Railway Cuttings 77

19th August 2004

RAILFUTURE’S OFFICE IS ON THE MOVE

The Railfuture office is moving to Room 205 at The Colourworks. The move is expected to take place on or about 1st September. At present all telephone and email links to the office are, due to reasons beyond our control, out of order. It is hoped that they will be working again by the time of the move. In the meantime any contact with the office should be done by letter.

IN THE NEWS

Railfuture President, Peter Lawrence, received a telephone call from Metro (London Newspaper) on 21st July after the Rail Passenger Council had announced that there had been a one third reduction in the number of complaints to the RPC. Peter’s views to Metro were that punctuality was slowly improving but that there was still a lot to do in certain areas to bring about improvement. The RPC figures were encouraging and will bring greater confidence to rail users.

Peter was telephoned by The Daily Mail on 14th August to ask his opinion on the cost of Euro Star fares and whether they were too expensive. Peter’s answer was yes and fares should be reduced in order to generate more passengers.

Network Rail/Railtrack has had a lot of stick since rail privatisation but the good news is that Network Rail is on target to complete the Ipswich Tunnel on schedule. In view of this news and to show that we support good news from the rail industry, Peter has written a letter to a number of papers saying "Well done" to Network Rail. His letter has been published in the Eastern Daily Press.

RESPONSES TO GOVERNMENT TRANSPORT STATEMENTS

Both BBC Online and Eastern Daily Press contacted Peter Lawrence, on 19th July about the forthcoming announcement from Alastair Darling. BBC Online were interested in Railfuture views on what may be announced for the general rail system, whereas EDP wanted our views on Cross Rail which was expected to be given the go ahead the next day.

Railfuture Board member Andrew MacFarlane was interviewed on BBC Radio Lancashire on 23rd July talking about the disgraceful decision not to proceed with the Manchester Metrolink extensions and the modernisation of the Blackpool Tramway.

Metrolink issued a statement on 20th July saying that “This is a major blow to Greater Manchester and an appalling decision which, in our view, fundamentally fails to recognise the inherent success of Metrolink to date and its contribution to the continued regeneration of the area. The decision is all the more disappointing at a time when there is increasing evidence that other departments of state are recognising the pivotal role this City Region should play in the economic revival of the Northern regions, to counterbalance the growth and development of London and the South East.

“We remain steadfast in our determination to bring an expanded Metrolink to the area, and will continue to impress upon Ministers the central importance of this scheme to our future economic success. We are asking for an urgent meeting with the Secretary of State and will also work with Greater Manchester MPs to ensure that Government better joins up its decision-making and that the area’s transport requirements are properly reflected in national spending decisions.”
Source: Metrolink press release

Railfuture Devon and Cornwall branch issued a press statement giving a cautious welcome to the Review White Paper. Branch Secretary, Stuart Walker said: “We welcome the simplification in the timetable planning process as this has been a major problem in providing integrated rail services in our region. However, it is not clear how stakeholders such as ourselves will be able to suggest improvements to the timetable and we hope there will be a pro-active local Network Rail contact we can talk to”

Other aspects Stuart welcomed were the transfer of rail safety issues to the Rail Regulator, and promises that the SRA’s Community Rail Strategy will be continued.

One constant theme throughout the White Paper is concerns about costs. The White Paper says that there should be investment in rail “.....where it is most effective, but ensuring that where other transport modes can provide a more appropriate service for passengers, funding can be made available for this”. Stuart said:

“This is a clear warning that rail’s cost effectiveness will be compared with other modes and where cheaper alternatives provide the same or better service, it is possible that these will be used instead of rail. This is worrying especially as the Government has failed to do anything about the excessive costs of leasing trains - a major overhead of our branch lines. Devon and Cornwall’s branch lines will clearly have to prove themselves as a viable alternative to the private car or bus in order to survive”.

The Rail Freight Group welcomed the Review and said that they believed it was generally good for freight. In their July newsletter they point out that in the new structure, it is not clear who will put pressure on Network Rail to get its costs down. They urge the Government to keep the expertise, up to now administered by the SRA’s sponsorship team, and use it since, without it, “there is precious little sign that NR is serious about getting costs and their causes down.”

“Where is the incentive for NR to reduce unit costs rather than reduce the size of capability of the network?”

