Railways face the perfect storm
“So, Mum/Dad, what are the railways for?” That is the question the UK rail industry will be dreading hearing in a post-pandemic world. This is …
The last newsletter of the year
The biggest risk of the long term effect of the pandemic is that we see a permanent change from the collective to the individual. The …
The wonder of rail travel
What is it about trains? In truth it would not have been surprising if they had gone the way of the horse and cart and …
The contradictions of railway policy are all too obvious
It is difficult to know whether to laugh or cry. At the same time as we are getting news about another round of funding from …
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Rail 945: Was the Integrated Rail Plan really that bad?
Imagine a slightly different world. The railways are being run by a rather impressive pair, Andy, the ambitious and media-savvy transport secretary and Fred, his …
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Rail 944: Media gets it wrong on Salisbury rail crash
The rail collision at Salisbury attracted the usual amount of over the top coverage from the media but that is expected given the rarity of …
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At least its a plan (sort of)
It is easy to characterise the scrapping of part of HS2 as yet another great Tory betrayal, and for the government’s opponents to make hay …
November 2021 newsletter
This is my newletter sent out free to subscribers – to sign up, go to my website christianwolmar.co.uk and scroll down to the bottom of …
Sadiq needs to scrap the Silvertown tunnel to secure Labour’s future in London
Here’s a question for Sadiq: do you want to win the next mayoral election, or at least ensure that your Labour successor does so if …
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Rail 943: Cop-out on the railways
Promises, promises. There’s quite a lot of them about. The railway structure is to be reformed, some version of British Rail recreated, the northern wastelands …
Letter to The Times: rail fares need sorting
Sir, Clare Foges is right to highlight how trains could make a far bigger contribution to the net zero target but she could have given …
Rail 942: A big test for the Levelling Up agenda
‘Levelling up’ is the big idea following on from other memorable catch phrases like ‘hug a hoodie’ and the Big Society. If it is not …
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Transport delights in Zurich
Zurich, with a population of 400,000, is one of the most pleasant places in the world to live with its beautiful swimmable lake and its …
Rail 941: The damaging war between London and the government
I love London, my home town and one of the great cities of the world. It is a much kinder and easier place than many …
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The strange obsession with innovation
By Pearl Ahrens and Christian Wolmar Innovation has become something of a buzzword in recent years. From Uber to Deliveroo, autonomous cars to Hyperloop, innovation …