Britain set to shake up rail system

LONDON: Britain has set out a plan to shake up its railways by bringing track and train operations closer together, increasing capacity by opening up some lines closed decades ago and splitting up some franchises.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said the rail system was “bursting at the seams” after massive growth in passengers and needed a new model for the 2020s and beyond.

“Rail passengers deserve a more reliable, more efficient service – and I will deliver it by ending the one-size-fits-all approach of franchising and bringing together the best of the public and private sector,” he said yesterday.

Passenger and freight rail services were privatised in the 1990s, when routes were grouped into franchises run by a single oper- ator. The rail network infrastructure is owned by the government-owned Network Rail.

Grayling said a new generation of longterm regional partnerships, starting with the East Coast Mainline in 2020, would bring privately run trains and publicly owned track together under a single management.

His proposals include smaller franchises, such as splitting up the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise in 2021, and consulting on breaking up the Great Western franchise.

The government said it would look into reopening routes closed in the “Beeching Cuts” of the 1960s, when Britain’s rail network was scaled back to stem losses due to rising car use.