The cost is thru the roof. It all needs binning. Use the London-Aylesbury section and build the Stafford bypass. Done. Upgrades to existing mainlines is all we need.
@@johnburns4017 but there's no space on the existing routes to upgrade. We have already tried that on the existing WCML and it couldn't be done.That was the whole point in HS2. TRU is going to take 10+ years because they have to work around the existing rail service and keep lines open. That is more than doubling the time it is taking to complete and costs considerably more as a result. Growth of the economy is linked to transportation and communication and our transport infrastructure cannot cope with the existing network. What we have of HS2 thanks to constant political meddling and cutbacks has exacerbated the WCML capacity issues, not improved them as well as pushed up the price of what we do have
Yes. Or cancelled in full. As is we are doing a massively expensive equivalent of deliberately jumping half way across a filth-filled ditch - the result is bound to be malodorous, to put it politely.
@@johnwilliams7653 ▪ Lots of talking heads on panorama doc' ▪ Focused on the cesspit it is for public money ▪ A solution looking for a problem ▪ Not enough accountability ▪ Not suitable for close clustered cities ▪ Not even fast ▪ Overt corruption ✔ ▪ Not fit for purpose ▪ etc Has to be binned.
Really enjoyed Richard's outside broadcasts, thank you! Particularly happy to see at 47:47 one of the monitors in the NMT running on good old Windows XP... Oh, those were the days! 😊
What I don't understand is that yes the PM is saying we have a financial black hole that needs to be addressed now, but HS2 Phase 2 (or whatever it is called) won't need the finance to be available until the current HS2 infrastructure is finished, so years into the future, when hopefully the country has the funds available to build the Handsacre to Manchester section that currently is mothballed. Surely you can have the project still in place with all the plans and then land reserved for the project but decide on whether to proceed or not at that time? I just don't get it.
That assumes the Country will have the funds to build phase 2 at some time in the future. With the new hospital programme, a major prison building programme to come, 1.50 million new homes to build, the asylum crisis to resolve, the nett zero carbon crisis to resolve, spiralling energy costs, defense spending to fund, the NHS crisis to resolve, the raac infested schools to rebuild, drug addiction crisis to resolve it's going to be a far distant future when funds will be available to even start thinking about phase 2.
@@TrevorWilliams-fq8mg I don't disagree with you but surely they decision should be made at that time and not now? Things like the asylum processing crisis once you get a grip on progressing then quickly and efficiently shouldn't go on forever, it's been caused by basically not processing claimants at all for a number of months/years. I also don't think the government will be paying for building the houses, housebuilders will with the government facilitating and fast tracking the red tape.
@GreenSignals So apparently Gareth Dennis has been fired indirectly arising for saying that overcrowding at Euston is unsafe. Well I heartily agree with him; my wife was also complaining to me when we were last there waiting for the Glasgow train to be platformed how appallingly overcrowded it is, with the unseemly rush for the train when at the last minute the platform is announced.
@julianroberts8760 several possible strategies before announcement. 1 watch for assisted transport to platforms from 20 mins beforehand 2 wander up and down checking what trains are possible candidates for departure such as loading food, increased chance of a train coming from place A will be going back there 4 Avanti ticket inspector cluster moving to a different platform ...and of course 5 Realtime trains app for departure platform. ...oh and listen out for scouse accents if you were expecting to go to Manchester - I once had 15 minutes of comfortable smugness before the penny dropped and I escaped a Liverpool bound train to find the platform where the near full Manchester bound train was about to depart🤭
Excellent to see your trip from Chipp to Glasgow as I did the same trip a month ago. Relocated from the centre of the rail world of Reading to Devizes a few years ago. Ended up 19 years at Westinghouse brakes. First class return ticket was £300 by the way!
I worked in IT and the principles you outline for successful PFIs are exactly the same for successful project management. The reason so many government IT projects fail is usually a lack of a consistent client and also a lack of client 'buy-in' at the management levels that might see 'personal head count empires' reduced by the new system. Ministers change frequently, and then you get the 'new broom' syndrome which leads to scope creep. Even if the contractor employs rigid change control procedures, anything but minor changes to the functional specification once the project is underway opens the door to escalating costs, extended delivery times, and, ultimately, project failure. I worked for a large US computer services company in bidding for and delivering major IT projects into both the public and private sectors. Our company would aggressively go after any large IT invitations to tender (ITTs) but the only one I can remember that we decided not to bid for was the NHS IT system. It was decided that the NHS is so fragmented with so many 'fiefdoms' that they were just not a viable client into which to deliver an overall IT system. But someone else did bid for it, and the project failed abysmally! Vince C.
