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Poll
Question: Official public vote between 6 places - but where would you choose?  (Voting closed: July 12, 2022, 16:45:22)
Birmingham - 6 (17.6%)
Crewe - 5 (14.7%)
Derby - 6 (17.6%)
Doncaster - 1 (2.9%)
Newcastle-upon-Tyne - 1 (2.9%)
York - 7 (20.6%)
Somewhere else - 3 (8.8%)
Don't care - 5 (14.7%)
Total Voters: 20

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Author Topic: New GBR headquarters - where should it be?  (Read 1956 times)
grahame
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« on: July 05, 2022, 16:45:22 »

Just for fun - where should the GBR (Great British Railways) headquarters be, and (post if you like) why. I am allowing multiple votes, and "somewhere else" if you want to write in somewhere already ruled out or not even entered.  I understand that there's an excellent pub that could be re-opened near the station if the HQ (Headquarters) were at Berney Arms, and such a location would strongly incentivise staff and visitors not to travel to work by car!
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Western Pathfinder
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« Reply #1 on: July 05, 2022, 17:02:34 »

For all the good that it will be = BA» (British Airways - about) it might as well be on Mars  that way Grant would get to host the opening ceremony and with a bit of luck someone could leave him behind.
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grahame
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« Reply #2 on: July 05, 2022, 17:20:11 »

Proper poll is at https://gbrtt.co.uk/hq-competition-public-vote/
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Bmblbzzz
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« Reply #3 on: July 05, 2022, 17:36:57 »

It's a rather odd thing to have a public vote on IMO (in my opinion).

Unlike the forum vote, which is in a grand tradition of "creative democracy". Cheesy
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« Reply #4 on: July 05, 2022, 18:13:28 »

Sadly, it's not so unusual though to find a public consultation that seems to have been put together by a woolly-minded PR (Public Relations) consultant trying to impart the current government's mindless slogans (sorry - that should be "policy objectives"), reflected in the criteria said to apply.

I think applying these criteria as set out and repeated below means-

1 -  Alignment to ‘levelling-up' objectives - i. e. none in London or the South of England - all pass this test.
2 - Connected and easy to get to across the UK (United Kingdom) - well, all are on the railway system! But I'd guess Birmingham scores best, with York and Newcastle (subject to restoring direct trains to Reading  Grin) also doing well
3 - Opportunities for Great British Railways - what on earth does this mean? - places with lots of currently empty railway accommodation? (for which I leave our industry insiders to comment/advise) or places where it is likely to be easier to recruit good quality staff ?- which probably counts against Crewe, Doncaster and Derby. Citizens/natives of those towns are invited to correct me if I am wrong!
4 - Railway heritage and links to the network - all have as much railway heritage as you can get, I cannot work out what the "connected to the network element" adds to criteria 2.
5 - Value for money - depends on the availability and suitability of any current surplus railway accommodation - beyond my knowledge - see 3 above.
6 - Public support - this is a circular argument - when you vote, you have to bear in mind public support, but until everyone's voted, how will we know which location has most public support?

So my vote is -stop messing around - employ someone who knows what they are doing to survey the available office space (both Network Rail assets and others) near Birmingham New Street, York and Newcastle Central Stations, prepare a report and submit it to the board of GBR (Great British Railways) or Shapps (whoever really takes the decision) and then follow their recommendations!
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eXPassenger
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« Reply #5 on: July 05, 2022, 19:18:22 »

Another vote for Berney Arms.
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broadgage
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« Reply #6 on: July 05, 2022, 19:44:32 »


I voted for Birmingham and for Crewe.