Source: Rail Freight Group press release and July newsletter at http://www.rfg.org.uk/

GOOD NEWS FOR CUMBRIAN RAILWAY TRUST

The mothballed Eden Valley Railway between Appleby and Warcop in Cumbria is one step closer to carrying passengers again. The Eden Valley Railway Trust, the charity behind plans to reopen the six-mile railway is celebrating the granting of the Eden Valley Railway (Transport and Works) Order. The order, which came into force on the 3rd August, transfers the statutory powers required to operate the railway from the British Railways Board to the Trust. The Trust hope to begin a passenger service early in 2005

Plans are now being made to sell £250,000 worth of shares in the Eden Valley Railway Company, the Company formed to operate and develop the railway on behalf of the Trust. Volunteers from the Trust will supplement the core workforce employed by the company. The money raised by the share issue will provide the working capital needed to launch the passenger service.

Talks have already been held with the Police who want to use the line for a park and ride service for the annual Appleby Horse Fair to help ease traffic congestion in the market town of Appleby. There is also potential for the Army to use the line to carry supplies to their Warcop training area and for thousands of tons of road building materials to be brought in by rail for the proposed A66 road improvement scheme adjacent to the railway in the Warcop area.

Source: - Press release from The Eden Valley Railway Trust, www.evr.org.uk.

VIRGIN CROSS COUNTRY FRANCHISE

The SRA announced on 6th August that it had not received an acceptable offer from Virgin Rail Group (VRG) in the renegotiation of the CrossCountry rail franchise. They said that “a Best and Final Offer for a single-tender deal running to 2012 was significantly too high to pass the value for money test that the SRA undertakes on behalf of taxpayers and that as a consequence, the SRA was ending negotiations on the CrossCountry franchise.

VRG will continue to operate the CrossCountry franchise under a ‘Letter Agreement’ between the SRA and VRG that has been in place since July 2002, and which supplements elements of the franchise agreement which commenced in 1997. The agreement provides for an annual budget for the franchise to be agreed between the SRA and VRG or, if necessary, determined by the SRA, in order that VRG receives no more money than is necessary to operate the services under a defined profit margin.”

VRG responded by issuing a press statement saying that it “is disappointed that its highly competitive bid to run the CrossCountry franchise until 2012 has not been accepted on value for money grounds by the SRA. Re-negotiating as a single-bidder has proved frustrating for all parties. If an open competition results from the SRA’s deliberations over the franchise it will allow VRG to escape the assumptions of the closed bid and offer new ideas for developing the fast-growing CrossCountry business.”

"Given the significant fixed infrastructure and rolling stock costs that are the same regardless of who runs the franchise, we are confident that VRG has and would submit the only credible bid that delivers on safety, best value and quality of service to passengers, while ensuring the long-term financial viability of the franchise."

Sources:
Press releases from the SRA http://www.sra.gov.uk/news/2004/8/virgin_cross_country, Virgin Trains: http://212.104.140.178/index.cfm?articleid=537

NATIONAL AUDIT OFFICE VALUE FOR MONEY STUDY: IMPROVING BRITAIN’S RAILWAY STATIONS

The NAO are currently undertaking this study and have invited Railfuture to comment on two issues viz:
 To what extent stations currently met passengers’ needs.
 Ideas on how improvements can best be promoted and achieved.

They would like to receive our comments by 25 August if possible. In view of the short notice it will not be possible to ascertain the views of branches and formulate a national response. Any branch that wishes to submit comments with examples can they please send their responses directly to the NAO at ian.derbyshire at nao.gsi.gov.uk or richard.rees-jones at nao.gsi.gov.uk.
More info at: http://www.nao.org.uk/publications/workinprogress/improvingbritainsrailwaystations.htm

MEETING TO FOCUS SUPPORT FOR A REOPENED NORTHAMPTON – BEDFORD RAIL LINK

Bedfordshire Railway and Transport Association (BRTA) are holding a meeting on Sat 18th September at 1.30pm at the Friends Meeting House, Wellington Street, (next to Grosvenor Centre), Northampton. The meeting is aimed to focusing support for a reopening of a Northampton-Bedford rail link and promoting pro-active support in the Northampton area. They hope to form a team of people who can work credibly and constructively towards getting a proper feasibility study, protection of the old route and remaining tracks at the Northampton end and generate income and support. All welcome. Free admission and refreshments available plus sales stall. Further details www.brta.org.uk or Tel Richard Pill 01234 405 268 or Alan Vaughan 01234 856 560.

