Government calls halt on CrossCountry franchise bidding

Chris Grayling, Transport Secretary in the UK, has launched a review into Britain's railways.

The review is the most significant since privatisation and will consider recommendations for reform to ensure the rail system is benefiting the passengers. It will be led by Keith Williams, who will be the independent chair.

Keith Williams will be supported by an external panel and will produce a report next year. The government will then publish a white paper on the recommendations given by the review, with implementations starting from 2020.

The panel will consider all parts of the rail industry, from the current franchising system to value for money for passengers and taxpayers.

Privatisation has led to growth never seen under nationalisation. It has also reveresed the decline in routes shown in British Rail.

Passenger journeys have more than doubled, from 735 million in 1994-5 to 1.73 billion in 2016-17.

However, the rail industry has unfortunately not kept up this pace, as shown in the struggle to deliver trains for passengers following the May timetable change.

While the review is taking place, the government will continue with its programme of investment.

The review will focus on:

• leveraging the commercial model to ensure improved services for passengers and taxpayers, and more effectively balance public and private sector involvement
• the roles and structures of all parts of the industry, looking at how they can work together more effectively to reduce fragmentation, improve passenger services and increase accountability
• how the railway can support a fares system that delivers value for money for passengers and taxpayers; and improved industrial relations to maintain performance for passengers

While the review is on going, the department will be working closely with the rail industry to make sure that day to day service is delivered.

The department has also reviewed all ongoing franchise competitions and other live rail projects. Due to the unique geographic nature of the Cross Country franchise, which runs from Aberdeen to Penzance and cuts across multiple parts of the railway, awarding the franchise in 2019 could impact on the review's conclusions.

It has therefore been decided that this competition will not proceed. Services will continue to be operated by the the Arriva group. The department will consider the responses to the Cross Country public consultation in the development of future options for the franchise.

All other ongoing franchise competitions and other live rail projects are continuing as planned.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said:

Privatisation has delivered huge benefits to passengers on Britain's railways — doubling passenger journeys and bringing in billions of private investment.

But it is clear that the structure we inherited is no longer fit to meet today's challenges and cope with increasing customer demand. Following the disruption this summer we took immediate action to improve services and ensure the industry compensated passengers.

We've been clear that the railway needs reform to prioritise its passengers, and we have set out plans for closer partnerships between operators of track and train, including on the LNER and South Eastern networks.

But as part of our vision for the future of mobility, we need to go further and more quickly, to get the best from the public and private sectors and deliver the railway we need for the 21st century. It is vital that this review leaves no stone unturned and makes bold recommendations for the future.

I am delighted that Keith Williams — who has significant experience leading businesses within the transport sector — has agreed to be the independent chair of this review. His expertise in driving customer service excellence will be incredibly valuable as we seek to reform the rail industry to become more passenger focused.

Keith Williams said:

It's clear that Britain's railway has seen unprecedented growth and is carrying more passengers than it did a century ago on a network a fraction of the size. But it also clear it faces significant challenges.

I am looking forward to working with the industry and passengers to tackle these challenges.

Responding to the House of Commons Transport Select Committee report on the Intercity East Coast franchise, Paul Plummer, CEO of the Rail Delivery Group, who represent the public and private partnership that forms the rail industry, said:

“This report has some important recommendations around how franchises are awarded and managed. We believe these should be looked at as part of an independent review of the whole sector that leads to root and branch reform of how rail services are delivered for the benefit of customers and taxpayers.”

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