“Scotlands best ever railway”

[Deltic1961]

I generally check live PPM every day and I don't think I've ever seen it above 90 percent ever!

 

[47271]

It's going to be two years before they hit their target of 92.5%?
But they aim to hit 92.4% by March of this year?

There'll be protests in the streets over that 0.1% for sure!

They've as much chance of hitting 92.4% in March as there's a chance of all 27 refurbed HSTs getting delivered by then.

 

[Ginaro]

I generally check live PPM every day and I don't think I've ever seen it above 90 percent ever!

You must not have checked two days ago, as it was 91.2% http://trains.im/ppmhistorical/SR

 

[47271]

They're looking for Scotland's best ever operator of last resort.
https://www.heraldscotland.com/news...of-last-resort-in-case-scotrail-deal-is-axed/

The Scottish Government is hiring consultants to help it run the country's railways as an "operator of last resort" just weeks after threatening to strip ScotRail of its franchise.

The Government's transport agency said it was looking for technical experts to keep the trains running in case the current franchise was cut short.

The "contingency planning" development is despite ministers previously telling Holyroodthey already had measures in place to allow them to act as the operator of last resort, but did not expect to use them.

The Government said it was a "routine" replacement of a previous contract.

It comes just three weeks after the Transport Secretary warned ScotRail it could lose its contract if its recent poor performance, typified by delays and cancellations, continues.

Michael Matheson gave the firm two months to come up with a "remedial plan" to cut cancellations around Edinburgh.

He said if ScotRail failed to deliver on the plan, it would be classed as an event of default allowing ministers to "terminate the contract".

Nicola Sturgeon also said last month she wanted Holyrood to get powers to "nationalise our railways" after attacking ScotRail's poor performance.

The franchise has been held by the Dutch-owned firm Abellio since 2015.

It is due to hold it until 2025, although there is a break clause that could see it end in 2022.

Government agency Transport Scotland oversees the franchise on behalf of ministers, and also handles the Caledonian Sleeper franchise, which Serco is due to run until 2030.

The agency yesterday issued a £5m public sector contract notice for "strategic technical advisers" for its Rail Directorate during the 2019/2024 funding period.

It said experts were needed to "provide technical advice and suitable expertise to.. [the] rail franchise team in the event that either or both of the two rail franchises requires contingency planning options for an operator of last resort to be activated."

It said a further contract would cover "commercial and financial advisors for full operator of last resort services to Transport Scotland".

Transport Scotland also said it was looking for advice on "franchise contract management, including re-basing, re-letting, extension and termination", Network Rail projects, schedules, and the capacity of the ScotRail network.

Advice is also being sought on the trains, performance, staffing, fares and "passenger issues" of the current franchise holders.

The hunt is in spite of past assurances that last-resort steps were in place.

In October 2016, then transport minister Humza Yousaf told a Holyrood committee that if the franchise failed "the operator of last resort would end up being the Scottish ministers, and there are mechanisms in place to take the contract forward if it was terminated early".

He went on: "I can give people confidence that our railways would continue to run if the contract for the [ScotRail] franchise was terminated before it has run its due course.

"We have the option of using the operator of last resort, although I do not expect to be running our railways in the near future."

In a written parliamentary answer in 2016, Mr Yousaf also said ministers had "shelf companies ready to fulfil the operator in the event of an operator of last resort".

The last resort procedure is entirely separate from the SNP's plan for a public sector bidder which could run the ScotRail franchise after 2025. The UK Government has already used a holding company, Directly Operated Railways, to run the East Coast Main Line franchise after private operators repeatedly failed.

Labour MSP Colin Smyth said the SNP was "simply not serious" about public control of the railways.

He said: "Instead of empty promises and spin, rail passengers across Scotland need action. The Transport Secretary must use the upcoming break in the contract to remove Abellio ."

A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: “This is a routine contract notice which enables us to procure wide-ranging technical support that helps the delivery of our investment programme and statutory obligations.”

 

[Mingulay]

They're looking for Scotland's best ever operator of last resort.
https://www.heraldscotland.com/news...of-last-resort-in-case-scotrail-deal-is-axed/

The Krankies run in Cinderella at the SEC. in Glasgow is coming to and end . They should throw their hat into the ring. They now how to run a pantomime better than Abellio and Transport Scotland !

“ Scotland’s best ever railway , fandabidosi”

 

[Southsider]

The Krankies run in Cinderella at the SEC. in Glasgow is coming to and end . They should throw their hat into the ring. They now how to run a pantomime better than Abellio and Transport Scotland !

