99-531: Railway World was an English-based monthly magazine covering rail transport in Great Britain . Founded by GH Lake in 1939 as Railways , in 1940 it was taken over by JW Fowler and renamed Railway World . It was sold to Ian Allan Publishing in 1959. The final edition was published in February 2003, it was superseded by Railways Illustrated the following month. This England rail transport related article
198-546: A 29% growth in the ten years to 2017/18. On 24 July 2019, Grant Shapps was appointed Secretary of State for Transport under the new Prime Minister Boris Johnson . The Transport Select Committee have met on a number of occasions since early 2020 and considered the 'Trains Fit for the Future" ongoing enquiry which was started under the previous session under Lilian Greenwood 's chairship. The report, published in March 2021, recommended
297-516: A Sustainable Railway , ruling out large-scale Railway electrification in Great Britain for the following five years. Following Gordon Brown 's appointment as prime minister in 2007, Andrew Adonis was appointed Transport Secretary. He immediately began work on plans for a new high-speed route between London and Birmingham (later known as High Speed 2 ), which would augment the West Coast Main Line. Adonis also announced plans to electrify
396-484: A UK domestic train service was the Hull Trains 07.30 King's Cross to Hull , which covered the 125.4 km (77.9 miles) from Stevenage to Grantham in 42 minutes at an average speed of 179.1 km/h (111.3 mph). This was operated by a Class 180 diesel unit running "under the wires" at the time, and is now operated by Class 802 Paragon bi-mode units, operating on electric power on this section. This
495-704: A catastrophic fall off in the number of passengers using the rail network although freight held up reasonably well. While passenger numbers had recovered to over 80% of their pre-Covid levels by July-September 2022, how this will affect the long-term health of the rail industry remains to be seen. Despite the pandemic the Traction Decarbonisation Strategy Interim Business case was published in July 2020. In addition, Network Rail also published its Environmental sustainability strategy. In direct response to falling passenger numbers and revenues,
594-635: A new high-speed railway in the UK. This study began on the assumption the route would be a new purpose-built high-speed line connected to High-Speed 1 to the Channel tunnel and from London to the West Midlands , via Heathrow Airport , relieving traffic on the West Coast Main Line (WCML). Conventional high-speed rail technology would be used as opposed to Maglev . The rolling stock would be capable of travelling on
693-657: A number of heritage (mainly steam) standard and narrow gauge railways, and a few industrial railways and tramways. Some lines which appear to be heritage operations sometimes claim to be part of the public transport network; the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway in Kent regularly transports schoolchildren. Most major cities have some form of commuter rail network . These include Belfast , Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff , Edinburgh, Exeter , Glasgow , Leeds , Liverpool, London and Manchester . There are four main goods operating companies in
792-652: A number of other joint railways such as the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway and the Cheshire Lines Committee as well as special joint railways such as the Forth Bridge Railway, Ryde Pier Railway and at one time the East London Railway ). The "Big Four" were joint-stock public companies and they continued to run the railway system until 31 December 1947. The growth in road transport during
891-709: A pay deal with Network Rail in March 2023 and the industrial action in Scotland and Wales ended in May 2023, while the RMT dispute with the Rail Delivery Group is ongoing as of September 2023. As a response to the cost-of-living crisis, the government approved a 5.9% rise in rail fares from 5 March 2023, which was 6.4 percentage points below the RPI inflation rate in July 2022 which is normally used to calculate fare increases. In July 2023,
990-422: A record 22.7 billion net tonne kilometres (14 billion net ton miles) of freight movement were recorded in 2013–4, against 16.6 billion (10.1 billion) in 1986–7, an increase of 38%. Coal made up 36% of the total net tonne kilometre , though its share was declining. Rail freight had increased its market share since privatisation (by net tonne kilometres) from 7.4% in 1998 to 11.1% in 2013. Growth
1089-513: A renaissance in recent years, with passenger numbers approaching their highest ever level (see usage figures below). This has coincided with the privatisation of British Rail , but the cause of this increase is unclear . The growth is partly attributed to a shift away from private motoring due to growing road congestion and increasing petrol prices, but also to the overall increase in travel due to affluence. Passenger journeys in Britain grew by 88% over
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#17328587793311188-531: A rolling programme of electrification and for the DfT to quickly publish a list of “no regret” electrification schemes. It was stated that Network Rail had already supplied a list to the DfT. The TDNS (Traction Decarbonisation Network Strategy) Interim Business case was published in September 2020. The main theme was electrification of 13,000 single track kilometres (8,100 miles) of UK railways. In September 2020,
