Our empty trains “no better than a model railway” - Anthony Smith

[island]

The chief executive of Transport Focus Anthony Smith warned yesterday that TOCs are acting like they are “in charge of a beautiful model railway”.

Mr. Smith added: “It’s got trains moving around, the signals change, and the staff are there, it is lovely and clean – there is just no business. What is the point? It is like having an army and you come to the war and you say ‘We can’t use the army because they might get hurt.’ The economy is tanking. Part of the key to getting the economy going again, is to get people travelling for work again, and in London and the southeast in particular that means having the confidence to use Rail travel.”

Mr. Smith also accused TOCs of “over-interpreting” government advice and contrasted them with private bus operators who he said were treating passengers as adults capable of making their own judgements. He said that “eventually you’ve got to offset some of the cost to the railway because otherwise the Treasury is going to look at this and say ‘Why are we funding this model railway?’”

Source: Sunday Times, print edition only, page 8

Edit to add: yorkie has kindly provided me with a link to an online reference https://www.transportfocus.org.uk/news-events-media/blog/clarity-of-messaging-for-public-transport/

 

[yorksrob]

There were definitely more people using the train yesterday. It seems that people are making the decision for themselves.

 

[70014IronDuke]

There were definitely more people using the train yesterday. It seems that people are making the decision for themselves.

Could you expand on that, pl? I mean, which trains?

 

[yorksrob]

Could you expand on that, pl? I mean, which trains?

Around Yorkshire. Leeds station in particular is now more bustling. I caught the train to Hull and it was reasonably busy (by current standards).

 

[route101]

There were definitely more people using the train yesterday. It seems that people are making the decision for themselves.

Same in Glasgow, as the shops opened, ive made the point of using the train a few times in last week.

 

[Huntergreed]

I think the 'coronaphobia' is starting to, hopefully, die off, as at least some people start to accept a return to a semi-normal functioning society.

Here's hoping it'll continue in the weeks and months ahead!

 

[Freightmaster]

Mr. Smith also accused TOCs of “over-interpreting” government advice and contrasted them with private bus operators who he said were treating passengers as adults capable of making their own judgements. He said that “eventually you’ve got to offset some of the cost to the railway because otherwise the Treasury is taxpayers are going to look at this and say ‘Why are we funding this model railway?’”

Fixed that for him!





MARK

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Around Yorkshire. Leeds station in particular is now more bustling. I caught the train to Hull and it was reasonably busy (by current standards).

In addition, a senior Thameslink manager tweeted yesterday that their passenger numbers are already back up to 22% of pre-virus levels. That tallies with my observations while out shopping yesterday.

 

[yorksrob]

Same in Glasgow, as the shops opened, ive made the point of using the train a few times in last week.

In addition, a senior Thameslink manager tweeted yesterday that their passenger numbers are already back up to 22% of pre-virus levels. That tallies with my observations while out shopping yesterday.

Small steps, but definitely in the right direction.

 

[jfollows]

Full article text, in case it helps:

Our empty trains ‘no better than a model railway’

Nicholas Hellen

Transport Editor

Frustration over train operators’ failure to carry more passengers boiled over this weekend as an independent watchdog warned they were acting as if they were in charge of a “beautiful model railway”.

Anthony Smith, chief executive of Transport Focus, said: “It’s got trains moving around, the signals change, the staff are there, it is lovely and clean — there is just no business.

“What is the point? It is like having an army and you come to the war and you say, ‘We can’t use the army because they might get hurt.’”

Figures show passenger numbers are at only 13% of normal levels, risking blunting the impact of the £30bn stimulus package announced last week by Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, as people struggle to visit shops and restaurants in town and city centres. Signs and announcements on the rail network still urge passengers to avoid public transport if they can.

Smith said: “The economy is tanking. Part of the key to getting the economy going again, is to get people travelling for work again and in London and the southeast in particular that means having the confidence to use rail travel.”

While social distancing at two metres reduced the capacity of the rail network to 15% of pre-lockdown levels, the switch to one-metre-plus distancing boosts it to between 25% and 50%, depending on the type of train. It is the apparent failure to seize this opportunity for cautious easing that underlies the frustration.

Smith said some operators had “over-interpreted” government advice, while private bus operators were treating passengers as adults capable of making their own judgments, saying: “Our buses are clean and safe. Come on board.”

