New Transport Secretary - Louise Haigh

[Nicholas Lewis]

The shadow cabinet has been announced

Helen Wateley is Shadow Transport Minister

She was health before so shouldn't prove too much of challenge to Lousie

 

[Brush 4]

Hendy understands and supports railways, unlike the previous Gov. He gets things done and I hope no-one within the DfT will try and stop him.

He arranged for a steam loco to haul well filled wooden carriages through the London Underground. No-one was hurt. This may seem trivial compared to the network but it shows he knows what is possible, instead of running scared of H&S, risk assessments etc. He also replied personally to a query about the Okehampton reopening, which was very gratifying.

 

[Bald Rick]

Would have to give up his chairmanship of NR?

Yes, he will. Indeed AIUI already has.

But this is terrific news. Notably not a political appointment, as he is a crossbench Peer, so perhaps the start of getting the politicians out of the railway.

 

[physics34]

Note of caution. He commissioned the closure of ticket offices on the LU and he supported the closure of them on main line rail too. But, he may have a point regarding use of technology..

 

[Backroom_boy]

Well I'd say closure on LUL has been a great success

 

[Energy]

Note of caution. He commissioned the closure of ticket offices on the LU and he supported the closure of them on main line rail too. But, he may have a point regarding use of technology..

All LU stations are still staffed.

Closure of ticket offices is a lot less controversial if the employees are moved elsewhere within the same business, whether it be station staff or training to be a driver. Moving Sunday into the working week and reducing the reliance on overtime would quite easily swallow up the additional drivers at many TOCs.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

She was health before so shouldn't prove too much of challenge to Lousie

Exactly. Louise impresses me and she seems to know her brief.

 

[Highview]

If there is only one Minister of State appointed in the DoT, Lord Hendy will be responsible for leading on all transport legislation, and answering questions, in the Lords so his brief will be roads, sea and air as well - there will be a learning curve for him as with any other Lord appointed to the job in the past. From my own experience as a civil servant in a Ministerial Private Office it can be a thankless task at times.

 

[12LDA28C]

All LU stations are still staffed.

Closure of ticket offices is a lot less controversial if the employees are moved elsewhere within the same business, whether it be station staff or training to be a driver. Moving Sunday into the working week and reducing the reliance on overtime would quite easily swallow up the additional drivers at many TOCs.

Ticket office staff retraining to be drivers isn't much help to passengers needing assistance at stations, and there is no guarantee that ticket office staff would meet the requirements of the driving grade anyway.

 

[Jozhua]

I'm under no illusions that change is not going to be fast, but given the scale and cost of running a rail system, that's no big surprise.

The biggest question really is what is going to happen with HS2. I suspect nothing will be announced until at least the autumn budget.

While there are challenges delivering on big infrastructure, there is also a case to be made that there's a lot of low hanging fruit for an incoming administration with the courage to pick from:

Electrification for starters, reducing boom/bust and moving to a nationwide rolling program with a fixed yearly budget. Let's deliver as many STKs of new and renewed electrification within say £500m per annum.​

​

Rolling stock - end the use of ROSCOs for new train produrements, all new stock to be capable of level boarding and focus on delivering capacity where overcrowding is common and trains are not close to their theoretical maximum (Cross Country, Northern, EMR, etc). Make sure there's a steady flow of work and use this to negotiate lower prices with manufacturers.​

​

Renationalisation of operators at end of contracts.​

​

Rolling program of renewals/rebuilding of track and stations, focusing on capacity first.​

​

Devolution of local services to mayoral regions and integration into local smart ticketing systems (e.g. Robin Hood, Get Me There/Bee Network)​

If they choose not to proceed with HS2, a plan on delivering that level of capacity will need to be on the cards. Probably a somewhat value engineered alternative following a similar route may end up being the best solution, even if the city centre runs into Manchester, Leeds have to be delayed, or split off into separate projects.

I'm more optimistic than I was with the Tories in charge and I like that we have someone from a Northern constituency that I think is fairly representative of the challenges the GB rail system faces. She's been vocal about the challenges on Cross Country and EMR, which gives me hope for my patch of the country.

Of course the best thing labour can do is keep a far right Tory/Reform government out of power, so they need to deliver on far more than just transport.

 

[Nicholas Lewis]

I'm under no illusions that change is not going to be fast, but given the scale and cost of running a rail system, that's no big surprise.

The biggest question really is what is going to happen with HS2. I suspect nothing will be announced until at least the autumn budget.

