Virgin set to get extension as DOR deactivated

This from the Department for Transport...

Department for Transport to negotiate with Virgin on temporary operation of West Coast rail services

The Department for Transport will negotiate with Virgin Rail Group for them to continue providing rail services on the West Coast Main Line for a temporary period.

The current franchise is due to expire on 9 December after which it is the government’s intention that Virgin remain as operator for a short period – expected to be between 9 and 13 months – while a competition is run for an interim franchise agreement. This interim agreement, which would be open to any bidders, will then run until the new long term West Coast franchise is ready to commence.

The government believes that this is the best way to ensure services are maintained and that there is no impact on passengers.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said:

    “The cancellation of the InterCity West Coast franchise is deeply regrettable and I apologise to the bidders involved and the taxpayer who have a right to expect better.

    “My priority now is to fix the problem and the first step is to take urgent action to ensure that on the 9 December services continue to run to the same standard and passengers are not affected.

    “I believe Virgin remaining as operator for a short period of time is the best way to do this and my officials and I will be working flat out to make this happen.”

On 3 October the previous competition to run trains on this line was cancelled following the discovery of significant technical flaws in the way the franchise process was conducted.

The department also paused the on-going franchise programme including live competitions on Essex Thameside, Great Western and Thameslink and set up two independent reviews into what went wrong with the West Coast competition and the wider DfT rail franchise programme.
 
Notes to editors

• The Transport Secretary has ordered two independent reviews:
• The first will be an urgent independent examination into the lessons to be learned from the department’s handling of West Coast competition. Conducted by independent advisers and overseen by Centrica chief executive Sam Laidlaw and former PricewaterhouseCoopers strategy chairman Ed Smith, both DfT non-executive directors, this review will look as soon as possible at what happened and why with a view to delivering an initial report by the end of October.
• The second independent review will be undertaken by Eurostar chairman Richard Brown CBE, and examine the wider rail franchising programme. It will look in detail at whether changes are needed to the way risk is assessed and to the bidding and evaluation processes, and at how to get the other franchise competitions back on track as soon as possible. This will report back by the end of December.

ENDS

UPDATE: This from Directly Operated Railways...

Taxpayers will be relieved to know that we are not so much deactivated, as waiting in the wings! 

Railway Garden Competition - Charing Cross

This with a bowler tip to @EliotAnderson...

Not strictly a railway garden, the Charing Cross hotel having been sold off many years ago.

None the less, too good to leave out of this year's competition.

In fact astonishingly good!

Where are they now - Adrian Lyons

Another in an occasional series designed to assist Patrick McLoughlin and Richard Brown determine the way forward for contracted passenger services

Inviting the onetime Director General of the Railway Forum and a former Master of the Worshipful Company of Drapers to support Richard Brown's review would be welcomed by many on the railway and in the City.

Adrian Lyons, was last seen here.

That is all.

UPDATE: This from Sidney Sneak!...

Nonsense!

Wasn't the Fact Compiler most recently seen with General Lyons at the Midland Hotel, in Derby, last Thursday night?

The Fact Compiler, respectfully, pleads the Fifth...

Richard Brown's remit - some thoughts

This from Sir Charles Trevelyan... 

Given the lack of a published remit for Richard Brown might I volunteer the following?

Eye readers will no doubt have their own thoughts which they may wish to add? 

Brown Review Remit

Review the rail franchising programme, and determine the changes which are necessary to ensure that;

•  Government’s value for money is secured;
• The appropriate balance of financial risk transfer to the private sector is achieved;
• Innovation, efficiency, modal shift and growth is promoted;
• The competitive market for bidding is enhanced, with a particular focus on encouraging new entrants and smaller players;
• The best outcome for customers is secured 

In particular, the review should consider;

• How the bidding process can be simplified and shortened to reduce costs;
• The balance between detailed specification of outputs, efficiency, and risk
• Whether alternative models have a role in some, or all, franchise areas.  This should include, although not be limited to;

-   Operating concessions, where funders retain revenue risk and control of specified outputs

-   Devolution to local and sub national consortia – noting that this could operate on a franchise or concession basis

-   Longer operating licences for commercial franchise propositions, based around an annual fee or tariff

-   An extension of the DOR concept

In conducting the review, cognisance should be taken of the previous work on franchise reform, and in the McNulty study.  The wider rail industry should be given the opportunity to contribute its ideas to the work.