Since March, rail operators have benefited from a £3.5bn taxpayer-funded support package, intended to ensure they continue to operate a near-normal service, now at 85% of the usual timetable, without relying on ticket income. It is guaranteed for six months until late September. Smith added: “Eventually you’ve got to offset some of the cost of the railway because otherwise the Treasury is going to look at this and say, ‘Why are we funding this model railway?’”

One rail operator revealed that a fifth of its passengers are dodging fares, as guards have not been conducting onboard ticket inspections.

About 240,000 people work in the railway sector yet on a typical day in July only about 635,000 passenger journeys were made.

The Department for Transport said: “Our priority has always been to ensure the transport network is safe . . . and our message is under continual review. We have set out guidance for passengers and transport operators and have made face coverings mandatory on public transport.”

 

[Scotrail12]

There has been a bit of an increase in passengers in the Glasgow area recently compared to the last few months. I've usually only travel off-peak so can't say for sure whether or not it is back to the levels it was before. I should note that most trains are 6 carriages so that means people are more spread out (even the EK trains are 6 carriages, last time I was there it was 2).

At least some progress in the right direction. I also saw a fair few people taking bikes on the train yesterday and Friday.

 

[yorkie]

@island many thanks for posting this; I've been meaning to create a thread on this subject myself, and it's good we're having this debate.

Here is a really good video (thanks to @Philip Brown for sharing it) of a talk from Roger French; it is very long

Jump to 28mins 37 seconds for discussion on rail.

For anyone unable to access the video (or simply lacking time), here is the video description:

Roger French, a well respected commentator on public transport operations and policies, starts his presentation with a summary of the optimistic plans for transport that were on the cards in the now far-off days of early 2020.

He then succinctly, yet comprehensively, describes how bus and rail transport reacted to the initial impact of the virus and to the devastating effects of lock-down and social distancing on public transport usage and finances.

And finally Roger presents his positive vision for a future, in which public transport re-emerges as a clean, environmentally better and safe alternative to private car usage. This video was recorded on 28th June 2020.

And here is Phil's summary:

A concise, thorough and rapid review of COVID19's impact on the British public transport sector; how services were supported, and what Government and the sector must do now are all delivered in this 50 minute talk by Roger French OBE at theLondon Transport Museum this evening.

For a review of the whirlwind last 13 weeks, for a review on what should be done next, and for a historical item to reflect back on in 50 years, I'd highly recommend this talk!

The current situation is absolutely disgraceful and unacceptable.

The "steps in the right direction" are a drop in the ocean compared to the increase in car usage and hides the really huge problem we are facing.

Car usage has increased dramatically since the Government dropped "essential travel only" policy, and yet rail usage has only increased a tiny amount in this time; in effect we have seen huge modal shift from public transport towards private cars in the past 4 weeks.

Car owners are no longer subject to "essential travel only" warnings (with rare exceptions where relevant authorities haven't got round to changing signage) yet rail passengers are, not infrequently, still such incorrect, misleading and unacceptable signage

To be clear: the Government's policy is awful and needs to change but some train companies are making an already awful message exponentially worse. The Government guidance does state "essential travel only" to/from/within local lockdown areas within England (i.e. Leicester at present); nowhere else in England should this message be displayed. I'm not sure what the current status is for Wales/Scotland exactly, but I note we have other threads to discuss those issues (e.g. see https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/public-transport-in-wales.206316/ for the situation in Wales).

Several key figures and organisations are speaking out, and rightly so:
https://twitter.com/RailfuturePsngr/status/1281181348250693632

As is obvious from our tweets, @Railfuture
is trying to push government to stop its destructive "necessary train travel only" stance.

https://twitter.com/StandardBy10/status/1281676972914024448

The worry is that there is a mindset that the hordes must be kept away whereas it is obvious that even without discouragement many are reluctant to travel. There is no flood behind the floodgates, and ultimately depressed passenger numbers will mean service cuts and jobs losses

https://twitter.com/Captain_Deltic/status/1281124759330263041

Why is rail conniving in its own demise by slavishly parotting the government's "do not use public transport" message when we should be saying "our trains are ready to carry you safely"?

