opportunity. As a reminder some of the issues that we are asking to be reconsidered are:

 Missing from the Bill is any continuation of the SRA's duty to "promote the use, and development, of the railway network for the carriage of passengers and goods". A notable exception is Scotland where the Scottish Executive gets a duty to develop strategies for the railways. There would be no body with the power to promote and co-ordinate private and public investment in railfreight projects. There is no mention of any co-ordination between rail and bus services.
 With the exception of Merseytravel the PTEs are to lose their powers to specify and manage rail franchises.
 The 23 clauses on ‘Network Modifications’ i.e. closures. The Secretary of State must produce guidance for closures under Section 42. This guidance will be very important as it forms the criteria against which the validity of any closure proposal will be judged. Alistair Darling may give any number of assurances about what will be in these criteria but any following SoS is apparently at liberty to issue new guidance. If this or any future government decide that they want mass closures of the rail network they only have to issue new guidance and there would be no way of stopping closures providing they fitted the new criteria.
 Disbanding the regional RPCs without replacing them with any local objective voice on service delivery.

RAIL USERS CONFERENCE 2005
A venue has been found for the 2005 Rail users conference. It will be in the Mechanics Institute, Manchester on 5th November 2005.

NEW MULTI-USER RAIL FREIGHT SERVICE BETWEEN MOSSEND AND FORT WILLIAM
On 13th January 2005 EWS announced that it had introduced a new multi-user rail freight return service on Saturdays between Mossend on the M8 motorway in central Scotland and Fort William in the West Highlands. The new service builds on the current five times a week service, and now means that businesses with small volumes in the West Highlands will be able to book space on a multi-user rail freight service six days a week (Monday - Saturday).

The EWS website contains full details of the company's wagonload services on the following link:
http://www.ews-railway.co.uk/services/services_logistics_wagonload.asp
Source EWS press release

TRANSPORT WATCH
Several of our members have drawn attention to a series of advertisements that have appeared recently under the name of “Transport Watch”. These appeared in the New Statesman in December and Private Eye this month. We have confirmed with the advertising managers that these are paid adverts, which was not immediately apparent.

At least one of our members has already lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority. Our Chairman, Mike Crowhurst, has also written to the ASA giving our formal support to the complaint. We are urging other members who have strong feelings about these adverts to lodge their own complaint. This link will take you straight to the ASA online complaint form. http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/how_to_complain/complaints_form/

Adrian Lyons, Director General of the Railway Forum, has put together an excellent rebuttal of the advert. This is published in Rail 505.

LTUC RESPONSE TO BRIGHTON MAIN LINE RUS
The LTUC response can be seen on their website at http://www.ltuc.org.uk/view_document.php?id=1727 In a polite way they are saying that the SRA had not done their homework properly and their investigations are at variance with the SRA.

RAILWAY SAFETY SERVICES PLUS ACCIDENTS
This is the title of a day school organised by the Workers' Educational Association, Eastern District, that will be held at Wensum Lodge, Norwich on Saturday 16 April 2004. The event will look at the accidents that took place, the stubbornness of some companies to make improvements, the role of trade unions and Parliament in improving safety on railways. Looking at railway safety devices and declining passenger fatality figures on railways - with comparisons made with road traffic accident fatalities. I heard the Tutor, Adrian Vaughan, give an excellent talk to the Lincoln Railway Society last year and can thoroughly recommend him.

Railway Cuttings - Issue 81

16th December 2004

IN THE NEWS

Railfuture President and media spokesman, Peter Lawrence, has been busy this month. The Daily Mail, Metro Newspaper, Green Express and also BBC Radio Norfolk asked about Alastair' Darlings review of rural branch lines. All were concerned about possible axing of rural railways. With the possibility of up to 50 Community Rail Partnerships Peter said that it is early days to start getting worried. We should remain optimistic, as CRPs have on the whole been very successful. In Norfolk the Bittern Line Partnership (Norwich-Sheringham) has set a standard which will be hard to match, whereas the Wherry Lines Partnership has not been quite so successful. It will be interesting to see how the new Partnership for Suffolk, East Suffolk Line Partnership, performs. The key issues are better marketing of publicity, punctuality, reliability and fares.