While there are challenges delivering on big infrastructure, there is also a case to be made that there's a lot of low hanging fruit for an incoming administration with the courage to pick from:

Electrification for starters, reducing boom/bust and moving to a nationwide rolling program with a fixed yearly budget. Let's deliver as many STKs of new and renewed electrification within say £500m per annum.​

500m way beyond current supply chain even with exorbitant costs so more like 200m

​

Rolling stock - end the use of ROSCOs for new train produrements, all new stock to be capable of level boarding and focus on delivering capacity where overcrowding is common and trains are not close to their theoretical maximum (Cross Country, Northern, EMR, etc). Make sure there's a steady flow of work and use this to negotiate lower prices with manufacturers.​

That adds to public borrowing and Reeves adamant she wont be messing with public finances like Truss did so unlikely. What would make sense would be to put a stop to all operators doing their own thing and move to national procurement especially for the 15x replacement.

​

Renationalisation of operators at end of contracts.​

happening anyhow but half baked under the OLR but needs GBR legislation to put in place something for the long term

​

Rolling program of renewals/rebuilding of track and stations, focusing on capacity first.​

enhancements have had a raw deal but capital allocated for it has been diverted into HS2 overspend

​

Devolution of local services to mayoral regions and integration into local smart ticketing systems (e.g. Robin Hood, Get Me There/Bee Network)​

Totally agree with that but still going to need the system operator to be the final arbiter which could cause tension around Manchester/Birmingham

If they choose not to proceed with HS2, a plan on delivering that level of capacity will need to be on the cards. Probably a somewhat value engineered alternative following a similar route may end up being the best solution, even if the city centre runs into Manchester, Leeds have to be delayed, or split off into separate projects.

I linked to a Torygraph article here yesterday where the new financial secretary suggest Phase 2 wasn't dead

I'm more optimistic than I was with the Tories in charge and I like that we have someone from a Northern constituency that I think is fairly representative of the challenges the GB rail system faces. She's been vocal about the challenges on Cross Country and EMR, which gives me hope for my patch of the country.

Of course the best thing labour can do is keep a far right Tory/Reform government out of power, so they need to deliver on far more than just transport.

They're both a spent force and the likely threat comes from a one nation ex tory grouping joining forces with Liberals

 

[Energy]

I linked to a Torygraph article here yesterday where the new financial secretary suggest Phase 2 wasn't dead

Unsurprisingly they are keeping their cards close to their chests and aren't saying whether Phase 2 is dead or alive. I think the preference for this government is a HS1 style private company to fund it under a concession.

 

[Bald Rick]

I'm under no illusions that change is not going to be fast, but given the scale and cost of running a rail system, that's no big surprise.

The biggest question really is what is going to happen with HS2. I suspect nothing will be announced until at least the autumn budget.

While there are challenges delivering on big infrastructure, there is also a case to be made that there's a lot of low hanging fruit for an incoming administration with the courage to pick from:

Electrification for starters, reducing boom/bust and moving to a nationwide rolling program with a fixed yearly budget. Let's deliver as many STKs of new and renewed electrification within say £500m per annum.​

​

Rolling stock - end the use of ROSCOs for new train produrements, all new stock to be capable of level boarding and focus on delivering capacity where overcrowding is common and trains are not close to their theoretical maximum (Cross Country, Northern, EMR, etc). Make sure there's a steady flow of work and use this to negotiate lower prices with manufacturers.​

​

Renationalisation of operators at end of contracts.​

​

Rolling program of renewals/rebuilding of track and stations, focusing on capacity first.​

​

Devolution of local services to mayoral regions and integration into local smart ticketing systems (e.g. Robin Hood, Get Me There/Bee Network)​

If they choose not to proceed with HS2, a plan on delivering that level of capacity will need to be on the cards. Probably a somewhat value engineered alternative following a similar route may end up being the best solution, even if the city centre runs into Manchester, Leeds have to be delayed, or split off into separate projects.

I'm more optimistic than I was with the Tories in charge and I like that we have someone from a Northern constituency that I think is fairly representative of the challenges the GB rail system faces. She's been vocal about the challenges on Cross Country and EMR, which gives me hope for my patch of the country.

Of course the best thing labour can do is keep a far right Tory/Reform government out of power, so they need to deliver on far more than just transport.

The big question is industry reform. While it is relatively clear at structural level what is happening there, there is an awful lot of detail to work through.

The second big question is resolving the industry funding gap, as there is no more money.

The third big question is resolving the dispute(s).

That‘s plenty to be going on with.

 

[JonathanH]

The second big question is resolving the industry funding gap, as there is no more money.

Surely there will be a post-nationalisation bounce where all the people disaffected by privatisation return to the railway in big numbers because the money is no longer leaving the industry?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

The big question is industry reform. While it is relatively clear at structural level what is happening there, there is an awful lot of detail to work through.
The second big question is resolving the industry funding gap, as there is no more money.
The third big question is resolving the dispute(s).
That‘s plenty to be going on with.

