Railway White Paper Coming Early Next Year

[LNW-GW Joint]

Justine Greening has made her first pronouncement: http://www.dft.gov.uk/news/statements/greening-20111115

Sounds like significant changes to railway policy are coming, but most of the recent ones have been rather small beer.
More devolution to the regions (I assume that means PTEs) seems certain.

PS
Philip Hammond seems to have come over all warlike since he changed jobs.
He never threatened to use air-to-air missiles on the railways.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

It was the final part of the statement with regard to ORR and possible changes to its role, particularly in respect of future franchises, that caught my attention.

 

[ainsworth74]

Justine Greening has made her first pronouncement: http://www.dft.gov.uk/news/statements/greening-20111115

Ahh another wonderful document that will cost the taxpayer a small fortune and then upon publication will be promptly ignored.

PS
Philip Hammond seems to have come over all warlike since he changed jobs.
He never threatened to use air-to-air missiles on the railways.

I think you mean ground-to-air missiles for the Olympics, though for the railway it would be air-to-ground missiles really

 

[Yew]

Personall I like it how they compare our expensive privatised system to cheaper to run nationalised systems, then come up with silly ideas to reduce costs, without seeing the obvious

 

[WatcherZero]

As an additional policy topic, NR are near to the final version of their rolling stock RUS. With feedback theyve changed the required amount of additional rolling stock required to 600 above that set out by Government, theyve also recalculated how much stock would be required to replace retiring rolling stock. Over the next 30 years 20,000 carriages would be required, essentially the same amount in service today.

http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse... Group 3 - Passenger Rolling Stock and Depots

 

[Statto]

Personall I like it how they compare our expensive privatised system to cheaper to run nationalised systems, then come up with silly ideas to reduce costs, without seeing the obvious

& yet the private TOCs still get millions of pounds of year off the Taxpayer in subsidies.

 

[SS4]

Personall I like it how they compare our expensive privatised system to cheaper to run nationalised systems, then come up with silly ideas to reduce costs, without seeing the obvious

They can see it perfectly well. They just refuse to acknowledge it for ideological reasons and are burying their collective heads in the sand because to renationalise would admit the previous Tory government got it horribly wrong.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
As for the paper itself devolution to PTE's is a crafty measure designed in large part, if not solely to push the blame for inevitable cuts onto PTE's instead of the DfT (blaming the previous government has long worn thin). Even so I can't this benefiting non-PTE areas.

 

[Oswyntail]

... (blaming the previous government has long worn thin)...

Oh no it still has a long way to run. After all, the Labour party used that argument in the last election Besides, they did make a complete pig's ear of things

 

[Schnellzug]

i shouldn't get too excited. I expect there'll probably be a new Transport Minister long before there's any chance of anything happening.

 

[43021HST]

i shouldn't get too excited. I expect there'll probably be a new Transport Minister long before there's any chance of anything happening.

Probably someone stupid like Jeremy Clarkson or something

 

[Schnellzug]

Probably someone stupid like Jeremy Clarkson or something

i thnk they missed a chance by not appointing Richard Hammond to replace Philip.

 

[Mojo]

Let us not forget that much of the costs of the railway industry and some of the areas with sharpest cost increases are related to infrastructure, the responsibility for this carried out by a monopoly with no shareholders to appease.

I hope that much of this devolution will allow regions and subregions that are not PTEs to play a bigger role, and also for there to be much more of a role for community rail, which has been a huge success in the areas introduced to date given the limited 'powers.'

 

[Greenback]

I agree that we need more of a role and powers for community rail. I also agree that Network Rail needs to be addressed. However, I am not sur eif the white paper will actually achieve anything. At best, I think it's only likely to be another exercise in tinkering, while ignoring the real issues.