Glasgow City Council

Development & Regeneration Committee

Report by Director of Development and Regeneration Services

Contact: Steve Inch Ext: 77200

Strategic Rail Authority Consultation - West Coast Strategy

Purpose of Report:

To respond to the Strategic Rail Authority consultation document ‘West Coast Strategy’ – which sets out a proposed framework to deliver the West Coast Route Modernisation (WCRM) project.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that the Committee approves the submission of this report as this Council’s response to the Strategic Rail Authority consultation document ‘West Coast Strategy’.

Committee should also note that as the deadline for submissions was 16 December 2002, this response has been submitted to the Strategic Rail Authority as a draft response pending formal approval of this Committee.

Ward No(s): Citywide: x

Local member(s) advised: Yes No Consulted: Yes N o

L:\Cmtserv\COUNCIL\Meetings\300103\3001it8a.doc 1. Introduction

1.1 Following the passage of the Transport Act 2000, the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) formally came into being on 1 February 2001. The Authority is tasked with providing overall strategic direction for Britain's railways, together with responsibility for consumer protection, the development of rail freight and administering freight grants, and for steering forward investment projects aimed at opening up bottlenecks and expanding network capacity. It is also directly responsible for letting and managing the passenger rail franchises.

1.2 On 9th October this year, the SRA published its draft ‘West Coast Strategy’ which sets out plans for the delivery of the West Coast Route Modernisation (WCRM) project – the largest railway project in the UK.

1.3 Under the Transport Act 2000, the SRA is required to consult on the strategy. This process is now underway with formal consultees including local authorities, Rail Passenger Councils, Passenger Transport Executives, the Scottish Executive and other bodies with an interface with the route. Views are sought by 16 December 2002.

2. Background

2.1 The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is the main rail connection between Glasgow and the south and a vital artery for long-distance domestic UK passenger and freight services. It already carries substantial Channel Tunnel freight traffic and, eventually, may carry European mainland passenger trains. Its development is therefore of considerable importance to the strategic transport needs of the areas it serves.

2.2 In 1999, agreement was reached between (the company then responsible for the WCML track and signal infrastructure), Virgin (the train service operator) and the Office of the on a full modernisation programme for the line, involving some £5.8 billion of investment.

2.3 Under the Virgin/Railtrack proposals, the linespeed and capacity of the line would have been considerably enhanced and new standards of customer care/passenger environment introduced. Travel time between Glasgow/ was targeted to reduce from 335 minutes to 260 minutes by 2002, and to further reduce to 230 minutes by the year 2006.

2.4 Last year however, the situation changed dramatically. In September 2001, the costs of the project were reported to be escalating rapidly towards £10 billion with no defined delivery solutions evident. In October 2001, Railtrack was put into railway administration by the government with the spiralling costs of the WCML project, a major factor in creating the crisis.

2.5 This in turn led to an extensive review of the project and proposals to reduce the cost and scope of the project by stepping back from the second stage reduction in journey times.

2.6 These events were disappointing and seriously questioned both the ability of the government and the railway industry to raise funding to pay for vital further improvement of the route and, the ability of the line to carry all the committed and proposed traffics of the various operators over the route over the next few years.

2.7 For Glasgow, specific unresolved issues related to options for

L:\Cmtserv\COUNCIL\Meetings\300103\3001it8a.doc • capacity increases and improvements to services particularly between Glasgow and Crewe,

• the continued lack of commitment by the government to Eurostar services and connections north of London over the WCML, and

• the improvement of links and levels of service between Glasgow, Merseyside and the Greater Manchester.

2.8 Taken together, these issues summarise the development needs and expectations of the Glasgow market for better, faster and more frequent services for long-distance passenger travel while, at the same time, allowing for growth in freight and regional passenger traffic.

3. SRA Strategy

3.1 The SRA Strategy re-examines the WCRM project and proposes, on an affordable basis, a revised programme that will trim back on some of the benefits proposed under Railtrack but, be more capable of delivering significant improvements in performance, journey times and capacity within reset time and cost estimates.

3.2 Specific commitments and targets that are now seen as deliverable include;

• tilting trains running at a maximum speed of 125mph will be in use from September 2004 allowing for faster journey times,

• upgrade works now estimated to be £2.3bn (with maintenance and renewal spend posted at £7.5bn), allowing for capacity for 80% more long distance passenger trains and for 60-70% more freight traffic than at present,

• upgrade and renewal work completed by 2006 whereupon increased enhancement of services will be possible, and

• the completion of Trent Valley four-tracking work in 2008 to permit final timetable improvements including the expansion of freight services.