1287-529: A service run by Alliance Rail Holdings to operate between London Euston and Blackpool , and in 2016 it allowed FirstGroup to run open access services on the East Coast Main Line from October 2021 under the operating name Lumo . Much debate continues over annual fare increases, although the government pledged in August 2015 to keep regulated rail fare increases at Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation for
1386-582: Is one of the busiest railways in Europe , with 20% more train services than France , 60% more than Italy , and more than Spain , Switzerland , the Netherlands , Portugal and Norway combined, as well as representing more than 20% of all passenger journeys in Europe. The rail industry employs 115,000 people and supports another 250,000 through its supply chain. After the initial period of rapid expansion following
1485-587: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This transport magazine or journal-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . See tips for writing articles about magazines . Further suggestions might be found on the article's talk page . Rail transport in Great Britain The railway system in Great Britain is the oldest railway system in the world. The first locomotive-hauled public railway opened in 1825, which
1584-452: Is a large programme of upgrades to the network, including Thameslink , Crossrail , electrification of lines , in-cab signalling , new inter-city trains and new high-speed lines . According to historians David Brandon and Alan Brooke, the railways brought into being our modern world: The railways started with the local isolated wooden wagonways in 1560s using horses. These wagonways then spread, particularly in mining areas. The system
1683-672: Is according to the Office of Rail and Road and includes open access operators such as Grand Central and Hull Trains . There are 2,579 passenger railway stations on the Network Rail network. This does not include the London Underground , nor other systems which are not part of the national network, such as heritage railways. Most date from the Victorian era and a number are in or on the edge of town and city centres. Major stations lie for
1782-619: Is connected with that of continental Europe by the Channel Tunnel and High Speed 1 , opened in 1994 and 2007 respectively. In 2019, there were 1.738 billion journeys on the National Rail network, making the British network the fifth most used in the world (Great Britain ranks 23rd in world population). Unlike a number of other countries, rail travel in the United Kingdom has enjoyed
1881-440: The 1984–85 miners' strike by the media. Due to the cost-of-living crisis , RMT union members at Network Rail and 13 train operating companies voted in favour of strike action on 24 May 2022. It was the first national strike at Network Rail since 1994. On 11 July 2022, ASLEF union members at 8 train operating companies and TSSA members at Southeastern also voted in favour of strike action. RMT members voted to accept
1980-737: The COVID-19 pandemic , the Western Rail Approach to Heathrow was shelved in January 2021. In 2012, the franchising system again came under criticism after FirstGroup was awarded the InterCity West Coast franchise. Incumbent Virgin Rail Group initiated a judicial review against the decision, citing the fact that First's bid was even more ambitious than the one which had scuttled National Express East Coast less than three years earlier. Before
2079-514: The Class 252 , reached a world speed record for diesel trains of 143.2 mph, while the main fleet entered service limited to a service speed of 125 mph, and were introduced progressively on main lines across the country, with a rebranding of their services as the InterCity 125 . With electrification of the East Coast Main Line , high-speed rail in Great Britain was augmented with the introduction of
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#17328587793312178-571: The Class 91 , intended for passenger service at up to 140 mph (225 km/h), and thus branded as the InterCity 225 . The Class 91 units were designed for a maximum service speed of 140 mph, and running at this speed was trialled with a 'flashing green' signal aspect under the British signalling system . The trains were eventually limited to the same speed as the HST, to 125 mph, with higher speeds deemed to require cab signalling , which as of 2010
2277-588: The Department for Transport (DfT), with the exception of Merseyrail , where the franchise is awarded by the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive . In Scotland, contracts for ScotRail , is awarded by Transport Scotland , and in Wales , contracts for Transport for Wales Rail , is awarded by Transport for Wales , although the latter is currently publicly owned with no plans for franchising in
2376-409: The Department for Transport 's Transport Ten Year Plan called for an 80% increase in rail freight. Statistics on freight are specified in terms of the weight of freight lifted, and the net tonne kilometre , being freight weight multiplied by distance carried. 116.6 million tonnes of freight was lifted in the 2013–4 period, against 138 million tonnes in 1986–7, a decrease of 16%. However,
2475-476: The Department for Transport . Transport for Wales Rail is owned by Transport for Wales , a Welsh Government owned company, with no current plans to re-privatise the latter. On 1 April 2022, ScotRail was put under public ownership by the Scottish Government , under Transport Scotland as ScotRail operating on the same day. The COVID-19 pandemic caused a huge fall in the number of passengers using
2574-589: The Great Western Main Line from London as far as Swansea , as well as infill electrification schemes in the North West of England to remove diesel traction from certain key routes. Late in 2009, the InterCity East Coast franchise collapsed for the second time in three years when incumbent operator National Express East Coast (NXEC) proved unable to meet its financial obligations. Adonis transferred
