Andy Bagnall

This report looks excellent and timely. "Throughout this work, Arup found the most opportunity for acceleration, cost reduction and improved outcomes was identified during the first 10% of a project’s lifecycle. These early-stages offer the most opportunity to drive Greener, Faster, Cheaper delivery. Ensuring the initial stages of project planning are robust and innovative, sets the foundation for success. Defining and driving programmes based on operational outcomes, not just the asset, leads to greater buy-in and support." As Prof. Bent Flyvbjerg says the key to getting big things done is "think slow, act fast" Great work Arup and Cath Leech! #megaprojects

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HS2 and The Budget, in more detail from my colleague Thomas Wintle

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As ever, measurable benefits will be the proof of this.

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Do you know of a historic railway item that should be preserved? As explained in this Rail Director article 👇 this is the job of the Railway Heritage Designation Advisory Board. They need help understanding what should be preserved once it is no longer required operationally. Recent examples include HST power cars, but they are interested in the whole range of potentially historic items. Please complete their short questionnaire to help them understand what is out there. https://rb.gy/w7hnda

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New report from Public Transport Users Association analyses service levels of bus routes serving the government's announced 25 housing priority areas. The Only 4 out of 51 routes surveyed had good service levels including long hours and 15-20 minute service across the week. Most routes were rated fair or poor, with the latter having hourly frequencies and/or not running much on weekends. Read the report here: https://lnkd.in/gEbduKXX

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Towards the end of 2024, government assumed direct responsibility for Britain’s railways with the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill receiving Royal Assent and the timeline for nationalisation being announced. In 2025, government needs to address the wider issues of reform on the railway. The second Bill on rail reform, expected this year, needs to explain how GBR, the regulator and the passenger watchdog will be configured to drive the necessary reductions in subsidy while ensuring the passenger experience is one of more reliable and affordable train services. Our Chief Executive Andy Bagnall wrote an article for RAIL Magazine on this at the end of last year. Read here: https://lnkd.in/ed4-5DDq

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Today's rail headlines - #InTheNews: New rail service linking Scotland and Wales, independent review of rail fare prosecutions and enforcement, LNER support to vulnerable people, and the new luxury train service. Listen here: #UKrail #railways #headlines

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Report launched yesterday by my Transport Action Network colleagues, arguing that the roads programme represents poor value-for-money and is not a good way to boost the economy or address Labour's other 4 missions. These would be better achieved by pausing or (preferably) scrapping £15bn (at least) worth of road schemes, and reallocating the money to sustainable transport alternatives and to repairing our existing pothole-ridden roads: https://lnkd.in/emqy4EgB

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Transport, planning and energy reform feature in King's Speech Labour government sets out legislative programme including renationalising rail, bus franchises and empowering metro mayors https://lnkd.in/eau7SnX6 TRANSPORT New legislation will create a simplified rail system by bringing rail services into public ownership once their contracts expire or if operators fail to deliver on their commitments. Labour says this approach will avoid the burden falling on taxpayers to cough up for compensation to operators for taking services into public ownership. The government will also introduce legislation to establish a new public body, Great British Railways (GBR) which will be focused on improving services and creating better value for money for passengers. GBR will be tasked with delivering simplified fares, discounts, and ticket types. The King’s Speech also featured a Better Buses Bill that gives metro mayors powers to franchise local bus services and which lifts the restriction on new publicly owned bus operators. BUILDING Building more housing and infrastructure is central to the Government’s plans to strengthen economic growth. A planning reform bill to speed up and streamline the planning process to build more homes of all tenures and accelerate the delivery of major infrastructure projects. The government will also introduce a bill to ensure a new National Wealth Fund worth £7.3bn will make what are envisaged to be transformational investments of across the UK. LOCAL LEADERSHIP As part of the new government’s plans to empower local leaders to deliver change for their communities, the King’s Speech unveiled the English Devolution Bill. This will transfer power into local communities and recognising the role local leaders play in supporting growth by establishing local growth plans that bring economic benefit to communities and households across the country. The English Devolution Bill will be give new powers to metro mayors and combined authorities to support local growth plans that bring economic benefit to communities. ENERGY A new bill will help set up Great British Energy, a publicly owned clean-power company that will help boost energy security, create jobs and build supply chains in every corner of the UK.   The government will also introduce legislation that helps unlock investment in energy infrastructure, supports sustainable aviation fuel production and strengthens the water regulator’s powers. Read more on TransportXtra from Landor LINKS Ltd #kingsspeech #rail #bus #regions #mayors

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The Transport Secretary has written a letter to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) about her expectations for how open access will operate alongside a publicly owned railway. In the letter, Heidi Alexander has said: “I recognise the benefits that can be provided by open access operators in the right circumstances and that both existing and new open access operators can open up new markets, drive innovation and offer choice to passengers." #railnews #railways #ukrail #rail 