The Independent wanted to discuss autumn leaf fall. This has largely gone unreported this year. Network Rail report that the number of incidents this year has again shown a big reduction thereby improving reliability and punctuality.

The Eastern Daily Press telephoned Peter on 1/12/04 concerning the proposed rail fare increases of between 4 and 8 percent. His view was rail users would not welcome these fare increases particularly as they will be above inflation. Quite the reverse should be happening. As we see motoring costs and aviation fares continuing to fall rail fares should be reduced in order to complete.

Peter has also spoken to BBC Radio Norfolk about the timetable changes. Peter told them that overall the changes are good for East Anglia.

Enquiries of a more local nature were passed on the North West and Lincolnshire branches. As a result Brian Hastings and Phil Mason from Lincolnshire did interviews for Q7 and BBC Radio Lincs. Phil Mason stressed the positive aspects of the CRP proposals, especially for Grantham – Skegness, which is one of the pilot schemes.

BBC TV Breakfast programme wanted to interview someone on the Rail Review. Keith Dyall, Chairman London & S. E. branch agreed to get up early and do this. The BBC sent a taxi to pick up Keith at 05.30am! Keith Dyall also did an interview with ITV on the chaos caused by Network Rail not getting its act together concerning Christmas timetables, thereby making it difficult for rail travellers in certain areas to book tickets in advance.

Keith had another interview on Sky news on 12th December. The subjects were about changes in the timetables and about the Railways Bill. Keith naturally mentioned the changes in the closure procedures and said that the success of the new timetables rested very much on Network Rail's signallers being able to regulate the system properly and that, as the old time table had been basically in place for the last 40 years, changes were required to meet changes in demand.

Railfuture Chairman, Mike Crowhurst, has talked to Times Online and Which (formerly Consumers Association) about the rail review.

Following the crossing accident near Sleaford, Lincs, in which two persons were tragically killed, Peter Davies, Chairman Yorkshire branch, was interviewed on the ITV Yorks/Lincs local news programme. Peter stressed that such incidents are rare when one considers that there are 7,395 crossings on the network. Network Rail keeps each crossing under review and makes regular assessments of them. Brian Hastings, Chairman Lincolnshire branch, spoke to the Lincolnshire Echo and a national news agency again stressing the rarity of these incidents and saying that it was important not to be too hasty in calling for changes to the crossings.

COMMUNITY RAIL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY LAUNCHED

Alistair Darling, Secretary of State for Transport, unveiled the Community Rail Development Strategy on 21st November 2004. The Strategy aims to increase the number of passengers using rural rail lines by providing a framework for developing local and rural railways. It sets out ways to secure the future of such lines, by increasing usage whilst reducing costs.

The strategy aims to improve the financial performance of lightly used lines – in order to increase the value for money and social value they offer. Central to the Strategy is the involvement of local communities in supporting and developing the lines. Increasing passenger volume through better marketing strategies is also an essential part of the plans. Costs can be reduced through ensuring that the lines are not 'gold plated' to the standards required for heavily used or high-speed lines.

Fifty six routes across England and Wales are proposed to be designated as Community Rail lines. Seven of these lines have been selected as pilot projects - with each helping to develop a different aspect of the Strategy. The seven chosen pilot schemes are:

 St Ives Bay Line (St Erth – St Ives, Cornwall)
 Looe Valley Line (Liskeard – Looe, Cornwall)
 Tamar Valley Line (Plymouth – Gunnislake)
 St Albans Abbey Branch (Watford Junction – St Albans)
 Grantham – Skegness Line
 Penistone Line (Sheffield – Huddersfield)
 Esk Valley Line (Middlesbrough – Whitby)

The Strategy applies typically to local and rural lines with relatively low speeds, where lightweight trains are used on an hourly frequency or less. These routes account for about 10.5% of the national network (1154 miles), including 390 stations. The strategy does not apply to lines in Greater London, Scotland, nor independent or heritage railways. A model similar to the Community Rail proposals already operates within discrete areas of the Dutch and German rail networks. The press release acknowledges that the Strategy has been developed by the SRA in close partnership with the Association of Community Rail Partnerships (ACoRP)

Source DfT news release: http://www.dft.gov.uk/pns/displaypn.cgi?pn_id=2004_0141
The Community Rail Development Strategy can be found at http://www.sra.gov.uk/publications

From experience gained with the very successful Bittern Line Partnership Peter Lawrence urges all branches and User Groups with a pilot scheme in their area to get involved at an early stage.