@@gzk6nk The contract was awarded to Raytheon Systems Limited. IIRC, unfunded scope creep derailed the project, leading to cancelation. When RSL sued for breach, the court found for the plaintiff. That was the gist, at least.
@gzk6nk Raytheon HQ in Massachusetts tried to salvage the program with a surge of US engineers to Uxbridge - I was part of that - but by that time it was either too far gone or the well had been poisoned.
I had the pleasure of updating the Smelter’s IT systems in early 2017 and this involved getting there by taking the Caledonian Sleeper from Crewe. Bliss.
Excellent video, especially the trip on the “measuring train”, a real eye opener. I went on the West Highland Line last year in order to take a trip on The Jacobite. I was really looking forward to the rail trip up to Fort William, spending the night there and catching the Jacobite the next day. I completely forgot that at the time of year I went it gets dark quite early so I ended up seeing nothing after Crianlarich, and on the return journey I took the Caledonian Sleeper so again saw nothing. I hope to try again next year!
I would say I can't believe it, but with Network Rail it's not necessarily that surprising... the NMT software is run using Windows XP! I wouldn't be surprised if the IT infrastructure on-board became redundant before the HST itself gave up the ghost!
Another engrossing episode, with plenty to think about. Both of Richard's jollies, err... outside broadcasts were great; It's hard to appreciate how isolated and wild parts of Scotland are, but the GB Railfreight run to Fort William certainly gave a good idea of what it's like. On the subject of HS2 phase 2A, whilst it seems that our dire finances will cloud any decision, I wonder whether a temporary mothballing might help, or would this mean unravelling so much, such as teams and equipment, that the eventual cost spirals even more? No easy answers, I guess. Cheers, Rob.
Thanks Rob - really appreciated. I think the challenge on ‘mothballing’ is that acquisition of land powers in the Act for 2a is time limited - so they do need to crack on.
Just a couple of thoughts that would improve the Manchester run.... 1. Dump the station at Manchester Airport. It's expensive in its own right because of the changes they'll have to make to the Motorway and the hotels they'll have to buy and knock down. It's also expensive because it means that the Manchester Spur will be using lower loading gauges etc because with the bend to get into the spur the speeds will be lower, so they'll be buying new TBMs. And the station is a fair trek from the actual airport being in the other side of the M56. Plus you can already get to Manchester airport from Manchester on the existing train service and the station that uses is in the right location. So you could save a fortune by just running the Manchester Spur straight into Manchester
Hello from all of us at The Independent Brigg Line Rail Group. In previous podcasts you have touched on the cost of the railway. On Friday the IBLRG received a letter from the DfT in association with trying to run an extra service on the Brigg Line, currently Brigg and Kirton-in-Lindsey receive a 1 round trip Monday to Friday service. The letter from the DfT was so anti improvement it was unreal, costs estimated at £900000 for a extra trip Monday to Friday. Pressure on Louise Haigh as the Brigg Line service starts at Sheffield, her constituency.
£900k Seriously!! Was there any breakdown of that or just a headline number? Would you be able to email us on info@greensignals.org as we’d like to chat about the Brigg line. Cheers!
I have a complaint! I used to comfortably listen to Green Signals whilst doing my day job. However, I now find that it is impossible to so. Why? Because Nigel's ear-bound Odd-able Natters are all too frequently punctuated by the Richard's eye-demanding Juicy Jollies. How do you expect me to visually digest such tasty, high production value material whilst still doing my job? Do I need to change my job just so I can get a clear run of Green Signals? Hmm, actually that might be worthwhile because I really enjoy Richard’s focus on people. Real people who in their own way help to keep the network running despite the best efforts of those less knowledgeable (allegedly)
Great to see the West Highland Line featured once more, a great video from Richard. Poor news from LNER on tickets, hope GBR aborts it. The Scottish gov abandoning the peak fare trial is also poor, its not just the cost of peak tickets its also the peak time restrictions coming back makes days out to the cities less attractive. Another great video on the big banana. Looks a great working environment with terrific chairs! Hope you cover Peter Hendy and his approach to safety criticism next week.
Thanks Allan. Glad you enjoyed the West Highland even if the weather was a bit grim and the window was dirty. Yes, we will be covering the Euston point next week.
I currently work for the Staffs Fire IT Team. PFI is a great concept but badly executed. It causes no end of problems because the people who sign up to the deals don't really understand what they are getting in to. The problems really only become apparent two or three years after the deal has been signed once the dust has settled.