2673-751: The Hatfield crash in October 2000. However, in June 2015 the PPM stood at 91.2% after a period of steady increases in the annual moving average since 2003 until around 2012 when the improvements levelled off. Train fares cost 2.7% more than under British Rail in real terms on average. For some years, Britain has been said to have the highest rail fares in Europe, with peak-time and season tickets considerably higher than other countries, partly because rail subsidies in Europe are higher. However, passengers are also able to obtain some of
2772-524: The High Speed 2 scheme and further developing plans for the route, although great debate still rages over the scheme's benefits and costs. Whilst initially showing scepticism towards the electrification schemes of the Great Western route, they later gave the project its backing and work began formally in 2012. In July 2012, the government published a £9.4 billion High Level Output Specification for
2871-618: The Tyne and Wear Metro centred on Newcastle upon Tyne . Light rail systems in the form of trams are in Birmingham , Croydon , Manchester , Nottingham , Sheffield and Edinburgh . These systems use a combination of street running tramways and, where available, reserved right of way or former conventional rail lines in some suburbs. Blackpool has the one remaining traditional tram system. Monorails, heritage tramways, miniature railways and funiculars also exist in several places. In addition, there are
2970-442: The privatisation of British Rail . During this period, passenger volumes have grown rapidly, safety has improved, and subsidies per journey have fallen. However, there is debate as to whether this is due to privatisation or to better government regulation. During this period, High Speed 1 , the West Coast Main Line upgrade and Crossrail were completed and more construction projects are currently under way. The period also saw
3069-421: The 1920s and 1930s greatly reduced revenue for the rail companies. Rail companies accused the government of favouring road haulage through the subsidised construction of roads. The railways entered a slow decline owing to a lack of investment and changes in transport policy and lifestyles. During World War II , the companies' managements joined, effectively forming one company. A maintenance backlog developed during
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3168-907: The 2010s, many upgrades have been under way, such as Thameslink , Crossrail , the Northern Hub and electrification of the Great Western Main Line . Electrification plans for the Midland Main Line and the Transpennine line between Manchester and Leeds have been scaled back. Construction of High Speed 2 is underway, with a projected completion date of 2026 for Phase 1 (London to Birmingham) and 2033 for Phase 2. A poll of 1,500 adults in Britain in June 2018 showed that 64% support renationalising Britain's railways. Currently, six franchises are under public ownership, and thus effectively nationalised. Four, LNER , Northern Trains , Southeastern and TransPennine Express , are operators of last resort owned by
3267-638: The 2014–2019 period, which includes £4.2 billion of new schemes. This includes the Electric Spine project to electrify the railway between Southampton in the south and Nuneaton and Sheffield in the north, electrification of the Midland Main Line from Bedford to Sheffield , Cardiff – Swansea and Valley Lines electrification, and the Western Rail Approach to Heathrow . The Electric Spine , Midland Main Line electrification and Cardiff–Swansea electrification were later scrapped in July 2017. Following
3366-582: The BBC, this represents the largest shake-up in the UK's railways since privatisation. On 18 November 2021, the Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) was published. This affected parts of the HS2 programme including curtailing much of the eastern leg but did include full Midland Main Line electrification and upgrades. Also included was a commitment to the Transpennine north railway upgrade to include full electrification. On
3465-514: The BBC, this represents the largest shake-up in the UK's railways since privatisation. On 18 November 2021, the government announced the biggest ever public investment in Britain's rail network costing £96 billion and promising quicker and more frequent rail connections in the North and Midlands: the Integrated Rail Plan includes substantially improved connections north–south as well as east–west and includes three new high speed lines. In July 2024,
3564-441: The DfT planned to sell Diesel Trains Ltd once the procurement process was completed, either as a whole, or by selling its assets and contracts. Diesel Trains Ltd was to have responsibility for the purchase and distribution of 202 DMU vehicles to three TOCs – First Great Western , First TransPennine Express and Northern Rail . The order itself was to encompass a total of 61 trains, with 19 four-car and 42 three-car. Following
3663-612: The Lake District. In February 2018, the five-year plan was published by Network Rail with significant investment though much of this was for renewals and smaller projects rather than major projects. In March 2019 the Railway Industry Association published a paper entitled Electrification Cost Challenge. In July 2019, the Urban Transport Group released a report that showed regional rail travel had experienced
3762-510: The UK Government permanently got rid of the rail franchising system. On 20 May 2021, the Government announced a white paper that would transform the operation of the railways. The rail network will be partly renationalised, with infrastructure and operations brought together under the state-owned public body Great British Railways . Operations will be managed on a concessions model. According to
