Looking at the recent news reports, it looks like the up-and-coming
franchises will integrate rail infrastructure with the train companies; in short,
privatising Network Rail.
Transport secretary puts passengers at the heart of the railway
·
special
purpose vehicle to progress East West rail for the benefit of passengers
·
new
franchises to bring closer working between track and train
·
Grayling:
closer working across the industry, to resolve problems more quickly – putting
the needs of the passenger first
Transport Secretary Chris
Grayling has put the passenger at the heart of delivery across the railway by
announcing plans to bring track and train operations closer together.
The Transport Secretary has set
out his vision for England’s railways to deliver better, more reliable services
to passengers and improved coordination across track renewal and train
operations.
Plans include the creation of East West Rail, the first new integrated rail operation in decades
that is separate to Network Rail, and the closer alignment of incentives
between the management of infrastructure and the operation of train services.
The Transport Secretary said:
“It would be no exaggeration to
say that the railways of this country are crucial to its economic future.
Without them our economy would grind to a halt.”
“Our railways need to adapt and
change in order to be able to cope with the growth that they have already
experienced, and that which lies ahead. We need a railway which is sustainable
in all senses of the word.”
“East West Rail will provide a
commuter route for the crucial centres on its route and will provide the
transport spine for additional housing and business development in a corridor
which is one of the government’s priority areas for the future of our country.”
“The new organisation will work
hand in glove with the National Infrastructure Commission as it plans the
development of this nationally important transport corridor to identify the
best way to deliver the project.”
In addition, the Secretary of
State has announced that he wants to see the rail industry working more closely together to deliver a better service
for the passenger.
The Secretary of State, who has updated Parliament of plans this morning,
said:
"We want to see closer
working across the industry, to resolve problems more quickly – putting the
needs of the passenger first. When things go wrong, a lack of a joined-up
approach can make things much worse for the passenger."
“I intend to start bringing back
together the operation of track and train on our railways. Our railway is much
better run by one joined up team of people. They don’t have to work for the
same company. They do have to work in the same team.”
Plans for better operation of
track and train across the rail network will be achieved through new rail
franchises. The first of the new franchises to be let will be on the South Eastern and East Midlands lines,
which will be expected to include integrated
operating teams between train services and infrastructure. The franchises
are due to be awarded in 2018.
The Secretary of State added:
“If our railways are to cope
with the challenges of today and tomorrow it will take more investment, new
ways of working, new ways of funding improvements, more joined up management.
We can and will make this a real golden era for rail. We can transform the
passenger experience. We can create opportunities across our society.
“We can and we will make sure
our rail network plays its part in making this a country that works for
everyone.”
In my opinion, with more railway services to be taken over by TfL to expand their London Overground network, the Department for Transport should
transfer the railway infrastructure within London over to TfL as this will
enable them to improve services by upgrading the railway infrastructure.
This new plan reminds me of the old Big Four railway companies which was formed as “The Big Grouping” which came into effect back on the 1st
January 1923.
There are various campaigns such as Bring Back British Rail with many trade
unions objecting to the new plans because of what happened with Railtrack when the
government privatised British Rail back in the 1990’s.
To finish off I would like to mention that train companies have to pay
Network Rail for CP5 access charges.
As always, I invite you to follow me on Twitter and Google Plus which is @CLondoner92