Britain’s railway facing a “make or break moment”
THE rail network must be radically overhauled to meet the changing needs of passengers, according to a new report from the Centre for Policy Studies.
It should involve more flexible pricing, radically simpler digital ticketing, and the abolition of “sky high” peak pricing. The report also recognises “huge scope” to grow rail freight.
The Changing Track study points out that the number of people commuting five days a week at peak time stands at just 15% of the pre-pandemic total. Most commuting now takes place Tuesday to Thursday, with Mondays 20% lower and Fridays 50% lower than before the pandemic.
The result, says the CPS, is that use of the rail network is becoming far more flexible, with increased focus on leisure or non-essential travel.
It warns: “Unless UK rail is… able to respond to new passenger demands for freedom and flexibility, it will be plagued by a future of decline and underinvestment that will necessitate either an extra penny raised on income tax to cover a taxpayer subsidy to the annual tune of £6 billion, or cuts to railway lines on a scale not seen since the Beeching cuts in the 1960s.”
The Centre for Policy Studies is an independent think tank, but traditionally supports free-market economics and low taxation. It has strong links with the Conservative party (former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was among its founders).
It states that there is “a huge opportunity to reset and reboot the railway, to reshape it around the needs of customers”, adding: “If we are too timid, or cling to old ways of working, we risk a spiral of underinvestment and decline.”
Calling this “an historic make or break moment”, it also notes great potential for private sector, marketled investment, adding that “rail electrification remains crucial”.
As a case study, it cites the Department for Transport’s reticence to electrify 70 miles between Selby and Hull. The Government backed a plan in 2015, which included £94 million worth of private sector investment, but dropped it in 2016.
Anything that can be done to make rail freight more attractive will also help deliver on the Government’s Net Zero ambitions, the report says, noting that moving freight by rail instead of road can reduce CO2 emissions by up to three-quarters.
However, it also argues that as any form of rail is better for the environment than road transport, the Treasury could consider delaying (rather than cancelling) the electrification process if it needs to save money.
It says: “The Treasury must reconsider its tendency to increase fares year on year. Raising fares does not necessarily increase revenue; on some routes the best way to increase revenue is to reduce fares and increase competition and choice.”
The CPS repeats its previous calls for more open access operators on long-distance routes.
It also adds ambitious targets to treble the volume of rail freight, given the boom in online shopping and the consequent movement of parcels and bulk retail purchases to and from distribution hubs.
“This may require rebalancing the use of capacity between passenger and freight at some times of the day and encouraging more services at weekends and at night,” it concludes, adding that there is potential for “considerable private sector investment in new equipment and facilities as rail freight grows”.
The report, led by transport analyst Tony Lodge, quotes RAIL magazine among its source material.
Lodge, a Research Fellow at CPS, said: “The pandemic fundamentally changed the nature of rail in the UK. The Government has the opportunity to radically overhaul the current model to make sure that it is fit for purpose.
“Frankly, if the Government doesn’t implement these reforms, there is no certainty that rail will have a future and taxpayers will inevitably be forced to foot the bill for its decline.”