Control of the mainland UK’s railways will be handed to a new public sector body under the most sweeping railway reforms since privatisation, it has been announced
The government has pledged to end the “fragmentation” of Britain’s private railway system, with trains and tracks both becoming the responsibility of a new government body known as the Great British Railways (GBR).
This new organisation will set fares and timetables, own and maintain the infrastructure, and specify contracts for the private companies that run the country’s rail services.
These new changes will see vast swathes of powers moved from the Department for Transport, as well as private train operating companies to the new UK rail planning body, which will resurrect the British Rail “double arrow” symbol and will be overseeing ticket sales.
Some questions still remain open however, such as whether or not trains will be painted with the unified national GBR brand or whether the individual identities of the different private operators such as Avanti, South Western Railway, and GWR will be retained.
This comes after the jump in the UK’s inflation rate up to 1.5% in April from 0.7% back in March, means that consumer prices are increasing at their quickest rate since March of 2020 at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Department for Transport said on Wednesday that specifics around the branding of these services had not yet been finalised.
But for the first time since Alastair Darling, the UK’s transport secretary, abolished the Strategic Rail Authority back in 2006 the railways will have a single public body for overseeing both their direction and development.
The UK government is, however, keen to stress that the changes are not a return to public ownership, and says that there could even be an even bigger role for the private companies in some cases.
Under the new system, private companies will be paid a flat management fee within a model that is similar to the “concession” system that is currently used on the London Overground. GBR would keep the fare revenue and would also bear any of potential risk.
Though the UK government has for years been looking towards the future of the British railways under its Williams Review, and the necessity of the reforms became even clearer during the COVID-19 pandemic, which effectively collapsed the private franchising system.
With passengers staying at home during the nationwide lockdown, private companies collected no fares, prompting the government first to step in with some assistance and then to assume the revenue risk of the fares.
“I am a great believer in rail, but for too long passengers have not had the level of service they deserve,” Boris Johnson said.
“By creating Great British Railways, and investing in the future of the network, this government will deliver a rail system the country can be proud of”.
This comes after the world’s biggest businesses have signed up to a campaign to tackle the prejudice towards disabled people within the business world. Companies with the combined sales of over $8 trillion and 20 million staff, including BP, Apple and Coca-Cola, have joined in the Valuable 500 initiative.
Grant Shapps, the UK’s Transport Secretary, said that “years of fragmentation, confusion and over-complication” had “failed” passengers.
“The pandemic has seen the Government take unprecedented steps to protect services and jobs,” he said.
“It’s now time to kickstart reforms that give the railways solid and stable foundations for the future, unleashing the competitive, innovative and expert abilities of the private sector, and ensuring passengers come first.
“Great British Railways marks a new era in the history of our railways. It will become a single familiar brand with a bold new vision for passengers – of punctual services, simpler tickets and a modern and green railway that meets the needs of the nation.”