NEWS FROM THE SRA

The SRA Cycling Policy was published on 11th November 2004. The policy seeks to increase the number of rail journeys that involve the use of a cycle through improved access and parking at stations, improved bike-rail integration, and clearer information about services available to cyclists.

The main points of the SRA’s cycle policy are:
 The SRA aspires to see 95% of rail journeys originate from stations with adequate cycle parking facilities within the next five years. A fund established by the Department for Transport to improve cycle parking, at around 200 high priority stations will begin this process.
 Ensure train operating companies (TOCs) take into account the wider benefits of cycling when considering investment in cycle facilities and rules for carrying cycles;
 TOCs should work with local highway agencies to promote easier and safer station access.
 When procuring new rolling stock, or carrying out major enhancements, spaces for cycles must be considered.
 Increase the provision of appropriate cycle parking facilities at stations (in conjunction with the DfT)
 Continue to allow TOCs discretion to determine appropriate facilities for carrying cycles on trains, to reflect specific circumstances; and
 Ensure clear information is available on facilities for cyclists. The SRA will work with ATOC to ensure that information for cyclists is centrally available. This information should be stocked and freely available to all staffed stations and electronically online.

The policy says TOCs should facilitate the carriage of cycles on off-peak services and promote the carriage of compact folding cycles at all times. During the peak, where capacity is under pressure, there may be circumstances, in which it is in the interests of the majority of passengers not to permit non-folding cycles on board. Train operating companies are best placed to know where and when such pressure exists and should be able to impose restrictions accordingly.
Source: http://www.sra.gov.uk/news/2004/11/cycling

On 29th November 2004 the SRA published its draft Gauging Policy for consultation with the rail industry and other stakeholders. The primary objective of the Policy is to optimise the 'fit' between the size of trains and the capability of the current railway infrastructure, by exploiting the potential for vehicles to run on parts of the network where they are currently not permitted. Greater understanding of the capability of the network will allow operators to take advantage of these opportunities. The consultation document can be found at http://www.sra.gov.uk/publications/consultation_default

Initial thoughts are that most of the document is common sense but there are maps showing the proposed Domestic High-Speed routes and Freight routes on pages 27 and 20 respectively. The proposed HST2 cleared routes are likely to be contentious as they have omitted anything south of Gatwick and the only Cross-country route is the Hope Valley. It would appear that any concept of Strategic Planning (i.e. Vision) was either buried with Alastair Morton or left through the SRA's front door with Richard Bowker.

BRANCH AGM’s

I already have some branch AGM dates and these are listed in Forthcoming Events. Can we please have dates for all other branch AGM’s as soon as they are fixed? Railfuture Chairman, Mike Crowhurst, would like to attend some of these if he has enough notice to arrange the trips before his diary is full.

RAILFUTURE NATIONAL TREASURER TO RETIRE AT NEXT AGM

Tony Sheward has announced that it his intention to retire from the post of Treasurer at the next AGM. A volunteer will therefore be needed to fill this important post. Do you fancy having a go yourself or do you have a retired friend with bookkeeping experience with around half a day a week to spare? Tony has indicated that he is willing to provide help and assistance to the new Treasurer whilst they are getting to grips with the role. If anyone is considering taking on the task they are welcome to ring Tony and discuss what is involved.

RAILWAYS BILL 2004

I have been asked by some branch contacts to put together a resume of our own studies and the briefing notes etc that we have received from various sources:

The strategic functions of the SRA are to be transferred to DfT who will also monitor performance, sponsor rail investment and let franchises. Day to day operations will be in the hands of Network Rail and TOCs. Other SRA functions such as route utilisation strategies are going to Network Rail.

The Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly are to gain additional powers. The Scottish Executive will be responsible for funding rail infrastructure and there are reports that it may also be able to specify size and capability of their network in future reviews of access charges. They will award the Scot rail franchise, which takes some powers away from Strathclyde PTE. They will be allowed to modify rail freight grant schemes.

