What was the most significant rail-related election commitment?

[railfan99]

Being overseas, it's impossible to keep up with your election - apart from everyone more or less knowing the key result. Labour can't lose.

For each significant party:
Conservatives
Greens
Labour
Liberal Democrats
Reform UK

what did you consider the most important (or headline-grabbing) policy announcement made re rail?

 

[12LDA28C]

I take any pre-election policy statements / commitments / 'promises' with a pinch of salt.

Certainly Labour's commitment to 'renationalise' appears to be a half-arsed and poorly considered attempt to bring the Railway back into public ownership with freight remaining in the private sector, OA operators still plying their trade and stock still leased off the ROSCOs. Hardly 'renationalisation' by any accepted measurement.

 

[yorksrob]

The commitments to passengers have been lacklustre.

The best I could find was the liberal democrats policy to freeze fares. I'd have liked something a little more long term and worked out, such as off-peak fridays, however the other parties didn't come up with anything, so the LD's got my cross.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

I take any pre-election policy statements / commitments / 'promises' with a pinch of salt.
Certainly Labour's commitment to 'renationalise' appears to be a half-arsed and poorly considered attempt to bring the Railway back into public ownership with freight remaining in the private sector, OA operators still plying their trade and stock still leased off the ROSCOs. Hardly 'renationalisation' by any accepted measurement.

Freight is in Open Access hands in most (all?) of Europe, even if some of the operators are from next-door's state-owned setup.
A minority of passenger services are similarly in open access hands in many countries, notably where new lines have been built.
Much rolling stock is leased Europe-wide and is a routine business investment model.

I don't think rail has figured at all in the main election debate - the main Labour proposal pre-dated the manifesto.
In Wales, Plaid want £1 billion from Westminster as Wales' share of HS2 spend, but the UK gov will ignore that.

We'll soon know what a Starmer Labour will do with rail.
It will be a bumpy road, I expect, while they get to grips with the issues.

 

[jh64]

Points 3 and 4 on Count Binface's manifesto are 'Wi-fi on trains that works' and 'Trains that work'.

 

[TrainsToday]

Points 3 and 4 on Count Binface's manifesto are 'Wi-fi on trains that works' and 'Trains that work'.

Commitments I can get behind.

 

[Spartacus]

For the Greens it seems they plan to oppose every new rail line or reopening while banning Network Rail's source of traction electricity, nuclear.

 

[andythebrave]

For the Greens it seems they plan to oppose every new rail line or reopening while banning Network Rail's source of traction electricity, nuclear.

Perhaps they should be renamed.

 

[dastocks]

I think it was in 2010 that the Labour manifesto promised a new main line between Brighton and London!

 

[Spartacus]

Perhaps they should be renamed.

They really are a bit of a mess now, caught between the side who wants to stop things that cause pollution etc now, and those who won't allow anything to be done about it if it means one ancient tree has to be cut or one dragonfly has to find a new pond. I feel like they're a hair's breadth from joining up with the Amish!

 

[childwallblues]

Freight is in Open Access hands in most (all?) of Europe, even if some of the operators are from next-door's state-owned setup.
A minority of passenger services are similarly in open access hands in many countries, notably where new lines have been built.
Much rolling stock is leased Europe-wide and is a routine business investment model.

I don't think rail has figured at all in the main election debate - the main Labour proposal pre-dated the manifesto.
In Wales, Plaid want £1 billion from Westminster as Wales' share of HS2 spend, but the UK gov will ignore that.

We'll soon know what a Starmer Labour will do with rail.
It will be a bumpy road, I expect, while they get to grips with the issues.

Why should Wales get anything from the HS2 budget? It was never going near Wales anyway.

 

[JamesT]

Why should Wales get anything from the HS2 budget? It was never going near Wales anyway.

Barnett consequentials, if there’s spending in England then the other nations get a proportional increase to their budgets.
But HS2 was defined as an England&Wales project, so as it’s classed as spending on Wales there’s no extra money for the Welsh Government.