3861-401: The UK, the largest of which is DB Cargo UK (formerly DB Schenker, formerly English Welsh & Scottish (EWS)). There are also several smaller independent operators including Mendip Rail . Types of freight carried include intermodal – in essence containerised freight – and coal, metals, oil, and construction materials. The Beeching Cuts, in contrast to passenger services, greatly modernised
3960-409: The announcement in August 2009 that the Great Western Main Line was to be electrified, the order for 202 DMUs was cancelled. After lying dormant for three years, Diesel Trains Ltd was dissolved in July 2012. After the 2010 General Election , the new Conservative led Coalition continued Labour's rail policies largely unaltered after a pause to review the finances. There was continuing support for
4059-547: The average Advance ticket in 1995 cost £9.14 (in 2014 prices) compared to £5.17 in 2014. Rail subsidies have increased from £3.4bn in 1992–93 to £4.5bn in 2015–16 (in current prices), although subsidy per journey has fallen from £4.57 per journey to £2.61 per journey. However, this masks great regional variation, as in 2014–15 funding varied from "£1.41 per passenger journey in England to £6.51 per journey in Scotland and £8.34 per journey in Wales." The public image of rail travel
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4158-610: The average age to around 15 years by March 2021. Although passengers rarely have cause to refer to either document, all travel is subject to the National Rail Conditions of Travel and all tickets are valid subject to the rules set out in a number of so-called technical manuals , which are centrally produced for the network. Below are the estimated total number of journeys using heavy rail transport in Britain for each financial year. (This table does not include Eurostar, Underground or light rail services) The following table
4257-716: The back of the IRP, the Union Connectivity Review was also published in November 2021. The Union Connectivity Review was announced on 30 June 2020 by the Prime Minister Boris Johnson . It was stated that Sir Peter Hendy would chair the review. The terms of reference were published 3 October 2020. An interim report was published March 2021. The final report was published on 25 November 2021. In December 2021 The Telegraph newspaper reported in an apparent leak that
4356-624: The case of the InterCity West Coast and InterCity East Coast franchises, applicants submit bids to return the most money to the government from operating the service. This has led to franchisees collapsing when passenger growth targets are not met as promised payments to the government cannot be paid and the franchise is exited early. In 2023, Network Rail held over £59.1 billion in debt, and £1.176 billion interest payments. Many of these debts were incurred by Railtrack and transferred to Network Rail when it collapsed. British Rail operations were privatised during 1994–1997. Ownership of
4455-480: The cheapest fares in Europe if they book in advance or travel at off-peak times or purchase 'day-return' tickets which cost little more than a single ticket. UK rail operators point out rail fare increases have been at a substantially lower rate than petrol prices for private motoring. The difference in price has also been blamed on the fact Britain has the most restrictive loading gauge (maximum width and height of trains that can fit through tunnels, bridges etc.) in
4554-440: The coordination of transport in Great Britain. Rail revenue fell and in 1955 the network again ceased to be profitable. The mid-1950s saw the rapid introduction of diesel and electric rolling stock, but the expected transfer back from road to rail did not occur and losses began to mount. The desire for profitability led to a major reduction in the network during the mid-1960s, with ICI manager Dr. Richard Beeching commissioned by
4653-414: The country. The industrial action began on Southern services as a dispute over the planned introduction of driver-only operation, and has since expanded to cover many different issues affecting the rail industry; as of February 2018, the majority of the industrial action remains unresolved, with further strikes planned. The scale, impact and bitterness of the nationwide rail strikes have been compared to
4752-594: The demise of privately-owned Railtrack and its replacement with government-owned Network Rail . Overall rail subsidies have risen, as shown in the graph, although spend per journey has decreased. Rail subsidies have increased from £3.4 billion in 1992–93 to £4.5 billion in 2015–16 (in current prices), although subsidy per journey has fallen from £4.57 to £2.61. However, this masks great regional variation: for instance, in 2014–15 funding varied from "£1.41 per passenger journey in England to £6.51 per journey in Scotland and £8.34 per journey in Wales." Due to
4851-629: The domestic fleet of InterCity 125 and 225 trains on the existing national network was announced. In 2009 it was announced that the preferred rolling stock option for this project was the Hitachi Super Express family of multiple units, and they entered service in 2017 on the Great Western Main Line and in 2019 on the East Coast Main Line. The trains will be capable of a maximum speed of 140 mph with "minor modifications", with
4950-523: The early years was the creation of the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA), initially in shadow form until the Transport Act 2000 received Royal Assent , as well as the appointment of Tom Winsor as Rail Regulator , who took a much harder line with the rail industry , and Railtrack in particular. In the wake of the Hatfield rail crash in 2000, Railtrack entered into financial meltdown and