The Welsh Assembly will specify and fund services under the Wales and Borders franchise except where services are completely within England. They will be co-signatory with the Secretary of State in the W & B franchise award. The Assembly will be able to add additional funding to the current W & B franchise from it’s own resources. As in Scotland they will be allowed to modify rail freight grant schemes.

The ORR powers to determine public expenditure priorities will be restricted. In future access charges reviews the Sec. of State will specify what he wants the rail network to deliver and how much public funding is available. If these two are not in balance he will decide which parameter to change.

The Railway Inspectorate is transferred from the HSE to the ORR.

Some of the responsibilities being transferred to Network Rail, such as delivering rail performance, are being implemented through changes to the Network Code, being drawn up by the ORR, rather than via the Railways Bill.

Any devolution of powers to Transport for London is still to be decided. With the exception of Merseytravel the PTEs are to lose their powers to specify and manage rail franchises. The DfT talks of PTEs deciding “which rail routes are best value and which would be more effectively replaced by bus services”. It suggests that bus replacement services could improve accessibility by stopping at many more locations than trains. The PTEs will be able to enter into bus Quality Contracts for rail replacement services. Overall there seems to be more danger of bustitution and closures in PTE areas than in rural areas, especially as there are to be streamlined arrangements for the replacement of rail services by guaranteed bus routes.

The closure process is to be changed. Currently all closures must be initiated by TOCs except that the SRA can initiate closures whilst reletting franchises. Any closure proposal is then assessed by the SRA and an 8 weeks consultation exercise is held. RPCs hear objections and then prepare a report on any hardship that would arise. The Sec. Of State makes the final decision.

The new regime would see The Sec of State, Scots Executive, Welsh Assembly, PTAs and TfL have the power to initiate closures as well as the TOCs. The promoter of the proposal would then prepare a cost/ benefit assessment, which would be followed by a 12-week public consultation. The final decision would be up to the ORR in line with guidance form the Sec. of State and Minister.

Note that there is only a consultation. There is no mention of any public hearings and any consultation with rail users is to be through bodies recognised by the Sec of State. It is not clear who these bodies would be.

Missing from the Bill is any continuation of the SRA's duty to "promote the use, and development, of the railway network for the carriage of passengers and goods". A notable exception is Scotland where the Scottish Executive gets a duty to develop strategies for the railways. There would be no body with the power to promote and co-ordinate private and public investment in railfreight projects. There is no mention of any co-ordination between rail and bus services.

As expected the regional RPC’s are to be abolished with the exception of the London TUC. The rationale behind this is apparently that the government considers the RPC'’ to be too expensive and that some of their activities "“re not necessarily the right role for a rail passengers’ body”.

The Rail Passengers Council will operate as a GB wide body. Their stakeholder briefing note proposes that they will be passenger focussed and have passenger involvement. This is to be via a small number of highly knowledgeable individuals to act as ‘advocates’ and at least 2,500 ‘champions’ linked by email. There will also be a link with passenger and rail user groups involving “new ways of working”.

A quote from Christian Wolmar, writing in Rail magazine sums up other deficiencies – “Here are just a few things the Bill does not address – what are the railways for; what is the vision for the railways; how do you finance enhancements (remember them)? Indeed are there going to be any enhancements. Darling said the previous system was ‘dysfunctional’. Now, the big question in the short term is: will this one be any less so? And, how and why?”

We urge all members to write to their MP to point out the deficiencies in the Bill. If they receive a helpful reply please advise Mike Crowhurst or myself, as we may need to lobby friendly MPs when the Bill returns to the floor of the House, probably in late January. Expected sittings of the Standing Committee for the Bill are 14th –16th December and 11th – 18th January. Committee Members are:

 Labour - D Clelland (Tyne Bridge), Tom Harris (Glasgow C), George Howarth (Knowsley North and Sefton East), Andy King (Rugby and Kenilworth), John McDougal (Central Fife), Khalid Mahmood (Birmingham Perry Barr), Anne McGuire (Stirling), Rosemary McKenna (Cumbernauld & Kilsyth), Tony McNulty (Harrow East), Gillian Merron (Lincoln), Albert Owen (Ynys Mon) and Graham Stringer (Manchester Blackley).
 Conservative - C Chope (Christchurch), Mark Field (Cities of London & Westminster), Greg Knight (Yorkshire East), Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest) and David Wilshire (Spelthorne).
 Liberal Democrat - John Pugh (Southport) and John Thurso (Caithness Sutherland and Easter Ross).
 Plaid Cymru - Simon Thomas (Ceredigion).

