Fares ++ Regulated train fares in England and Wales have risen by an average of 5.9 per cent. The increase includes a significant cap, because last July’s RPI, which is the usual basis for the annual fare changes, was 12.3 per cent. Campaigners are calling for a discount of 20 per cent on Mondays and Fridays, which have become the quietest days of the traditional five day working week since the Covid-19 pandemic. Regulated fares include season tickets and some off-peak travel on long distance services. The increase affects National Rail in England and Wales, and Transport for London services. Reopening ++ The railway between Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Ashington is set to reopen to passenger trains next year, according to transport secretary Mark Harper. Trains to Newcastle will call at six accessible stations serving Ashington, Bedlington, Blyth Bebside, Newsham, Seaton Delaval and Northumberland Park. The journey time between Newcastle and Ashington will be halved, to 35 minutes. Trains will run seven days a week. Station scheme ++ Work has started on building a new station at Ashley Down, on the northern side of Bristol. The scheme is being funded by the West of England Combined Authority, which covers Bristol, Bath, North East Somerset and South Gloucestershire. The station will be served by trains between Bristol Temple Meads annd Filton Abbey Wood. These will continue to North Filton and Henbury when these stations are opened as part of the wider MetroWest project in Greater Bristol.

The Scottish Government’s decision to end Serco’s Caledonian Sleeper franchise on 25 June has been praised by some, but criticised by others. Scottish transport minister Jenny Gilruth told the Scottish Parliament yesterday afternoon that Serco�’s contract, which began in 2015, was being terminated, because the company had tried to renegotiate the deal on new terms which the government said ‘did not represent the best value for money’. She also said the decision not to continue the Serco franchise was ‘in no way a reflection on the quality of the product that has been developed, nor on the commitment of the staff who deliver this service every day’, and promised that the rights of the Sleeper employees would be protected when they moved to a new government-owned ‘arms-length’ company. Serco said it was ‘disappointed’. The managing director of its transport business John Whitehurst said a renewed award would have ‘allowed Scotland to benefit from the expertise of our Serco Transport senior management team who understand this complex and unique hospitality-focussed train operation like no-one else, while also enabling Scottish ministers to be in complete control of the contract’. He continued: ‘Most importantly, this would have allowed the Scottish government to compare the price of such an award with that of their arm's length operator of last resort company.’ He went to claim that Serco’s management had brought ‘massive improvements to every aspect of the service for our employees, our passengers and for Scotland, despite having made significant losses on the contract’. Scottish Conservatives were also critical, pointing to the deft recovery Caledonian Sleeper had made since the pandemic. Their spokesman Graham Simpson concluded: ‘There can be no conclusion other than that this is an ideological decision. Jenny Gilruth said nothing about how this world class service can be improved under the Scottish Government.’ Rail unions are in favour of the change. The RMT said it would provide an opportunity to ‘ensure this sustainable, low carbon route between Scotland and London can be run for passengers' interests, not private profit’. The drivers’ union ASLEF also supported the move but regretted that the Sleeper had not been recombined with ScotRail, which has already been nationalised since April last year. The Caledonian Sleeper was also the last privatised rail operating contract in Britain to be described as a ‘franchise’. When Grant Shapps was transport secretary he formally abolished all the English franchises in September 2020, replacing them with alternative contracts.

Caledonian Sleeper is to pass into public ownership when the present Serco contract ends in June. Transport minister Jenny Gilruth has announced the decision to MSPs at Holyrood. She said that management of the Caledonian Sleeper will pass to an arms-length company owned by the Scottish Government on 25 June. She also criticised the pace of railway reform in England, saying that the London government is 'not going far enough', and that it was 'very unclear' when the changes proposed in the Williams-Shapps report, which recommends the creation of the guiding mind Great British Railways, will come about. She confirmed that the terms and conditions of the employment of sleeper staff would be protected when they are transferred to the state-owned company.

The future of sleeper services between Scotland and London is set to be decided today, when transport minister Jenny Gilruth makes a statement to the Scottish Parliament. The government decided last year not to extend or renew Serco’s contract to operate the Sleeper, which expires on 23 June. On 5 October Jenny Gilruth said: ‘Serco Caledonian Sleepers Limited has been advised that its proposal to rebase the Franchise Agreement with Scottish Ministers has been rejected on the grounds of not representing value for money to the public. ‘Additionally, I can confirm that a notice was served today which confirms that the Scottish Ministers will terminate the Franchise Agreement with Serco Caledonian Sleepers Limited on 25 June 2023. ‘Work is underway to determine arrangements for the continued provision of Caledonian Sleeper rail services. It is worth noting that Serco Caledonian Sleepers Limited has, broadly, delivered well and significantly improved Caledonian Sleeper services over the last 7 years.’ The statement is due after 14.00 today.