@@GreenSignalsI spent a lot of my later working life working in and around PFI projects - mostly schools, hospitals and other public buildings. It was quite an eye-opener as to what had been provided by the scheme and what the people on the ground expected - no surprises that they didn’t match up much. As to £400 light bulbs… hmmm… well let me just say my company, Interserve had a profit margin of around 2% and eventually went bust, so they could hardly be accused on exorbitant fees for services. I think what most people lost sight of was that they were provided with modern, clean, efficient buildings often replacing clapped out, filthy buildings and it had all been provided by private money. Looking forward to hearing more about PFI and PPP. Regards Paul
It’s now after the 12 noon quiz cut off time, but due to my “win” (thanks) I haven’t put a lot of effort into finding the answer! My first thoughts were “it has to be in Wales”, but I found one in SE England. I predict some controversial (multiple) answers!
Gents, someone seems to have piggy backed on to my giving. I am Chris Exley. There is no Smith in my surname. And I do enjoy your podcasts and giving to your very good and worthy informative podcasts.
Loved seeing a bit of the West Highland line, though the windscreen was absolutely filthy inside and out and really needed a wipe over before setting off...next time! The measurement train was fascinating. I think the only time I've seen a bit of telemetry to do with the track was on the Tornado 100mph run documentary. Maybe one to add to next episode is the Gareth Dennis/Peter Hendy/Euston safety debacle. Very enjoyable once again. Thank you!
Thanks. A fair point about the windscreen but I wouldn’t have been able to clean the outside at any point. Not only would the driver have had to done it (I suspect) it was only at Helensburgh Upper IIRC that we had the second person’s side of the cab adjacent to the platform and we were only there for a very short period of time. Yes, we will be covering the Euston issue in detail next week.
the problem with PFI is the MAC that come with it during the life time of the contract and all those MACS have a rate card -- used to bid PFI contracts -!!!! Macs are Moves and Changes -- happy to give you a view on that if your interested
Do agree Colin, but i wonder how much of that was down to lack of clarity of specification (from an output basis) at the outset? Complicated though I agree, as things do change.
28.30 Obvious that Hard Lewy was no Rock Fan... still reads ZZ car s top...... Lovely to see the WH from the cab again...and RETB still "doing the job" and its classic exchange sound....
PFI in principle are a good way forward. Especially if the contractors are involved from the very beginning and are fully aware of the risks. The problems as far as I could see was that government could never stand back and wait for the end, they always wanted to tinker on the way through the contract. That's even if they understood what a PFI contract was in the first place. PFI contracts started being treated as standard ICE contracts by the client (government) which changes the whole concept of the original contract and brings about spiralling costs. Once a contract has been awarded where the contractors have been involved from very early on, then the client should just stand back and watch and wait for the end. If you were having your house decorated and after two days decided that you didn't like the colour and want it changed the price is going to rocket, you should have put more thought into what you wanted. It is not the contractors or anyone else's fault other than your own for the price rise.
I have a funny feeling the answer to the quiz will entail the Welsh version of the Transport for Wales network map and there will be more than one answer. I've found three already.
Another great video guys, i do so much enjoy the information and the banter, a winning formula. A question if I may, this talk of HS2 and progress toward Birmingham reminded me of a few years back when there was talk of fixing congestion on The Brighton mainline, part of the proposal was lengthening platforms to accommodate longer trains, but another was by re-creating the link through the Lavender Line (part of which was/is a heritage line, and restoring the line into Lewes, and thus onward to Brighton. I could have sworn my memory is that the media referred to this as BML2? and included having to create a new linking line at the southern end it was largely seen as overflow to take some traffic off the mainline, being a Brighton boy and working for BR on the Southern Region this was of great interest but in Googling the topic I can't find any reference to it?
A Leeds/Sheffield to Manchester link would be a great thing to create, but I think it would do nothing to replace Ph2 of HS2. The current service times between Leeds and Manchester are over an hour for what is only 58km so that's an average of about 35mph rough conversion. If you were to create a new link then the Woodhead route would certainly be a good option, except the tunnels can't be re-used so it would need one bored right underneath the originals and about twice the length. That would be expensive. It wouldn't need to be an HS line at that distance 100 or 125mph would be enough to reduce the journey time significantly.
@GDGRailway47712 surprised it's only 58km by rail as by car it's 59miles mostly by motorway from Stockport to Leeds centre and at best that's a 1:10 min drive (you'd be lucky!). The current train times are very competitive unless travelling to outside the city or taking a family or "stuff".
@@MrMWRMWR It's 58km as the crow flies. I don't know the distance by rail or road. Even assuming it's 100km winding it's way through all the towns and villages, the average speed is ~90km/h for the fastest service where 200km/h lines generally average 120-130km/h.
