East Coast Mainline

Hugh Watt wrote:

PatDunne wrote:

Hugh Watt wrote:

Sir Francis Drake wrote:

Apparently Chris Grayling has now nationalised more railways than any Labour minister in the last 60 years.

Whereas it may be Labour Party policy to nationalise the railways it is only fair to say that Grayling is actually doing it.

Its true. the UK rail network is unique in that so many of the Train operators are nationalised. Its Just not our own Nation that operates them.

The German Government owned Deutsche Bahn, operates Chiltern, Northern, Grand Central, Wales and Borders, tyne Metro and Cross Country services
The Italian Government owned Trenitalia, operates the Liverpool St Southend Service
The French Government owned Keolis operates Gatwick Express, London Midland, Southern, South Eastern and DLR lines
The Dutch Government owned Abellio operates Scotrail and Greater Anglia Services
The Euro Star is a joint venture between the French and Belgian Governments

Unique?

EU legislation

Legislation is based on a distinction between infrastructure managers who run the network and railway companies that use it for transporting passengers or goods. Different organisational entities must be set up for transport operations on the one hand and infrastructure management on the other. Essential functions such as the allocation of rail capacity (“train paths” that companies need to be able to operate trains on the network), infrastructure charging and licensing must be separated from the operation of transport services and performed in a neutral fashion to give new rail operators fair access to the market. Moreover, it must be guaranteed that public funds for infrastructure and for the payment of compensation for transport services under public service obligations may not be used to finance transport operations. This is to avoid distortions of competition and the unfair use of public money.

EU Member States must also have regulatory bodies in place to monitor railway markets and to act as an appeal body for rail companies if they believe they have been unfairly treated.

Directive 2012/34/EU   recasting the First Railway Package contains the basic provisions for market opening in the railway sector.


EU 4TH Market package 2016

The market pillar will complete the process of gradual market opening started with the 1st railway package. It establishes the general right for railway undertakings established in one Member State to operate all types of passenger services everywhere in the EU

How is it then that the Dutch state manages to run the Dutch railway, The Italian State is able to run the Italian Railway, The German state is able to run the German railway.....?

Those countries value their assets and protect them from foreign buyouts, we have been told for years that we can't afford to run them ourselves, which is of course quite correct as British business is feckin useless, run by an old school tie network that needs dismantling.

Funnily enough I was talking to a friend of mine recently who has been working on "integrated transport solutions" mainly focusing on the railways for the past ten plus years. We have these people on pretty good wages and benefits packages in every city in the country. That all meet once a month in London or Birmingham and nearly all of them drive to the meetings because it's cheaper than using the trains they are meant to be fixing.

I see the private train companies have found a way to improve their appalling punctuality. They've altered the timetables, scheduling longer journey times.

Methinks the free market efficiency myth has run it's course. Doesn't take long for a bunch of greedy gits to show their true colours.

I think there is also a wider picture here.

Just think of Plymouth's history. Where was most of the work? In the dockyard. Where did people who worked there live? Keyham, Ford and so on.

OK not strictly true and there would have been variations but that's why all those little terraced houses out that way exist: for dockyard workers.

People lived and worked, for the best part, in the same neighbourhood.

Who are the biggest employers now? Still the dodckyard but also the University and Derriford Hospital. Where do the people that work in them live? All over the city.

People just don't live where they work any more. Anywhere.

It is even worse in the south east where people can't even begin to afford to live near where they work in many instances and so hordes of people have to travel all over the city from God knows where to God knows where II putting huge demand onto both the road system and the public transport networks which enables the price to be jacked right up because people have no option other than to pay whatever it costs or just give up.

The transport crisis is really a direct result of the housing crisis created explicitly by Mrs T selling off the council houses without there being an provision to replace them.

What we need is dockyardies living in Keyham, fishermen living on Coxside, doctors/nurses living in Derriford, lecturers/support staff living in the city centre etc but all on a national basis.

More trains, more cars, more buses etc are not the solution. They just add to the demand and increase the pricing accordingly.

Exeter is gridlocked by everybody that works in Exeter but can afford to live in Dawlish and it's rivery environs which tends to be every person in the area it not only clogs up road and rail but changes the whole social and class structure of these areas, it's a common story.

Was quicker to walk into Exeter from Countess Wear when I lived there, truly horrendous that Topsham Rd, even with the bus lane.

Hugh Watt wrote:

argyl3 wrote:

Yes your right, JC is prevented by law from nationalising any non failing privatised operation while we remain in the EU. It's the law period. And you have the EU to thank for that, it's the same reason buses, water, electricity, gas, telecoms were l privatised in the 80s sadly it would cost a small fortune (or magic money tree) to buy them back into public ownership

This is another common misconception. The Labour Party manifesto did not commit to buying back contacts, its proposal is to let contracts run down and not re-tender them. AS usual the magic money tree is easily shaken when theres a Royal Wedding, Syria or when the Government needs the support of a bunch of Evolution denying bigots to shore up their parliametary majority.

Good old boy..................tell it like it is.

Shared this before and before anyone gets all tribal over left and right, it is well worth a short read.

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