But anywhere reasonably central and with good rail links should be fine. Preferably also with empty offices that are available cheaply.
Not London as already full and therefore expensive.
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A proper intercity train has a minimum of 8 coaches, gangwayed throughout, with first at one end, and a full sized buffet car between first and standard.
It has space for cycles, surfboards,luggage etc.
A 5 car DMU (Diesel Multiple Unit) is not a proper inter-city train. The 5+5 and 9 car DMUs are almost as bad.
grahame
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« Reply #7 on: July 15, 2022, 17:16:35 »

Birmingham   - 6 (17.6%)
Crewe   - 5 (14.7%)
Derby   - 6 (17.6%)
Doncaster   - 1 (2.9%)
Newcastle-upon-Tyne   - 1 (2.9%)
York   - 7 (20.6%)
Somewhere else   - 3 (8.8%)
Don't care   - 5 (14.7%)

Only 20 members voted - one of the lowest turnouts in a poll which suggest to me that people REALLT don't care.  None of the venues to be voted on is anywhere near us (do all the cities mention have marginal constituencies?)  and York or Crewe" is probably "six of one, half a dozen of the other" to most members.
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broadgage
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« Reply #8 on: July 15, 2022, 18:23:06 »

Although I voted, I am also in the "dont really care" group.

One might hope that GBR (Great British Railways) will bring about improvements, but the location of the headquarters is not that important. Anywhere that represents good value for money and that has decent rail connections should be fine.

 
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A proper intercity train has a minimum of 8 coaches, gangwayed throughout, with first at one end, and a full sized buffet car between first and standard.
It has space for cycles, surfboards,luggage etc.
A 5 car DMU (Diesel Multiple Unit) is not a proper inter-city train. The 5+5 and 9 car DMUs are almost as bad.
ellendune
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« Reply #9 on: July 15, 2022, 18:30:02 »

Although I voted, I am also in the "dont really care" group.

One might hope that GBR (Great British Railways) will bring about improvements, but the location of the headquarters is not that important. Anywhere that represents good value for money and that has decent rail connections should be fine.

 


The only importance in my view is if they try to relocate a lot of staff there.  That way they will loose valuable skills again just as when NR» (Network Rail - home page) moved to Milton Keynes.  They lost (among others) experienced timetablers!
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TaplowGreen
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« Reply #10 on: July 15, 2022, 22:25:53 »

Although I voted, I am also in the "dont really care" group.

One might hope that GBR (Great British Railways) will bring about improvements, but the location of the headquarters is not that important. Anywhere that represents good value for money and that has decent rail connections should be fine.

 


The only importance in my view is if they try to relocate a lot of staff there.  That way they will loose valuable skills again just as when NR» (Network Rail - home page) moved to Milton Keynes.  They lost (among others) experienced timetablers!

Hybrid/remote working is the future for many office wallahs, which should mitigate against that.
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ChrisB
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« Reply #11 on: October 09, 2022, 18:28:58 »

From The I, via MSN

Quote
Great British Railways project looks set to be scrapped, insiders say

Grant Shapps’s flagship Great British Railways project is in danger of being scrapped, according to insiders working on the project.

The former Transport Secretary, who is currently at odds with new Prime Minister Liz Truss, had led plans to replace rail franchising and modernise ticketing but those working on the project now believe it will be axed.

A Whitehall source told i that work on the project had slowed down significantly since Ms Truss became Prime Minister, leading to fears over its future amid a bonfire of other Boris Johnson-era policies.

Another claimed the project had been all but halted with the anticipation within the Department for Transport being that the project would be canned.

Plans to simplify tickets and to replace the current franchise model with an outsourcing process were proposed under the creation of a new ‘Great British Railways’ public body.

The review, which built upon the Williams Rail Review of 2018, also outlined plans for more pay as you go, contactless and digital ticketing on smartphones.

When the project was unveiled in May 2021, the Department for Transport said: “A new public body, Great British Railways (GBR (Great British Railways)), will integrate the railways, owning the infrastructure, collecting fare revenue, running and planning the network, and setting most fares and timetables.

“GBR will simplify the current mass of confusing tickets with new flexible season tickets and a significant roll-out of more convenient Pay As You Go, contactless and digital ticketing on smartphones. A new GBR website will sell tickets and a single compensation system for operators in England will provide a simple system for passengers to access information and apply for refunds.

