***Both Peter Aldridge and Robert Marrill, Head of Customer Services and Operations at HSBC Rail have been seen shopping for new lawn mowers***
ScotRail is keen to talk to anyone at HSBC about funding for their nemesis trains.
The Big Grin used yesterday's Prime Minister's Questions to hint that he has something revolutionary and exciting up his sleeve for the railway industry!
Norman Baker (Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Transport; Lewes, Liberal Democrat)
As a Scottish MP, the Prime Minister will have noticed the strong success of the recently reopened railway between Stirling and Alloa, where passenger numbers are currently three times greater than the projected figure for 2011, and the reopened line to Ebbw Vale in Wales is similarly a success story. If reopening lines in Scotland and Wales makes such good economic sense, why has the Department for Transport ruled out, despite the strong social and environmental case, reopening lines in England, such as the line from Lewes to Uckfield?
Gordon Brown (Prime Minister; Kirkcaldy & Cowdenbeath, Labour)
Last year, we said that we want to double the capacity of the existing network, which includes the whole of the United Kingdom. We have invited Network Rail to examine options for supporting further growth, which might include new lines and electrification. The hon. Gentleman will find that Network Rail and the Government are looking at those issues. I also hope that he acknowledges that we have committed £10 billion to increasing capacity over the next five years, which will result in the single biggest increase in capacity for a generation, 1,300 new carriages and funding for major projects in all parts of the country. We are honouring our commitment to the railways of this country, which is why more people are using the railways than at any time since the 1940s.
So the Government is committed to doubling the capacity of the network and has instructed Network Rail to look at options for further growth which, in the PM's words might include new lines and electrification.
If it doesn't include new lines and electrification then what precisely does the PM have in mind? Perhaps one of our Westminster readers could seek clarification....
The current turbulence in the world's financial markets has not left the Rolling Stock Leasing Companies unscathed.
With the price of capital soaring little new business is being written.
Earlier this month RBS managed to flog Angel Trains to a consortium led by Babcock and Brown for £3.6bn. The deal did nothing to restore market confidence in BB whose share price continued in free fall and is now worth 30% of its start of year value.
Meanwhile over at Porterbrook the world's 'Oldest Active Data Room' has received yet another spring clean as Banco Santander plays host to the latest bidder undertaking due diligence on the Derby based firm.
Only at HSBC does all appear quiet.
Indeed, so much so that MD Peter Aldridge is reported to be looking "very relaxed".
Should anyone see Peter purchasing a new lawn mower at B&Q please could they let the Fact Compiler know.
Oh dear - is ageing satirical magazine Private Eye loosing the plot?
The latest issue has a story by Gavel Basher on "worth every penny" PR and lobbying agency Golden Arrow Communications.
As Basher warms to his theme (the general uselessness of former Ministers as lobbyists) he keeps insisting that both "National Express and GNER" are Golden Arrow clients.
Whoops - as any fule kno GNER ceased to require lobbying services on 9th December 2007 when the East Coast Mainline franchise was transferred to errr... National Express!
Sloppy of Basher not to check his story with the Eye's resident railway expert Dr B Ching.
***Short staffed and under pressure crew on an Arriva XC Leeds to Soton service this morning were delighted when ISS manager Margaret rolled up her sleeves and helped serve at seat refreshments to first class passengers.***
A nice example of partnership at work.
Media sections in yesterday's papers reported the likely demise of The London Paper, Murdoch's Standard spoiler.
Despite denials today from News International such a development couldn't come soon enough for London Underground, which has to get shot of thousands of copies left strewn around trains and stations each day.
As well as cleaning up the system, improving Customer Satisfaction Survey scores and reducing a potential fire risk, the demise of one of London's three evening newsheets would save TfL a small fortune in litter picking costs.
Fingers are crossed at 55 Broadway that Associated will also merge Standard Lite and The Evening Standard into one paper.
The Fact Compiler understands that BoJo can see the PR benefits of a cleaner looking Tube and has instructed his minions to help Lord Rothermere make the right decision...
