The Valley 16th July 2012
A dissemination of
the discussion about Tyne Valley and North East Rail Services.
Immediate Concerns
On the whole there are significant levels of satisfaction at
present over reliability and pleasure at investment, like the Ticket Machine at
Prudhoe, and the three interchanges that have opened.
There are important immediate concerns and they largely
focus on capacity at peak hours and on special
events. The gap of over an hour inbound from Hexham during the morning peak was
discussed and I believe Northern understand this could be solved. The user side understands Northern is and has
progressed the last train issue (the new Prudhoe stopper). As ever the
inability to collect revenue when the train is full concerns. This impacts on
the Newcastle
barrier situation.
The new football season starting late summer, and the
Northumberland Show next year, are opportunities for Northern to show they can
rectify problems which have been mentioned over many years. The timetable is
not the challenge at these events if it is operated correctly, it is the
capacity. I concluded Northern were determined to review this. In particular
Gaynor Shotton from the
County Show was invited to form
a strong working relationship with the Northern management team and the
Community Rail Partnership/Rail users group.
The need is : sufficient carriages for the
NorthumberlandShow and the marketing of travelling by train. If the Show and the Railway
could offer an advance purchase discount ticket, the railway can manage demand
and those who turn up on the day with no ticket have to accept what can be
offered. Robert Forsythe can show Gaynor sales literature for parallel events.
I think Northern were happy that on the performance of peak
hours train like the strengthened 0742, and the 2013 Show and the football day
services, attitudes towards the company in the Tyne Valley could be influenced.
The cost of tickets from stations west of Hexham are
perceived as being disproportionately high. Northern offered to look closely at
the pricing models from stations such as Bardon Mill and Haltwhistle. There are
also issues around commuters who may only use the line 3 or 4 days a week have
no incentive to purchase a season ticket (too expensive for their needs), and
no multi- journey discount exists. A carnet ticket like the Harrogate line is
needed.
There are several large employers in Newcastle (eg
Northumbria University) whose staff travel on Northern. Whereas Nexus offers a
direct sale of season tickets (at a discount) to large organisations who then
sell them to their staff (managed directly through payroll), it was not felt
that Northern offered a similar package.
Medium Term Concerns
Northern Rail will certainly operate the services for at
least another two years. They have a new management team and the Valley side
made the point that a much stronger management presence for the North East
based around Newcastle is most
desirable. My reading suggests the Northern team appreciated this? There could
be changes within the franchise period?
There is an inherent challenge in a stand still franchise
(the present one) experiencing clear and considerable growth. In the medium
term the Northern team indicated there are further initiatives they could
contemplate progress with (does not equal full implementation within the
period). Specifically: much improved services for Dunston and Blaydon could be
examined (this was from the Northern side). Gilsland is a candidate for
re-opening with its World Heritage Site and Long Distance Path hub capability.
Guy Opperman is ready to liaise with several parish councils and Rory Stewart
MP over this, also Hadrian’s Wall
Heritage. Commissioned studies have already indicated its viability.
The role of the Class 142 four wheel Leyland
bus based Pacers will always be discussed at a meeting like this. They are not
popular with passengers especially when crowded or on the curves at Newcastle. The Northern side did throw open the
possibility that for cost effectiveness, they might be rebodied. Robert
Forsythe suspects the Rail User side will wish to see this discouraged mightily
in the future, from now forwards.
Longer Term
From 2014, there will be a new local train franchise for our
area. This was actively discussed by all the parties. Before this discussion however, everyone
noted the 16th July 2012
Government news about further rail funding. Universal agreement that this
is good for the country and for the rail industry. It for instance removes all
Pacers from the South
Wales Valleys
making the Tyne
Valley and other
North East lines good candidates to use them last of all. There was also round
table agreement that the investment news offers very little to the North East
in terms of schemes. The Northern Hub concept
has spin off benefits, it might bring electric wires to Middlesbrough. But the North East has been marginal
through the Northern Hub process and the further investment does not change
this. All round the table agreed that the North East had not been good through
the franchise period in progressing the several rail investment schemes
possible in its area.
