High speed could be expensive distraction from existing railway
Towards the end of this month, we will get the government's White Paper based on the work by the HS2 ...
Franchise muddle persists
The day after Lord Adonis suggested that franchises might be as long as 22 years, he threatened First Capital Connect ...
Adonis is an object lesson of how to get things done
It was always going to be a momentous year. But 2009 has exceeded expectations with far reaching changes that for ...
The mystery of franchising deepens
The Labour government's policy on franchising has always been something of a mystery. Inherited from the Conservatives, the structure of ...
Regulator needs to focus on consumer issues
At a conference I chaired recently, Bill Emery the chief executive of the Office of Rail Regulation gave his usual ...
Bowker jumps ship after another wrecking operation
I have always found it extraordinary that people on big salaries who get sacked for incompetence or resign after making ...
Titfield Thunderbolt lives again
Any mention of the idea of reopening branch lines immediately leads to massive media to interest with inevitable mentions of ...
Book review: a love and hate affair with the railways
Matthew Engel, Eleven Minutes Late, a train journey to the soul of Britain, Macmillan, £14 99 It is rare to ...
Network Rail must change to survive
Network Rail is getting a new chairman Rick Haythornthwaite in the summer and he will have to show far greater ...
Fares rises will not save train operators
It was not only the bankers who have been grilled recently by commons select committees. A few days before the ...
Franchise trouble for operators…and ministers
With over 130,000 joining the dole queue in December alone, it is not a matter of whether the train ...
What a shame ten year plan went off the rails
It is ten years since the relatively new Labour government issued a remarkably sensible document entitled A new deal for ...
Franchise policy under fire from all sides
The shortlist for the new Southern franchise, which includes Gatwick Express, has been issued featuring the usual suspects including Stagecoach ...
Credit crunch could be fatal for franchises
The next few months are going to be a nerve-wracking time for rail operators and their parent companies. With the ...
30 year strategy lasts just one year
Just a year ago, the government issued a document that set out a 30 year strategy for the railways. It ...
Labour and Tory merger
Tom Harris, the rail minister, is an intelligent chap with a better knowledge of the railways than many of his ...
Croydon Tramlink quietly renationalised
A small part of the transport network is quietly being renationalised with very little media attention. Transport for London is ...
Xmas chaos highlights flaws in rail structure
Nothing characterises the flawed structure of the rail industry better than the jaunt to Buckingham Palace by the chairman of ...
New London franchise may point the way to the future
Almost unnoticed, London is benefiting from a massive investment programme in its railways. While the decision to go ahead with ...
New high speed line spells end, not beginning
The arrival of high speed trains in London on November 14 should be a cause for unalloyed celebration. Not only ...
