The Rail Regulator tells Railtrack to sort out its own problems first rather than lecturing the rest of the industry on theirs
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11 November 1998 John Swift QC, the Rail Regulator, issued the following statement in advance of a regular meeting with the senior management of Railtrack, and having regard to a series of statements from Railtrack as to the causes of the current disappointing performance of the passenger railway. John Swift said: "I will be making clear to Railtrack that improving their responsibility for the current performance of the railway should be an immediate priority. I expect Railtrack to deliver on the commitments it has already agreed with my Office to improve its own performance by 7.5% in the current year and to set challenging targets for further improvements over the next two years. "It is well known that Railtrack has a central role to play, as the owner and operator of the national rail network, in delivering improved performance for passengers and freight users. I reject any approach which seeks to improve the statistics for Railtrack or the TOCs by constraining the growth of traffic on the network. Such an approach is negative and unacceptable. It cuts across the development of the railway network for passengers and freight. It is inconsistent with Government policy to increase the role of the railways in transport policy overall. "I expect Railtrack to work with train operators and funders to increase reliability and punctuality, and to provide capacity for additional services through innovative timetabling, improved operating performance and increased investment. "As part of the periodic review of Railtrack's access charges, the Office will be publishing in December conclusions on the financial framework for remunerating Railtrack's assets, which will provide the right incentives for Railtrack to develop its investment programme. As part of the review, the Office is also considering how changes in the structure of charges and performance regimes can reinforce targets for improved performance, by giving Railtrack a direct financial incentive to achieve better performance and to promote increased use of the rail network." Copyright © 2002 Office of the Rail Regulator |
