All change at NR?

The Fact Compiler's latest encomium published in Passenger Transport on the 6th December...

The next edition of Passenger Transport is published on the 20th December.

UPDATE: This from a Pedant just North of Purley...

Just before you start crowing over Eye's mystic powers to determine what the ONS would actually say...

I am sure I cannot be the first to draw attention to the homophonic error in para 3 of your reproduced item from Passenger Transport.

 

If only anyone associated with government were of principle. 

 

I am sure he is only a principal accounting officer.

DfT abolished as Treasury leads rail expansion

This from Rose and Crown...

Much gloom in Marsham Street as Osborne's finest achieve, in less than week, what numerous Transport Secretaries have failed to deliver in years!

Stand by for confirmation tomorrow of passenger friendly fare increases and a raft of network enhancements that might actually get the economy and country moving again.

No doubt the Treasury bean-counters have tired of DafT's navel gazing, reputation for inertia and over dependence on expensive Consultant's reports?

Caught on the back foot by HMT's whirlwind briefing the beleaguered inmates of Great Minster House were forced into feverish denials before sinking into sullen silence.

Meanwhile, the industry looks forward to welcoming an Autumn Statement that apparently contains trans-Pennine electrification, work to reopen the Varsity route and myriad smaller schemes.

Which begs the question: what is DafT for?

No matter!

Once Marsham Street has been abolished perhaps Gideon can use the money to buy trains for all this newly enhanced infrastructure?

Overcrowded passengers starved for 900 days

Today we join the Treasury in celebrating 900 days since anyone signed a contract for new passenger trains.


Eye would like to thank: Lord Adonis, Alistair Darling, Philip Hammond, George Osborne and their officials, for delivering on the new trains they endlessly and repetitively promised in the HLOS.

Perhaps their sofa is broken?

That is all.

CSR - It ain't over till the fat lady sings

On Friday Wolmar delivered a powerful scoop.

He claimed that Petrol-head had signed off the DfT's reduced budget and would be joining Star Chamber, pronouncing on the departmental budgets of fellow ministers.

Interestingly the Treasury today confirmed that five Whitehall departments have reached agreement on spending cuts: Treasury, Cabinet Office, Foreign Office, Environment and Communities.

Now transport isn't on the list.

Which means one of two things.

Either the Treasury is trickling out the information - saving the 'good' transport news for later...

Or there are still some in DafT fighting a rear-guard action to preserve some semblance of a transport budget post 20th October.

Eye hopes it's the latter and encourages those fighting to preserve the shape of today's railway to redouble their efforts!

UPDATE: This just in from Wolmar...

I'd just like to make the following comment on the above:

My new book, Engines of War, will be launched with a lecture at the German Gymnasium, Pancras Road next to St Pancras, on the evening of Tuesday September 28th at a charity event in aid of the Railway Children.

Just turn up on the day at 18:00 for 18:30 or for advance tickets visit the Railway Children website or just call 01270 757596.

Frankly the Eye will be glad when he's delivered this. Please sign up, it's for a very worthy cause.

Darling underwhelmed by SLC2

This with a tip of the bowler to Mr Jones...

If the Noble Lord and Department are so unhappy with East Coast's 58% average utilisation, why do they propose introducing 18,000 additional seats to the route?

Thank goodness the nasty man who said we can't be "carting fresh air around the country" has gone to the treasury.

We apologise for the error

This beautiful piece from the Cornish Guardian....

In an article last week ‘Residents call for eyesore red wall to be demolished’ we said that the BRB (Residuary) Ltd was a subsidiary of Network Rail this was incorrect BRB (Residuary) Ltd is owned by the government's Department for Transport and has no connection with Network Rail.

We apologise for the error.

As indeed they ought!

Obviously there is no connection between the private sector company Network Rail and BRB (Residuary) owned by the Department for Transport.

But what's this?

Could this be the same Department of Transport that lobbied the Treasury to allow Network Rail to add the electrification bill to the company's Regulatory Asset Base?

Obviously no connection at all then.