London to centralize train administration to end “piece by piece”

The British government on Thursday, with its long-awaited rail reform-centric pricing and reservations, is expected to put an end to many of the sector’s failures, but without backtracking on the privatization that began in the 90s.

The government will be the owner of the infrastructure and taxes, but now wants to put an end to the “fragmentation” of taxes, which are divided into a number of operators, including SNCF.

Boris Johnson’s government explains in a press release that “the plan for the Williams-Shops Rail wants to reform British Railways” and create a public body called the Great British Railway, which will be responsible for taxes and will simplify and modernize prices. All bookings will be centralized on a single website, and new subcontractor agreements will be made to “focus on time and improve performance”.

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“Significant role for the private sector”

The recommended strategy seeks to ensure a “financially stable” future for the sector most severely affected by the epidemic, which has wiped out traffic due to restrictions and restrictions on operations.

In order to “rationalize” the fragmented and difficult-to-understand system, the report explains that the public company Great British Railways “integrates” different lines, “collects money from passengers, manages the network and sets most fares and schedules”. Users. The Great British Railways website will centralize all refund requests and all traffic information.

However, the report plans to hold a “significant share (…)” of the private sector because Great British Railways contracts with private partners and operates trains according to specific schedules and prices, a model already in use, particularly Transport for London, equivalent to British RATP.

A “blockade” in the eyes of the DSSA union

“I am a strong supporter of the railways, but for a long time they did not have the service they deserved for passengers,” Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a statement. Transport Minister Grant Shops, for his part, estimates that the Great British Railways will “mark the dawn of a new era in the history of British railways.”

Manuel Cortes, general secretary of the Transport Workers’ Union DSSA, called the report a “plug-in” that “a model based on ownership would filter funds in the form of dividends from passengers and taxpayers to shareholders.”

Read the article from October 6, 1999: The London train disaster highlights the shortcomings of private trains

The problems of the former British leader Rail in the wake of the Industrial Revolution lasted for many years, and in January 2020, Boris Johnson announced the nationalization of the lines in the north of the UK. Infection. The results of the privatization are highly controversial, with unions pointing out the additional costs, delays and incompetence associated with Labor and the exploitation faction that campaigned in 2019 to nationalize the sector.