Network Rail - Scoping Study into the future, by Nicola Shaw

[whole diary]

[Electric train]

It is easy to blame NR^» (Network Rail - home page), but it can't be just them or we would not be hearing the same story from New Civil Engineer 16th - 23rd July 2015 - Does it sound familiar?

Roads minister: I worry about capacity to deliver projects [May be behind pay wall]

Roads minister Andrew Jones fears that the ambitious highways construction programme could be hit by the same crisis as the troubled rail investment plan.

[snip]

Jones is in charge of ensuring Highways England can effectively manage its own ^15bn programme - but admits to being worried.

^My concern is about delivery,^ he told the conference.

^The [rail] announcement 10 days ago [was because] delivery has faltered.

^It is about having the capacity to deliver. And it is what worries me most about the roads [investment]. I want Highways England ready to run with schemes worth ^3bn a year.^

Jones said sudden growth in the road building supply chain would have to coincide with surges in rail, nuclear power and flood defence work.

^All these projects have entered the competition for ambitious recruits,^ he said. ^The government^s commitment to create 3M apprenticeships will help. But we need the industry to get behind the plan, too.

^So when the road consultations have finished and the work goes out to tender, we will ask - do bidders have access to the skills to get the job done?^

[snip]

It's because all the Politicians, irrespective of the rosette colour, were writing blank cheques in the lead up to the General Election promising us all new electric railways, more and better motorways / highways, more investment in the NHS, education, defence .................... etc etc

oh and cut taxes 

Now they fined themselves having tare up these cheques but to save their red faces they blame everyone else

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Network Rail privatisation 'on the table'

The executive asked to come up with a plan to revive Network Rail's fortunes has said she cannot rule out recommending privatisation.

In an interview with the BBC, Nicola Shaw said that a partial or total sell-off "was absolutely on the table; it can't not be."

Ms Shaw was drafted in by the government after Network Rail's upgrade plans fell apart last summer.

Work to electrify key lines had been dogged by delays and mounting costs.

Ministers paused two of the projects, in the Midlands and across the Pennines, and replaced the chairman, while a number of reviews are carried out.

Ms Shaw, who is the boss of Britain's only high speed line, HS1^▸ (High Speed line 1 - St Pancras to Channel Tunnel), was asked to come up with a report before the Budget next spring. She said there were a whole range of issues that had to be considered and she was keen to hear what people had to say.

She said she would also recommend changes to the regulator if necessary. "I don't believe there is one perfect answer. I think there is something that we'll go forward with for the next period of evolution of the railway. I don't think there has to be a big row. The challenge for me is how to bring people together. To find a way forward that people will support."

The future of Network Rail - which controls 2,500 stations as well as tracks, tunnels and level crossings - has been up in the air ever since the embarrassing admission last June that, just one year into a five year upgrade plan, the company had lost control of timetables and budgets.

Problems came to a head when the company was re-classified as a public sector body in September last year. Overnight, it meant it could no longer borrow extra money from private sources to fill the funding gap.

I've been told by those close to the situation that the impact of those changes took everyone by surprise.

It also meant the company's ^37.7bn debt moved onto the government's books.

One source suggested that before the change "ministers might turn a blind eye" to the extra costs, as long as the job was done. This is no longer possible.

Insiders also talked of a failure to check if they had sufficient numbers of qualified engineers to carry out the necessary work.

And they underestimated how difficult it would be to upgrade and electrify the Great Western Line, which dates from Victorian times, while running a service on it.

Three reviews are under way.
- One looking into what went wrong, due in a few weeks.
- Network Rail's new chairman Sir Peter Hendy is looking at what they can afford to upgrade and how long it will take. It is likely to be published in November.
- Nicola Shaw's report into how to change the structure and financing of Network Rail due in the spring.

Ms Shaw has a difficult job, navigating a wide range of views, including those of the unions and the new Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn who wants to see the railways back in public hands.

"I am talking to unions, and to representatives of staff and to other members of different parties so I hope we have strong engagement because I think it matters."