A rail gourmet rants:
08:30 Kings X to Newcastle - No chef
09:00 Kings X to Edinburgh - Chef but no food!
The Fact Compiler wonders whether NEEC might also struggle to combine a brewery and a piss up?
Rail Minister Tom Harris had a difficult end to his week on Friday when there was quite a media brouhaha over his blog question demanding why Britons are "so bloody miserable".
The Fact Compiler fears that he must add to his woes by drawing attention to an extraordinary written reply he gave last Thursday to a Parliamentary question on rolling stock.Stephen Hammond (Shadow Minister, Transport; Wimbledon, Conservative): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) locomotives, (b) multiple units, (c) freight wagons and (d)carriages were in use on the rail network in the most recent period for which figures are available, broken down by (i) train operating company and (ii) class.
Tom Harris (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Transport; Glasgow South, Labour): This information is not held by the Department for Transport, but is widely available in the specialist press.
***Letter from The Business Editor, Rail***
Dear Fact Compiler
I enjoyed your analysis of last week's story about NR and its look at new lines. But the passage "The story emerged on Friday, not from within the notoriously leaky railway community, but via political sources in the Westminster village. Industry commentators, even the very well informed, were caught completely unawares..." should be compared with this extract from RAIL magazine "Network Rail is set to launch a major inquiry into when and where Britain needs new railways, whether conventional or high-speed."
The magazine's subscribers received these words on June 14 and the legions of readers who prefer to stand in WH Smiths every other Wednesday should also have not been surprised to hear the story two days later on the BBC.
Just so you know, no wish to blow own trumpet etc...
yours
Philip Haigh
Business Editor
RAIL Magazine
The Fact Compiler is just popping down to WH Smiths...
There was a time when this Gentleman was so far to the left that the photographer would have had to be in the Guard's van to get his picture.
Happily age has mellowed him and he has now traded in his Trotskyite membership for that of the British Empire (as awarded in The Queen's birthday honours list for "Services to the rail industry").
Do you know who it is yet?
Answers on a postcard to
Dr Paul Salveson MBE
Head of Government and Community Strategies
Northern Rail Ltd
PO Box 208
Leeds LS1 2BU
Who stands to benefit from today's leak that Network Rail is to undertake a review into the construction of five new main lines?
Not Network Rail which is struggling with its obligations to maintain and renew the existing network. Were NR to conclude that more lines are required then it is unlikely it would be able to undertake such labour and capital intensive projects itself.
Nor the TOCs who would much rather the infrastructure owner addressed current capacity constraints through incremental upgrades (additional junctions and doubling of track) or infill electrification to allow better utilisation of scarce rolling stock.
Perhaps the greatest surprise of all is that this major review isn't being led by the Department for Transport which, after all, is responsible for transport strategy. More importantly it would fall to the DfT to steer any resulting schemes through Parliament and secure funding from a reluctant Treasury (which still hasn't stumped up for Crossrail yet).
The story emerged on Friday, not from within the notoriously leaky railway community, but via political sources in the Westminster village. Industry commentators, even the very well informed, were caught completely unawares.
The timing of the leak was telling, it followed the damning speech made by Chris Bolt on Thursday, in which he lambasted the industry for a lack of strategic vision and declared that the Office of Rail Regulation would now produce its own long term strategy to fill the gap.
By getting Network Rail to undertake this White Elephant of an exercise Ministers will achieve a number of aims.
Firstly they can spike ORR's guns by pretending that work on a long term strategy is just about to begin.
Secondly they can suppress calls for incremental capacity increases and infill electrification by making these subordinate to the results of this massive study.
Finally, it will effectively bury High Speed 2 - the proposed high speed route that will link London to the West Midlands and which has broad industry support. With todays announcement that five high speed lines are to be evaluated the industry consensus on HS2 will dissolve in a frenzy of self destructive self interest.
As if proof were needed of the cynicism of this exercise today's leak claimed that NR will review two options to Birmingham one alongside the West Coast Main Line the other alongside the Chiltern route. Thus setting even local supporters of HS2 against one another.
