Railways should be run under state control

THE frenzy over “Traingate” (could Jeremy Corbyn have secured a seat in a carriage he claimed was overcrowded?) was a microcosm of the attacks on the Labour leader: a lambasting of perceived personal failings and an avoidance of substantial issues raised.

At best it was a cack-handed attempt to expose a real problem that many face on a daily basis, at worst an embellishment of a story: embarrassing for Mr Corbyn and reflecting poorly on his media team. The serious issue of not just overcrowding but the often high cost and poor quality of rail services was ignored.

I confess to having a soft spot for trains. My late uncle worked man and boy at Buchanan House in Glasgow with British Rail. I commuted for a while and have indulged myself with travels on trains in Europe and Asia over the years.

It’s my preference for trips whether to Glasgow or London. So I’ve a lot of sympathy for the points Mr Corbyn was making.

Whether I do so through choice or for fun, many others have no option but to make a daily rail commute, often in trying circumstances and at significant cost.

I don’t know whether what the Labour leader claimed was accurate or exaggerated.

But I do know that, a few weeks ago, friends staying with us during the Festival booked tickets from Edinburgh to London. The following day when they arrived to board the carriage they were set for didn’t exist. After enquiry they were told to find alternative seats.

It wasn’t an enjoyable experience for American guests on a route I’d said was scenic and better than a flight. Given that one of my friends is a travel writer for major American outlets, the experience might still have consequences.

A few weeks before, I had been unable to return early from London without buying a new ticket and when space was available.

Of course, the BR my uncle worked for had issues. I recall seething in anger when stuck outside Croy with no explanation and simply wanting home after a long day. However, I am far from convinced that privatisation has improved matters.

Indeed, I recall that, when previous operators on the east coast line gave up the franchise, the state had to intervene as operator of last resort. The state-owned East

‘‘ Whether I do so by choice or for fun, many have no option but to make a rail commute, often in trying circumstances and at significant cost

Coast Main Line stepped in. I spoke to senior staff, as engineering works were within my Scottish Parliament constituency, and they told how they were being lined up for re-privatisation. Tory ministers half-jokingly had said they were embarrassing them by being too successful.

In comparison to some other private operators, that wasn’t hard but they did an excellent job. The service hasn’t improved, in my view, since its return to the private sector.

Yet there’s a desire not just from me but countless others to travel by train as the success of the Borders Rail and Stirling-Alloa lines show.

But it has to be comfortable and affordable. Sadly, for many it’s neither.

The privatisation of BR back in the 1990s was driven by ideology and nostalgia, apparently on the part of John Major, for the grand old rail companies of yore.

But Great North Eastern Railway handed back the keys on the east coast main line when it didn’t make sufficient profit.

Other countries considering privatisation shied away from the UK model under which track and trains were sold off separately.

I recall a senior businessman, who had an oversight role, commenting on the absurdity of an army of accountants working out which train to delay to minimise compensation to be paid.

The ludicrousness in Scotland has been compounded by ScotRail being operated by Dutch state railways.

Publicly owned railways being unacceptable except when it’s a foreign public service, seemingly?

Some argue for vertical integration, combining track and train. But the private sector failed at Railtrack and is failing on the trains. This year I travelled in China and Japan where services were superior to our flagship lines.

If state-owned operations in the Far East are not comparable, Spain most certainly is.

I recall that crossing from France to Spain by train in the late 1970s was a journey into a far poorer service; not anymore.

Recent journeys in Spain on its state service put our lines to shame. Express and local services were affordable and impressive.

So, beneath the hullabaloo, Mr Corbyn has a point. Railways are a vital public service. They should be operated by the state.

It won’t happen promptly as franchises need to end but it should happen for ScotRail and cross-Border services.