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The Transport Secretary has written a letter to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) about her expectations for how open access will operate alongside a publicly owned railway. In the letter, Heidi Alexander has said: “I recognise the benefits that can be provided by open access operators in the right circumstances and that both existing and new open access operators can open up new markets, drive innovation and offer choice to passengers." #railnews #railways #ukrail #rail 

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We reveal today that officials in the Department for Transport (DfT), United Kingdom have hatched a plan to fund the new HS2 (High Speed Two) Ltd Euston station and the Network Rail main line terminus. Early-stage proposals are to create a concession, whereby north of £3bn is invested by private investors alongside £700m of public money. Concessionaires are then paid fee for every passenger that passes through the barriers at the stations. It is all part of Labour Party (UK) plans to bring back PFI-style funding. Although, as Al Watson and Paul Davies highlight, it is likely likely to involve a far greater degree of partnership between the public and private sectors. In today's The Times https://lnkd.in/ecbuqkfV

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Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS) has coordinated a groundbreaking manifesto calling for immediate and strategic action to address the persistent issue of road fatalities and serious injuries in the UK. With support from more than 30 leading organisations, it outlines 4 strategic priorities to significantly reduce fatalities and serious injuries on UK roads. 1. Developing a National Road Safety Strategy focused on prevention, protection, and post-collision response, coupled with evidence-based targets and robust safety performance indicators. 2. Establishing a Road Safety Investigation Branch modelled on existing transportation safety branches to analyse road incidents and provide actionable insights for preventing future tragedies. 3. Introducing Graduated Driver Licensing to support young drivers by limiting high-risk driving situations, a measure proven to reduce fatalities by up to 40%. 4. Adopting Advanced Vehicle Safety Regulations - Immediate implementation of the world-leading vehicle safety standards, mandating critical technologies such as Automatic Emergency Braking and Intelligent Speed Assistance. The UK has seen a stagnation in road safety improvements since 2010, from being a global leader in road safety, it is now lagging behind other nations. Every day, five people die on UK roads, with more than 30,000 individuals killed or seriously injured annually, amounting to a staggering societal and economic cost of approximately £43.5 billion each year. Jamie Hassall, Executive Director of PACTS, said: “These four simple measures will be the building blocks to enable the UK to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads. With strong leadership and a strategic approach the UK managed to half the numbers of road deaths in a decade but since 2010 the focus was lost and daily road deaths have remained at five a day. Investing in road safety is not just a moral duty but it’s good for peoples’ health and wellbeing, the environment, business, and the country.” PACTS urges the incoming government to prioritise these strategies within the first 100 days of office to ensure the UK meets international road safety targets and sets a global standard in protecting its citizens. TRL Richard Cuerden Cycling UK RAC Foundation Elizabeth Box Kumar Niketan Brake, the road safety charity Ross Moorlock Road Safety Foundation UK Dr Suzy Charman Nick Reed Towards Zero Foundation David Ward National Motorcyclists Council Road Safety GB James Gibson The Road Safety Trust Ruth Purdie OBE UKROEd Intelligent Transport Systems UK Max Sugarman Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT) ADRIAN walsh RoadSafe The AA Edmund V King OBE Sustrans RoadPeace Rebecca Morris Thatcham Research MCIA UK Road Safety Analysis Ltd The Bikeability Trust Agilysis Limited Safer Essex Roads Partnership IAM RoadSmart Neil Greig Co-Pilot

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https://lnkd.in/emCcb6_n This is *exactly* the kind of forward-thinking strategy that is required for #Manchester and the wider #NorthernPowerhouse. We need a long-term vision with key milestones and requirements. Andrew Dixon is absolutely on the mark here, especially in regard to Piccadilly requiring a new through-station for NPR. Whilst the government has committed to a route via #ManchesterAirport, personally I don't see that materialising until and unless #HS2 to Manchester is re-instated to make the business case stack up. Without that such a route won't get off the starting blocks as no business case has been developed with HS2 removed from scope. As long as a new route through Manchester is provided, and an underground through-station at #ManchesterPiccadilly, everything should be up for re-consideration, including the demands of one-seat-rides to the airport. If trains run every 5mins from Piccadilly (which only takes 15-20mins) a direct connection shouldn't be a requirement. People should be able to treat the rail system as a network, not a set of individual point-point lines. This is the case in #London as well as most major cities and agglomerations in continental Europe. Manchester should be no different. #Rail