5049-563: The east–west railway Crossrail which is currently under construction. In July 2017, Chris Grayling , the secretary of state for transport announced a number of electrification schemes were to be suspended indefinitely citing the disruptive nature of electrification works and the availability of bi-mode technology. The schemes included aspects of the GWML including Cardiff to Swansea , the Midland Main Line from Kettering to Sheffield via Derby and Nottingham and Oxenholme to Windermere in
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#17328587793315148-404: The end of September 2003, the first part of High Speed 1 , a high-speed link to the Channel Tunnel and onward to France and Belgium, was completed, significantly adding to the rail infrastructure of the country. The rest of the link, from north Kent to London St Pancras opened in 2007. A major programme of remedial work on the West Coast Main Line started in 1997 and finished in 2008. Since
5247-597: The existing Network Rail infrastructure if required, with the route intersecting with the existing WCML and the East Coast Main Line (ECML). A cancelled second phase of the project was planned to reach further north to Manchester, Sheffield and Leeds, as well as linking into the Midland Main Line . In June 2014, the chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne , proposed a high-speed rail link Northern Powerhouse Rail (also known as High Speed 3 or High Speed North) between Liverpool and Newcastle/Sheffield/Hull. The line would use
5346-399: The existing route between Liverpool and Newcastle/Hull and a new route from to Sheffield will follow the same route to Manchester Victoria and then a new line from Victoria to Sheffield, with additional tunnels and other infrastructure. As of August 2023 the following rolling stock on the British network is capable of 125 mph or more: In 2011, the fastest timetabled start-to-stop run by
5445-589: The financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic . The UK government proposed a new state-owned public body, Great British Railways , which would operate a concession contract system on the network from 2023. As of November 2023 , legislation to establish the new body was said to be "unlikely" within the 2023–2024 parliamentary session. In the 2015–16 operating year, franchised services provided 1,718 million journeys totalling (64.7 billion billion passenger km) of travel, an increase over 1994–5 of 117% in journeys (from 761 million) and just over doubling
5544-520: The first of a new Class 395 train fleet for use partly on High Speed 1 and parts of the rest of the UK rail network, the first domestic high-speed running over 125 mph (to about 140 mph) began in December 2009, including a special Olympic Javelin shuttle for the 2012 Summer Olympics . These services are operated by the South Eastern franchise . The Intercity Express Programme for replacement of
5643-462: The first public railways in the early 19th century, from about 1900 onwards the network suffered from gradual attrition, and more severe rationalisation in the 1950s and 1960s. However, the network has again been growing since the 1980s. The UK was ranked eighth among national European rail systems in the 2017 European Railway Performance Index for intensity of use, quality of service and safety performance. To cope with increasing passenger numbers, there
5742-668: The five geographical Regions were replaced by a Sectored organisation, in which passenger services were organised into InterCity , Network SouthEast and Regional Railways sectors. The Railways Act 1993 divided the railways up, with Railtrack taking ownership of British Rail's property portfolio, tracks, signals, bridges and tunnels, Rolling Stock Operating Companies, and train operating companies. Passenger transport services were bundled together into franchises to facilitate cross-subsidy within franchises, with many regulations on ticket prices and types, regulated fare increases and "Parliamentary service" obligations. Companies submit bids to
5841-524: The franchise to the state-owned Directly Operated Railways to operate the route under its East Coast subsidiary. In February 2009, the Department for Transport set up a company called Diesel Trains Ltd with the intention of funding and managing the procurement of up to 200 diesel multiple unit vehicles as part of the British Government 's planned purchase of as many as 1300 new rail vehicles. It
5940-757: The franchising authority - often the Secretary of State for Transport, Passenger Transport Authority, or devolved government - competing for the lowest subsidy requirement and to invest in the railway over the lifespan of the franchise. There is also provision for subsidy between franchises, with profitable franchises demanding payments made to the government to cover a share of the losses from others. Examples of franchises include ScotRail , Great Western , and Southern Trains . Open Access Operators are entirely free to set their own services and fares unaffected by government regulations. Examples of such operators are Lumo and Grand Central , Hull Trains and Heathrow Express . In
6039-452: The goods sector, replacing inefficient wagons with containerised regional hubs. Freight services had been in steady decline since the 1930s, initially because of the reduction in manufacturing and then road haulage's cost advantage in combination with higher wages. Since 1995, however, the amount of freight carried on the railways has increased sharply due to increased reliability and competition, as well as international services. In 2000,