It's great to see people calling TOCs out on Twitter; in some cases this is leading to the TOCs deleting misleading and/or discriminatory messages; here is an example of this:

https://twitter.com/Captain_Deltic/status/1282265158753157121

I read that as we really don't want you travel except for essential workers. @SteveWhiteRail https://twitter.com/GNRailUK/status/1282253380602208256

This Tweet is unavailable.

I'd like to see these rogue TOCs apologise and promise to cease misleading people, but that's asking too much!


Also some dubious individuals, including a gang of teenage train spotters, are going round criticising people for using public transport, including a young autistic lad being criticised by mis so-called 'mates' for going on a train journey last weekend, when he was absolutely entitle to do so. Some people did step in and point out that he was doing nothing wrong; the gang then went for those accounts, swearing and dishing out insults, and making counter-accusations.

In one case I saw someone promoting the Crich Tramway yet simultaneously tell people they should not take buses, trams and buses for leisure purposes. I'd love to have an argument with such people; and that's the full argument, not the 5 minute argument. I will not forgive anyone who demonises the use of public transport; it goes against everything I stand for.

The attitude of some train companies has resulted in incidents of bullying and shaming of people legitimately going about their business, as an army of supporters backs the TOCs up by spouting "essential travel only" to anyone who either dares to travel by rail or dares to question their diatribe.

Make no mistake: public transport users are under attack, and the gloves are very much off as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Scotrail12]

Is it any surprise that many are avoiding the railways if they see the passive aggressive attitudes from TOC's on Twitter?

ScotRail:
"We're not sure who needs to hear this, but face coverings are there to cover your face. Not your chin.

Not all disabilities are visible. Please be mindful that not everyone can cover up."

And as recently as about a week ago, they were insistent that it was essential travel only, not even allowed to take the train to go to the shops.

 

[HSTEd]

Time to pull the plug.

 

[Puffing Devil]

Many commuter trains are empty as people are not returning to offices.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

I think Mr Smith needs to look at the behaviour of bus companies too. First certainly went overboard with the messaging, seat stickers, service reductions etc. Closer to normal in terms of frequencies now but still only allowing one in four seats and 'essential', 'key worker' and 'necessary journey' splattered allover their website.

 

[jcf5561]

Is it any surprise that many are avoiding the railways if they see the passive aggressive attitudes from TOC's on Twitter?

ScotRail:
"We're not sure who needs to hear this, but face coverings are there to cover your face. Not your chin.

Not all disabilities are visible. Please be mindful that not everyone can cover up."

And as recently as about a week ago, they were insistent that it was essential travel only, not even allowed to take the train to go to the shops.

You only have to look at ScotRail's Facebook page to see the amount of, how can I say it, braindead people literally asking Scotrail if it's ok to do this that and the next thing. If they want to go somewhere by train then they should just go. There is no need to ask Scotrail or any other TOC what to do!

 

[sheff1]

I think Mr Smith needs to look at the behaviour of bus companies too. First certainly went overboard with the messaging, seat stickers, service reductions etc. Closer to normal in terms of frequencies now but still only allowing one in four seats and 'essential', 'key worker' and 'necessary journey' splattered allover their website.

Don't forget "Bus Full" on the display when there are no more than half a dozen people on board. "Bus Full" is the new "sorry - out of service" on First routes around here.

 

[RomeoCharlie71]

You only have to look at ScotRail's Facebook page to see the amount of, how can I say it, braindead people literally asking Scotrail if it's ok to do this that and the next thing. If they want to go somewhere by train then they should just go. There is no need to ask Scotrail or any other TOC what to do!

I found this conversation between a member of the public and the ScotRail twitter team quite amusing, relating to removing face coverings to consume alcohol.

Don't forget "Bus Full" on the display when there are no more than half a dozen people on board. "Bus Full" is the new "sorry - out of service" on First routes around here.

The temporary capacities on buses should have increased to approx 40-50% in the past few days - so around 20 on a single decker and 32 on a double decker.

 

[yorkie]

I think Mr Smith needs to look at the behaviour of bus companies too. First certainly went overboard with the messaging, seat stickers, service reductions etc. Closer to normal in terms of frequencies now but still only allowing one in four seats and 'essential', 'key worker' and 'necessary journey' splattered allover their website.

Some did, but not all. Take a look at the video I linked to in my post above if you have time; it addresses these issues very comprehensively, and gives examples of good and bad practice.