During the Bill’s progress through the Standing Committee there are three key points to our strategy:
 Support the Lib. Dem. (& T2000) amendments which would restore the SoS’s duty “to promote rail transport” etc.
 Support the PTE Group in their bid to delete clauses 13 & 14 that water down PTE powers.
 Support the Lib. Dem. bid to delete all of Section 4 which “streamlines” closure procedures.

RPC Stakeholder briefing note is at - http://www.railpassengers.org.uk/site/News/RPCPressReleases/2004_112504_03
A summary and the full text of the Railways Bill 2004 can be found on the DfT website at - http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_railways/documents/divisionhomepage/032955.hcsp
The Regulatory Impact Assessment for the Railways Bill is at - http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_railways/documents/page/dft_railways_033000.hcsp
I have a detailed 15-page analysis of the Bill from the RPC that I can email on request to david.harby at ntlworld.com

CHRIS GREEN APPOINTED NEW CHAIRMAN OF THE RAILWAY FORUM

Chris Green, Chairman, Virgin Rail Group, will be the next Chairman of The Railway Forum. He will take over from Paul Kirk on 1 January 2005.

NICK DIBBEN – NEW EMAIL ADDRESS

Nick Dibben, Secretary East Anglia branch, has a new email address of nick.dibben at btinternet.com. Please amend your contacts lists.

ETRURIA STATION CLOSURE PROPOSAL

The RPC have announced the result of their deliberations on Etruria station. In brief, the recommendation is that closure should only be part of a wider integrated transport review creating new travel opportunities in the area, and that any final decision should await the findings of the North Staffordshire Integrated Transport Study. The report is now with Alistair Darling for his decision. Source: http://www.railpassengers.org.uk/site/News/RPCPressReleases/2004_112404_01

Railway Cuttings - Issue 80

16th November 2004

IN THE NEWS

On Wednesday 20 October 2004 Railfuture President, Peter Lawrence, was invited to the launch of the new range of restaurant menus aboard 'One' restaurant car leaving at 10.00 from Norwich to Liverpool Street.

80% of the food provided by ‘One’ in its Restaurant Cars comes from local suppliers. The breakfast fare consisted of a choice of Kedgeree, Lowestoft Kippers, Smoked Salmon and Scrambled Eggs, Novia Scotia and of course the Great British Breakfast. Peter settled for the Great British Breakfast of Porridge, Smoked bacon rashers, grilled organic Suffolk sausages, scrambled eggs, black pudding, sauté mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, hash browns and fried bread. This was followed by numerous cups of coffee and buttered toast. As you can imagine it was an excellent start to the day.

During the journey Peter was singled out by the BBC TV crew on board to give an interview on the excellent breakfast provided. His comments were, of course, “very good”.

REQUEST FOR *EVIDENCE* THAT PEOPLE PREFER TRAIN-TRAIN TRANSFER RATHER THAN BUS-TRAIN TRANSFER

This is a plea for anyone who has evidence, as opposed to opinions, on why a train-train interchange is more attractive to passengers than a bus-train interchange. Jerry Alderson is asking for evidence about the benefit of local branch lines as feeders to main lines, and why they are better than replacing them by buses, even a "high quality" bus service.

He needs some research that shows that a person taking a train journey involving a cross-platform change, rather than taking a bus to the station, has a positive effect, such as more people taking the train or fewer people using their car.