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#17328587793316138-400: The government abolished the rail franchising system. On 20 May 2021, the government announced and published a white paper that detailed how it would transform the operation of the railways. The rail network will be partly renationalised, with infrastructure and operations brought together under a new company Great British Railways. Operations will be managed on a concessions model. According to
6237-479: The government announced plans to close the majority of ticket offices. The plan was abandoned in October 2023. In March 2016, the National Infrastructure Commission said that Crossrail 2 should be taken forward "as a priority" and recommended that a bill should pass through Parliament by 2019 and the line should be open by 2033. Crossrail 2 is a north–south railway through London, similar to
6336-448: The government launched the Access for All programme to improve accessibility at railway stations in Great Britain. The £390 million main programme (extended in 2014 with a further £163 million) has delivered accessibility projects at more than 150 stations. In 2007, the government's preferred option was to use diesel trains running on biodiesel , its White Paper Delivering
6435-652: The government resisted calls for the nationalisation of the network (first proposed by 19th century Prime Minister William Gladstone as early as the 1830s). Instead, from 1 January 1923, almost all the remaining companies were grouped into the "big four": the Great Western Railway , the London and North Eastern Railway , the London Midland and Scottish Railway and the Southern Railway companies (there were also
6534-409: The government under Ernest Marples with reorganising the railways. Many branch lines (and a number of main lines) were closed because they were deemed uneconomic ("the Beeching Axe " of 1963), removing much feeder traffic from main line passenger services. In the second Beeching report of 1965, only the "major trunk routes" were selected for large-scale investment, leading many to speculate the rest of
6633-458: The increase in passenger numbers and the prospect of high speed rail both within Great Britain and connecting to Europe, this period has been called the start of a new Golden Age of rail travel. However quickly increasing passenger numbers have meant many trains (as many as 1 in 6 in some places) are very crowded at peak times. Peak-time fares have increased by over 200% (since privatisation) to deter people from travelling at these times, whereas
6732-412: The industry was in deep crisis. Labour refused to continue to bail out Railtrack and the company was put into Railway Administration in 2001 and a new company, Network Rail emerged to replace Railtrack in 2002. Since September 2014, Network Rail has been classified as a "government body". The Strategic Rail Authority lasted just five years. Following the passing of the Railways Act 2005 , its business
6831-438: The industry went on to enjoy the longest period in modern times without a fatal accident due to industry error. This came to an end in February 2007 when a Virgin Trains West Coast Class 390 Pendolino derailed near Grayrigg in Cumbria, killing one person. The cause of the accident was identical to that in Potters Bar nearly five years earlier – once again calling into question Network Rail's maintenance procedures. In 2006,
6930-630: The most part in large cities, with the largest conurbations (e.g. Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff , Edinburgh, Glasgow , Liverpool , and Manchester ) typically having more than one main station. London is a major hub of the network, with 12 main-line termini forming a "ring" around central London . Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Glasgow, Bristol and Reading are major interchanges for many cross-country journeys that do not involve London. However, some important railway junction stations lie in smaller cities and towns, for example York , Crewe and Ely . Some other places expanded into towns and cities because of
7029-407: The national network and the company's spiralling costs set in motion a series of events which resulted in the collapse of the company and its replacement with Network Rail , a state-owned, "not-for-profit" company, with risks underwritten by the taxpayer. According to the European Railway Agency , in 2013 Britain had the safest railways in Europe based on the number of train safety incidents. At
7128-411: The near future and ScotRail was brought into public ownership in 2022. Initially, there were 25 franchises, some franchises have since been combined, others nationalised. There are also a number of local or specialised rail services operated on an open access basis outside the franchise arrangements; examples include Heathrow Express and Hull Trains . Many franchises were effectively abolished due to
7227-588: The necessary signalling modifications required of the Network Rail infrastructure in Britain likely to come from the phased rollout of the Europe-wide European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS). Following several studies and consultations on high-speed rail, in 2009 the UK Government formally announced the High Speed 2 project, establishing a company to produce a feasibility study to examine route options and financing for
7326-462: The network would eventually be closed. This was never implemented by BR. Passenger services experienced a renaissance with the introduction of the InterCity 125 trains in the 1970s. Passenger levels fluctuated since then, increasing during periods of economic growth and falling during recessions. The 1980s saw severe cuts in government funding and above-inflation increases in fares, In the early 1990s,
