Something to say? This is your platform.
Normally, I agree with everything Christian Wolmar says, but his lengthy piece on rail post-Brexit needs countering ( RAIL 856).
Long before we joined the European Union, for years European rail operators cooperated in the International Union of Railways - that is why trains can run across borders day and night. BR was a small part of this co-operation by taking freight from Europe, even sending a nightly train to Paris by ferry.
Freight standards are Euro-wide, apart from problems with non-standard gauges which still remain with no end in sight. We once had such substantial flows of freight traffic that a rail tunnel was built to tap into the possibilities.
It is arguable that French traffic to the UK dropped off owing more to the actions of a particular French union, but that must be viewed against the parallel dead hand of regulation from the new boy on the block - the EU, keen to impress everyone regardless of consequences. Brussels produced a string of Rail Directives and pressure to create wasteful competition.
As for large numbers of non-Brits working for the train operating companies, when was this not the case?
Previously it was Irish, Windrush and South Asians who filled the low-paid work. Now we have the same work and same low pay in an industry that lashes out nearly seven-figure sums for bosses (often for failure) while benefiting from record investment and passenger numbers going through the roof.
Something doesn’t add up here. All the EU free movement of labour did was to create a rail industry with low-paid immigrants from the Commonwealth being swapped for eastern European ones.
Competition thrives on outsourcing, especially low-paid areas where wages are forced even lower (cleaning, for example). This in turn removed the ability to move up the ladder in a unified structure. BR senior managers, including CEOs, often started in the booking office. That is not possible nowadays.
Christian Wolmar also mentions the North American situation, but this is a bad comparison. Only post-9/11 did the US tighten up its northern border, but it was for security purposes, not customs - previously, US citizens on the Sarnia crossing were almost waved through after showing a driver licence.
There are only three passenger crossings from the US to Canada, so the comparison is limited. But excessive time spent at clearance is not new to those arriving by plane, as many will testify. It seems bizarre for the Rail Delivery Group to actually send a mission to North America to check this out!
Rail from Mexico to the US is all freight, and the delays are to check for stowaways. That crews change over on a bridge means nothing, it has to happen somewhere. In Europe it’s often at the next station across the invisible border, so what! It isn’t done on the move anywhere, unlike some coach operators!
The idea that recruitment is a problem on Eurostar is not a new one. The UK end would need double the staff to cope with the two French-speaking destinations, but one presumes the early departure of last trains are partly to get their own staff back to base to save on the low-grade hotels that would otherwise be used.
Dutch speaking a problem? When was the last time you came across a non-English speaking Netherlander?
Staffing on Eurostars has been reduced substantially over the years to satisfy the shareholders, not because of recruiting difficulties. Do staff cuts make for a long-term career?
As for Dublin-Belfast trains being a problem, there are no controls partly because neither the UK nor Irish Republic are part of the Schengen Area, meaning the Republic controls its external borders as does the UK. But there have been no barriers between us and the Republic since 1920s.
When you fly to the Republic, you don’t need a passport. Sadly,
since 9/11, ID is required, but you can require ID to collect a parcel from the Post Office.
Not mentioned was the benefits of rail opportunities post-Channel Tunnel. But 20 years, on with only 2.5 countries directly accessible (the Netherlands being the 0.5), when will that happen? You cannot even book past France via the Eurostar website. Eurostar remains essentially a Francefacing service.