“ Scotland’s best ever railway , fandabidosi”

You may be surprised to hear that Ian Krankie worked for British Rail so has some experience of the industry.

 

[Mingulay]

You may be surprised to hear that Ian Krankie worked for British Rail so has some experience of the industry.

He will be an absolute shoe in then for running Scotrail.

 

[cb a1]

Major article in today's Scotland on Sunday - Blame the wrong kind of train for ScotRail woes.

 

[Deltic1961]

Good article.

 

[Highland37]

"...it is largely because Japanese bullet train builders Hitachi and US refitter Wabtec have failed to deliver nearly 100 new or refurbished trains to ScotRail on time."

This is the crux issue. The article seems fairly well written which is unexpected from such a poor paper.

Thanks for the link.

 

[47271]

Agree, way ahead of Dalton's usual woeful standards of research and insight. Maybe they gave him some time and money to write it. Well done Al.

 

[Mingulay]

Agree, way ahead of Dalton's usual woeful standards of research and insight. Maybe they gave him some time and money to write it. Well done Al.

Its important that its not just Abellio that are in the firing line hear.

If you look at the press coverage at the time Abellio was chosen by Keith Brown it was controversial. I wrote to him querying why he selected a company with a poor record in England for Scotland. He wrote back saying he made the decision and the right decision. Keith keeping his head down now as usual!!
The Minister relies on good technical and business advice from TS, which I suspect is lacking as is his experience in such matters.
To offer the defence of if only Scottish government had control of the tracks from Westminster really should not get any credibility. The Alliance has all it needs by way of powers as it is .
Its not like TS/Scot Gov has not got form for poor decisions. Serco Sleeper , delayed still. Calmac Ferries etc. And that's just Transport. Cant keep blaming London for your own decisions . Man up and take your share of the blame Scot Gov! Unlikely tho !

 

[Journeyman]

Its important that its not just Abellio that are in the firing line hear.

If you look at the press coverage at the time Abellio was chosen by Keith Brown it was controversial. I wrote to him querying why he selected a company with a poor record in England for Scotland. He wrote back saying he made the decision and the right decision. Keith keeping his head down now as usual!!
The Minister relies on good technical and business advice from TS, which I suspect is lacking as is his experience in such matters.
To offer the defence of if only Scottish government had control of the tracks from Westminster really should not get any credibility. The Alliance has all it needs by way of powers as it is .
Its not like TS/Scot Gov has not got form for poor decisions. Serco Sleeper , delayed still. Calmac Ferries etc. And that's just Transport. Cant keep blaming London for your own decisions . Man up and take your share of the blame Scot Gov! Unlikely tho !

Completely agree - the SNP seems to love trotting out the "everything would be wonderful if we controlled it" excuse, despite the many colossal messes they've created in things that are 100% devolved. I'm getting pretty tired of them claiming everything good in Scotland is down to them, and every failure is Westminster's fault.

It's all the proof I need that the SNP is a single-issue party that will quite happily let things slide in order to maintain a certain level of pro-independence grievance.

 

[Deltic1961]

They were going to be the saviours of "Glasgow" Prestwick Airport and look how that turned out.

No-one else to blame for that fiasco.

 

[Highland37]

Its important that its not just Abellio that are in the firing line hear.

If you look at the press coverage at the time Abellio was chosen by Keith Brown it was controversial. I wrote to him querying why he selected a company with a poor record in England for Scotland. He wrote back saying he made the decision and the right decision. Keith keeping his head down now as usual!!
The Minister relies on good technical and business advice from TS, which I suspect is lacking as is his experience in such matters.
To offer the defence of if only Scottish government had control of the tracks from Westminster really should not get any credibility. The Alliance has all it needs by way of powers as it is .
Its not like TS/Scot Gov has not got form for poor decisions. Serco Sleeper , delayed still. Calmac Ferries etc. And that's just Transport. Cant keep blaming London for your own decisions . Man up and take your share of the blame Scot Gov! Unlikely tho !

For someone who posts a lot about people taking responsibility for things, it's interesting that you are against them having responsibility for the entire railway in Scotland.

 

[Highland37]

They were going to be the saviours of "Glasgow" Prestwick Airport and look how that turned out.

No-one else to blame for that fiasco.

It's been saved. It didn't shut and would have shut if they hand't taken it over. So, 100% success on that front.

 

[Mingulay]

Completely agree - the SNP seems to love trotting out the "everything would be wonderful if we controlled it" excuse, despite the many colossal messes they've created in things that are 100% devolved. I'm getting pretty tired of them claiming everything good in Scotland is down to them, and every failure is Westminster's fault.