7425-509: The new Labour government confirmed that passenger services would be brought back into public ownership upon the expiration of their contracts as part of the wider renationalisation of the rail network. Passenger services in Great Britain were divided into regional franchises and run by mostly private (that is, non-state owned) train operating companies from 1995 to 2020. These companies bid for seven- to eight-year contracts to run individual franchises. Most contracts in England are awarded by
7524-538: The passenger miles. The passenger-miles figure, after being flat from 1965 to 1995, surpassed the 1947 figure for the first time in 1998 and continues to rise steeply. The key index used to assess passenger train performance is the Public Performance Measure , which combines figures for punctuality and reliability. From a base of 90% of trains arriving on time in 1998, the measure dipped to 75% in mid-2001 due to stringent safety restrictions put in place after
7623-663: The period 1997–98 to 2014 as compared to 62% in Germany, 41% in France and 16% in Spain. The United Kingdom is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC country code for United Kingdom is 70. The UK has the 17th largest railway network in the world ; despite many lines having closed in the 20th century, due to the Beeching cuts , it remains one of the densest networks. It
7722-463: The price of advance tickets has halved in the same period. The COVID-19 pandemic caused a massive drop in passenger numbers, even though freight transport held up fairly well. The Labour government (elected in 1997 after the majority of the privatisation process had been completed) did not completely reverse the railway privatisation of the previous administration. Initially it left the new structure largely in place, however its main innovation in
7821-474: The railway network. Swindon , for example, was little more than a village before the Great Western Railway chose to site its locomotive works there. In many instances geography, politics or military considerations originally caused stations to be sited further from the towns they served until, with time, these issues could be overcome (for example, Portsmouth had its original station at Gosport ). High-speed inter-city rail (above 124 mph or 200 km/h)
7920-435: The railways, with journeys in 2020 being about 22% of the previous year, before rising again as travel restrictions eased. During 2020, all train operating companies entered into emergency measures agreements with the UK and Scottish governments. Normal franchise mechanisms were amended, transferring almost all revenue and cost risk to the government, effectively 'renationalising' the network temporarily. In September 2020,
8019-634: The remainder of the 2015 Parliament . In addition much debate has continued over the financing of various rail schemes driven primarily by the huge cost and time overrun on the GWML route modernisation and electrification scheme. In connection with this, and to coincide with the Chancellor's Autumn statement in November 2015, the Bowe and Hendy reports were produced. Since April 2016, the British railway network has been severely disrupted on many occasions by wide-reaching rail strikes , affecting rail franchises across
8118-409: The review took place however, newly installed Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin scrapped the entire bidding process for the franchise and granted Virgin an extension to its contract when "severe technical flaws" were discovered in the original bidding competition. The government has moved towards allowing more competition on the intercity network through open access operators. In 2015 it approved
8217-454: The survey started) to 83% in 2013 and the number of passengers not satisfied with their journey dropped from 10% to 6%. Since privatisation, passenger levels have more than doubled, and have surpassed their level in the late 1940s. Train fares cost 2.7% more than under British Rail in real terms on average. However, while the price of anytime and off-peak tickets has increased, the price of Advance tickets has dramatically decreased in real terms:
8316-596: The tilting train Class 390 Pendolino fleet designed for this maximum speed of service were still built and entered service in 2002, and operates limited to 125 mph. Other routes in the UK were upgraded with trains capable of top speeds of up to 125 mph running with the introduction between 2000 and 2005 of Class 180 Adelante DMUs and the Bombardier Voyager DEMUs (Classes 220 , 221 and 222 ). The first implementation of high-speed rail up to 186 mph in regular passenger service in Great Britain
8415-541: The track and infrastructure passed to Railtrack , whilst passenger operations were franchised to individual private sector operators (originally there were 25 franchises) and the goods services sold outright (six companies were set up, but five of these were sold to the same buyer). The government said privatisation would see an improvement in passenger services and satisfaction (according to the National Rail Passenger survey) has indeed gone up from 76% in 1999 (when
8514-426: The treasury had decided not to provide fund further electrification and thus help to decarbonise the railways. The official announcement and confirmation that the Midland Main Line between Kettering and Market Harborough was being electrified and spades would be in the ground starting 24 December 2021 was made on 21 December 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom occurred in this period and caused