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Good news from the budget is Government support for East-West Rail, Oxford - Milton Keynes Central from August 2025 (we are told), which means #Bedford people will be able to get an X5 to Milton Keynes Central for a train to Oxford and connections or indeed, use the current Bedford-Bletchley shuttle rail service (sometimes bustituted) and change at #Bletchley to the new flyover station. Bedford-#Oxford 2030 ish. So given we are yet to await a route confirmation for Bedford-Tempsford area-Cambridge (which has a new #Cambridge South Station being built for Addenbrookes Hospital area) could be 2040! BRTA has always said and supported a 'route east of Bedford via St John's' and 'physical rail connectivity with the existing north-south main line (ECML) at #Tempsford, not just 2 interchange stations. We need elected leaders of Bedford Borough Mayor, Cllr. Tom Wootton, MP Bedford and Kempston Mohammad Yasin and North East Beds MP Richard Fuller, to get together, sing from the same hymn sheet and support our rail route suggestion. Not every inch of old Varsity Line, but first 4 miles east of Bedford is rebuild trackbed for rail use, Willington can be bypassed with 2 new river bridges and a slower speed, and instead of going south of Blunham go north towards A1/Tempsford on an embankment to avoid flood plains and clear the trunk road to head off to the Tempsford plains north of south of Station Road, Tempsford. Thence onwards via the route suggested by East-West Rail itself, serving the Cambourne area and Cambridge for East Anglia et al and those audiences to the Oxford and Bedford corridors and other rail connections. Our route with physical rail linkages at Tempsford, would enable north of #Stevenage, East Bedfordshire and south of #Peterborough to access rail services from where they live without having to change at Tempsford and what goes out, comes back! We have floated the idea, it is now incumbent of our elected leaders to study, work up and engineer a railway and get it underway and delivered in a 10 year timespan now, not after Oxford-Bedford trains bay at Bedford Midland Station! If they don't, they let Bedford and shire down, traffic congestion is rising, pollution is exasperating health and well being and filling NHS waiting lists as well as taking a toll on wildlife and ecological matters, bird count, butterflies and more, down! The fact is, these patterns, trends and challenges repeat nationwide. It needs local people to be organised and find the rail alternative. Dualling trunk roads or building motorways, delivers ever more urban congestion and squalor as well as land take which could otherwise be used for farming, wildlife, housing or employment for example. Work it up and out! https://lnkd.in/eNFJY-Dq #budget #rail #railways #networkrail #dft #transport #design #planning #modalshift #environment #landuse

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With just 13 days to go until #RSW24 commences, the Steering Group urges organisations who haven’t started planning to get involved and help bring safety to the forefront of people’s minds across the dedicated week.   Are you supporting #RSW24? Let us know and submit your plans ➡️ https://lnkd.in/epcpZzZP #BuildingSafetyTogether

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CPT welcomes the government’s transition from the £2 fare cap to a new £3 limit, following our proposals for a managed exit that avoids a sharp rise in fares at the end of the year. While this increase will still pose challenges for many passengers—especially those relying on buses as a primary mode of affordable travel—our industry remains committed to working closely with government and local authorities to ensure passengers are aware of fare changes and informed about available ticketing options. However, this move must be accompanied by consistent, long-term funding to sustain services and protect essential routes, particularly in rural and underserved areas. CPT will continue to advocate for policies that balance affordable fares with the viability of our bus networks, creating a resilient, accessible public transport system that serves communities across the UK. #PublicTransport #BusFare #SustainableTransit #AccessibleTransport #PassengerSupport

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It feels a little like ‘Back to the Future’ time in national transport policy today! In words we haven’t heard for nearly 25 years, the Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh, has been in Leeds today outlining her vision of a “joined up” transport system that works for everyone – a new ‘people first’ Integrated National Transport Strategy based more on locally specified need than ‘top down’ solutions.  Announcing what amounts to the start of a national conversation/ consultation with the public and transport workers to collect their views over the coming months, the general aim seems to achieve more seamless/ integrated door to door journeys. It is a laudable aim in itself and Ms Haigh has drawn inspiration for this from the city of Dijon where the multi-modal public transport network (bus, tram, community transport) operates frequent services and is also married up to car and bike hire and car parking choices via a single app (called Divia). Of course, London and city regions around the country already have their own long-term plans and visions for transport provision, so it will be interesting to see how all this plays out in the months ahead, let alone have the actual strategy published and implemented in a context of spending restraints. But it does at least represent some long-term thinking and is definitely one to watch.  In another milestone also reached today, the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill has now received its royal assent. This Act paves the way for the return into the public sector (for the first time since rail privatisation began in the mid-1990s) of all the remaining passenger rail franchises and prohibits the future contracting of private sector companies to run rail services (‘open access’ operators excepted of course). But this law is only the first stepping stone and the hard graft to turning this into a properly integrated publicly-owned network is going to take years not months, which is probably longer than many people are expecting.  All this will require extensive negotiation between national government and local authorities and, of course, commercial and extensive programmes of stakeholder engagement too. Time to saddle up - it’s going to be an interesting ride!

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