Railwatch 069 - October 1996

Yorkshire

By James Towler

Dog's breakfast With Railtrack trading on the Stock Exchange, rail privatisation has become a fact of life. It was not just a case of selling the family silver - they gave some of it away! Unlike other privatisations, billions of pounds of taxpayers money goes into Railtrack's coffers via the indirect subsidies paid to the train operating companies. Labour could have stopped it in its tracks. That they didn't is water under the bridge. Yet it has to be said that the former Shadow Transport Secretary Clare Short's plans to safeguard the network seem to lack substance. Transport Secretary Sir George Young has described Labour's proposals as "a real dog's breakfast!" He should know. He presides over one!

New broom? Sea Containers' Christopher Garnett brings a refreshing candour to the role of chief executive at East Coast. His prime aim is to get more people to travel on East Coast trains and to do that he knows he must offer a more reliable service. "It's the 225s which are mucking us up and we have six to nine months to get them right," he says. Air conditioning on the Mark 4 coaches was "appalling". Rectifications are running late and will not be complete until after the summer - as many of us have found to our discomfort. On the credit side, Bradford services will be improved. So will car parks and security. Mr Garnett brings enthusiasm and a brisk businesslike approach to the top job. We must hope he doesn't go native!

Should the coach take the strain? Refurbishment of East Coast's 125s means there will be no train for the Sunday afternoon Hull-King's Cross this autumn. Rather than accept Regional Railways' offer of Pacers to feed into a 225 at Doncaster, East Coast plans luxury road coaches for the first leg of the journey. More worrying are proposals for regular East Coast road coaches to feed into their trains at Wakefield as this could undermine existing West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive rail services. We have put it to East Coast that better rail connections are the answer. Apart from anything else, passengers might prefer the road coach and choose it for the whole journey next time.

Watch your route Franchise Director Roger Salmon has said the Routing Guide will be "less tolerant of extreme eccentricities" than that offered by "any reasonable route". Passengers who fall foul of the new system should stand their ground as Regulator John Swift says he will not approve any guide which restricted 'reasonable' routes which have been in common use.

Mr Rising Price The Wharfedale Rail Users' Group have done some interesting research which shows West Yorkshire PTE fares are currently near their all-time high for the past 17 years. Adjusted for inflation and using January 1979 as a bench-mark (100), the index currently stands at 125. The halcyon days were between 1981 and 1989 when the index fell from 125 to 90.

Ten years On July l0 anniversary celebrations marking the return of local trains to the Settle-Carlisle highlighted the current success of the line. In addition to enjoying a good local service, freight has also returned with a vengeance. All that is missing is an inter-city service worthy of a line built to take express trains over the hills at speed. Resurrection of the Nottingham-Glasgow service would do for starters.

Branch meetings Saturday 16 November, Unity Hall, Smythe Street, Wakefield at 1400. Saturday 18 January, Trades & Labour Club, Marsh Way, Doncaster, at 1400. AGM and luncheon: Union Bank, Huddersfield on Saturday 15 March from 1130.

Last Word Did you hear about the 'phone call received by Graham Mitchell, chairman of the Keighley & Worth Valley Preservation Society, from an official-sounding chap about painting the bridge at Keighley station? Mitchell explained he was only interested in the part spanning the KWVR; whereupon the caller, seemingly oblivious of the Worth Valley line, retorted: "You'll have to forgive me. I know nothing about railways. I work for Railtrack!"

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