Much disappointment amongst the curmudgeons of the rail industry!
Eye understands from a number of RDG Associate Members that they actually received an email from the new Director General, containing a letter from RDG Chairman Tim O'Toole, explaining today's changes!
Okay, it might have arrived after the press release... but any direct communication is a big step in the right direction!
This from Lilian Greenwood MP, Labour’s Shadow Rail Minister...
“This announcement underlines the case for further reform. The Rail Delivery Group is not fully representative of the wider rail industry and it is lacking in transparency, despite its increasing influence over Government policy.
“Ministers must now ensure essential decisions that affect passengers are subject to proper levels of scrutiny, not hidden away behind a cloak of commercial confidentiality.”
Looks like the new RDG communications and policy teams will be busy...
This from the Rail Delivery Group...
RAIL INDUSTRY CREATES UNIFIED VOICE
Network Rail, train operating companies and freight operating companies have agreed the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) will assume responsibility for policy formulation and communications on behalf of the rail industry.
To advance this objective, the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) will combine its communications and policy functions with complementary resources from Network Rail and support from other RDG members, to operate in future for the RDG as a whole. Michael Roberts, ATOC’s chief executive, becomes the director general of the RDG, succeeding Graham Smith who has stepped down from the role.
The creation of an expanded executive team will strengthen the RDG’s capabilities to develop policies which benefit rail users and taxpayers, and enable it to provide the railway with a unified voice.
The combination of resources from ATOC and Network Rail also signals the RDG’s intent to work increasingly in partnership and with common purpose, mirroring developments elsewhere in the industry.
Commenting on the changes, Tim O’Toole, RDG chairman and chief executive of FirstGroup plc, said: “Britain's railways have been transformed over the past 20 years, delivering record levels of growth and performance. Greater coordination among the train operators, freight companies and Network Rail is the next logical step for the industry to evolve to the next stage of capability. The combination of ATOC resources with Network Rail will provide clear, unified leadership for the industry and ensure it is best placed to build on its unmatched record of success."
Sir David Higgins, RDG deputy chairman and Network Rail chief executive, said: “A better railway brings significant economic and social benefits to passengers, taxpayers and the public. The industry's commitment to work more closely is delivering real improvements to safety, service quality and efficiency. A more effective, better resourced, RDG will help us achieve more for those we serve."
Michael Roberts, RDG director general, said: “The new arrangements are an exciting opportunity to work even more closely with colleagues across the industry. The team and I very much look forward to supporting group members in their passion to drive forward solutions that benefit passengers, freight users and taxpayers.”
Notes to editors:
1. The RDG was established in May 2011 to lead the industry in delivering a higher performing, more cost effective and sustainable rail network for Britain's rail users and taxpayers. Formation of the RDG was a specific recommendation in Sir Roy McNulty’s rail value for money study, published in May 2011.
2. The RDG brings together the chief executives of passenger operator owning groups, freight operator owning groups and Network Rail. The RDG develops policies, strategies and plans for the coherent management of the rail industry and advances the provision of a safe, efficient, high quality rail service for users and taxpayers.
3. ATOC’s corporate affairs and policy teams will no longer work solely on behalf of train operating companies but, combined with staff seconded from Network Rail and support from other RDG members, will operate in future on behalf of the RDG as a whole. The two teams will consist of 18 people in total and will be based at 200 Aldersgate Street, London, EC1A 4HD (ATOC’s existing offices).
4. The current ATOC business services teams will continue under Michael Roberts to run National Rail Enquiries, Rail Settlement Plan, Rail Staff Travel and the Commercial, Operations and Engineering schemes. The governance arrangements and bodies for the individual schemes will remain unchanged: they will be complemented by ATOC Board which will continue but change its main focus from policy to ensuring a co-ordinated approach to business service provision. Tom Smith will step down as independent chairman of the ATOC Board by the end of the year.
ENDS
And about the Supply Chain? Not a word!
A very odd hashtag in this tweet from the DfT...
Former Eurostar platform opens to improve commuter services at Waterloo http://t.co/5pFKCmXdTU #globalrace pic.twitter.com/PvTverYFkz
— Dept for Transport (@transportgovuk) October 23, 2013
This from PR Week...
Virgin Trains and Fishburn Hedges' successful campaign to save the brand's rail franchise has won Campaign of the Year at the PRWeek Awards 2013.
