Bloomberg: British train strike is part of the world’s oldest rail crisis

Britain’s biggest train strike in 30 years is set to halt this mode of transport next Tuesday as the world’s oldest railroad struggles to redefine its role in a coronary crisis.

The planned layoffs of 40,000 workers at 13 train companies and the management company Network Rail They aim to provide guarantees for employment and wage increases, against the background of rapid inflation, union leaders said.

The leaders of the strike confirmed today that the talks with Network Rail, the railway operators and the London Underground have failed and the strike will continue for the planned three days. The main transport union said in an online statement that despite several weeks of negotiations, “no viable settlement has been reached”.

Only about 20% of routes will survive the initial three-day work stoppages, with Scotland and Wales hardest hit. On Tuesday, 10,000 London Underground workers will take action in a separate dispute over jobs and pensions. Rail disruption follows weeks of turmoil at airports and airlines, as staff shortages cause hundreds of flight cancellations and long delays.

However annoying railroad mobilizations are, they are a symptom of one of the most fundamental challenges facing the industry, as rising domestic work wears demand long after the pandemic is lifted. The change in travel habits coincides with the overall overhaul of the railway, as the government seeks to simplify fares while abolishing the Network Rail and a long-term franchise system to reduce network fragmentation.

Data released by the Road and Rail Transportation Bureau on Thursday reveals the extent of the decline in rail transport, with total travel accounting for just 62% of the pre-epidemic number in the quarter to March. Most notably, season tickets – the cheapest travel option for day-to-day commuters – accounted for just 17% of rail travel in 12 months, less than half the previous level.

“The industry is in crisis,” said Tony Lodge, author of Changing Track, a report published last month by the Center for Policy Studies think tank entitled “How to Save the Railroads After the Pandemic.”

Lodge says the sector is facing its third major restart since World War II, following extensive cuts in the 1960s in response to the rise of cars and trucks, and privatization in the 1990s. which increased investment and saw passenger numbers recover as roads became more congested.

“The pandemic has hit the railroad, especially in London, where the daily commute from the Home Counties to Liverpool Street, Waterloo and Victoria seems to be gone forever,” he said. “We are at a crossroads and there must be some radical thinking to meet the evolving demands of passengers.”

While a headache for the government, declining passenger traffic is a less important issue for British train operators. With the risk-based and reward-based franchise system already in place before the Covid strike, the pandemic has prompted a shift to emergency measures, which will be replaced by a new model of service contracts. The companies will receive payments for the operation of the trains instead of relying in part on less predictable revenue from passenger tickets.

The certainty offered by the change brought a plethora of takeover bids for public transport operators.

Go-Ahead Group Plc, the largest operator of London suburban trains, last week accepted an offer from Australian transport company Kinetic Holding Co. DWS Infrastructure agreed in March to buy bus operator Stagecoach Group Plc, while FirstGroup Plc this month rejected a takeover approach.

FirstGroup CEO David Martin, a veteran of the railroad, said in an interview that companies understand that they need to adapt their sail to new realities. While future requirements are unclear, they could include measures to stimulate demand, as well as the implementation of plans to phase out diesel trains.

UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps says having received an additional 16 16 billion ($ 19.5 billion) in state support to cross the pandemic without firing or making available any staff, the railroad “needs new direction “, as current subsidies are not sustainable.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers union, which called for the strike, said Network Rail alone was planning to cut up to 2,500 jobs as it tried to save 2 2 billion, and that train operators were freezing wages and seeking changes to contracts.

At the same time, rail investment remains at the heart of Boris Johnson’s policy of “leveling” between the UK’s regions, as the prime minister seeks to maintain former Conservatives who voted Conservatives in the 2019 election.

Although plans for high-speed connections have dwindled, the government has pledged 96 96 billion in reform. Lodge says there is probably still a need for the 225-mile-long HS2 line from London to Manchester, which is at the heart of infrastructure plans, even if only to release other lines to remove cargo from them. roads and reduce carbon emissions.

The results of last year’s one-year UK census, which is expected later this month, should reveal more about changes in rail travel, helping to update future policy, the US Data Office said. Βασιλείου.

Options online

The reforms to be introduced next year with its creation Great British Railways, which are designed to bring the network under a single state authority and at the same time modernize fares and tickets to better serve hybrid work, may already be outdated, given the pace of change, Lodge warns. He says more sweeping steps should be considered, such as ending peak periods and charging automatically when boarding trains.

With the national strike looming, train operators have issued warnings to avoid unnecessary travel.

Shapps urged staff not to strike, saying they could protest their unemployment. Travelers who three years ago had no choice but to take the train now have other options, such as Zoom meetings. “If you say goodbye to them, you will endanger the jobs of thousands of railway workers,” he said.

Lodge agrees that instead of promoting their campaign for job security and wage improvements, unions risk further weakening the railway’s attractiveness. This calls into question the future of a network that began in 1825 with the world’s first public steam locomotive between Stockton and Darlington in the north east of England.

“The danger is that after a summer of turmoil, the movers will decide they are bored,” he said. “Most people seem to prefer working from home and companies can avoid city rents and finance half the season ticket for their employees. This is a dangerous game.”