This is very urgent because Jerry is trying to write something for the inspector at the Cambridgeshire Guided Bus public inquiry, and it has only two more weeks to run. Information to <jerry.alderson@convergys.com>

NEWS FROM RAILFUTURE BRANCHES

Lincolnshire branch chairman, Brian Hastings, was quoted extensively in the local media on November 2nd when he condemned cutbacks on the TPE network and the bustitution of services on the Barton on Humber branch. A 46 minute rail journey takes over 2 hours by bus. What was particularly annoying was that these changes were imposed with only a few days warning and First Group was blaming leaf fall whereas it was well known locally that there was an ongoing industrial dispute with the drivers. Following a local outcry services on the Barton branch were reinstated on 8th November.

Following a request from Midlands branch the Railfuture board have agreed that henceforth the branch will be known as West Midlands branch.

CENTRAL TRAINS FRANCHISE TO BE BROKEN UP

The Secretary of State for Transport announced on 19th October that following the expiry of the current Central franchise in 2006 it would be broken up. There was no definite information given about which lines will be transferred to which franchise. Source: http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_about/documents/page/dft_about_032240.hcsp

TRANSLINK PUBLIC ENQUIRY DUE TO BEGIN ON 15TH FEBRUARY 2005

Luton Borough Council in partnership with Bedfordshire County Council are promoting the Translink busway to serve Dunstable and Luton. The latest edition of their newsletter, Translink Express, reports as follows:

The public inquiry into the Translink application will begin on 15 February 2005 in the Council Chamber at Luton Town Hall and is likely to run for about 4-6 weeks. Information Sheet No.3, explaining more about the public inquiry process, will be published shortly. All the documents likely to be referred to by the Council in its case for the scheme are available for public inspection at the Central Library in Luton and at South Bedfordshire District Council’s offices in Dunstable.

To enable people to keep up to date with progress up to the Public Inquiry and proceedings once it begins, the promoters have created a new area on their website dedicated to the inquiry. They say that in the interests of unbiased reporting, the text for these pages will be independently edited and updated by the Programme Officer’s team. Visit www.translinkexpress.org.uk/inquiry01home.htm. Source: http://www.translinkexpress.org.uk/newscurrent.htm

COURT OF APPEAL BACKS DISABLED RAIL USER

Readers may remember the court case in which a disabled rail user took Central Trains to court because he could not catch Norwich bound trains at Thetford except by travelling ½ mile along country roads. Central Trains offered disabled passengers free travel to Ely, 30 miles away in the opposite direction, where they could cross the tracks, change trains and then travel to Norwich.

A County Court judge backed Central Trains when it refused to pay for a taxi to reach the desired platform.

The Court of Appeal has now overturned this decision. Lord Justice Sedley added that the ruling was limited to this specific case and would not set a precedent. Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/norfolk/3984199.stm

Whilst not wishing to oppose the many good outcomes of disability legislation this judgement could impose extra costs on TOC’s. These will have to be paid for by somebody and, unless the SRA/DfT allocates additional cash to the TOC’s, finance will have to come from fares or cost cutting elsewhere.

RSSB RAILWAY GROUP STANDARDS HTTP://WWW.RGSONLINE.CO.UK/RAIL/MAIN.HTML

This site contains copies of Railway Group Standards, Codes of Practice, Guidance Notes and Manuals etc. A quick random search of the site found such things as Infrastructure requirements at stations, design of station platforms and requirements for the design, construction, inspection, maintenance, operation and decommissioning of level crossings.

At the Rail User’s Conference David Keay, Principle Inspector HMRI, told us that Railway Safety Cases will also soon be available on the Internet. A site well worth bookmarking for future reference.

NEWS FROM THE SRA

The SRA response to their consultation on services between Saltburn/Middlesbrough and Newcastle from December 2005 is on the SRA website. The main conclusion is that they can see no reason to make further substantial alterations to the services. Railfuture North East branch made representations to the SRA on this issue and these were taken seriously enough to justify the SRA response to them being included in the documents now on the website. http://www.sra.gov.uk/publications/consultation_default

INTERCITY EAST COAST FRANCHISE CONSULTATION

The parties bidding for the ICEC franchise are currently carrying out consultations with stakeholders. Their bids have to be with the SRA by 6th December 2004. Railfuture branches along the route have been in touch with each other so as to present a consistent ‘wish list’ to the bidders.

