The
lobbying
group
Rail
Partners


has
made
a
new
bid
to
get
the
private
sector
more
involved
in
operating
passenger
railways.

The
group
has
already
campaigned
for
a
continuation
of
privately-owned
operators,
and
for
them
to
have
greater
commercial
freedom
than
they
have
under
current
National
Rail
Contracts.
Although
the
Government
appears
to
be
sympathetic,
the
Labour
Party
has
said
it
would
move
towards
a
‘publicly-owned
railway’
in
England
if
it
gains
power
at
the
next
General
Election.

The
Scottish
and
Welsh
operators
have
already
been
renationalised
by
the
devolved
governments,
while
three
previously-franchised
English
operators,
Southeastern,
Northern
and
TransPennine
Express,
have
also
been
returned
to
state
control.

LNER
was
set
up
as
a
nationalised
operator
from
the
start
in
2018
following
the
failure
of
the
Virgin
Trains
East
Coast
franchise,
which
was
mostly
owned
by
Stagecoach.

Rail
Partners
is
now
calling
for
more
open
access
operators
to
be
permitted,
such
as
Grand
Central,
Hull
Trains
and
Lumo.
The
Office
of
Rail
and
Road
has
already
approved
an
application
by
Grand
Union
Trains
to
operate
five
trains
a
day
between
London,
Cardiff
and
Carmarthen
from
December
2024,
although
Grand
Union
says
the
opening
date
is
yet
to
be
confirmed
because
it
is
in
talks
with
rolling
stock
suppliers.
Grand
Central
has
also
just
been
granted
permission
to
call
at
Peterborough
for
the
first
time.

Another
operator,
Wrexham
&
Shropshire,
had
to
close
in
early
2011
after
financial
problems.

Rail
industry
leaders
met
in
London
for
Rail
Partners’
Open
Access
Summit,
to
discuss
‘unlocking
the
potential
of
open
access
rail
operations’
within
Britain.
The
discussion
focused
on
how
to
encourage
new
open
access
services
and
how
to
remove
existing
barriers
to
prospective
entrants.

Yesterday’s
event
was
attended
by
rail
minister
Huw
Merriman,
who
Rail
Partners
described
as
‘a
longstanding
advocate
of
open
access
operations’.

Also
at
the
meeting
were
civil
servants
from
the
Department
for
Transport
and
the
Treasury.
They
were
joined
by
representatives
of
Network
Rail,
the
ORR,
existing
open
access
operators,
rolling
stock
leasing
companies,
third-party
ticket
retailers
and
many
of
the
owning
groups,
including
Arriva
Group,
FirstGroup,
Mitsui,
MTR,
Trenitalia
and
Transport
UK
(formerly
Abellio).

Rail
Partners
chief
executive
Andy
Bagnall
said:
‘Alongside
the
important
role
played
by
contracted
operators,
open
access
services
have
the
potential
to
deliver
really
tangible
benefits
for
passengers
and
communities
across
the
UK.

‘Currently,
the
system
is
not
set
up
to
fully
unlock
that
potential,
or
attract
new
entrants
into
the
market.
That’s
why
bringing
together
so
many
senior
industry
colleagues
to
work
together,
find
the
solutions,
and
remove
those
barriers
is
so
important,
and
we’re
optimistic
that
we
will
see
measures
to
support
open
access
in
the
near
future.’

Arriva
UK
Trains
managing
director
David
Brown
added:
‘Open-access
operators,
like
Arriva’s
Grand
Central,
are
of
vital
importance
to
our
railway,
driving
competition
and
innovation
at
the
same
time
as
connecting
areas
of
the
country
that
are
underserved
by
the
regular
timetable.

‘Today’s
summit
was
a
welcome
first-step
in
ensuring
the
role
of
open-access
operators
is
not
only
safeguarded
but
encouraged
to
grow.’