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UK has had three Prime Ministers in a span of four months. At a time when the public needs clarity on government policy – in the face of the rising cost of living and the climate crisis – we have been left in the dark on a number of policy fronts.
While much of the attention has been focused on the energy crisis, huge NHS waiting lists and the economy, public transport also needs urgent attention. Our railways are almost at a standstill – yes, on strike days, when workers take action against cuts in their pay and conditions – but also on regular days, due to a chaotic network of private rail operators who simply cannot run trains. on time.
This is not just a result of the epidemic that slows down our railway system. The chaos we see today is the result of a complete lack of vision and planning for rail. It is not fit for the future and is unable to provide a reliable, green mode that people can afford.
The Williams Rail Review, which began in September 2018 and ends in May 2021, led to Great British Railways’ (GBR) announcement of a “Plan for Rail” white paper. This is touted as a comprehensive set of reforms, the most ambitious plan for our railways in decades.
The basis for these reforms was that the problems in the crystallized system had been fractured for many by the failure of the 2018 schedule. Too many chefs in the kitchen. And worse, all those chefs were motivated by their profit-driven interests to pull in their own direction.
Even as a set of reforms aimed only at plugging the problems identified by the Williams Review, the GBR fell far short of what was needed. The plans left private train operators (TOCs) and rolling stock companies (those who actually own the trains, also called Roscos) still very much in charge. Implementing these policies would not have reduced the number of chefs in the kitchen. That would have given the government a little more control over their behavior.
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The reform had some positive qualities. They proposed greater control over the rail system – including the critical areas of timetables and ticketing – for a new public body, GBR. On an incremental basis, they represent a small step towards the railway system we need and the public expects – one that works for the people and not for profit.
No one knows the future of these GBR improvements or what future we can expect for railways in general. Following the fall of Boris Johnson’s government and the removal of Grant Shapps from the Department of Transport, now former Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan announced that the legislation needed to put the GBR on the statute books would not be introduced this side of the general election. This came as a shock to the six local authorities who were in the running to host GBR’s new headquarters in their city or town. It begs the question: Does anyone know what’s going on?
[See also: Mick Lynch: there’s a “corrupt” relationship between the government and train operators]
A DfT spokesman said: “We are committed to tackling the challenges set out in the Rail Plan and implementing the modernization needed to transform the industry so it is sustainable for the future.”
It is worth repeating that although the Great British Railways may have shown some progress, and perhaps improved the overall performance of our railways to some extent, it did not present a real solution to the crisis that led to its conception. Our railways are failing us because for decades we have had a system run for profit and not for passengers. In the years leading up to the pandemic, private rail companies (TOCs and Roscos) made an average of a billion pounds a year in profits. That’s money that could go toward cutting rail fares for commuters by 18 percent or building 100 miles of rail track.
For too long, the system has allowed private rail operators to orient the services they provide around what is best for their short-term profit margins. This does not work only for rail users or workers.
Before the pandemic hit, with passenger numbers at their highest in the history of our railways, private rail operators were able to maintain the illusion that they were doing well (but low passenger satisfaction numbers suggest the public never felt that way). And as conditions tightened during the pandemic, it was surprising that the system bucked.
In properly managed railways, epidemics should eliminate private operators from the system altogether, bringing it into full public ownership. That this has not happened is somewhat surprising given that the government and its Welsh and Scottish counterparts have shown themselves willing to take on rail franchises such as East Coast Rail, Northern Rail, Southeastern, Wales & Borders and ScotRail – while their private operators run. . But instead, we saw that the government decided to exercise very limited control over the behavior of companies while protecting their profits.
Our railways should work for us, and not for the profit of a select few. Switzerland has the best railway service in Europe, and it’s no surprise why: it’s run entirely in public ownership. If we did the same with our railways, we could reduce fares, modernize and improve service (yes, including paying staff better and improving their conditions), and our railways to meet the climate. We can use the system and the surrounding infrastructure as a lever. emergency
A short-termist attitude at the heart of government not only makes it difficult to improve our railways, it actively blocks the necessary changes. It’s time to put common sense and market ideology aside – which means it’s time for public ownership of the railways.
[See also: Why we all need strikers to win]
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