SURREY C.C. LEAD THE WAY IN HELPING BUS PASSENGERS FIND THEIR STATION

Bus stops serving rail stations in Surrey will soon have new signs displaying the National Rail logo and the name of the station that the stop serves. Bus users who are new to the area will then know where to alight even if the station is not visible from the bus.

The council had to obtain special permission from the DfT to erect the signs. Source: Surveyor magazine 28 October.

TRANSPORT CO-ORDINATION IN PUBLIC INTEREST SAYS CFIT

In response to the Competition Commission's recent inquiries into big group ownership of major rail franchises the Commission for Integrated Transport has issued a report setting out its perspective of what would be in the public's interest.
Professor David Begg, CfIT's Chair, said: "The real competition for transport operators is the car. They have no choice but to compete with it as existing core markets would otherwise shrink as car ownership grows. Many journeys involve more than one form of transport. Joining up those journeys gives customers more seamless, co-ordinated journeys at a more reasonable price."
The report found that:
 Co-ordination reduces perceived and actual journey time, particularly where a change of service is needed to complete a journey
 Through ticketing and network ticketing cuts the price of fares for passengers who need to change services and that
 Inter operator competition in itself does not offer the service enhancements that greater co-operation can provide.

Source: CfIT press release http://www.cfit.gov.uk/pn/041025/index.htm

RAILFUTURE MEDIA CONTACTS 2005

An updated Media Contacts Card will be printed shortly. Copies will be distributed to the National Media from the Railfuture office. Six copies will be sent to each Branch Contact to enable branches to distribute them to their own local media. If any branch needs additional copies please email Keith Dyall <keith.dyall@tesco.net> ASAP.

RAILFUTURE ANNUAL DRAW 2004

Winners in the draw held at the Rail Users Conference on 6th November were:
£500 - Mrs M. Walde, Shrewsbury; £200 - D.J. Gammage, I.O.W.; £100 - Mr & Mrs C. Bourner, Stockport; £50 - R.C. Caston, Newport; £10 – F.A. & Mrs S.M. Connolly, Ely, R.H. Perkins, Southsea, W. Ebbett, Bath, R. Foster, Newport, I. Yates, Colchester, P.J. Hobart, Warrington, J. Tucker, Leamington Spa and W. Stoneham, Maidstone.

WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF RPC’S

In the “Future of Rail” White Paper the government proposes abolition of Regional RPC’s but does say that a regional presence will be maintained.

A decision is due to be made shortly as to the form that this regional presence will take. There may still be time to influence this decision and members are urged to write to their M.P.’s stressing that rail users need a strong local voice. At the Rail Users’ Conference many members favoured the option of regional public transport user’s forums bringing together public transport users, transport authorities and operators. As these would cover all modes of transport they would have a wider remit than the current RPC’s do.

Similar forums are already in place in some parts of the country. The South West Public Transport Users Forum was established in 2001. One of their actions has been to organise jointly with others a seminar to address concerns that multi operator tickets and travelcards were difficult to deliver in accordance with Competition Law. The OFT have now provided clearer guidance.

RAIL RE-OPENINGS TOOLKIT LAUNCHED

The Countryside Agency launched its ‘Rail Re-openings Toolkit’ in Leeds on Friday October 15th. It is a guide to the process of re-opening a disused railway and has been put together by the Independent Railway Consultancy, based in York. ACoRP had a considerable input to the publication and is now responsible for its distribution. It aims to provide local authorities, campaigners and other interested parties with a clear guide to the long and tortuous process of re-opening a railway. It is available from ACoRP price £5. Details from: http://www.acorp.uk.com/times.htm Source: Train on Line 20 The electronic newsletter of the Association of Community Rail Partnerships

Also in ‘Train on Line 20’, ACoRP are reporting that the Strategic Rail Authority’s Community Rail Strategy is expected to be launched soon.