Inevitable and well deserved.
This is almost too good not to share!
Overheard recently in a coffee shop on Horseferry Road...
"DG Rail is extremely bright and definitely going places, we just have to wait until she does".
A higher recommendation you could not possibly receive.
Evidently waves are being made.
Carry on... please!
So farewell to the final remnant of the former British Rail International.
This from Travel Weekly...
European train ticket firm Rail Europe is being rebranded under the name Voyages-sncf.com.
The UK arm will join the French National Railways tour operating division and take its name by the end of the year.
Services currently dedicated to the UK travel trade will become part of a single Europe-wide offering, Voyages-sncf.eu.
Another UK railway brand bites the dust.
Another gem from the new railway minister...
Mrs Gillan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent estimate he has
made of the total number of passengers travelling between Birmingham
and (a) Manchester, (b) Leeds and (c) Wigan by rail during an average week day.
Stephen Hammond:
Though some estimates for journeys such as these have been produced for
departmental purposes, these estimates are not available for
publication as the underlying data belong to the train operators and are
considered commercially confidential.
Presumably this is civil service speak for can't be @rsed.
UPDATE: This from JH...
Presumably
this applies to all TOC's on all lines.
If so, where does HS2 Ltd get the
"current" data to use as a base?
A clearly contrite Wolmar writes...
"Oh dear, oh dear!
"I just broke the rule of a lifetime and said ‘do you now know who I am?’
"A FGW press officer returning my call about the absence of wi-fi on its trains, first made the mistake of calling me ‘Chris’ a name I have never answered to, and then he said, ‘where are you calling from?’
"I very rudely replied that I had only been writing a column for Rail magazine for nearly 20 years but perhaps he did not read it and then uttered the fateful words...
"Can I be forgiven?"
Quite so Chris. Perhaps you can let us know where you are from, so we can see if Eye can help...
UPDATE: This from Captain Deltic, who is never knowingly out contritioned...
That is nothing.
This morning I have called RVEL of Derby, REVEL in my e-Preview blog (is that a plug? Ed) and promptly corrected it to REVL in a follow up e-mail to the over 2500 subscribers (that's enough plugs Deltic! Ed).
And I also got the loco class number, which I saw being worked on by RVEL, wrong.
Can anyone beat that?
Are
you a railway journalist of international standing? And would you like
to participate in Eye's very own Chapter of Faults? If so please email
the usual address...
Through the bullsh1t and bluster there appeared a great light...
Newsnight's shock revelations that #HS2 will benefit some areas and not others will go directly into my "No shit, Sherlock" folder.
— James Gleave (@jamesgleave1) October 19, 2013
So farewell Graham Smith, the man who acted as midwife to the mighty Rail Delivery Group!
Graham steps down as Director General of RDG today, after two and a half years in the job and prior to that spending a year supporting the Rail Value for Money study.
Not one to go quietly into the night Graham's renewed focus will be on the Railway Benefit Fund, where he will set up a central fund-raising group concentrating on encouraging corporate donations and contributions from the major players in the industry.
Owner Groups and suppliers can expect knocks on the door where Graham will deliver a pointed message encouraging those who profit from the industry to put something back for those employees that have fallen on hard times.
And quite right too!
With bags of experience Eye suspects that a number of people will also be knocking at the door of Albany Smith Management.
However, Graham assures Eye that he will not be taking commissions, although: "if somebody wants me to help them on other things and it's something that interests me I'll consider it".
Quite so, you can't keep a good consultant down...
Exciting news of rebellion from deep within the state owned monolith that is East Coast!
According to Peter Williams, East Coast commercial director, in an interview in Management Today:
‘A lot of people will say East Coast is a model for how public sector-run companies can be successful,’ he told MT.
‘Personally,
it’s quite funny sitting here watching conversations take place about
what is the right thing to do. But if you look at the individuals behind
DOR’s success, the management team are all from the private sector.'
Quite so.
East Coast's success is, therefore, all the more impressive with so little nationalised experience amongst DOR's 'management team':
Michael Holden, Chief Executive Officer, & Non-executive Chairman of East Coast Main Line Company Limited
Michael Holden has extensive experience in managing railways and railway projects within the UK and Europe. He started his early career with British Rail as a traffic student in 1974...