Underground strike ++ Members of the RMT are joining ASLEF in a 24-hour strike on 15 March, which is Budget day. The unions are in dispute with Transport for London over jobs, pensions and contracts. The RMT said that staff ‘deserve decent pensions, job security and good working conditions’, but TfL denied that pension changes were on the table, adding that ‘We want to make London Underground a better place to work so we urge ASLEF and the RMT to call off this damaging strike’. Most train operators on the Underground are members of ASLEF, while RMT’s membership includes station staff. Freight trains ++ Rail Partners, which lobbies on behalf of the private sector, has unveiled new research into the prospects for freight on trains. The group says if the government sets an ‘ambitious’ target to treble the amount of rail freight by 2050, the economic benefits would be almost £5.2 billion a year and replace 20 million lorry journeys annually. Rail Partners, whose members include the five largest freight operators, is quoting conclusions by the environmental data analysis consultants Aether, the Logistics Institute at the University of Hull and Railfreight Consulting. Eastern promise ++ Rail investment in the East is not keeping pace with the economic, social and environmental needs of the region according the regional partnership Transport East. It has published a report, ‘State of Rail in the East’, which highlights poor connections, particularly between Norwich and Ipswich, and Cambridge and Peterborough. It adds that trains are slow, compared with services on other main lines, leading to longer journeys. Frequencies are also poor, especially on local lines serving smaller communities, and to Stansted Airport. Rail degrees ++ Aston University is inviting former students to get in touch to help it to celebrate 50 years of transport education. Transport studies at Aston began in 1973, when the subject appeared as part of a combined honours degree course. The first transport students graduated in 1976. In 1982 the course became a degree in its own right and 40 years later the university is still teaching the transport professionals of the future.

The chief executive of the independent watchdog Transport Focus Anthony Smith is leaving after 25 years. Transport Focus was created by the 1947 Transport Act, when it was known as the Central Transport Consultative Committee. At privatisation it became the Rail Users’ Consultative Committee, and then Passenger Focus in 2006.  Its responsibilities were widened in 2014 to cover road users, including pedestrians and cyclists, and it then gained its current title. It had also begun to represent bus and tram passengers outside London in 2008.Anthony Smith has seen the last quarter century of these developments. He said: ‘This has been a very personal decision but it is time the organisation had some fresh leadership. I’m proud to have been part of the evolution and development of Transport Focus, working with the fantastic team here to make sure transport users’ voice is kept at the heart of decision-making.’Transport Focus chair Nigel Stevens added: ‘Anthony has dedicated almost 25 years to representing transport users. Transport Focus has become a trusted voice on their behalf, advocating in their interest and holding transport operators to account. The Board and colleagues are grateful for the commitment, leadership and passion Anthony has provided through a period of great change. He will leave Transport Focus in a strong position to face the challenges ahead.’

Dispute ends ++ The white-collar TSSA union has accepted a two-year pay deal from 14 train operators in England, bringing the prospect of further strikes by more than 3,000 of its members to an end. The offer is worth a 5 per cent increase or a minimum increase of £1,750 whichever is the greater in year 1, and a further 4 per cent increase in year 2. Compulsory redundancies are ruled out until the end of next year, but the Voluntary Redundancy Scheme will continue. Although the dispute is over, the union said it will continue to oppose ticket office closures. The Rail Delivery Group said the settlement is a ‘positive breakthrough’, and the Department for Transport agreed, adding that the decision involved reforms which were ‘vital’ to get the railway ‘back on a financially sustainable footing’. However, the TSSA warned that it would ‘continue to hold the train companies and the government to account as we go forward because Britain needs a fully functioning rail network at the heart of our green industrial future, and as a means of rebuilding our economy in the wake of the Covid pandemic.’ Meanwhile, four more RMT walkouts still set to be staged on on 16, 18 and 30 March, and 1 April. Metro vandalism ++ The first new train for Tyne & Wear Metro was daubed by graffiti vandals before it reached Tyneside. The unit has been built by Stadler in Switzerland, and arrived in Britain via the Channel Tunnel. Metro operator Nexus said the damage had been done somewhere in southern England, because the defaced train was seen passing through Peterborough on its way north. Nexus said: ‘This kind of pointless vandalism is sadly part of modern life,’ and that the graffiti would be removed at the new Gosforth depot.

