What is the future for our regional railways?
They are the routes that are especially valued by many travellers with few alternative modes of transport, but they are also by far the most heavily subsidised and expensive parts of the network, per passenger.
Sir Roy McNulty, in his value for money study, avoided recommended line closures or network shrinkage, specifying that he was examining the cost of the railways with the current or an expanding network.
But if, in a decade’s time, the cost of rail remains so lopsided towards the regional routes, and the industry has not met the rest of Sir Roy’s efficiency recommendations, we may end up with a very different network. Bus operators will be thrilled.