Doug Sutherland, Chairman
Doug Sutherland is a chartered management accountant... In 1995 he moved to the public sector, initially as managing director finance for North of Scotland Water and then managing director finance and commercial for the Strategic Rail Authority... .
Andy Cope, Non-executive director
Andy Cope is a Chartered Engineer who started work as an apprentice with the Birmingham Division of British Rail in 1972...
David Walker, Finance Director
David Walker is a Fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants, who started his career with the National Coal Board...
Rob Mason, Non-executive director
Robert Mason has over 30 years’ experience in the rail industry... In the run up to privatisation, Rob was the British Rail Director of Privatisation Studies...
Each and every one of them unsullied by public sector taint!
So on which precise date does Private-Sector-Year-Zero begin at DOR?
Not sure what sort of raptor this is meant to be, located atop the entrance to the ladies' loos at Marylebone...
Time for an exciting new Eye feature!
Hammond Eggs records the searing insights of the latest member of the ministerial transport team to take responsibility for rail.
This from a written answer on the 14th October:
Christopher Pincher (Tamworth, Conservative)
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the contribution of open-access operators on the East Coast Main Line in support of the franchised operator.
Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon, Conservative)
The impacts of open access operation have been assessed against three criteria: (a) performance; (b) network utilisation; and (c) revenue of the InterCity East Coast franchise.
(a) Open access operators on the east coast route have typically delivered lower levels of performance than the franchised operator, in part because one of them operates relatively old diesel trains;
(b) Open access operation has had no material adverse impact on network utilisation, although the constraints on platform occupancy at Kings Cross, in particular, and Doncaster, to a lesser extent, have complicated operations at those two stations;
(c) Open access operators have generally tended to abstract revenue from the franchised operator. Furthermore, where bidders in the forthcoming InterCity East Coast franchise competition perceive a risk of additional open access competition causing further abstraction, they are likely to offer lower bids.
No sources cited of course.
Good to see that Stephen Hammond (of all people) is happy to repeat the prejudices of his civil servant masters (is this right? Ed).
As usual that old 'abstraction' canard gets an airing - perhaps Pete Wilkinson (Director Franchising and late of Renaissance Trains) can explain to Mr Hammond the 'not primarily abstractive' test, which the ORR uses to validate all Open Access bids?
At the same time the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State may even wish to read the Office of Rail Regulation's June 2013 consultation on On-rail competition, which states:
Despite the very limited role that competition currently plays, there is evidence that it drives passenger benefits including lower fares increases, higher growth in passenger numbers, direct services to new destinations, and various service quality benefits.
Open access entrants, who always face strong competition from franchised operators, have higher passenger satisfaction scores than franchised operators, including other intercity operators, who in the main do not face on-rail competition.
Quite so.
But then, since when have the residents of Great Minster House ever been interested in driving passenger benefits?
UPDATE: This from Depot Lad...
On the subject of “old diesel trains”.
I thought the following key points might be helpful for Mr Hammond who is evidently new to his brief.
| Operator | Fleet | Primary DPI | Primary DPI MAA | MTIN | MTIN MAA |
| Grand Central | Class 180 | 25.4 | 24.3 | 13,118 | 8,641 |
| East Coast | IC225 | 38.4 | 33.3 | 11,537 | 12,326 |
| Grand Central | HST Set | 0 | 19.3 | 41,421 | 13,188 |
| Hull | Class 180 | 18 | 27.9 | 14,380 | 14,561 |
| East Coast | HST Set | 34.9 | 47.3 | 18,653 | 18,619 |
Good news for fans of greater RDG and ATOC integration.
Word reaches Eye that tomorrow's RDG meeting is likely to see closer co-operation between the two bodies placed firmly on the agenda.
An ATOC spokesman observed today: 'Discussions are on-going'.
Quite so.
In fact so 'on-going' are discussions, that in certain recent conversations you might almost have mistaken ATOC speaking for RDG!
Perhaps helpful to recall that transparency is, as transparency does.
UPDATE: This from Sidney Supplychain...
No doubt there are plans in hand to communicate these exciting developments to, and engage more fully with, RDG's Associate Members?
Didn't think so.
UPDATE: This from Leftoutin Thecold...
This is the full list of RDG Associate Members, as at 16th September.
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