4. Glasgow City Council Response.

4.1 In considering a response to the document, the Council has consulted with West Coast Rail 250 (the national lobby group to which the Council is affiliated) and Strathclyde Passenger Transport (SPT). The key issues to emerge for Glasgow are described below together with appropriate recommendations,

General Approach

4.2 The Council has long recognised the need for modernisation and improvement of the flagship WCML. Equally, it has noted the growing uncertainty and inaction of the project under Railtrack. The SRA draft strategy for the WCRM project addresses the major issues on a network-wide basis and offers a commitment to deliver new and enhanced arrangements for users of the route, albeit some of those not at levels

L:\Cmtserv\COUNCIL\Meetings\300103\3001it8a.doc originally envisaged (under Railtrack). Inevitably, however given the scale of the project and local interests nationwide not all areas will receive optimum solutions.

The Council therefore welcomes the general approach of the SRA draft strategy which sets out to drive the West Coast project forward on an achievable basis but urges SRA to be mindful of continuing issues to which further careful consideration should be given. For Glasgow these relate to,

Journey Times

4.3 The Council views the delivery of faster journey times as a key target of the WCRM. Under the strategy, journey times from London to Glasgow are envisaged to fall from the current 335 minutes to 293 minutes in 2004 to 273 minutes by 2006. This is only a marginal betterment than the 300 minute times offered in 1974 under electrification and well short of the below 4 hour target set by Railtrack. The document indicates that consideration is being given to some Glasgow trains operating on a limited stop basis with a journey time of around 260 minutes. The Council also notes that SPT considers there is a case for reducing the number of stops from 7 to as few as 2 (Carlisle and Preston) on half of the services - which would allow a minimum journey time of 255 minutes to be offered.

Accordingly, the Council calls upon the SRA to introduce minimum journey times between London and Glasgow that can be reliably attained and maintained.

Service Patterns

4.4 In order to facilitate express services between Glasgow/Carlisle/Preston and London, further examination of local service needs should be undertaken and it is suggested that such services could provide missing links from Glasgow to Merseyside and Manchester. A further issue which would assist in the provision of the missing links referred to above would be if the practice of joining and splitting cross country trains were to be encouraged by the SRA as a means of satisfying service needs without requiring additional paths.

4.5 The Council regards an increased frequency of service on the route as another core target. The strategy document indicates that the number of London-Glasgow trains per day will increase from the current 8 to 13 in 2004 and 2006. This is welcomed. However there remains an outstanding franchise commitment for 3 to 5 London (Euston)– services to serve Edinburgh instead of Glasgow – thereby reducing the number of trains to Glasgow accordingly.

The Council is anxious that the pattern of services between London and Glasgow should not be sacrificed in order to serve Edinburgh. Edinburgh is very well served by GNER (the East Coast Main Line operator) and most West Coast communities already have direct services to Edinburgh operated by Virgin Cross Country. It is also understood that doubts have been expressed that capacity constraints around Edinburgh Waverley would mean that such additional services would have an adverse effect on the performance of existing services.

In light of the above, the Council advises the SRA against the retention of the previous commitment to provide for the diversion of some services from Glasgow to Edinburgh.

L:\Cmtserv\COUNCIL\Meetings\300103\3001it8a.doc International Services

4.6 The Council has long considered that all communities north of London have been dishonourably treated by succeeding governments with regard to the non-provision of international services after completion of the Channel Tunnel. The strategy document indicates the operation and routing of such Euorostar services with tilting train design will be considered in relation to the opening of the Channel Tunnel Rail link in 2007.

The Council welcomes any move to restore the proposals for through international trains but considers it is most important that full and proper measures to accommodate such services are undertaken by SRA in the short-term to minimise any disruption to all traffic at a later stage.

New High Speed Line

4.7 In its response to the national Air Transport Consultation currently being undertaken by the , the Council was mindful of the potential role which long distance rail transport could potentially make. While rail substitution may be an option there is a general acceptance that it has limited scope below 3.5 hour journey times, unless a TGV-standard line is constructed. The Council considers there is a medium-long term requirement for investigating the feasibility of a new high speed line linking London with the north of and Central Scotland. Such a project might provide both capacity relief for the existing WCML and East Coast Main Line and, with around a 150 minute travel time London to Glasgow, a more significant reduction in journey times than that committed to in the West Coast Strategy.

The Council therefore calls upon the SRA to establish a long-term rail transport strategy for the future development of rail services across the UK as a whole and to support further investigation of a national high speed line.

5 Recommendations

5.1. It is recommended that the Committee approves the submission of this report as this Council’s response to the Strategic Rail Authority consultation document ‘West Coast Strategy’.

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