Junior ministers at the DfT (Parliamentary Under-Secretaries) have been appointed today.
They are:
Simon Lightwood, MP for Wakefield and Rothwell, he was Shadow Minister for Local Transport in the old shadow cabinet
Lilian Greenwood, MP for Nottingham South, and former Chair of the Transport Select Committee (and before that Shadow SoS) with great knowledge of rail
Mike Kane, MP for Wythenshawe and Sale East

Department for Transport

We work with our agencies and partners to support the transport network that helps the UK’s businesses and gets people and goods travelling around the country. We plan and invest in transport infrastructure to keep the UK on the move. DfT is a ministerial department, supported by 23 agencies and...

www.gov.uk

Not all these will be involved with rail at the DfT, but you'd think a Hendy/Greenwood team would have a good look.

 

[507020]

The shadow cabinet has been announced

Helen Wateley is Shadow Transport Minister

This is the worst news I’ve heard all week. She is the one who started laughing hysterically at Piers Morgan when questioned about Covid deaths in 2020 and refused to stop laughing for the rest of the interview.

I didn’t realise that such an unserious and clueless person had managed to keep her seat on the night, with a 1500 majority no less and it’s such a shame that she will now surely find a way to detract from Louise’s good work through sheer incompetence.

 

[Backroom_boy]

Surely there will be a post-nationalisation bounce where all the people disaffected by privatisation return to the railway in big numbers because the money is no longer leaving the industry?

Satire?

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Junior ministers at the DfT (Parliamentary Under-Secretaries) have been appointed today.

Lilian Greenwood, MP for Nottingham South, and former Chair of the Transport Select Committee (and before that Shadow SoS) with great knowledge of rail

Great news

Department for Transport

We work with our agencies and partners to support the transport network that helps the UK’s businesses and gets people and goods travelling around the country. We plan and invest in transport infrastructure to keep the UK on the move. DfT is a ministerial department, supported by 23 agencies and...

www.gov.uk

Not all these will be involved with rail at the DfT, but you'd think a Hendy/Greenwood team would have a good look.

Absolutely - I am very pleased -I like and respect them both.

 

[jon0844]

This is the worst news I’ve heard all week. She is the one who started laughing hysterically at Piers Morgan when questioned about Covid deaths in 2020 and refused to stop laughing for the rest of the interview.

I didn’t realise that such an unserious and clueless person had managed to keep her seat on the night, with a 1500 majority no less and it’s such a shame that she will now surely find a way to detract from Louise’s good work through sheer incompetence.

Thankfully, the Tories are so dead and irrelevant now that I don't think they can say or do anything to influence politics for some time.

The Mail, Express, Telegraph etc are going to do their hardest to stop Labour of course. They'll perhaps do a little better.

 

[Thirteen]

I know this is Railforums but I do hope that Rail doesn't dominate the DfT too much, other forms of public transport and aviation need sorting as well.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

I know this is Railforums but I do hope that Rail doesn't dominate the DfT too much, other forms of public transport and aviation need sorting as well.

1. Restore bus routes
2. modal shift from lorries to rail
3. introduce tolls on heavy motorway sections
4. tax inter UK flights more heavily
5. start to claw back excise/road/ fuel duty/ tax on lorries that have been given an easy time over the last decade or so

 

[DynamicSpirit]

The ONLY way to get fares down is throw more money at the railway. That's literally it.

That's probably true to a very good approximation in the short run. In the long term though, you probably can do things to get costs per passenger down. Most obviously, if you can carry more passengers so the cost of maintaining all the infrastructure is amortized over more tickets sold. TfL is a good example of that: Charges relatively cheap fares with basically no subsidy and presumably the reason they can do that is passenger numbers are so high. Obviously you're not going to hit TfL levels in most of the country but there are plenty of other large cities where upfront investment could lead to greater passenger numbers and therefore more sustainable finances in the long term (plus *cough* HS2).

It's also possible that ending the balkanisation of the railways, with so many different companies, may help with costs too.

 

[Cross City]

1. Restore bus routes
2. modal shift from lorries to rail
3. introduce tolls on heavy motorway sections
4. tax inter UK flights more heavily
5. start to claw back excise/road/ fuel duty/ tax on lorries that have been given an easy time over the last decade or so

3. Just won't happen. People won't stand for it.

Add to that list:

• Trams in Leeds/Bradford and Bristol as well as a rapid expansion of the Midland Metro or even an underground line or two in Birmingham.
• I can see VED being changed to include electric vehicles before too long to account for the lost fuel duty income. Maybe they could base it on a combo of vehicle emissions and weight?
• MOT cycles reduced to 2 years for cars under 8 years old.
• Properly explore VLR in places like Coventry, Leicester, Stoke, Plymouth, Norwich, Brighton... Second tier cities if you will.
• Bangor-Stranraer road tunnel.
• Massive Heathrow expansion including proper underground rail station with connections to all over the country like Schiphol. This would lead to the closue of London City and a slimming down most certainly of Luton and Gatwick, and maybe Stansted. Ensure 20 tp/h service into London running Heathrow-CLJ-WAT-FST-Canary Wharf.

 

[Moderating team]

With all the appointments now made I think we can safely draw this discussion to a close. The next big thing for rail will be the Kings Speech next week.