Published by RAILFUTURE – campaigning for a bigger, better railway No 162 £3 December 2019 Pictures: INTERCITY RAILFREIGHT Pictures: INTERCITY Inter-city trains and bikes How rail freight can help combat the climate emergency: See page 2 RAILFUTURE CAMPAIGNER OF THE YEAR 2020 Railwatch contents HS2 must be just the start of a rail future CLIMATE Further to the inaugural recognition we would like 2 Chris Page award at Railfuture’s to hear about them. We will By Graham Nalty annual general meeting require a written statement 3 High speed rail in Cardiff in 2019, of no more than 500 4 East Anglia and East Midlands High Speed Two must be EMERGENCY and in recognition of words identifying how the given the go-ahead because the page one picture the dedication and nominee has contributed to 5 Pennine fast track benefits of faster north-south rail achievements of Railfuture Railfuture’s mission to be links and additional capacity 6 North East Rover Picture: XINHUA volunteers, we will be the number one advocate outweigh the increase in costs to Our front page pictures from presenting the award for for rail users and the rail 7 Investment stasis £88 billion. Campaigner of the Year at industry, and how they 8 Your views The verdict came from the intercity railfreighT show the annual general meeting have enhanced Railfuture’s Oakervee report which was a cycle courier in Oxford in Birmingham on Saturday campaigning for a bigger, 10 Severnside and Wessex leaked in November in the face bringing a pathology 27 June 2020. better railway. 11 Rail access champion of rumours that it would be kept secret until after the general The award will be Nominations may be made package for delivery into 12 Rail travel in a wheelchair election. presented after the formal by any Railfuture member. London on a Great Western business is concluded and HS2 is due to run through All Railfuture members are 14 Thames Valley and North East inter-city train. will be followed by lunch Uxbridge and South Ruislip, eligible to be nominated. 15 Rail freight campaign The inset picture shows and an opportunity to the seat Prime Minister Boris network. You may nominate yourself 16 Wales and North West Johnson held, and where the seafood, carried to although the nominee must StopHS2 campaign has 5,000 So, do you know someone 17 Scotland Paddington by a Great who has contributed to the be a member of Railfuture. supporters. Western inter-city train, success of Railfuture or The deadline for 18 Your views The leak – first reported in nominations to be received The Times – came two months someone who has raised 20 Midland main line being collected by cycle the profile of Railfuture on is 30 April 2020. after the UK2070 Commission couriers for final delivery to key issues? For further details or to 21 West Midlands and Yorkshire called for rail to play the lead role in inter-city travel as the restaurants in London. Perhaps they work behind submit a nomination please 22 London and South East basis for a national integrated the scenes, helping their email membership director Rail freight is part of the public transport system with an local branch? Wendy Thorne at: 23 Railfuture board answer to our climate integrated fare system. THINKING BIG: Beijing station opened in 2018 and serves a Chinese high speed rail network of Whoever they are, if 24 Election promises emergency: SEE Page 15 wendy.thorne@railfuture. The UK2070 Commission is 18,000 miles in total length, which is expected to grow to 24,000 miles by 2025. By contrast Britain you think they deserve org.uk an independent inquiry into has 67 miles of high speed rail – from London to the Channel Tunnel. The proposed HS2 link to regional inequalities and is Birmingham is 140 miles and when the Y network is completed will be 330 miles long chaired by Lord Kerslake. Chair’s column: We will expect rapid progress after the election Its second report Moving up of the economic potential of poor rail connectivity. The Bradford cross-city link, Humber So the snap general election is services must also be provided well as wheelchair users or the the Gears also recommended the whole of the UK, creating findings are very diverse but crossing, Spalding to Grimsby, with us as expected and we have so that travellers can access HS2 elderly and infirm – to use the rail widescale improvements to an imbalance of wealth and Greengauge 21 identifies coastal HS2 link to Nottingham from to wait until afterwards to find out services easily. network. the rail network, including opportunity that catalyses areas as places of high inequality. the south, Nuneaton dive-under expansion of city rail divisions in society. In the Journey times between coastal (for Leicester to Coventry), what the recommendations of the Government decisions required Trains are nearly there. When the networks and “missing link” higher performing places, this towns may be extended