The delayed Luton DART line, a people mover connecting Luton Airport Parkway on the Midland Main Line with London Luton Airport, is expected to have a ‘soft’ launch on 10 March, with full services set to follow ‘around the end of March’. The DART was visited by the King on 6 December, an event which recalled the previous visit to the area by his mother the late Queen, when she opened Luton Airport Parkway station in 1999. When the new link has opened fully, the existing bus link between the station and airport will be withdrawn. Luton Airport Parkway is served by two fast East Midlands Railway services from St Pancras International each hour, as well as Thameslink trains. From 10 March, the council-owned airport company Luton Rising expects that the people mover will run for about four hours a day, in preparation for a 24-hour service from the end of the month, and the opinions of passengers will be invited. The single fare will be £4.90, compared with £2.50 on the bus. A council spokesman said: ‘The fare is based on independent assessment and sound rationale, reflecting the value of time saved and convenience and the quality of what we are providing compared to what went before.’ Until the end of March, passengers who have a ticket for the existing bus transfer will be invited to take the DART at no additional charge. The cost of the project has risen from a planned £225 million to £300 million, and the opening will come two years later than originally planned. Luton Borough Council leader Cllr Hazel Simmons said: ‘The Luton DART is one of the biggest infrastructure projects ever undertaken in Luton and promises to put our town and our airport firmly on the map for all the right reasons. Electrically-powered, energy-efficient, and future-proofed to support sustainable growth of the airport, it is a vital sign of our commitment to encourage more passengers to take the train rather than individual car journeys to and from our airport.’

Regulated rail fares in Wales will rise by 5.9 per cent next month, in line with the change in England. The Welsh Government has blamed the ‘disappointing’ budget settlement from the UK government, saying that it meant a fares freeze or even a lower rise could not be funded. In a written statement, deputy minister for climate change Lee Walters said: ‘We understand this is a significant increase for passengers in the current cost of living crisis but we have tried to keep the increase as low as possible. Unfortunately given the disappointing budget settlement from the UK Government we cannot afford to deliver a lower increase or a wholescale freeze of rail fares in Wales. ‘Our budget settlement from the UK Government, combined with a reduced farebox income post pandemic, means we face some difficult choices if we are to maintain the current level of provision of rail services in Wales.’ Around 45 per cent of fares are regulated. They include season tickets, some off peak returns on longer journeys and some Anytime fares. They are grouped into ’baskets’, and the 5.9 per cent increase will be applied to the total of these baskets from 5 March. The result is that individual fares may go up, while others will stay the same and some could be reduced. Lee Walters continued: ‘We recognise rail fares are far more complicated for passengers than they need to be. That is why we have asked Transport for Wales to deliver simple, integrated ticketing to help make public transport easier and more affordable. In addition, despite the challenging financial position, Transport for Wales are retaining a range of cheaper fares for passengers, including free travel for children when they travel with a fare paying adult. ‘Despite the constraints to our budget we are continuing our £800 million investment on brand new trains as well as improvements to passenger facilities and comfort. These new trains are coming into operation now and we are confident that they will encourage more people to use rail.’ Meanwhile, Northern has attributed a fall in the number of penalty fares to last month’s increase on National Rail from £20 to £100. The operator, which is nationalised, said the number of people travelling without tickets or a similar authority had come down by 10 per cent to 3,831 during the first month of the higher charge. Commercial and customer director Mark Powles said: ‘A sudden 10 per cent reduction in the number of penalty fares being issued would suggest the increase to £100 has been effective in terms of a deterrent. Of course, this is only the first month, but it is definitely a step in the right direction.’

Service restored ++ Two railways in southern England damaged by landslips have been repaired by Network Rail, and both are set to reopen this week. Services between Oxford and Worcester have been restored this morning after a landslip on 10 February at Yarnton near Oxford, which demolished a wing wall of a bridge over the railway. Further landslips continued nearby, and the railway between Oxford and Kingham had to be closed. A more serious landslip near Hook in Surrey on 14 January meant that two of the four lines were blocked when their foundations collapsed, and services have continued to be disrupted. Network says normal services should be running again on Friday. Southern contract ++ Network Rail has chosen four partners for an alliance to carry out the Southern Region’s £9 billion programme of renewals over the next 10 years. The companies named are VolkerFitzpatrick, for buildings and civils, Octavius for electrification and plant, VolkerRail for track and Atkins for signalling. The arrangement will cover Control Period 7, from next year until 2029, and Control Period 8 from 2029 to 2034. The renewals budget for CP7 is not yet decided, because Network Rail is still discussing the final settlement with the rail regulator. Pier strengthened ++ The line along Ryde pier on the Isle of Wight should reopen this spring, after work to strengthen the 686m Victorian structure had been delayed by winter weather. Network Rail had closed the pier in October last year. The strengthening is part of a wider programme of maintenance and improvements on the pier. South Western Railway will soon begin platform improvements at Ryde Esplanade as well as track maintenance as part of the joint project.