Although I posted this video with the emphasis on rail (and mentioned where the rail element starts in the video) it covers buses in more detail, but as @Mag_seven rightly says, we have a separate thread to discuss these issues in relation to the bus industry

Not sure if the author (Roger French) is a forum member or not? If you're here, please do say hello!

 

[Mag_seven]

I think Mr Smith needs to look at the behaviour of bus companies too. First certainly went overboard with the messaging, seat stickers, service reductions etc. Closer to normal in terms of frequencies now but still only allowing one in four seats and 'essential', 'key worker' and 'necessary journey' splattered allover their website.

Don't forget "Bus Full" on the display when there are no more than half a dozen people on board. "Bus Full" is the new "sorry - out of service" on First routes around here.

Can we stick to discussing trains on this thread please. The situation on buses can be discussed here:

Buses and the coronavirus

What's the likelihood of all or the vast majority of bus routes being canceled for a while as either part of a lock down or bus companies or individual op cos of bus companies canceling them as a 'precaution'? This would leave many people stranded, if they catch long distance buses, for example...

www.railforums.co.uk

thanks

 

[jnjkerbin]

Took the train into London from Kent yesterday - I was surprised to see that loadings were as high as maybe 50-60% of a normal Saturday. But I agree; we need to get people back on the trains.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

Can we stick to discussing trains on this thread please. The situation on buses can be discussed here:

Buses and the coronavirus

What's the likelihood of all or the vast majority of bus routes being canceled for a while as either part of a lock down or bus companies or individual op cos of bus companies canceling them as a 'precaution'? This would leave many people stranded, if they catch long distance buses, for example...

www.railforums.co.uk

thanks

I mention buses because Mr Smith specifically refers to them in his piece. As exemplars in contrast to TOCS. My experience locally is that the main bus company (First) are no better in their 'over-interpretation' than the local TOCS (EMR, LNR and Northern).

Mr. Smith also accused TOCs of “over-interpreting” government advice and contrasted them with private bus operators who he said were treating passengers as adults capable of making their own judgements.

 

[43066]

The chief executive of Transport Focus Anthony Smith warned yesterday that TOCs are acting like they are “in charge of a beautiful model railway”.

Mr. Smith added: “It’s got trains moving around, the signals change, and the staff are there, it is lovely and clean – there is just no business. What is the point? It is like having an army and you come to the war and you say ‘We can’t use the army because they might get hurt.’ The economy is tanking. Part of the key to getting the economy going again, is to get people travelling for work again, and in London and the southeast in particular that means having the confidence to use Rail travel.”

Mr. Smith also accused TOCs of “over-interpreting” government advice and contrasted them with private bus operators who he said were treating passengers as adults capable of making their own judgements. He said that “eventually you’ve got to offset some of the cost to the railway because otherwise the Treasury is going to look at this and say ‘Why are we funding this model railway?’”

Source: Sunday Times, print edition only, page 8

Edit to add: yorkie has kindly provided me with a link to an online reference https://www.transportfocus.org.uk/news-events-media/blog/clarity-of-messaging-for-public-transport/

Agree with every word. It’s a ridiculous situation, and completely unsustainable.

 

[yorksrob]

Took the train into London from Kent yesterday - I was surprised to see that loadings were as high as maybe 50-60% of a normal Saturday. But I agree; we need to get people back on the trains.

Which route was that, out of interest ?

 

[anthony263]

Way its going in wales tfw gonna loose passengers to cars and buses .

 

[HSTEd]

Well if this is going to be the new normal.....

Can we rip out all the second class seats and replace them all with first class ones.

Might as well given we are going to be at a fraction of normal capacity for the forseable future.

 

[Supertrains19]

The next big step will be to get people back in the habit of buying tickets, as revenue and ticket checking have taken a back seat since March. Just look at Grand Central they can not afford to not have 100% revenue collection so will be ensuring 100% or as near as possible as they have no government revenue protection so need all the fares they can get.

 

[Skymonster]

Cut the network, cut services, cut staff, cut costs. I think the Tories are just gagging to do it and that current industry behaviour is giving them the perfect excuse.

 

[jnjkerbin]

Which route was that, out of interest ?

Grove Park line metro services - I may be misremembering what the trains are normally like on a Saturday - it's been so long! Certainly coming out of London around lunchtime, my particular service was by no means quiet - maybe 12-15 to a carriage.