RAILWAY FORUM THIRD SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SEMINAR

Chaired by the Railway Forum’s Paul Kirk, this event on 19th October was of great interest to Railfuture’s representative, Norman Bradbury. A few key points from the day are:

 There needs to be a 60% reduction in CO2 emissions over the next 50 years to stabilise climate change.
 The automobile R&D budget is 100 times greater than rail.
 Oil prices are unlikely ever to fall below $40 a barrel again.
 Rail privatisation has complicated the introduction of optional low sulphur fuels as dual fuelling points would be prohibitively expensive and a switch from gas oil to low sulphur motor fuel would have to be done with an industry wide “Big Bang” operation.
 Cliff Perry, Managing Director, AEA Technology Rail, commented that economic growth will be choked if rail capacity is not increased – electrification will become increasingly important. It was disappointing that the seemed to be a general lack of enthusiasm for electrification by other speakers.
 We must make better use of the capacity we already have by ensuring services are better used and by running longer trains.
 There are currently 50 or so daily flights between London and Manchester. Most passengers on this route are making inter flight connections at Heathrow but there is currently no proposal for a train service from Manchester and Manchester Airport to Heathrow and Paddington.

A copy of Norman’s report can be obtained from david.harby at ntlworld.com.

RE-OPENINGS CONFERENCE 2005

The 2005 re-openings conference will be held in Barry Welfare Hall on 2nd July. If all goes to plan this should be just after passenger services start on the Vale of Glamorgan line.

RAIL USERS’ CONFERENCE 2005

The 26th Conference held in Birmingham on 6th November 2004 was well attended. November 5th 2005 has been reserved for the 27th National Conference of Rail Users and it is hoped that this will again be held out of London. Would any branch like to host it?

WILLINGTON ROWING LAKE

Readers may remember that the Bedfordshire Railway and Transport Association (BRTA) is fighting a proposal to construct a rowing lake across the trackbed of the Bedford to Sandy section of the proposed East West Rail Link. A report into the proposed lake has been produced by Humbert Leisure for Bedfordshire County Council. BRTA have produced a critique of this report. For more details contact BRTA. http://brta.org.uk/

MAPLE PROJECT SEEKS GOOD PRACTICE EXAMPLES

There was recently a presentation to the Access Association by "MAPLE: Improving Mobility and Accessibility for People with Learning Difficulties in Europe", it is a European Commission project as part of its activities for the 2003 European Year for People with Disabilities.

Merseytravel are responsible for co-ordinating the project. Other partners include Lund University, Sweden, and Dominic Fells a Parisian professor. They are producing a pamphlet shortly with their findings.

The guide pulls together examples of best practice from throughout Europe. The Guidance will cover three main areas; i) Training of public staff;
ii) Travel awareness programmes and;
iii) Providing an easy to use travel environment.

Unfortunately, most of the examples are British as we appear to have more examples of good practice than elsewhere in Europe. There are though some examples from Sweden and Prague. If there are any examples of good transport access of which you are aware relating to these 3 themes, please let David Skelton <david.skelton@merseytravel.gov.uk> know.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

Saturday 20th November
Railfuture Scottish Branch Meeting. Quality (Central Station) Hotel, Glasgow at 14.00. Speaker is Alistair Watson (Chair of Strathclyde PTA)
Saturday 27th November
Railfuture International Committee meeting, VAT & Fiddle, Nottingham at 13.00.
Saturday 4th December
Railfuture Passenger Committee meeting, VAT & Fiddle, Nottingham
Railfuture East Anglia branch meeting, Little St. Mary's Church Hall, Trumpington St. Cambridge at 14.00. Lord Berkeley of the Rail Freight Group is guest speaker. Details from branch secretary Nick Dibben.
Saturday 8th January 2005
Railfuture Board meeting, Birmingham.
Saturday 15th January 2005
Railfuture Freight Committee meeting, venue TBA
Railfuture Yorkshire branch meeting, Trades and Labour Club, Doncaster at 14.00
Saturday 22nd January 2005
Railfuture Network Development Committee meeting, venue TBA
Saturday 12th February 2005
Railfuture North West branch AGM, Stretton Hotel, Blackpool at 11.00.
Saturday 5th March
Railfuture Passenger Committee meeting, Calthorpe Arms, London
Saturday 12th March 2005
Railfuture Board meeting, London
19th March 2005
Railfuture Yorkshire branch AGM and luncheon, Huddersfield at 11.00 approx.
2nd July 2005
Re-openings Conference, Barry Welfare Hall, S.Wales
5th November 2005
Rail Users’ Conference