Who will be running the railway, and under what regime - 2022, 2025, 2030?

[whole diary]

[grahame]

End of Franchising - 21st September 2020

Ministers today ended rail franchising after 24 years as the first step in bringing Britain?s fragmented network back together. The new system will create a simpler, more effective structure and will take shape over the coming months. The first stage, today, is moving operators onto transitional contracts to prepare the ground for the new railway. [The transitional contracts]  pave the way for wider rail industry reform that prioritises the passenger. In 2018 Keith Williams, the chairman of Royal Mail, was asked to review the railways after a chaotic timetable change and the failure of some franchises. Today's announcement, which has his full support, is the prelude to a white paper which will respond to his recommendations. The white paper will be published when the course of the pandemic becomes clearer.

There are many positive words being spun today, but the Reshaping of British railways come with elements of risk. The rail minsiter is quoted as saying

The model of privatisation adopted 25 years ago has seen significant rises in passenger numbers, but this pandemic has proven that it is no longer working.

Our new deal for rail demands more for passengers. It will simplify people's journeys, ending the uncertainty and confusion about whether you are using the right ticket or the right train company. 

It will keep the best elements of the private sector, including competition and investment, that have helped to drive growth, but deliver strategic direction, leadership and accountability.

Passengers will have reliable, safe services on a network totally built around them. It is time to get Britain back on track.

Until passenger numbers return, significant taxpayer support will still be needed, including under the transitional contracts announced today. But the reforms will enable substantial medium and longer-term savings for taxpayers.

There is a lack of comment there on the zero carbon / green / climate  agenda, on providing good value fares for passengers, or on providing rail transport as an economic driver for the areas served even if subsidy has been needed.  Is there a risk (for example) of the simplication of fares resulting in effetive rises shoud (for example) Groupsave be simplified / standardised to the Cross Country none-product?  Will TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company)-introduced super off peak fares no longer be offered?  Will lunchtime trains on branch lines be "gapped" to allow for the personal needs breaks of the crew, and perhaps reduced on Sundays to allow staff to have more family time?

[grahame]

From The i

No great surprises here ...

Lockdown ‘stay at home’ advice hits long-awaited rail review with fresh delay

Downing Street has ordered no government policy can undermine ‘stay at home’ message during lockdown

The long-awaited review on “root and branch” reforms to the rail network has been hit by further delays as No10 has ordered nothing can undermine the Government’s “stay at home” Covid message.

The report by Keith Williams into the future of rail franchising and ticketing was due to be published in autumn 2019 but has been hit by repeated delays, particularly since the onset of the Covid pandemic.

i understands the review has been written and is ready to be published but its most recent delay is because Downing Street is preventing the publication to avoid cutting across its messaging during lockdown.

[snip]

Mr Shapps told the Commons Transport Committee last week that a “Williams-Shapps version” of the white paper would be published “presently”, which would reflect changes to the rail network in the wake of the pandemic.

A Department for Transport Spokesperson said: “We intend on publishing a white paper when the course of the pandemic becomes clearer.”

[Lee]

Until i realised what the news source was, I had assumed the use of "i understands the review has been written and is ready to be published..." meant the article had been filed by a part-time yokel reporter who is now off to burn iz stubble...