Sir Humphrey and his masters must be very pleased with the way yesterday's fag packet idea has been portrayed by the media today as a major development in railway policy !
BASEL (Reuters) - Switzerland's national railway has told its workers to stop using their normal orange reflective vests after confused Dutch football fans started following them on to the tracks.
A railway spokesman said the changed strip had been prompted by an incident in the Swiss capital Berne when a group of Netherlands supporters followed a worker on to the lines after mistaking his uniform for their traditional orange dress.
"We have now given out yellow vests to all our staff who have to work on or cross the tracks in Basel, where the Dutch fans are now based," Oliver Tamas said on Friday.
Heritage Railways are suffering from rising fuel prices.
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway has threatened to reduce services as a growing number of its 400 volunteers cannot afford to travel long distances to help operate the 24-mile route between Pickering and Whitby.
Read the Yorkshire Post article here
To paraphrase Holy Writ - "Can anything good come out of Porterbrook"?
Bucking the trend is Keith Rose, former Head of Safety at the ROSCO, who has become the new Chairman of the Railway Mission.
The Fact Compiler has a great fondness for the Railway Padres who have maintained a continuous pastoral presence, available to passengers and staff alike, on Britain's railways since 1881.
The mission's founding objective is to further “the moral and spiritual advancement of railway employees of all ages”. A role they continue today.
Keith is from the Evangelical tradition so, despite his elevation, those who meet him are advised not to try and kiss his ring.
Transport minister Tom Harris has apologised for asking why Britons are 'so bloody miserable'.
In his blog post titled 'Heaven knows we're miserable now', Mr Harris said:
"There are more two-car homes in Britain today than there are homes without a car at all. We live longer, eat healthier (if we choose), have better access to forms of entertainment never imagined a generation ago (satellite TV, DVD, computer games), the majority of us have fast access to the worldwide web, which we use to enable even more spending and for entertainment.
Crime is down.
" So why is everyone so bloody miserable?"
Mr Harris told BBC radio, " If you read the full article I hope you'll understand that what I'm trying to do is actually make a serious point.
" Even if I accept that phrase 'why is everyone so bloody miserable' - I wrote that in a humorous vein - I understand that if people want to take that as offensive, I apologise, that maybe it should have been phrased differently."
The Fact Compiler suspects the Rail Minister was thinking of rail passengers who continue to be bloody miserable ingrates despite the Government's investment of billions of pounds in the railways, 1,300 new vehicles, Crossrail, Thameslink, WCML upgrade, PPP... (cont p94...)
Chris Bolt today announced that the Office of Rail Regulation would produce its own strategy for the railways.
Predicting record growth and growing role for the railways Bolt declared "At present, the industry lacks a clear vision of how it will meet that challenge. It does not have in place longer-term plans to transform the railways to meet increasing demand and service expectations. It needs to start to address this now, working in partnership.
"For our part, as the safety and economic regulator of Britain's railways, we will be reviewing how we can better contribute to the necessary transformation, and publishing our own strategy later this year." said Chris Bolt.
What a depressing day. The industry's economic and safety regulator has to tell DafT, NR and ATOC that they're not up to the job of planning for our future!
It is well known that the Welsh Assembly Government and Arriva Trains Wales work closely together. But it took the press to discover quite how closely.
The Western Mail reports today that Tim Bell, MD of Arriva Trains Wales lives with a certain Alison Teague.
Ms Teague, when not living with Mr Bell, is tasked by the Welsh Assembly Government with monitoring the finance and performance of Mr Bell's franchise (ATW).
Defending the slightly unusual arrangement the TOC said “Arriva Trains Wales understands that the Welsh Assembly Government was made aware of this matter when Tim Bell was appointed managing director and has put processes into place to avoid potential conflict of interest.”.
So that's all right then.
***Determined not to be caught out by ORR again, Iain Coucher has summoned TOC owner groups to a meeting on the 1st July to discuss CP5 ! ***
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