Newark flyover, Essex to Kent Williams and Oakervee reviews final Pacers are withdrawn next The Department for Transport rail reopenings to rural and creates pressures in terms of considerably across an estuary connections, Heathrow north of franchising and High Speed year, the focus must change to is stuck on many other issues economically disadvantaged infrastructure congestion and (see examples below) and notes western, SE and SW connections, Two will be – as amended to stations. This will be a long-term besides franchising, HS2 and areas, including coastal towns. housing affordability. that no rail tunnel under water Exeter to Plymouth via make them acceptable to the new exercise. government. electrification. Cross-estuary rail links should High speed rail experts has been built in the UK in the Tavistock, Swansea Bay cut-off. The Access for All programme The emerging “regional” sub- Fares are increasing faster than also be developed, across the Tay, Greengauge 21 were asked to last 100 years outside the South Route upgrades recommended has provided level access to the national transport bodies such as earnings and to fix this the cost Humber, Thames and Neath. examine how better sustainable East. In places where rail may include long sections of the east platform at many larger stations, Transport for the North must be structure of the rail industry must The commission believes rail transport connectivity could not be able to provide transport, and west coast main lines, but but £200 million more funding is given responsibility for specifying be addressed. The Government can provide an opportunity to address these inequalities. it argued that fast buses should of more note are: Sheffield to must also endorse the Rail needed in this control period to rail services and enhancements. rebalance the inequalities of This UK2070 vision majors on be provided from high quality Stockport, Crewe to Newport, Delivery Group’s proposals to achieve Railfuture’s aim of Railfuture calls for a doubling of wealth that occur within the UK scheduled public transport in rail-bus interchanges. Leicester to Burton. make the ticketing system less 100 more by ’24, covering a greater rail capacity in the north. between different areas of the order to establish transport as Greengauge 21 argues that road While Greengauge 21 confusing. range of stations. Achieving a country. investment should be targeted Likewise, Transport for the South level platform-train interface will a basic right for everybody, proposals cannot be considered East has set a strategy of doubling The DfT has recently published It also recommended a major including those without a car. at measures that improve the comprehensive, they do point the latest update of the Rail be an even greater challenge, but rail journeys in 30 years so that Railfuture chair Chris Page programme of rail electrification, It covers the whole UK, treating journey times of inter-urban the way for campaigners to Network Enhancements Pipeline one that must also be addressed. sustainable growth can be new lines, reopenings and major public transport as a single buses rather than for cars argue the case for rail on ‘social which shows very little progress Local campaigning achieved without a major increase reopen the Ashington, Blyth and route upgrades, totalling around system, concentrating on and lorries. Greengauge 21 equality’ grounds in cases that since the previous update – in road travel. Local campaigning is equally Tyne line for passengers. 1,900 miles, with a budget agreed rail links but with inclusion recommends a list of 771 new rail DfT WebTag business case approvals must be given more route miles (including 330 miles Carrots and sticks will be needed important. At the proposed 6,000 This will create new journey in 2020, followed by a detailed of inter-urban bus services. analyses cannot support. Much quickly. of HS2) and 1,121 route miles to to encourage us all to use public home Welborne garden village opportunities to Newcastle, plan in 2021. This vision also embraces the more work needs to be done to be upgraded. transport, cycling or walking Finally, the DfT and Treasury must development in Hampshire, boosting the economy of the UK2070 relied for much of its importance of metropolitan city build the case for rail to relieve more. This is necessary to address move forward on the “market- Railfuture Wessex has succeeded area. rail understanding on a 2018 public transport, extending this Some of the more interesting inequality and to find monetary led proposals” that have been climate change and air pollution. in getting land safeguarded for SENRUG was featured recently report by Greengauge 21 entitled approach to smaller towns and new rail routes recommended values for lost economic output submitted by accepting that a new station as a condition of in a major article about the Beyond HS2.