West Highland line was originally conseved for passenger and fish. Latterly forestry products and the alumina train. Thinking out loud, the smelter and Kinlochleven closed, but the hydro power station and dams still exists. Could that be converted to power an electrified West Highland line with hydro electric power making a very green railway? Richard your son is a chip of the old block!
Genuinely don’t know about that Chris but the smelter would be quite a political issue I suspect. And yep, definitely a fair amount of MiniMe going on with Charlie!
Something by the way to feature on your fares and ticketing debacle is that I would like to bring to your attention the recent TfW decision to ‘review’ as they call it the Welsh / North / South Wales rover tickets which I and no doubt many others have had quite a few of. They have very recently gone up for the 4 days in 8 ticket from £71.20 with my railcard to £98.30 which is some rise in percentage terms. The stock response from TfW is they have ‘reviewed’ the fare, no you damned well haven’t you have increased it by a whacking amount without any notice at all! They have then had the sheer gall to publicise them very heavily saying what great value they were!!! Incredible and made me VERY 😡😡
OMG I LOVED the Craigendoran junction footage. I have lived in Sydney now for 24 years, but for the first 24 years of my life I was born and bred in Helensburgh, as the train curves around to the right, it crosses a stone arched bridge that was at the end of the street I grew up from the age of 4-16, then as it comes through Helensburgh upper and passes the spectacular Charles Rennie Macintosh Hill House and past the secondary school I went to before going to university in Glasgow ❤️❤️❤️❤️ Also Rannoch, is the location of many a rugby tussle which was the furthest we used to travel to play the school there, one of the most isolated boarding schools anywhere in the world. :-)
I bet you chuckled at "Helenburgh Upper"😅 My late dad had wartime memories of Helensburgh and Alexandria for training so I explored the area a few years ago to grab some location photos for him.
Why would I chuckle? :-) Fun fact is there another town of similar size that has three train stations in it? Also if Rhu gets a station that effectively would be four stations
@@MrMWRMWR I know, so sorry about that. We spotted it shortly before publication but had no time to re-render a 4k file (which is many GB) and then upload it to UA-cam - it takes ages. Absolutely hate getting anything wrong so apologies to the good folks of Helensburgh....!
It seems that the Scotrail bringing back peak fares is unfortunate especially as they are still running a very reduced timetable which is also reducing the use of the trains in Scotland
I agree with Mr B: The principles of PPP/PFIs are sound, as long as you have in place the 3 pillars of a project that is highlighted in this report. The same disciplines apply to any outsourcing contract. Let's hope this time we do have an "intelligent client." Really enjoyed the West Highland Line freight piece: fascinating! When do you think it will be appropriate to drop the "New" from the NMT? Great piece of kit, though. The last time I travelled to Skeggy on a train it was on The Jolly Fisherman that was hauled by a pair of class 20s. I was disappointed with the cost of membership. I liked the inaugural "after hours / uncut" element, but at £9 per month it is not viable for me. Oh well...
The simpler fares by LNER is con. I'm a walk on reguler passenger between Darlington and Newcastle. I don't like pre booking as I don't know what time I'll need the return. So the new ticket system offers better offers if I buy 60 minutes before travel. So I buy the out journey for the discount price. And the return journey 30 minutes before I travel. BUT! If there's an issue and all trains are cancelled I can't buy the return ticket. Which means I'm stranded because with the ticket they have to get me home. Without the ticket they don't. And to have the flexibility which I often need I have to pay the most expensive ticket. So since the introduction of these fairs I've only ever had the option of cheaper ticket once. And the cheaper ticket is so restrictive to specific train operators. So if your ticket is on cross country and that train is cancelled. You then have to pay the most expensive fair of another operator. And it's not easy to claim train fares back and may people can't be doing with the chew. So LNER specifically is in a win win situation with its passenger in a losing situation if things go wrong.
Thank you both for another hreat show. HS2 will keeping us all talking for years to come i think. Phase 2A and old oak to Euston needs to be done as a matter of urgency. Agter these get 2b tomamchsstet and put plans into place to get the eastern leg built. Brings us back to what i suspect is going to be a blubder and that is lack.of ectra platforms at Euston
Very interesting as always. I loved the sight of the West Highland line having stayed at Corrour. I would just love to go on the measuring train for a tour and see the technology working and wonder if they have food and accommodation too? Hope they do for the staff covering 800 miles at a time. I also wondered if you would mention about the usual station platforms not being high enough for the proposed HS2s or was this false news? Another good reason to carry on withe scrapped plan. Thank you for another really brilliant vlog.