The report should be submitted to Ministers by 31 December 2012. 

Further contributions welcome.

UPDATE: This forthright suggestion from Sinoda...

If soon to be Baron Brown of the Broom Cupboard is short of suggestions, perhaps the question oft-posed by 'The World's Greatest Living Transport Correspondant' could be addressed as follows?

"What is franchising for?"

Better known as the 'Wolmar Question'.

Railway Garden Competition - Eastbourne

This from Captain Morgan...

Can any Eye readers identify the variety of electric moss that is currently growing adjacent to platform 3 at Eastbourne station?

Eye awaits a Smart Alec comment from the Apostle of the Third Rail about the unrivalled green credentials of the Southern...

UPDATE: @DriverPotter responds...

Mother Nature herself embraces the 3rd Rail. Deeply pleasing. 
 

Pointless signs - 12:13 Paignton - Exmouth 10/10/12

DOR names ICWC Team - Shocker

Found in the street outside the DfT's Marsham Street bunker...

 

Literally unbelievable!

Attlee derailed in the Lords

This from The Woolsack...

An amusing exchange this afternoon between Earl Attlee and My Lord Adonis in the House of Lords.

Attlee quoted a certain Prof David Begg a number of times in his speech, citing him as an expert commentator as based on his recent article in the Financial Times.

Adonis interjected asking whether Lord Attlee was aware David Begg is a member of First Groups' board?

Ooops!

Cue goldfish impression and shocked looks on the government benches. 

UPDATE: The House of Lords transcript from the Private Notice Question can be found here.

West in rebellion over high-handed commissioners

This epistle from My Lord Abbot of Pewsey...

Much commotion in the Vale of Pewsey as has not been seen since the Prayer Book Rebellion almost reached here in 1549!

 It was occasioned by the issuing of the Great Western franchising ITT.  This document seems to decree that direct links  between the West of England from the Metropolis should be severed once electric lines are installed. 

Pewsey travellers will be forced to change at Newbury, where apparently people have whistles blown at them.

At a packed meeting last week in the village hall the good citizens of the Vale expressed their great disquiet at this manifestation of what they have been told is called the 'sparks effect'.  

There was little satisfaction that such sainted figures as Christopher Stokes had denounced the current franchising methods in the Financial Times as not fit for purpose and a deep suspicion remains that there are those in the DfT who consider the local services on the Berks and Hants Railway as an irritating appendage that should be surreptitiously run down. 

As is the custom these days a petition has been established and prayers are also being offered for Richard Brown and those working with him, that they will be guided by good sense and that through travel will prevail.

UPDATE: This from Dreadnought...

Regarding the observation that people have whistles blown at them in Newbury.  

Not wishing to be pedantic but I think you will find that the tale related by Mr Gerard Francis Gisborne Twistleton-Wykeham-Fiennes OBE actually related to people from Newbury having whistles blown at them in Reading.

UPDATE: The Fact Compiler asks:

Do you come from Newbury? 

Have you had a whistle blown at you in an intimidating manner be a member of Western Region Staff?

Or perhaps you live in Reading and are more used to that sort of thing?

Either way Eye doesn't give a hoot or a shrill blast on the whistle... (That's enough being rude to readers on the Western. Ed)

Railway Peers scrutinise ICWC fiasco

Further proof that the Upper House continues to offer better scrutiny of the Executive than the Elected Chamber!

This from Railway Questions in the House of Lords yesterday...

Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour)
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the cost to the public purse of cancelling the contract award for the West Coast Main Line railway franchise.

Earl Attlee (Whip, House of Lords; Conservative)
My Lords, my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Transport will make a full Statement in the other place at the earliest opportunity. The department will remunerate fully bidders for the direct and reasonable costs of putting together their bids and expects this cost to be approximately £40 million. The department expects additional costs from mobilising Directly Operated Railways, reissuing the tender and carrying out two independent reviews. The department will monitor these costs closely and be fully transparent in keeping the House informed.

Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour)
My Lords, it is very regrettable that the noble Earl has not taken the first opportunity in Parliament to say sorry for this fiasco. He should be truly ashamed of what has gone on so I invite him to take the opportunity to apologise. Why are the Government saying there have been regrettable and unacceptable mistakes and yet no Minister is accepting responsibility?