[ellendune]

Privatisation looks a really good solution 

NR^» (Network Rail - home page) difficulty in delivering programme so huge cost risk
NR Debt said to be nearly unsustainably high
Raising risk capital on market very difficult

Result would be that borrowing costs would go through the roof and there would have to be even more government subsidy

[phile]

Privatisation looks a really good solution 

NR^» (Network Rail - home page) difficulty in delivering programme so huge cost risk
NR Debt said to be nearly unsustainably high
Raising risk capital on market very difficult

Result would be that borrowing costs would go through the roof and there would have to be even more government subsidy

Have you forgotten about Hatfield and Potters Bar ?

[SandTEngineer]

Have you forgotten about Hatfield and Potters Bar ?

Well I haven't.  I once worked with the Track Maintenance Engineer who was responsible for the Hatfield area during the Railtrack days.  I can assure you that the accident wasn't caused by privatisation itself but by a lack of proper processes that had existed since late BR^▸ (British Rail(ways)) days.  NR^» (Network Rail - home page) had the same issues in recent times - Graygrigg comes to mind - (and constantly changes the processes it does have to 'fill the gaps') so, providing that process continues if NR is in private hands then I don't think that matters.  Perhaps the best model would be to 'franchise' NR 

[Electric train]

There will be a fudge.

Major stations sold off, they actually make money and they are great opportunities to redevelop some

Push to place the more routine maintenance out to contract leaving NR^» (Network Rail - home page) with a "rapid response faulting teams"

Infrastructure Projects out source the project management, there is also a need to change how the ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) operates as well.

The ORR needs to be changed as well, one hand it says NR you must do all this work you maintenance is behind your projects cost too much and then on the other it says NR you must run more trains 24/7

The DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) also need to be changed

The ills of the Railway is not just NR

[ellendune]

Push to place the more routine maintenance out to contract leaving NR^» (Network Rail - home page) with a "rapid response faulting teams"

Short memories.  NR brought them back in because the maintenance contractors were too expensive.  Lets face it some of them had been having a laugh at RT expense for years. 

[SandTEngineer]

Scoping report published today can be found here https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/shaw-report-scoping-study

Mods please move if you feel its in the wrong Topic Section

[Chris from Nailsea]

Many thanks for posting that update, SandTEngineer: I've simply moved it and merged it with this ongoing discussion here. CfN. 

[simonw]

Surely the best solution is to offer primary franchises of rail and track for the likes of GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway), Virgin et al and secondary franchises for rail only. Throw in a strong regulator/ombudsman to ensure passengers and secondary franchises are treated properly.

The next time I have to stand for a long journey, GWR/CrossCountry can give me a refund, and the next time there is a track issue no blaming another company.

[Tim]

Surely the problem with NR^» (Network Rail - home page)'s screw up on the GWML^▸ (Great Western Main Line) electrification isn't so much the lack of sufficient experienced engineers to do the design and site work it is that the people above them in NR (the very senior engineers and managers) didn't know this or didn't care and promised what was undeliverable.

If NR had said on day one it will take until 2019 to get electrification finished then that would have been OK (and the rest of the industry the TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) and the train builders would have worked to that date.  The real sin they committed was that they promised that they could do it in less time and then broke that promise. 

That broken promise must have been made by a small number of senior people and it is perhaps them that need sacking or reorganising rather than the girls and boys in the drawing office or on the track. You also have to ask, what is ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) for?  Isn't it their explicit job to probe NR's plans and stop them promising the impossible.

[SandTEngineer]

Many thanks for posting that update, SandTEngineer: I've simply moved it and merged it with this ongoing discussion here. CfN. 

Thanks CfN.  I couldn't find the original thread (and I started it  ).  Its that wonderful Tablet thing again, not made for idiots like me

[Chris from Nailsea]

No problem, SandTEngineer - that's what I'm here for! 

[ChrisB]

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/shaw-report-final-report-and-recommendations
 
 "For the foreseeable future, the key questions for the industry will be ones of growth; how can more people and more goods travel on the current network"