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| Rail: The Next Generation |
| Friday, 18 November 2011 00:00 |
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Sir Roy McNulty's report of the "Rail Value for Money Study" hopes to lead the rail industry on a journey of innovation and collaboration resulting in improved value for money for passengers. Commentators have described the report as "switching on a bulb that delivers some light at the end of the tunnel". Whether or not the industry is in the right shape to fit into the tunnel, and whether there is the collective will to supply the bulb with the (renewable) electricity needed to light the way were the essence of the many debates that raged at the recent Rail VFM conference in London. Many espoused the view that the industry is both too short-sighted and too stuck-in-the-mud to be able to react to the changes which McNulty recommends. ATOC argue that a revision of the franchise arrangements is necessary to encourage the necessary financial investment. In principle, the rail sector should be happy hunting ground for much needed private investment, but the short franchise deals push up the required return on investment to a level that becomes unsustainable. Passenger groups like PassengerFocus, on the other hand, argue that through Government subsidy and fare increases, the necessary investment is already there, and that it is not clear where this money is being deployed – and also suggested that there is a regional bias towards the South East in the way in which any money was being spent. More argued that the fragmentation following privatisation has led to a culture of 'warring' competition between TOCs, ROSCOs, NR and others that is leading to practices that are the direct corollary of those needed to deliver VFM. ATOC demonstrated that privatisation had led to very significant improvements in passenger numbers and in customer satisfaction and stated that there was a vast amount of co-operation between rail stakeholders. Given that, according to the ORR, demand for rail services will double by 2030, we had better hope such co-operation continues. But in addition to discussions about the long-term vision for the industry, it is clear that there are a number of shorter-term actions which will deliver improvements even before the tunnel's entrance is reached. Masabi highlighted the work that had been done in smart ticketing and passenger information to mobiles which had all take place without Government intervention or regulation. As Helios has discussed in a previous blog, many TOCs are providing WiFi services on trains to enhance passenger experiences. Such pathfinding activities are, however, in the minority, especially whilst many TOCs await the re-franchising of their licences over the coming two to three years. But such a hiatus in proceedings should not be allowed to stifle innovation; indeed now is the time to get the industry's traction unit firmly connected with the passenger carriages such that when the journey along the tunnel begins, everyone is pulling together and heading in the right direction. The government is perhaps in the most difficult position of all – faced with the dilemma of showing leadership and direction, whilst simultaneously stepping back to release innovation. Helios' work for the RSSB has highlighted how mobile communication and positioning are one of the essential elements which need to be put in place to enable the industry to move forward together, but its implementation is seen as a costly and unnecessary step by some. But moving to the next generation of rail services is going to require much greater technical and business upheaval than this. Acronym buster Other related content Like our blog? Why not sign up to our quarterly newsletter for more opinion pieces and project news from Helios.Contact the author
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