Why it’s so infuriatingly hard to get around Europe by train

[whole diary]

[grahame]

From Open Democracy

Train is one of the greenest and most pleasant ways to travel. So why is the European system worse now than it was in the 1990s?

With reference to train services which cross international / regulatory boundaries. Adina Vălean, Neil Kinnock, Mark Smith, Chris Irwin, Pedro Nuno Santos, Benedikt Weibel and Christian Wolmar comment on the issue.  The system ".... either eats into the company profits, leads to higher fares for customers, or puts operators off running some routes in the first place".

I find myself concerned as to whether the international problems running cross border trains are being mirrored in cross LTA^▸ (Local Transport Authority) (Local Transport Authority) boundary bus services in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) - here's looking to a spat between Wiltshire and Bath's highways departments over where the heavy lorries go and how that's setting a poor environment for co-operation over bus routes that cross the border.

[Lee]

From Open Democracy

Train is one of the greenest and most pleasant ways to travel. So why is the European system worse now than it was in the 1990s?

With reference to train services which cross international / regulatory boundaries. Adina Vălean, Neil Kinnock, Mark Smith, Chris Irwin, Pedro Nuno Santos, Benedikt Weibel and Christian Wolmar comment on the issue.  The system ".... either eats into the company profits, leads to higher fares for customers, or puts operators off running some routes in the first place".

I find myself concerned as to whether the international problems running cross border trains are being mirrored in cross LTA^▸ (Local Transport Authority) (Local Transport Authority) boundary bus services in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) - here's looking to a spat between Wiltshire and Bath's highways departments over where the heavy lorries go and how that's setting a poor environment for co-operation over bus routes that cross the border.

In an unexpected twist, the EU^» (European Union - about) may well want to look at what’s happening in the UK. The country that wholeheartedly embraced privatisation recently announced the creation of a new entity – GB^▸ (Great Britain) Railways – that will bring infrastructure and operations back under one company. Christopher Irwin sees a lesson here for the rest of Europe: when things go wrong, “it’s time to move on to another formula”

Yes, but not that formula, Chris, much as I genuinely admire all the work you have put in, the advice you have given, and the crucial assistance you provided when they tried to withdraw the TransWilts Rail service by stealth in the mid-2000s - Copying the GB Railways formula?? That way madness lies 

We have indeed moved on to another formula here in Brittany - a truly passenger-focused and heavily passenger-led one - and we will stick with that if you don't mind - Definitely no lessons from the UK required here!

Whilst I do know of course from grahame and many others' their genuine frustration with issues such as the Cleveland Bridge closure, I think part of the problem is that officers on both sides of the WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about)/Wiltshire border are struggling with issues where the solutions are entirely out of their hands, particularly on buses.