8613-470: The war and the private sector only had two years to deal with this after the war ended. After 1945, for both practical and ideological reasons, the government decided to bring the rail service into the public sector . From the start of 1948, the "big four" were nationalised to form British Railways (latterly British Rail ) under the control of the British Transport Commission . Although BR
8712-469: The world which means any trains must be significantly narrower and less tall than those used elsewhere. This means British trains cannot be bought "off-the-shelf" and must be specially built to fit British standards. Average rolling-stock age fell slightly from the third quarter of 2001–02 to 2017–18, from 20.7 years old to 19.6 years old, and recent large orders from Bombardier and its acquirer Alstom , as well as CAF , Hitachi and Stadler , brought down
8811-486: Was a single entity, it was divided into six (later five) regional authorities in accordance with the existing areas of operation. Though there were few initial changes to the service, usage increased and the network became profitable. Regeneration of track and railway stations was completed by 1954. In the same year, changes to the British Transport Commission, including the privatisation of road haulage, ended
8910-622: Was first introduced in Great Britain in the 1970s by British Rail. BR had pursued two development projects in parallel, the development of a tilting train technology, the Advanced Passenger Train (APT), and development of a conventional high-speed diesel train, the High Speed Train (HST). The APT project was abandoned, but the HST design entered service as the British Rail Classes 253, 254 and 255 trains. The prototype HST,
9009-576: Was followed by an era of rapid expansion. Most of the track is managed by Network Rail , which in 2017 had a network of 9,824 miles (15,811 km) of standard-gauge lines, of which 3,339 miles (5,374 km) were electrified . In addition, some cities have separate metro, light rail and tram systems, among them the historic London Underground and the Glasgow Subway . There are also many private railways , some of them narrow-gauge , which are primarily short lines for tourists. The main rail network
9108-518: Was incorporated following the announcement of the first 200 vehicles in late 2008 as part of the Pre-Budget Report – the speed of this announcement (the final contract to be signed in April 2009) led the government to take the lead in financing the procurement, through a public company. However, the DfT stated that it did not intend to serve in the long-term as a lessor of rolling stock. As a consequence,
9207-487: Was later built as a patchwork of local lines operated by small private railway companies. Over the course of the 19th and early 20th centuries, these amalgamated or were bought by competitors until only a handful of larger companies remained (see Railway Mania ). The entire network was brought under government control during the First World War and a number of advantages of amalgamation and planning were revealed. However,
9306-574: Was matched by several Leeds to London Class 91 -operated East Coast trains if their two-minute recovery allowance for this section is excluded from the public timetable. A number of towns and cities have rapid transit networks. Underground technology is used in the Glasgow subway , Merseyrail centred on Liverpool, London Underground centred on London, London Overground and the London Docklands Light Railway centred on London, and
9405-487: Was not in place on the normal British railway network (but was used on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link). A final attempt by the nationalised British Rail at High Speed Rail was the cancelled InterCity 250 project in the 1990s for the West Coast Main Line. Post privatisation, a plan to upgrade the West Coast Main Line to speeds of up to 140 mph with infrastructure improvements were finally abandoned, although
9504-502: Was partly due to more international services including the Channel Tunnel and Port of Felixstowe , which is containerised. Nevertheless, as of 2008, network bottlenecks and insufficient investment in catering for 9' 6" high shipping containers restricted growth. History of rail transport in Great Britain 1995 to date#Timeline of improvements The period from 1995 covers the history of rail transport in Great Britain following
9603-441: Was severely damaged by a series of significant accidents after privatisation. These included the Hatfield accident , caused by a rail fragmenting due to the development of microscopic cracks. Following this, the rail infrastructure company Railtrack imposed over 1,200 emergency speed restrictions across its network and instigated an extremely costly nationwide track replacement programme. The consequent severe operational disruption to
9702-531: Was the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (now known as High Speed 1 ), when its first phase opened in 2003 linking the British end of the Channel Tunnel at Folkestone with Fawkham Junction in Kent. This is used by international only passenger trains for the Eurostar service, using Class 373 and Class 374 trains. The line was later extended all the way into London St Pancras in 2007. After the building of
9801-636: Was wound up and its functions transferred to the Department for Transport Rail Group and the Office of Rail Regulation . Further changes followed, which saw the government take back a greater degree of control. Another important development occurred in the aftermath of the Potters Bar accident in May 2002 when a commuter train derailed (coincidentally on the same stretch of the East Coast Main Line as Hatfield) due to poorly maintained points. This resulted in Network Rail taking all track maintenance back in-house and
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