Vertical Integration

[Morgsie]

I have come across the term 'vertical integration' and I do not know what it means. Please can someone explain this please?

 

[MK Tom]

It's basically where the trains and the track are managed and operated by the same organisation.

 

[Morgsie]

It's basically where the trains and the track are managed and operated by the same organisation.

How would this work in the UK where Operations and Infrastructure are separate organisations, Network Rail and the various TOCs?

 

[trainophile]

Merseyrail?

 

[WatcherZero]

Yes normally Infrastructure and Operation management are seperated to prevent one operator discriminating against another using their power over the rails access and maintenence timing.

Merseyrail vertical integration trial has been abandoned before starting, NR are doing a trial with South West essentially allowing Stagecoach to appoint one of their new Route Managers.

 

[swt_passenger]

...NR are doing a trial with South West essentially allowing Stagecoach to appoint one of their new Route Managers.

That isn't what NR's press release said. They only mention a 'single, senior joint management team'. NR already have a route director in place, Richard O'Brien.

A potentially different kind of alliance, called a 'deep' alliance, is being developed involving the Wessex route (one of Network Rail's devolved operational regions) and South West Trains. This may see the establishment of a single, senior joint management team formed to look after both train and track on the Wessex route operating out of Waterloo - a much more integrated way of working. This potential alliance is being discussed with government, the Office of Rail Regulation, employees and other operators...

http://www.networkrailmediacentre.c...ERATOR-ALLIANCES-19a4/SearchCategoryID-2.aspx

 

[MK Tom]

A good example of vertical integration is Northern Ireland, where Translink operate both the track and the trains. The only other operator on the NI network is IE with the Enterprise which is a half and half operation between the two of them, so there's no issue with competition. It's next to impossible to have VI on a privitised network but on a fully nationalised one it makes sense.

 

[HSTEd]

Vertical Integration in the traditional railway sense means far more than just track and train operations being run by the same people.

British Rail had a whole host of secondary operations like rolling stock design and manufacture, research and development in various fields including engineer, communications technology and computing.

They did many more things in house than today's railway does.

 

[WatcherZero]

That isn't what NR's press release said. They only mention a 'single, senior joint management team'. NR already have a route director in place, Richard O'Brien.

Yep, hes being replaced after only a short time in the job by a Stagecoach director, the other alliances wont be as deep as this one and to be honest NR is pretty scared about this one straying over the legal limits on seperation of operation and infrastructure.
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Vertical Integration in the traditional railway sense means far more than just track and train operations being run by the same people.

British Rail had a whole host of secondary operations like rolling stock design and manufacture, research and development in various fields including engineer, communications technology and computing.

They did many more things in house than today's railway does.

However they operated an internal market with different parts of the company competing against each other, it wasnt that integrated.

 

[Zoe]

However they operated an internal market with different parts of the company competing against each other, it wasnt that integrated.

As far as I know, there was no full separation of infrastrucure and operations before privatization though. What parts of BR were competing against each other?

 

[68000]

Article in the current Rail magazine about this

If the trial is successful, NR reckon the current MD roles will become redundant. Speculation that Tim Shoveller will become boss of the Alliance in Wessex

 

[Welshman]

Rumour had it back in the 80s & 90s that a vertically-integrated privatised railway was what John Major originally had in mind, evoking memories of the old GWR.

And then the bureaucrats got hold of it.........

 

[WatcherZero]

As far as I know, there was no full separation of infrastrucure and operations before privatization though. What parts of BR were competing against each other?

For example the foundrys (is that the right word?) of BREL competed against each other alongside the external Camell, Brush and Vickers. There were parallel research programs from the different sectors (and before that the different regions) and BR research was looked down on by the rest of the company which often prefered products designed elsewhere to internally developed ones, thought of as a bit of a joke really, school kids rather than engineers. Competing signalling was developed and while BR agreed a common mechanical coupler design they didnt agree a common electrical communication standard leading to half a dozen incompatible 'languages' spoken by the common coupler interface.