Overnight accommodation, no, I don't think so because the trips are designed to work within an ordinary shift. There's a kitchen, rest areas and a lovely meeting room as well and of course appropriate facilities. At Skegness, we all popped into town to grab a sandwich - and the temptation to go for fish and chips was considerable, but avoided - just! We'll try and look at station heights at some point (I think the whole question of level boarding is rightly a hot topic for many people) so we'll probably try and come at it from a level boarding point of view.
Brilliant episode. In terms of fares - anytime / off-peak / advance (and rovers) only. Anytime and off-peak to be one direction only fares. Ie no returns for 10p more. All routes valid on anytime and off-peak. Shouldn’t need to be more complicated.
That would solve any issue of claiming compensation on the return part of an open return being for a customer asserted day and time of service. That "break of return journey" feature would sadly be lost if there's places to visit en route; a very restricted rover which saves car excursions.
Love the podcast and very interesting to see the Scottish end of the North Blyth to Fort William Alumina service, as ever a very informative and interesting part of the pod! The potential for a route between Berwick and Newcastle via Bedlington could make for a useful extension of the Northumberland Line? Would be interesting to see what the three of you think?
Sad to hear about Scotrail peak fares trial, but how much was it publicized? I see no physical adverts anywhere not even by my local Glasgow area station. Online i get nothing, but do constantly from LNER which I seldom use. The union "action" whereby we have a greatly reduced evening timetable here is another disappointing development that hardly helps. Travel for the iconic Edinburgh Festival was badly let down - just as passenger numbers are returning after Covid ; and after all the massive investment up here in rail. Sadly West Highland Line is nothing like as reliable as bus services to Fort William, being easily shut down by bad weather; and its slower! The road infrastructure in rural Scotland has seen massive improvement, rail comparatively little, over last 5 decades.
Thanks Julian. Some important questions there, notably the issue of publicity. We are hoping to look into a more next week. You make a very good point about the road network investment. Rail does have its work cut out in the highlands, more than it used to.
@GreenSignals Well the road network investment throughout Britain has been massive over the last 50 years with similar modal shift, unfortunately, both freight and passenger. I wonder if you're aware of the drastic timetable reduction there is in Scotland at the moment? The last train this evening to my local suburban Glasgow station from Central was 723pm!! Worse than during Covid, before which the service was every half hour till 2320ish. Big cutbacks on weekdays too. Sorry to repeat myself, but all the investment in rail in the Central Belt is wasted if drivers refuse to run trains, and politicians don't have money to waste.
If the line monitoring equipment brings up missing things was developed in the food industry. Does that mean a pizza dumped on the track would be spotted and you could work out what sort of pizza it is and whether an egg. Pineapple. Pepperoni or ham is missing?
Another Good Episode very interesting seeing the NMT, I remember seeing it on Trainspotting (By Discovery), back when the NMT was brand new, and they showed it having a live camera feeds on all sides of the vehicle including the wheels
Pfi - do we risk making the same mistake twice? Historically the use of Pfi appeared incentivised by debt being treated ‘off balance’ sheet rather than for value for money reasons. A way round those fiscal rules Treasury is so keen on? The 2018 national audit office report on Pfi is well worth a read. Surely the answer is a more sensible set of fiscal rules that recognise the difference between investment and day to day spending. Rather than the reintroduction of more complex and inflexible Pfi contracts whose vfm is unproven - just to gain access to (more expensive) private finance?
My criticism of those discounts Northern has offered is that it’s limited number of schools with large parts of Northerns region missing, in particular more socially deprived areas looking at the very small handful available in NE. I also think it should have been extended up to age 18 to incorporate sixth form and FE colleges where there is more likelihood of the need for travelling by train. The list of participating schools also seems to include a considerable number of private and grammar schools so there is a sense of social exclusion in this offer.
Some good points Ben, though why does including a number of private and grammar schools create a sense of social exclusion? If they were not, would that not indicate an element of discrimination?
@@GreenSignals it’s more about what isn’t on this list rather than what is. There are a small handful of schools in NE and only one is the Teesside area all fairly affluent areas but maybe that says more in general about state of local public transport in Tees Valley than anything else.
Should cover bus rail coach interchange and integration debate Leon Daniels and David Boden Stagecoach group Great Britain Railways looking at intergrated Transport and ferry links
@@GreenSignals - I could have given you a wave as you went by the office as I can remember the NMT passing by on that day and looking where it was going - would not be going to Skegness on a regular basis 😀
Public money is always cheaper than private money, PFI has been a disaster, the sums some councils have had to cough up to service the private funders is eye watering, wanting to to keep borrowing costs off the books is a political choice
……although a lot of the “investments” have been ill-judged, poorly delivered, and suffer from short-termism, where the asset is designed to serve the life of the project, as contrasted to the duration of the requirement .
