Continuing role of private investment

Does the private sector understand what the rail industry wants?

That was the question posed by Anna Ince, vice-chair of the Rail

Supply Group and CEO of software company Resonate.

Ince (pictured) said that a lot of expensive due diligence work carried out by private sector companies is “wasted” because the Treasury is “looking for solutions that do not require Government money”. And she claimed that many of the proposals received by the Government are not even looked at, let alone studied in detail.

Highlighting the difficulties faced by the private sector, Ince said that “private companies cannot borrow money as cheaply as the Government can, yet at the same time they must deliver the cheapest option” to win a contract.

She explained this situation also affects the level of research and development carried out in the private sector.

“Most companies want to be innovative. But at the same time, they must be able to see a route to profit,” she said.

Ince also called for a move away from the “not invented here” mindset that can hinder investment and development.

Dyan Crowther, CEO of High Speed 1, explained how the private sector must be “incentivised to invest in innovation” because railways are not a case of ‘build them and they will come’.

“Railways are expensive, but you must remember the benefits they bring,” she said.

Highlighting the need for private sector innovation to drive down costs, Crowther provided an example of the sort of unexpected investment that will be required. She explained how HS1’s international operator, Eurostar, faced a challenge caused by Brexit because meeting the new arrival/ departure rules “added 30 seconds to each passenger transaction”.

“Adding 35 new desks into a Grade 1 Listed building [St Pancras - to maintain the competitive 40-minute check-in time] isn’t going to happen,” she said.

“How do we improve accessibility? How do we make lifts and escalators cheaper? We’ll find a solution because we have to.”

Crowther ended with a message of hope, referring to “a chapter in the Williams-Shapps Plan that mentions unleashing the private sector”.