Good news - British railways are getting better!

Here is a good news story that you don't hear very often: Britain is currently undergoing the biggest investment in railway infrastructure since the  Victorian era, with plans now approved for £37bn of investment over the next 5 years (note that this figure includes normal operations and maintenance as well as enhancement work).
And no, I'm not talking about HS2, being the only railway project most people have heard of! In fact, I'm talking about what's happening to improve our existing railways: Network Rail has a big vision for how we could make the railways work better and the long term funding to make it happen. And a recent report by the European Commission which compared progress in all EU countries since 1990 concluded that we have the most improved railway network in Europe. 

Just a taste of some of the schemes going forward (some of which I have had the privilege of working on):

• 3 major lines will be electrified for the first time (the Great Western, Midland Mainline and TransPennine route between York and Manchester) and will also get substantial investment in journey time improvements.
• The East Coast mainline will see a major upgrade of the power supply.
• A new train factory is being built by Hitachi in Newton Aycliffe in County Durham to build the shiny new IEP trains which will replace the existing HST long distance trains from 2020. London will also be getting hundreds of new Thameslink trains to provide more seats at peak times.
• In Scotland, 100 miles of new railway opened in 2011 (the Airdrie-Bathgate link) and a vital rail link between the Scottish Borders and Edinburgh closed by Beeching in 1969 will be re-opened within the next 2 years.
• A new cab signalling system (ETCS) is going to be implemented on two mainline routes out of London, saving approximately 30% of maintenance costs for signalling as well as significant safety improvements, as brakes will be automatically applied if a driver does not react in time.
• One of the most exciting projects is the Northern Hub, which will transform the railway in the North of England (especially Manchester). Scheduled to complete in 2019, it will allow up to 700 more trains to run each day and provide space for 44 million more passengers a year. Over £4bn worth of wider economic benefits to the region and potentially 20,000 to 30,000 new jobs, and a £4 boost to the economy for every £1 spent.

The driver for these improvements is simple: Britain's railways today are busier than they have ever been, and that trend is set to continue (whether you consider congestion, air pollution or climate change, we need to get people out of their cars!) The plans will provide capacity to moves 225m more passengers per year and carries 355,000 more trains – the highest numbers ever seen on Britain’s railways. Overcrowding is a major issue on commuter routes, so the improvements will provides 20% extra morning peak seats into central London and 32% into large regional cities in England and Wales. It will also facilitate transporting 30% more freight than today. This is an unprecedented level of investment in our railways and we should be shouting about it - the Government is finally doing something right and thinking for the long term! So this is why I am proud to work for the railways. 

Obviously, there is plenty more to do and I will continue to be a critical friend, but we should give credit where it is due. And for anyone wishing to use this to say that privatisation was a good idea (it wasn't), please note the research published this year based on Government figures which shows that we could save £1bn a year if we took the railways back into public ownership. Don't forget that the source of the funding for rail enhancements (rather than routine operations/maintenance) is from the Government, not private operators! Instead, this investment is a classic example of what state intervention can achieve when used correctly: great value improvements that have a massive payoff for our economy.
And do you remember who the best performing train operating company is? Oh yes, East Coast - our only state-owned train operator receives less public subsidy than all the rest, and is by far the most popular with customers. And who operates all the others? Funnily enough, other countries' state railway operators pretending to be private companies - like Arriva Trains, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn. The state can and does operate railways efficiently - so let's get on with it!

See also:
Bike + Train = ? (adventures in travelling with my trusty steed)
The HS2 debate: why we need it and how to do it well