Earl Attlee (Whip, House of Lords; Conservative)
My Lords, some noble Lords express disappointment that a full Statement has not been made. Nobody asked for a full Statement. I was very willing to answer a PNQ yesterday afternoon but there was not one because we have the topical question today. As for ministerial responsibility, noble Lords know perfectly well that this was a highly regrettable mistake by officials, not by Ministers.

Lord Bradshaw (Liberal Democrat)
Will the noble Earl send word to his colleagues elsewhere that no new franchises should be let for any railway until full consideration is made of the high level of risk which the Government are seeking to transfer to the private sector? I believe that the private sector is unable to bear that risk because predicting revenues 15 years hence is nearly impossible. I commend him to the Mayor of London who is running the London Overground railway on an entirely different basis where the revenue risk lies with the GLC and the people running the franchise are paid to operate the railway efficiently but are not expected to take these unbearable risks.

Earl Attlee (Whip, House of Lords; Conservative)
My noble friend asks extremely good questions and that is the purpose of the Brown review which will look into the franchising system and report back to us by the end of the year.

Lord Adonis (Labour)
My Lords, does the noble Earl agree, given the scale of the debacle we have seen on the west coast main line, that the responsibility of senior officials and Ministers should be examined in the forthcoming review? Is he aware that since last Tuesday the only steps that have been taken have been the suspension of three fairly junior officials and the establishment of a review under a member of the DfT's own board, whose colleagues include all of the senior Ministers and officials of the department? Does the noble Earl agree that this is not a wise proceeding in public policy and it is probably not very moral either?

Earl Attlee (Whip, House of Lords; Conservative)
My Lords, I do not agree with the noble Lord. The first step that the Government have taken is to set up two inquiries. The first one, headed up by Sam Laidlaw, will look at exactly what went wrong. If there was ministerial failure, no doubt he will identify that.

Lord Adonis (Labour)
Sam Laidlaw is a member of the DfT's own board. Is the noble Earl not aware of that?

Earl Attlee (Whip, House of Lords; Conservative)
My Lords, if there is anything wrong with the report, the noble Lord will be able to challenge me in this House on that very point. The first inquiry will look at what went wrong. The second inquiry will look at the wider franchising issues, as I said in response to my noble friend. We should be proud of our civil servants. I certainly feel honoured to be served by them. However, officials are human and can make mistakes, even big ones. Nevertheless, I want to make it perfectly clear that I retain full confidence in my department's officials and I am more than content to account for their activities in your Lordships' House.

Meanwhile Baroness Royall will ask the Government about its review into the ICWC fiasco after today's oral questions (at about 15.30). View it live here.

Overheard at Breakfast - On DafT Recruitment

Scene: The kitchen in any number of railway households throughout the land..

Daughter: Daddy
 
Father: Yes Darling?

Daughter: Why is steam coming out of your ears?  Is eccentric uncle Philip at DfT having one of his turns.

Father: How very perceptive of you, my Angel.
 
Daughter: What is it this time Daddy?
 
Father: Well, Uncle Philip has asked head hunters to see if they can find some senior rail managers  to help Uncle Michael take over Intercity West coast from Uncle Richard.

Daughter: But Daddy, won't anyone senior enough already have a job.

Father: Probably dearest.
 
Daughter: Uncle Ivor used to run the West Coast  and he hasn't got a job.
 
Father: Hush dear, we don't mention Uncle Ivor since he went to China.
 
Daughter: What about Uncle David? He used to run East Coast and he's quite young too and mummy thinks he's dishy?.
 
Father: Luckily Uncle David is off to Ireland.
 
Daughter: Anyway Daddy, if Uncle Philip lets Uncle Michael take over the West Coast, won't he have to take over Great Western too when the franchise extension expires?
 
Father: Sounds logical, sweetheart.
 
Daughter: So he'd need even more experienced senior managers.  Uncle John used to run Intercity, he told us about it in the latest Modern Railways.
 
Father: Remind me to tell uncle James not to leave his magazine lying around where impressionable minds can pick it up.
 
Daughter: Anyway  Daddy why does Uncle Philip think that replacing Uncle Chris at West Coast and Uncle Mark at Great Western with managers who haven't got a job is a good idea?
 
Father: Nobody knows, now eat up your Weetabix

Out of the mouths of babes...

HS2 to be fast-tracked - DfT hopes for amnesia?

Call the Fact Compiler a cynic but he wonders whether the proposed fast tracking of HS2 is designed to draw a veil over recent ICWC events?

Tough luck, it won't work.