WILL THE WAVERLEY LINE REVIVAL BE DROPPED

In an editorial on 21st July ‘The Scotsman’ reported that proposals for a reopened Waverley route as part of a revitalisation of the Borders look likely to be dropped. The editorial goes on to say that the reasoning behind this decision is that it would be provocative to the English regions to reopen precisely the sort of railway that the government wants to close down in England. It cynically points out that there are few Labour votes in the Borders.
Source: http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=829782004

STUDY SHOWS THERE IS A DEMAND FOR REOPENING FROM CAMBRIDGE TO HAVERHILL

A study commissioned by the Cambridge to Colchester Railway Development Company has shown that there is evidence of a demand for 6,000 or more single journeys per week on a Haverhill to Cambridge railway. The Company are now looking for funding in the region of £30,000 to proceed to stage 2 of the project, which is an investigation into the engineering requirements of the proposed railway. Further information may be obtained from the Company chairman, Rev. Malcolm Hill, at malcolm.hill12 at btinternet.com

GOOD NEWS FOR THE KESWICK TO PENRITH REOPENING SCHEME

In July 2004 the Department of Transport formally approved the first stage of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) submitted for the new Keswick to Penrith line. The Department asked that CKP Railways plc continues to consult with English Nature to ensure that all relevant ecological issues are covered, and to pay particular attention to road traffic issues around the proposed stations.

The relatively fast response from the Government, without placing any specific demands or restrictions on CKP, is seen as a major success. Everybody involved sees this as recognition of the professionalism of the team and the thoroughness of the work already done. A number of detailed studies will be needed to fill the gaps in available information about the environment along the route and these will now be pursued as quickly as possible.

More than 800 Bonds have been issued, raising over £300,000. This spring about £1,000 per week was received on average. The single largest application was for £10,000.

The promoters of the scheme consider that Keswick to Penrith could become a model for a new generation of 'Community Railways' - a modern Railway and train service designed, built and operated to meet future local and regional needs.

Source: Return to Keswick Update 27 Summer 2004, website at http://www.ckp-railways.co.uk/

NEWS FROM THE SRA

Nick Newton who is currently Deputy Chief Executive of the SRA has been appointed as Chief Executive during the transition to a new industry structure. His appointment takes effect from 11th September 2004.

The SRA announced on 9th August that 1000 new carriages are now in service on the Southern Region commuter networks. Network Rail has completed the ‘super-critical’ sites for the power supply upgrade and this means power supply is no longer holding back the introduction of new carriages into service. http://www.sra.gov.uk/news/2004/8/train_carriages_on_southern_region

THE FINESSE PROJECT AIMS TO TRANSFER FREIGHT TO RAIL

The FINESSE project is a transnational partnership aiming to develop new and sustainable intermodal freight transport services between the UK and mainland Europe. It is match funded to the tune of half a million Euros by the European Regional Development Fund. They have commissioned the Stamford Research Group to undertake the studies which will enable the production of business and action plans for the launch of new services.

The underlying policy objective of the FINESSE project are to shift freight from road to rail and the objectives of the studies now commissioned are to:
 Examine the policy and market environment within which intermodal rail and ferry services could be launched on the Dover Straits freight corridor between the UK and mainland Europe, involving the Ports of Zeebrugge, Boulogne, Calais, Dunkerque and Dover.
 Establish the key issues relating to the rail network, land availability and other surface access in the hinterlands of the five ports.
 Provide the FINESSE project partners with the information required to develop detailed business plans for services, secure operators, examine funding issues for specific services and develop an Action Plan leading to the launch of the services themselves, where feasible, between Belgium and Dover, and between Boulogne, Calais, and Dunkerque and Dover.

Source: South East England Development Agency press release: http://www.seeda.co.uk/news_&_events/press_releases/2004/20040700b.asp
FINESSE website: http://www.nweurope.org/page/projet.php?p=31&id=474

EWS LAUNCHES ONLINE TIMETABLE

EWS have launched an online timetable to provide users with departure and arrival times on EWS’s intermodal, express freight, European (Channel Tunnel), and mail and parcels services. By using the timetable existing and potential customers can quickly select the information they require to use an EWS multi-user service, as well as making it easier to make a booking or request further details.

The timetables can be viewed at www.ews-railway.co.uk
Source: EWS press release http://www.ews-railway.co.uk/cmsystem/news_article.asp?guid={F31903D3-3193-4943-A4A4-6AB1FB7F66EE}