23.10.18
Rail industry leaders reveal the extent of damage of ‘boom and bust’ funding
Industry leaders have revealed the damage caused by ‘boom and bust’ rail funding, hitting business’s recruitment, investment and SME’s.
Ninety-nine per cent of the 120 senior executives questioned in a survey, carried out by independent polling company ComRes on behalf of the Railway Industry Association (RIA), said there were noticeable troughs and peaks in rail funding.
Two-thirds of respondents said ‘boom and bust’ best described the nature of government spending in rail, which “stops them from investing or hiring new staff and, in the case of SMEs, jeopardises their ability to survive.”
Darren Caplan, chief executive of the RIA, said: “It is clear from this new poll that the ‘boom and bust’ rail business leaders are facing in rail funding stops them from investing or hiring new staff and, in the case of SMEs, jeopardises their ability to survive.
He said it also adds up to 30% to the cost of rail infrastructure work which in turn makes the railway more expensive for passengers and taxpayers.
“Following an investigation in the summer by the UK Parliament’s Transport Select Committee, the government agreed to work with the Railway Industry Association, Network Rail, the DfT, the rail regulator ORR, and other key stakeholders to find a solution to this issue,” he said.
“This new polling is further evidence, as if it were needed, that all parties need to redouble their efforts to end ‘boom and bust’ in rail funding once and for all.”
The DfT funds the railway through five-year long ‘control periods’ with the next round due to start in April 2019 and expects to spend £47.9bn over this next five-year period, with the final sums announced later this month.
The DfT said: “We are spending more than ever before on maintaining and replacing infrastructure, which should directly benefit the supply chain and improve customer journeys.
"We expect Network Rail and the ORR to ensure this funding is spent as efficiently as possible."
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