Thanks. If you mean the WACC (weighted average cost of capital) is higher in the private sector then yes, I would agree if the cost of equity is in there. However, the decision pivots on whether the NPV of the risk adjusted whole life cost is still greater in the private sector option. I realise that’s a bit of word soup so we will be discussing it in a future show.
Richard more west country coverage Honiton Tunnel. Exeter Central to London Waterloo inter city main line needs investment infrastructure and trains and catering service back ,First Group plc MTR South Western Railway company Ltd
Proper nameplate on a locomotive. All transfers now on the passenger fleet. Will new trains ever get plates. ( sell at high value for charity when done). Can't see anyone would have room for s flame cut Azuma name!. To do with leasing companies saying you can't put a hole in the bodyside .
Where on earth do you get your mileages from as they are slightly incorrect! Fort William - Mallaig is 41.5 miles…. And as for Glasgow - Fort William…. Where are you measuring from in Glasgow???
Well thank you Mr P for being so kind in the manner in which you rightly point out what an absolute bozo I am. The answer is fairly straightforward. It helps when talking about miles not to be looking at a sheet full of kilometres. I have already confessed my sins to my fellow presenters (who have offered various helpful and unhelpful comments referencing amongst other things my age / general grip etc) and I shall immediately book myself on a course at the Jacob Rees-Mogg school of imperial measurements to reacquaint myself with rods, perches, barrels, chains, furlongs and of course, miles. I shall, as they say, get my coat.....
@@GreenSignals put your coat back on the hook and take a pue! I think you are easily forgiven for such a minor error. Having legitimately ridden on the footplate on a 66 in my career with 1600 on the drawbar, that constant horrible thudding does things to your brain! I sadly remember such things as West Highland mileages due to my own misspent youth riding behind Class 37s on the tremendous WHL. Sad to see it like it is but I suppose that is what progress is. (Can I get off now please!)
I was very honoured to be there at all. The trip was not set up to be a cab ride film and indeed I was rather hoping it would be completely authentic - which it was. The loco had just come from Blyth through some pretty wet and miserable weather. We had 2 mins at Springburn as we were occupying a passenger platform. Hope you enjoyed the video though!
Might be worth listening to one of our very earliest episodes - Number 02 to be precise - where we explain (in some detail - exactly why we are building it, and why cancelling Phase 2 has created a series of problems for which there are currently no worked up solutions. There is one particular problem in Staffordshire - the section between Tamworth and Stafford - and we talk about that in specific detail in a more recent Episode, number 45.
The recent video from ‘Auto Shennanigans’ UA-camr talked about a piece of motorway financed by a private company, which turns out to cost the taxpayer much more in the long run than if the state had paid for it. Im sick and tired of hearing that we have no money - as long as we have enough money to pay billions in overseas aid, or to scroungers entering our country illegally, we can’t be skint. Those would be the first things to end if we truly had no cash.
Your very welcome. I wanted to make this on behalf of the 4253 Locomotive Company Ltd of which I am a shareholder. The 42XX locomotive hasn’t seen a fire since it was sent for scrap at Barry Island in 1963. It’s almost finished it’s very long and expensive overhaul. Hopefully will have the first steaming within the next 6 months. If you can make the comment that the super thanks is from 4253 Locomotive then that would be great! Plus I promise to do the same each week….. 🙏 please
HS2 should be built in full
Yep, we agree with that Jonathan
The cost is thru the roof. It all needs binning. Use the London-Aylesbury section and build the Stafford bypass. Done.
Upgrades to existing mainlines is all we need.
@@johnburns4017 but there's no space on the existing routes to upgrade. We have already tried that on the existing WCML and it couldn't be done.That was the whole point in HS2. TRU is going to take 10+ years because they have to work around the existing rail service and keep lines open. That is more than doubling the time it is taking to complete and costs considerably more as a result. Growth of the economy is linked to transportation and communication and our transport infrastructure cannot cope with the existing network. What we have of HS2 thanks to constant political meddling and cutbacks has exacerbated the WCML capacity issues, not improved them as well as pushed up the price of what we do have
Yes. Or cancelled in full. As is we are doing a massively expensive equivalent of deliberately jumping half way across a filth-filled ditch - the result is bound to be malodorous, to put it politely.
@@johnwilliams7653
▪ Lots of talking heads on panorama doc'
▪ Focused on the cesspit it is for public money
▪ A solution looking for a problem
▪ Not enough accountability
▪ Not suitable for close clustered cities
▪ Not even fast
▪ Overt corruption ✔
▪ Not fit for purpose
▪ etc
Has to be binned.
