Chamber welcomes rail review

GREATER Manchester’s Chamber of Commerce has welcomed the outcome of a government review into the rail industry which argues that rail fares are too high and need to be rebalanced.

The review, which was led by former Civil Aviation Authority Sir Roy McNulty, argued that taxpayers in England were paying more for rail services than in other European countries.

It argued that fare policies and structures should be revised to make them simpler, that the current franchise system for train operating companies should be reformed and that track operator Network Rail should be decentralised.

The chamber’s transport policy manager, Richard Critchley, said: “Reform of the UK’s railways is long overdue.

“The current system leads to a massive disparity between peak and off-peak rail fares, contributing to severe overcrowding on certain key intercity services whilst other trains have sky high prices and run near empty.

“Before any further increase in ticket prices, it is essential that the rail industry gets to grips with the costs of running the system. 

“The McNulty report points out that the UK network is 30% more expensive to run than equivalent services in Europe.  The industry needs to urgently drive down cost, to protect passengers and reduce the burden to the taxpayer. 

“We applaud the Government’s commitment to get to grips with these inefficiencies.”