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Concern grows over future of open access




A
group



which
lobbies
on
behalf
of
the
private
sector
is
urging
the
government
to
make
the
future
prospects
for
open
access
passenger
services
clear,
after
transport
secretary
Heidi
Alexander
warned
on
Monday
that
she
is
advising
the
Office
of
Rail
and
Road
to
‘ensure
that
the
benefits
provided
by
open
access
operators
outweigh
the
impacts
they
have
on
taxpayers’.



Until
now
new
operators
have
only
been
allowed
if
they
would
not
abstract
too
much
revenue
from
operators
with
government
contracts
and
provide
a
genuinely
new
service.
Train
paths
must
also
be
available.



Now
Ms
Alexander
wants
the
ORR
to
consider
the
differences
between
track
access
charges,
which
tend
to
be
lower
for
open
access
services,
and
the
fact
that
such
operators
benefit
from
public
investment
in
infrastructure.



Although
she
conceded
her
letter
was
only
advisory,
she
has
also
indicated
that
she
is
considering
changes
to
her
formal
guidance.



Since
renationalisation
of
the
former
franchises
was
confirmed,
transport
groups
have
been
anxious
to
lodge
open
access
applications.
Among
these,
Virgin
is
proposing
to
operate
as
many
as
35
trains
a
day
from
London
Euston
to
various
destinations,
and
FirstGroup
wants
to
run
new
Lumo
services
between
London
and
south
Devon.



Lobby
group
Rail
Partners,
which
has
also
opposed
general
renationalisation,
is
concerned
that
the
recent
enthusiasm
for
more
open
access
could
be
reversed.



Chief
executive
Andy
Bagnall
said:
‘The
last
18
months
have
been
a
breakthrough
period
for
open
access
operators
as
the
benefits
they
bring
to
customers
have
been
increasingly
recognised.
Open
access
operators
create
new
travel
opportunities
especially
for
underserved
communities,
support
economic
growth
and
encourage
a
shift
to
greener
transport
options.
They
also
promote
fares
competition
and,
importantly
for
taxpayers,
they
receive
no
government
subsidy.



‘Since
the
UK’s
general
election
in
July,
the
new
government
has
confirmed
its
support
for
open
access
operators
in
the
private
sector,
despite
its
rail
renationalisation
agenda.
It
is
a
very
positive
sign
that
the
Prime
Minister
personally
visited
the
Hitachi
factory
in
Newton
Aycliffe
to
support
a
deal
to
manufacture
new
trains
for
FirstGroup’s
open
access
services.



‘However,
despite
all
the
positive
developments
in
recent
months,
it
remains
unclear
whether
the
new
government
is
a
champion
of
open
access
operators,
or
it
is
simply
tolerating
them
as
part
of
the
system
that
is
too
costly
to
nationalise.
If
the
Government
doesn’t
make
a
positive
choice
to
grow
the
sector
through
adequate
safeguards
and
a
fairly-adjudicated
application
process,
it
will
effectively
be
creating
the
conditions
for
existing
operators
to
wither
on
the
vine.
The
Secretary
of
State’s
letter
to
the
ORR
this
week
is
a
worrying
signal.’



Meanwhile,
the
value
of
shares
in
FirstGroup
has
fallen
back
by
almost
3
per
cent
since
the
transport
secretary’s
letter
was
published
two
days
ago.

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