Really enjoyed Richard's outside broadcasts, thank you! Particularly happy to see at 47:47 one of the monitors in the NMT running on good old Windows XP... Oh, those were the days! 😊
P.S. Wikipedia claims the NMT entered service in 2003! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Measurement_Train
I know! A number of folks spotted that. If it works though........!
Thanks. Another excellent episode. Gets better and better.
Thank you David
What I don't understand is that yes the PM is saying we have a financial black hole that needs to be addressed now, but HS2 Phase 2 (or whatever it is called) won't need the finance to be available until the current HS2 infrastructure is finished, so years into the future, when hopefully the country has the funds available to build the Handsacre to Manchester section that currently is mothballed. Surely you can have the project still in place with all the plans and then land reserved for the project but decide on whether to proceed or not at that time? I just don't get it.
i dont get that either, also phase-2a to crewe seems necessary to make any sense of phase-1 to get value from the cost and damage of that.
It’s a valid point.
That assumes the Country will have the funds to build phase 2 at some time in the future. With the new hospital programme, a major prison building programme to come, 1.50 million new homes to build, the asylum crisis to resolve, the nett zero carbon crisis to resolve, spiralling energy costs, defense spending to fund, the NHS crisis to resolve, the raac infested schools to rebuild, drug addiction crisis to resolve it's going to be a far distant future when funds will be available to even start thinking about phase 2.
@@TrevorWilliams-fq8mg I don't disagree with you but surely they decision should be made at that time and not now?
Things like the asylum processing crisis once you get a grip on progressing then quickly and efficiently shouldn't go on forever, it's been caused by basically not processing claimants at all for a number of months/years. I also don't think the government will be paying for building the houses, housebuilders will with the government facilitating and fast tracking the red tape.
@@TrevorWilliams-fq8mg or a dystopian future where railways are simply not going to be a thing
Ah just too late to have caught the recent Peter Hendy controversy!
Indeed - but we will be covering it next week.
@@Whiskey2shots though the alleged Oyster card story is now ancient history.
@@MrMWRMWR indeed but still seems there's been a pretty large number of reports of misconduct by Hendy come out
@GreenSignals
So apparently Gareth Dennis has been fired indirectly arising for saying that overcrowding at Euston is unsafe. Well I heartily agree with him; my wife was also complaining to me when we were last there waiting for the Glasgow train to be platformed how appallingly overcrowded it is, with the unseemly rush for the train when at the last minute the platform is announced.
@julianroberts8760 several possible strategies before announcement.
1 watch for assisted transport to platforms from 20 mins beforehand
2 wander up and down checking what trains are possible candidates for departure such as loading food, increased chance of a train coming from place A will be going back there
4 Avanti ticket inspector cluster moving to a different platform
...and of course
5 Realtime trains app for departure platform.
...oh and listen out for scouse accents if you were expecting to go to Manchester - I once had 15 minutes of comfortable smugness before the penny dropped and I escaped a Liverpool bound train to find the platform where the near full Manchester bound train was about to depart🤭
My family listen to you in Ireland and Northern Ireland
Excellent!
Excellent to see your trip from Chipp to Glasgow as I did the same trip a month ago. Relocated from the centre of the rail world of Reading to Devizes a few years ago. Ended up 19 years at Westinghouse brakes. First class return ticket was £300 by the way!
Gosh, that's pricey. I managed to do a bit better with an advanced ticket but still, it's steep.
I worked in IT and the principles you outline for successful PFIs are exactly the same for successful project management. The reason so many government IT projects fail is usually a lack of a consistent client and also a lack of client 'buy-in' at the management levels that might see 'personal head count empires' reduced by the new system.
Ministers change frequently, and then you get the 'new broom' syndrome which leads to scope creep. Even if the contractor employs rigid change control procedures, anything but minor changes to the functional specification once the project is underway opens the door to escalating costs, extended delivery times, and, ultimately, project failure.
I worked for a large US computer services company in bidding for and delivering major IT projects into both the public and private sectors. Our company would aggressively go after any large IT invitations to tender (ITTs) but the only one I can remember that we decided not to bid for was the NHS IT system. It was decided that the NHS is so fragmented with so many 'fiefdoms' that they were just not a viable client into which to deliver an overall IT system.
But someone else did bid for it, and the project failed abysmally!
Vince C.
eBorders, another good example. Your point confirmed by the subsequent lawsuit.
@@christopherwright8388 Who won eBorders?
@@gzk6nk The contract was awarded to Raytheon Systems Limited. IIRC, unfunded scope creep derailed the project, leading to cancelation. When RSL sued for breach, the court found for the plaintiff.
That was the gist, at least.
@@christopherwright8388 Thanks. I worked on that bid for EDS but retired before it was awarded, so never found out who'd won it.