It's all the proof I need that the SNP is a single-issue party that will quite happily let things slide in order to maintain a certain level of pro-independence grievance.

Indeed.

But to introduce some balance and to avoid or at least mitigate the wrath of the Indy enforcers.

The Conservative Party has to take the blame for the fragmentation of the railways . However that was decades ago and those who we could blame for that are long since out of power or dead!

But dealing with the here and now . There is a wider responsibility , not just Abellio!

 

[Chrism20]

Correct me if I’m wrong here but aren’t the bids judged “Blind”?

I.E. - the evaluators don’t know the identity until they have have pretty much made their decision?

I’m sure that was discussed in the original speculation thread about the franchise at the time.

 

[Highland37]

Completely agree - the SNP seems to love trotting out the "everything would be wonderful if we controlled it" excuse, despite the many colossal messes they've created in things that are 100% devolved. I'm getting pretty tired of them claiming everything good in Scotland is down to them, and every failure is Westminster's fault.

It's all the proof I need that the SNP is a single-issue party that will quite happily let things slide in order to maintain a certain level of pro-independence grievance.

They haven't claimed that and don't say everything is Westminter's fault. E.g., the persuction of beavers is one area they are getting it very wrong. Etc. There are many area where the SG gets it wrong and doesn't say it's Westminsters fault. We need a more mature understanding of politics.

 

[Journeyman]

It's been saved. It didn't shut and would have shut if they hand't taken it over. So, 100% success on that front.

Yes, but at enormous cost. Would it really have been such a disaster if it closed?

 

[Highland37]

Correct me if I’m wrong here but aren’t the bids judged “Blind”?

I.E. - the evaluators don’t know the identity until they have have pretty much made their decision?

I’m sure that was discussed in the original speculation thread about the franchise at the time.

Yes. Mingualy is wrong.

 

[Highland37]

Yes, but at enormous cost. Would it really have been such a disaster if it closed?

In aviation terms no, but it was saved and that was the objective. It's been 100% successful in those terms and business is growing albeit from a very small base.

Getting back to the railway, would closing the line north of Tain make a huge difference to anyone? Probably not but it won't happen.

 

[Mingulay]

It's been saved. It didn't shut and would have shut if they hand't taken it over. So, 100% success on that front.

I was supportive of that action as a sensible strategic decision for Scotland . It can only be judged if it is viable in the longer term . I spent many a happy hour in the Airport as an Ayrshire lad !

 

[Journeyman]

Yes. Mingualy is wrong.

Are you absolutely sure about that? I was recently involved in assessing franchise bids and knew the identities of the bidders throughout the process.

 

[Highland37]

Fair enough. The SG policy and action on that has been a success.

There is a paradox at the heart of your postings. You want people to take responsibility for things but only where it suits you and are against them having full responsibility.

 

[Mingulay]

Yes. Mingualy is wrong.

Worse still!!!!

So you choose a company to run a railway without taking into account how they perform elsewhere???? Need I say more about the quality of those making decisions!

 

[Highland37]

Are you absolutely sure about that? I was recently involved in assessing franchise bids and knew the identities of the bidders throughout the process.

No I am not. Clearly any contractor and body awarding the contract will have knowledge of each other. But the point is one person didn't select Abellio which is what Mingulay says and is incorrect.

 

[Highland37]

Worse still!!!!

So you choose a company to run a railway without taking into account how they perform elsewhere???? Need I say more about the quality of those making decisions!

Em, no one anywhere is saying that.

 

[Journeyman]

No I am not. Clearly any contractor and body awarding the contract will have knowledge of each other. But the point is one person didn't select Abellio which is what Mingulay says and is incorrect.

True, it's a complex process that is scored and assessed using a very detailed system. Ultimately, we don't know what was in the other bids, and how much subsidy they wanted, which are all important factors.

However, the Transport Secretary ultimately has to take responsibility for the outcome of these decisions.

 

[Esker-pades]

Getting back to the railway, would closing the line north of Tain make a huge difference to anyone? Probably not but it won't happen.

Yes it would. A massive difference. Briefly, the lack of alternative transport, the fact that the locals who use it are quite vocal, the railhead it provides right up through Sutherland, Caithness, Easter Ross etc., the linking buses to various settlements from stations (like Lairg), the links it provides beyond to Orkney and Shetland from its links to Scrabster, etc., etc., etc. @backontrack will provide more. The reason more people don't use it is because not enough is being invested to make the service reasonable or reliable. Previous service improvements have been met with big passenger rises.

What is it with this forum and wanting to shut the Far North Line? The north of Scotland needs stuff too y'know!