Next year three train companies will be nationalised in a “major shakeup” as rail services just “don’t work.”
The Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said on Wednesday that South Westen will be the first train company to be nationalised in 2025.
After July 2025 c2c will then come under public ownership and in the autumn Greater Anglia will follow.
The government has said this will place “passengers back at the heart of services after 30 years of privatisation,” which is a “major shake up” of Britain’s railways.
Sky News reported that Alexander said, “For too long, the British public have had to put up with rail services which simply don’t work. A complex system of private train operators has too often failed its users.
“Starting with journeys on South Western Railway, we’re switching tracks by bringing services back under public control to create a reliable rail network that puts customers first.
“Our broken railways are finally on the fast track to repair and rebuilding a system that the British public can trust and be proud of again.”
She told BBC Breakfast: “The primary aim of this is to improve reliability and clamp down on the delays, the cancellation, the waste and the inefficiency that we’ve seen over the last 30 years.
“We’ve had private train operating companies running train services in this country over the last few decades, and it clearly hasn’t worked.”
As revealed in the Autumn Budget rail dares will rise in March by 4.6%, she was asked if tickets will become cheaper under public ownership.
Alexander said, “The commercial realities of the railways are very challenging at the moment.
“Even under public ownership we’ve got to make sure that we’ve got enough money to provide the services that people want.
“Because otherwise you can enter into a little bit of a death spiral, really, if you start cutting services and people can’t get to where they want to get to when they want to get there – they’ll look for other options.
“The Government said the change will save up to £150 million a year in fees alone by ensuring money is spent on services rather than private shareholders.
Rail, Maritime and Transport union general secretary Mick Lynch said: “This is a significant step forward for passengers, rail workers, and those who want to see an efficient rail system run for the public good, rather than private profit.
“Bringing infrastructure and passenger services under one employer in public ownership means proper investment in operations, harmonising conditions for staff, and prioritising the needs of passengers.”
Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association general secretary Maryam Eslamdoust said: “The move will mean better value for taxpayers and better services for rail passengers. It recognises that railways should be run as a public service rather than as a cash cow for shareholders.
“We welcome the Labour Government’s recognition of the expertise and experience that railway staff – our members – possess are crucial to the changes they want to see in the sector.”
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