“There will remain a substantial and often greater role for the private sector. GBR will contract private partners to operate most trains to the timetables and fares it specifies.”

When announcing the plans, Mr Shapps hailed the reforms as a remedy for “years of fragmentation, confusion and overcomplication” on the railways.

Many of the changes outlined in the review were already out for consultation and plans for a new headquarters in the north for Great British Railways were being developed.

A source close to Mr Shapps said that they had heard the project could be scrapped but had not received any formal confirmation of a policy change.

In recent weeks, Mr Shapps has become one of the faces of the opposition to Ms Truss’ premiership. Last week, Mr Shapps criticised the Government for not supporting workers on lower incomes and prioritizing tax cuts for the richest.

He also told the News Agents podcast at Conservative party conference that Ms Truss needed to turn around her premiership in a matter of days.

Mr Shapps said: “I think it is obvious to say that there is a limited period of time to turn things around from what’s been a choppy, difficult start.

“I think these next few days, by definition, is obviously the key moment. The next 10 days, of course, is a critical period, that goes without saying.

“It doesn’t mean it’s the end moment, one way or the other, it doesn’t mean that time will stop after 10 days.

“But I think it’s really important, if she’s going to turn it around, this is the time to do it.”

It comes after i revealed last week that Ms Truss’s Government was likely to scale back Boris Johnson’s much-scrutinised key manifesto commitment to build ’40 new hospitals.’

Nadine Dorries, the former Culture Secretary, has also criticised Ms Truss for putting projects including the Online Safety Bill, the sale of Channel 4 and a review of the BBC» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) licence fee on hold.

She suggested the Prime Minister should call a General Election if she wanted to push forward policies that people had not voted for in 2019.

When asked about the plans for Great British Railways, a Department for Transport spokesman declined to comment on the project specifically.

A spokesman said: “We are committed to reforming our railways, improving journeys for passengers and creating a better and more modern UK (United Kingdom) rail industry. We are continuing to work with the sector to tackle the challenges they continue to face as the railway continues to recover from the pandemic .

“We will take forward legislation when Parliamentary time allows and further detail on timing of will be confirmed in due course.”

Hence zero announcement of the subject of this thread.

Edit to correct tags - Grahame
« Last Edit: October 16, 2022, 11:15:23 by grahame » Logged
Bob_Blakey
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« Reply #12 on: October 25, 2022, 09:04:48 »

Kevin Foster, Minister of State, Department for Transport - Yesterday (24/10/22) in Parliament:

Quote
I welcome the support of colleagues for the six shortlisted towns and cities, and I note that the hon. Member for York Central (Rachael Maskell) has been vocal in her support for York to be the winner. I hope to be able to announce the successful location shortly—subject to other events outside the Chamber.

Probably York then?

Good to see the DfT» (Department for Transport - about) have got their priorities sorted out.
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« Reply #13 on: October 25, 2022, 15:31:50 »

Kevin Foster, Minister of State, Department for Transport - Yesterday (24/10/22) in Parliament:

Quote
I welcome the support of colleagues for the six shortlisted towns and cities, and I note that the hon. Member for York Central (Rachael Maskell) has been vocal in her support for York to be the winner. I hope to be able to announce the successful location shortly—subject to other events outside the Chamber.

Probably York then?

Good to see the DfT» (Department for Transport - about) have got their priorities sorted out.

If York was selected there could be a couple of good National Railway reasons ................ ECML (East Coast Main Line) is being resignalled with ETCS (European Train Control System) (IE in cab signalling, no or very few wayside signals), major upgrades are being done, junctions and electrification power supply to the OLE (Overhead Line Equipment, more often "OHLE") ................. and

.............. when HS2 (The next High Speed line(s)) starts to interface with WCML (West Coast Main Line) with all the TSR (Temporary Speed Restriction)'s and blockades that will involve National Rail passengers going to north of the boarder will be advised to use the ECML and the DfT chaps and chapesses comuting from London to GBR (Great British Railways) HQ (Headquarters) cannot possibly be caught up in such delays
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