Christian Wolmar

The SRA says it will refranchise SE Trains , the former Connex operation, at the earliest opportunity. But, argues Christian Wolmar, would it not be best to follow the Network Rail model and keep one or two franchises 'in house' to serve as cost benchmark? Now that the Strategic Rail Authority has taken over the running of South East Trains, a little bit of the railway is almost entirely in state ...

As a Labour voter who thinks that the PPP was a crazy way to try to improve the condition of the Underground, it would be nice to give Bob Crow a pat on the back for his efforts to improve safety on the system. But sorry, Bob, I just can’t do that. Industrial action, whether strikes or go-slows is just not the answer and your readiness to call your members out ...

There is a paradox about the railways. On the one hand, they are in crisis. Every week, there are stories in the press about something going wrong on the railways. While admittedly some is media exaggeration because the railways are a favourite Aunt Sally for journalists, there is indeed a fundamental crisis in the industry as the botched privatisation has led to a remarkable conjunction of soaring costs, record levels ...

Holes in the road. Don't we all just hate them. And they seem to be ever more and more of them. It's not just the traditional electricity, gas and water companies that are messing up our roads, but all the telecommunication and cable firms which are now adding to the chaos. The perennial cry from motorists is why can't the work be coordinated so that the same street is not dug ...

The decision to strip companies of all maintenance on the railways is good for the industry, the passengers, the taxpayer - and public perception. But why, asks Christian Wolmar, won't the spin merchants just be honest about why it was done? Just occasionally, maybe once a year, I allow myself a gloat. So, sorry, dear reader, just bear with me for a couple of paragraphs while I give myself a pat ...

As Saddam Hussein might say, the Public Private Partnership for the London Underground is the mother of all Private Finance Initiative deals. At one point, its estimated £17bn value over the first 15 years, eclipsed all other PFI deals put together and even now this one scheme represents at least a sixth of the total already signed. It is not just the scale of the Tube deal that is different from ...