Office of Rail Regulation acts to restore advance timetable information

02 September 2004
ORR/38/04

The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) announced today that it had sought and obtained a commitment from Network Rail to restore compliance with its obligation to provide accurate information about revisions to the national timetable at least twelve weeks in advance of operation.

Chris Bolt, Chairman of ORR, said:
“ Experience over the August Bank Holiday has shown, once again, that the current position on the provision of advance timetable information is unacceptable, a point highlighted by the recent Rail Passengers Council report.  Network Rail is failing to meet its licence requirement to make timetable information available to train operators 12 weeks in advance, so that passengers can plan journeys, reserve seats and access the full range of fares.   Network Rail has committed to delivering a recovery plan for a staged return to compliance, which ORR will closely monitor.  If it fails to deliver that plan, ORR will consider what further action is required.”

The plan provides for a staged improvement through to full compliance in September 2005, with major milestones designed to improve conditions at key holiday periods. The first milestone will be to provide revised timetable information for all seven days of the week four weeks in advance, with effect from 20 November 2004. This will improve on the position experienced over the August Bank Holiday period, when some information was only available less than one week in advance, and ensure that passengers will have accurate timetable information for the Christmas and New Year period at the latest from the beginning of December. 
                                                                                                                         
The second milestone will be to provide revised timetable information six weeks in advance with effect from 26 March 2005.  This will cover Easter 2005.  Subsequent milestones are to provide information eight weeks in advance from 21 May 2005, ten weeks in advance from 23 July 2005 and full compliance, 12 weeks’ notice, from 24 September 2005.

Network Rail regularly needs to undertake work on its network in order to maintain or renew it; this will often require closures and the diversion of trains.  But it must plan this work and manage the consequent revision of the timetable in such a way that it meets its all its licence obligations.  Network Rail has committed to a comprehensive recovery plan. The plan includes a substantial restructuring of its operational planning department, improved long term planning, and greater control over late changes to engineering work.
 
Following ORR’s careful review of the recovery plan submitted by Network Rail and in view of the commitments made by Network Rail, ORR has decided that it is not appropriate, at this time, to make an enforcement order to require compliance with the licence condition.  But, ORR will be monitoring the position carefully and if Network Rail fails to deliver on the commitment it has made, ORR will consider what further action is required to achieve compliance with the licence requirement.

Notes for editors

1. Licence obligation.  Under its network licence, Network Rail is required to “plan its renewal, maintenance and enhancement of the network in a timely and efficient manner to enable it to specify its requirements for temporary changes to the national timetable (except in respect of changes arising from emergencies or severe weather conditions) so that the procedures to revise the national timetable in respect of such changes can be completed not less than 12 weeks prior to the date of any such change.”  Network Rail is in breach of this requirement.

2. Section 55(6) notice.  If a licence holder contravenes a licence condition, ORR is required by the Railways Act 1993 to take action.  The Act obliges ORR to take enforcement action, to secure compliance, except where it is satisfied that the licence holder has agreed to take, and is taking, all such steps as it appears to ORR to be appropriate for it to take for the purpose of securing or facilitating compliance with the condition.  In this case, given the thorough analysis underpinning the recovery plan, the comprehensiveness of the plan itself and Network Rail’s commitment to it, ORR is satisfied in this respect.  In consequence, section 55(6) of the Railways Act 1993 requires ORR to issue a notice to this effect. 
                                                                                                                               
3. The section 55(6) notice is available from the ORR website at http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/s55-6_notice.pdf and also available from the ORR Librarian, Sue MacSwan, 1 Waterhouse Square, 138–142 Holborn, London EC1N 2TQ, tel: 020 7282 2001, fax: 020 7282 2045, e-mail: rail.library@orr.gsi.gov.uk.

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