So let's be clear about what the DfT really needs to focus on now.

1. Where is the remit for Richard Brown's review?
2. Who is being asked to contribute to it.
3. How can other interested parties make submissions
4. What is the precise timeline for activities and implementation of any findings after Richard Brown reports back, allegedly on the 31st December.

As soon as possible, please.

Railway Garden Competition - Waterloo East

This from a Mr Greg T...

I thought Eye readers might be interested in these images from the Waterloo East Garden Centre:

The roof-bonsai are still doing well.

 

 

And here is a special artistic drain entry!

 

 

Magna cum laude!

DfT: Throwing good money after...

According to Her Majesty's Daily Telegraph...

The Department for Transport has asked headhunters to search for senior managers who could run the West Coast rail franchise on behalf of the state-backed Directly Operated Railways (DOR) from December 9.

A spokesman for the DfT said the decision to appoint recruiters was part of the department’s “contingency planning” to determine whether a senior management team could be found quickly enough if the DOR is put in charge of the franchise.

What a lot of wags there are in the Department for Transport!

Safety cases not withstanding.

And precisely how much is this costing and who is paying?

UPDATE: This from Captain Deltic...

Is this the smoking gun that proves an 'ABB' mindset really exists?

Bernard Holden RIP - Saviour of the Bluebell

This from the Mid Sussex Times...

THE funeral of Bernard Holden who helped to found the Bluebell Railway, will take place next Tuesday (October 16) at 12.30pm.

Mr Holden died on October 4 at St Clare’s Care Home at St George’s Retreat in Ditchling. He was 104. 

His funeral will take place at St Margaret’s Church, Ditchling, followed by a private burial.

No flowers please but donations should go to the Bluebell Railway Trust via R.A Brooks & Son, Haywards Heath

Bernard was lauded as a railwayman, war hero and preservationist by the Daily Telegraph.

Where are they now - Roger Salmon

Introducing an exciting new Eye feature!

The first in an occasional series designed to help Patrick McLoughlin and Richard Brown determine the right way forward for contracted passenger services.

Roger Salmon is here.

That is all.

RDG meeting to discuss support for Brown review

Eye understands that the Rail Delivery Group is meeting to discuss how it might assist Richard Brown's Review into Franchising.

This is a massively important piece of work for the future of the passenger railway and also for ensuring that both fare and tax payers get value for money.

Therefore, Eye wishes their discussions well this evening.

That is all.

Arriva XC meets WiFi obligations

This from CrossCountry...

With fitment on 221133 completed on 21st September, all CrossCountry Voyagers and HSTs now have WiFi installed (and working!).

Good news indeed!

But what's this?

Users of CrossCountry's WiFi are apparently unable to view Railway Eye!

No doubt a temporary technical glitch?

UPDATE: The Fact Compiler offers a mea culpa!

This post updated from a CrossCountry Voyager using the trains WiFi!

Access restored!

Industry sets agenda for McLoughlin speech?

This from Scotch Corner...

In light of the Secretary of State's comments at the Tory Party conference yesterday I wonder if the below might have informed his thinking?

Sun Oct 07, 2012 10:16 pm

The 17.40 Skegness - Carnforth has failed at Swineshead with the rear 4 coaches fouling the A17 level crossing. Both 47760 and 47500 are on the front and neither can be got going.

Stock is vacuum braked only and nearest dual braked loco is 47798 apparently. Crossing blocked at 19.15 and ETA for 47798 is midnight. One network rail man plus WCRC guard having to direct traffic

Is this, perchance, the sort of "mix-modal" that Mr McLoughlin was inveighing against?

On planet Vulcan railways are nationalised

Welsh national anthem mangling MP John Redwood has been having a go at Network Rail.

Not unsurprisingly he is concerned that over the last year the infrastructure operator "had to write off £567 million from the value of all the derivatives and financial instruments it holds."

Money which, the Vulcan believes (and probably quite rightly), could be better spent in his Wokingham constituency on "a bridge over the railway line to ease congestion" and "a new station", as well as "safer level crossings" nationally. 

So far so good. 

But then he has to go and spoil it all. 

He concludes his blogpost with the following: 

"I was less amused to learn from the borough council that Network Rail wants to charge the council a fee for suggesting a bridge over the railway line to try to tackle safety and congestion... 

"And they are meant to be a nationalised public service.".

Perhaps he'd like to remind Gideon and the National Audit Office of this fact?