A lesson/option from Japan for our railways looking forward

[whole diary]

[grahame]

From Japan Times

In the driver’s seat of a two-carriage train, Katsunori Takemoto puts on his white gloves and checks the antiquated gauges before setting out alongside cabbage fields in Japan’s rural Chiba.

Like many small railway lines across Japan’s countryside, the 60-year-old trains that ply this route are a loss-maker, but Takemoto has found a way to keep the business afloat.

With a combination of savvy marketing partnerships with pop stars and branded souvenirs, the president of the Choshi Electric Railway navigated the firm into the black in 2021, while helping promote the local region.

“I feel strongly that this is the mission of all local trains. We want to serve as advertising vehicles for communities,” Takemoto said.

“Towns without trains wither away. So rebuilding rural trains must be done as part of rebuilding communities.”

and to confirm other similarities to the UK^▸ (United Kingdom)

Depopulation, car ownership, freight trucking and the COVID-19 pandemic have decimated revenues.

“If we leave things as they are and don’t do anything, it is clear to everyone that sustainable public transport systems will fall apart,” Transport Minister Saito said earlier this year.

Actually, I think we may have less issues in the UK - I do not see depopulation of rural areas ... though I am seeing (in my Ukraine hat) a number of guests who have arrived in the UK fo safety and are finding work hard to find during the winter in seaside resorts.   Noting, though that none of the places being reported as "I must move from ..." has an open rail connection.

[TaplowGreen]

From Japan Times

In the driver’s seat of a two-carriage train, Katsunori Takemoto puts on his white gloves and checks the antiquated gauges before setting out alongside cabbage fields in Japan’s rural Chiba.

Like many small railway lines across Japan’s countryside, the 60-year-old trains that ply this route are a loss-maker, but Takemoto has found a way to keep the business afloat.

With a combination of savvy marketing partnerships with pop stars and branded souvenirs, the president of the Choshi Electric Railway navigated the firm into the black in 2021, while helping promote the local region.

“I feel strongly that this is the mission of all local trains. We want to serve as advertising vehicles for communities,” Takemoto said.

“Towns without trains wither away. So rebuilding rural trains must be done as part of rebuilding communities.”

and to confirm other similarities to the UK^▸ (United Kingdom)

Depopulation, car ownership, freight trucking and the COVID-19 pandemic have decimated revenues.

“If we leave things as they are and don’t do anything, it is clear to everyone that sustainable public transport systems will fall apart,” Transport Minister Saito said earlier this year.

Actually, I think we may have less issues in the UK - I do not see depopulation of rural areas ... though I am seeing (in my Ukraine hat) a number of guests who have arrived in the UK fo safety and are finding work hard to find during the winter in seaside resorts.   Noting, though that none of the places being reported as "I must move from ..." has an open rail connection.

Could the future for the Transwilts be a marketing partnership with The Wurzels?

[eXPassenger]

Could the future for the Transwilts be a marketing partnership with The Wurzels?

Being parochial the Wurzels are N Somerset not Wiltshire.  They should publicise the reopened North Somerset line to Radstock.

[grahame]

Could the future for the Transwilts be a marketing partnership with The Wurzels?

Being parochial the Wurzels are N Somerset not Wiltshire.  They should publicise the reopened North Somerset line to Radstock.

Many a true word written in jest.

Marketing by Community Rail for several decades from the mid 1990s did wonders for our "thinner" lines and passenger numbers on them grew well, often above even the very good general growth rates of the era, (630 million journeys in 1992 to 1,753 million in year to March 2019).   And during that phase, Community Rail was concentrating on getting bums onto seats - replacing fresh air on trains with much less fresh air, especially on off peak / low loaded services rather than the busiest train of the day.

Looking locally to me, we came to this story belatedly, but followed the examples we saw from so many other places here on the TransWilts line we shamelessly copied and got ourselves at least started on the growth.

But then Community Rail was revised.  To a great extent its original job of getting raw passenger numbers up was done, and it became a much more social thing.   In my days as Community Rail Officer, I said "half community and half rail"; my successor wrote "my job is 90% community and 10% rail" and that clearly shows a change in the role. 

The change was a nationwide one - the four pillars - and with it came a much more presecriptive regime from above, with "acreditation" with standards and policies replacing the much more locally flexible arrangements - optionally with designation that was somewhere between local flexibility and central control.

With passenger numbers dropped back to mid 1990s,  is it time to drop Community Rail back to/towards the 1990s model.  More concentration on rail, more concentration on general marketing and - yes - Jazz Trains, Seaside Trips, "Explore Swindon by train", Special Tickets, Station to Station Guides Walks.  Going to village fetes, perhaps have the "Coffee Shop Singers" appear at Party in the Park.  Really local, fun, promotion - and low budget - stuff.   Locally, in additon to the 90% community stuff, and also further ahead development stuff which is so useful to have shovel-ready medium term projects (Corsham, Devizes, Wilton) for when we local stuff back up.  It shouldn't take several decades this time - is should be effective in just several years.

Yes, "I've got a brand new Combine Arvester passing loop?", "Drink Up Thy Zyder Coffee" and ""Twice Daily Hourly" back on the trains.  If we can have a FLIRT to Weymouth, that would be a bonus

[Red Squirrel]

...If we can have a FLIRT to Weymouth, that would be a bonus

As in 'five-foot'?