All UK policy articles – Page 3
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Rail Business UKFirst operator transfers to public sector under UK rail nationalisation programme
UK: South Western Railway becomes the first contracted passenger train operator to pass to the public sector under the government’s nationalisation programme in the early hours of May 26.
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Rail Business UKElectrification, local branding and through trains in ambitious Network North Wales vision
UK: The Welsh goverment has announced a multi-year vision to create a Network North Wales integrated public transport system with frequent rail services at its heart. This would include ‘metro style’ train services and a through service between Wrexham and Liverpool.
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Rail Business UKMayor makes another bid for station devolution
UK: Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has called for powers to take over and regenerate disused railway land and derelict station buildings.
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Rail Business UK‘The rail industry needs to sell travel and not just tickets’
UK: Rail reform offers an opportunity to boost industry revenues by leveraging private sector marketing expertise and innovation to fill empty train seats, Anthony Smith, CEO of the Independent Rail Retailers association, tells Rail Business UK.
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Rail Business UKBritain ‘could be a global rail leader again’ says Burnham as he urges backing for ‘Northern Arc’
UK: A rail-based ‘Northern Arc’ infrastructure and development programme could help Britain ‘move on from the embarrassment of High Speed 2’ and restore the country’s reputation as a world leader in railway construction, believes Greater Manchester elected mayor Andy Burnham.
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NewsUK to Switzerland high speed train working group to be established
EUROPE: A joint working group is to bring together the British and Swiss governments and rail industry experts to examine how to overcome the commercial and technical barriers to launching a direct high speed train service between the countries.
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Rail Business UKViewpoint: The future of HS2 could lie in its original vision
High Speed 2 should be rescoped to run from London Euston to Crewe, taking advantage of the lessons learned and supply chain foundations established during Phase 1, says Dyan Perry, Chair of the High Speed Rail Group.
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Rail Business UKRail ticket retailers call for a level playing field
UK: Robust regulatory safeguards are needed to ensure that the ticket retailing market remains open, fair and attractive to investors, the Independent Rail Retailers trade association says in its response to the government’s consultation on rail reform. IRR says competition has ‘transformed’ retailing, helping to ...
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Rail Business UKGovernment dampens rail investment hopes as suppliers turn to exports
UK: The Department for Transport has told the Transport Select Committee that service optimisation will be prioritised over infrastructure investment, but equivocation over future projects is already pushing rail suppliers to embrace export opportunities instead.
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Rail Business UKCIRO says the reformed railway must be insulated from short-term politics
UK: The Chartered Institution of Railway Operators has called for a clearer and more coherent approach to rail reform, with strong leadership, operational autonomy and long-term whole-system thinking insulated from short-term politics. CIRO’s formal response to the government’s A Railway Fit for Britain’s Future consultation draws ...
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Metro Report InternationalProcurement of £1·6bn Manchester Metrolink O&M contract begins after in-house operation rejected
UK: Transport for Greater Manchester has launched the process of appointing the next operating and maintenance contractor for the Metrolink light rail network, after the decision was made to opt for a revised franchising model rather than take operations in-house.
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In depthComment: The devil is in the detail of reform
In May the first passenger services are set to transfer from the private to the public sector as part of the UK government’s rail reform plans. But as our Head of News Andrew Grantham explains, operators that are not to be nationalised are worried that without a stronger regulatory structure than is proposed, the private players will not have the confidence needed to invest and grow.
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Rail Business UKMPs call for concrete timescales for independent accessibility across the rail network
UK: The House of Commons Transport Select Committee has published the Access Denied: Rights Versus Reality in Disabled People’s Access to Transport report calling an overhaul of laws, strategy and attitudes to make it easier for disabled people to use public transport.
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Rail Business UKSMEs call for action to remove blocks to rail innovation
UK: The Rail Innovation Group has published a Skills Beyond Scale report highlighting the impact of SMEs in the rail industry and calling for government action to unlock the full potential.
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Rail Business UKRail freight must not be an afterthought, says Logistics UK
UK: Industry association Logistics UK has warned that the role of rail freight in driving economic growth must not be overlooked, after the Prime Minister announced funding for ongoing transport projects in northern England. On March 28 Logistics UK’s Senior Policy Advisor Ellis Shelton said ’passenger ...
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Rail Business UKEurostar depot capacity increase to support cross-Channel competition
UK: A report has found that additional capacity could be provided at Temple Mills depot in London to support plans for new cross-Channel passenger services. However incumbent operator Eurostar says the options would not provide sufficient capacity to support even one operator’s plans without significant investment.
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Rail Business UKRail industry responds to Chancellor’s Spring Statement
The rail industry has responded to Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Spring Statement on March 26. This made no direct reference to the sector, however announcements could be made in the spending review scheduled for June.
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Rail Business UKPrivate train operators’ advocacy body Rail Partners closes
UK: The Rail Partners association of train operators’ parent companies closed on March 21.
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Rail Business UKFreight sector says rail reforms need to offer investors more certainty
UK: The government’s rail reforms must provide more robust guarantees and stronger regulation so that freight operators have fair and economically viable access to the Great British Railways network and investors will be willing to look at the sector, politicians and industry representatives said at the ...
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Rail Business UKGovernment sets out its plan for how Great British Railways will work
Rail Business UK looks at the details of the government’s rail reform plans, which would restructure the industry and establish Great British Railways as a new body bringing together infrastructure and operations in the biggest shake-up of the sector since privatisation.