As a result, three probabilities post 2014 exist. Northern
continue as our operator or another company on exactly the same patch. The
Valley side articulated the view that could only work if there was a strong Newcastle management and a programme in the franchise
for the North East. The present Northern franchise had started with a North
East management team and it had been diluted.
The second option which current East Coast consultation
allows for is that the new East Coast franchise takes Heaton depot including
its local train work in North East England. Heaton is a jewel in the crown
depot (Nick Brown MP), it is important to both local and mainline train
operators out of Newcastle and it has
a specialist maintenance record. The user side can see that within the industry
there will be well hidden moves about the future of Heaton!
The third option is that the North East community organise
themselves in advance of the DfT consultation and argue for a Northumbria franchise for all the Heaton local train
work. This is around 20 trains and even with expansion the probability is that
no more than 35 trains are needed. It is not a large business but it is a
natural geographic and business entity. It seemed that the Northern team could
understand this thinking and that within their own business the powerhouse that
is Lancashire and Yorkshire sets agendas?
There was considerable discussion about how successful first
Manchester and then its neighbours had
been in securing investment and in now adopting the Decentralisation
philosophy. There was discussion about what the North East would need to follow
this example. There are agencies who might lead: Nexus, North East Chamber of
Commerce, Association of North East Local Authorities. So far no-one with
authority had taken the lead role in a regional discussion. Guy Opperman is
probably the most senior North Eastern politician leading a debate on it. It
has to go further if it is to work with a local entity and soon.
The industry side suggested the community side needs to
generate a “compact”, possibly through the vehicle of an LEP. A specific follow
up to this Valley meeting could be a high level regional day conference on the
future of local rail in the North East. Would the North East Chamber of
Commerce lead? How would transport providers and politicians current react to
that? This has to be scheduled before the DfT issue the consultation over the
franchise and that is scheduled for later in 2012. MPs like David Milliband or
Nick Brown who have so far not become involved may need to be.
THE ABOVE PARAGRAPH IS CRUCIAL
This discussion the lead into the blue sky of what the North
East asks for in its next franchise. There is quite a long shopping list.
Peterlee Station and Tees Valley Metro (James Cook station) are at
implementation or very near so). Leamside (Washington) and Ashington
re-openings have all been talked about and studied in detail for years.
SENRUG
has a massive and explored vision over what could come from the Ashington
project. The Northern side threw open the blue sky idea that Trans Pennine
Express could terminate at Ashington.
On the Tyne Valley, Gilsland and Blaydon have already been
spoken off by the rail users as priority. A Northern team member said think
bigger. Ask to be electrified as part of the fleet renewal. Remember the
importance to East Coast of the line as a diversion. Then you think the future
has to be an electric Tyne Valley and Coast and Saltburn Bishop lines to get a
thoroughly 21st century local rail network. All local trains would
then be electric apart from Whitby. This opens the idea that part of what holds
the Tyne Valley back is infrastructure. The present diesel trains have a speed
in excess of most of the line speed. Improve the line speed limit and even with
the present trains schedules could improve.
The evening ended then with three challenges: to Northern to
deliver much closer and stronger local management connected to North East
communities, to the User side to go out and get the North East community itself
better connected to lobby for its own connectivity, the third challenge being
to combine these two forces to create the next local train franchise on an
expansive and not stand still basis.
Present
Guy Opperman MP (the inviter)
From Northern Rail
Alan Chaplin Chief Operating Officer
Richard Allan Area Director for Yorkshire and Humberside,
Tyne Tees and Wear.
Both above from 30th May 2012 http://www.northernrail.org/news/7044
Drew Halley Client and Stakeholder Manager Northern Rail
From Tyne Valley Rail Users Group/Community Partnership
Robert Forsythe
Prudhoe
Fiona Forsythe Prudhoe
John Gillott Heddon TVCRP partnership officer
Julie Gibbon Bardon Mill
Minnie Fraser Mickley
Alastair Fraser Mickley
Tony Geary Wylam
Tina Geary Wylam
Gaynor Shotton
From North East Chamber of Commerce
Mark Scandle
Facebook References Please ensure that you like these pages
Northumbria Rail Franchise Lobby Group
Tyne Valley Line Rail Users Group
Tyne Valley Line Community Rail Partnership