@gzk6nk Raytheon HQ in Massachusetts tried to salvage the program with a surge of US engineers to Uxbridge - I was part of that - but by that time it was either too far gone or the well had been poisoned.
I had the pleasure of updating the Smelter’s IT systems in early 2017 and this involved getting there by taking the Caledonian Sleeper from Crewe. Bliss.
Bliss indeed!
A great experience but difficult to sleep when there's so much glorious scenery - and you only see one side from a compartment room.
Thanks
Thanks - very much appreciated!
Excellent video, especially the trip on the “measuring train”, a real eye opener.
I went on the West Highland Line last year in order to take a trip on The Jacobite. I was really looking forward to the rail trip up to Fort William, spending the night there and catching the Jacobite the next day. I completely forgot that at the time of year I went it gets dark quite early so I ended up seeing nothing after Crianlarich, and on the return journey I took the Caledonian Sleeper so again saw nothing.
I hope to try again next year!
Ah, I can sense your frustration! But it is worth going in - it is spectacular especially (I’m afraid) north of Crianlarich!
I would say I can't believe it, but with Network Rail it's not necessarily that surprising... the NMT software is run using Windows XP! I wouldn't be surprised if the IT infrastructure on-board became redundant before the HST itself gave up the ghost!
Wow yes just noticed that, hopefully they are disconnected from the outside world.
You wouldn’t get them through CyberEssentials certification.
Yes, I did spot that as well. I suppose there’s an argument “if it ain’t broke, why fix it?” 😊
It's also still called the _New_ Measurement Train - maybe Network Rail is stuck in 2003?
Another engrossing episode, with plenty to think about. Both of Richard's jollies, err... outside broadcasts were great; It's hard to appreciate how isolated and wild parts of Scotland are, but the GB Railfreight run to Fort William certainly gave a good idea of what it's like. On the subject of HS2 phase 2A, whilst it seems that our dire finances will cloud any decision, I wonder whether a temporary mothballing might help, or would this mean unravelling so much, such as teams and equipment, that the eventual cost spirals even more? No easy answers, I guess. Cheers, Rob.
Thanks Rob - really appreciated.
I think the challenge on ‘mothballing’ is that acquisition of land powers in the Act for 2a is time limited - so they do need to crack on.
Just a couple of thoughts that would improve the Manchester run....
1. Dump the station at Manchester Airport. It's expensive in its own right because of the changes they'll have to make to the Motorway and the hotels they'll have to buy and knock down. It's also expensive because it means that the Manchester Spur will be using lower loading gauges etc because with the bend to get into the spur the speeds will be lower, so they'll be buying new TBMs.
And the station is a fair trek from the actual airport being in the other side of the M56.
Plus you can already get to Manchester airport from Manchester on the existing train service and the station that uses is in the right location.
So you could save a fortune by just running the Manchester Spur straight into Manchester
HS2 phase 2 is binned. It is not happening.
Hello from all of us at The Independent Brigg Line Rail Group.
In previous podcasts you have touched on the cost of the railway.
On Friday the IBLRG received a letter from the DfT in association with trying to run an extra service on the Brigg Line, currently Brigg and Kirton-in-Lindsey receive a 1 round trip Monday to Friday service.
The letter from the DfT was so anti improvement it was unreal, costs estimated at £900000 for a extra trip Monday to Friday.
Pressure on Louise Haigh as the Brigg Line service starts at Sheffield, her constituency.
£900k Seriously!! Was there any breakdown of that or just a headline number?
Would you be able to email us on info@greensignals.org as we’d like to chat about the Brigg line. Cheers!
@@GreenSignals We've send the letter that we received from the DFT to Richard.
Thank you for another packed show very interesting
Be careful, the loony left are under your trackbed
Thanks Paul.
I have a complaint! I used to comfortably listen to Green Signals whilst doing my day job. However, I now find that it is impossible to so. Why? Because Nigel's ear-bound Odd-able Natters are all too frequently punctuated by the Richard's eye-demanding Juicy Jollies. How do you expect me to visually digest such tasty, high production value material whilst still doing my job? Do I need to change my job just so I can get a clear run of Green Signals? Hmm, actually that might be worthwhile because I really enjoy Richard’s focus on people. Real people who in their own way help to keep the network running despite the best efforts of those less knowledgeable (allegedly)
This gave us a good giggle Roy. Really pleased you enjoyed the show!
Great to see the West Highland Line featured once more, a great video from Richard.
Poor news from LNER on tickets, hope GBR aborts it.
The Scottish gov abandoning the peak fare trial is also poor, its not just the cost of peak tickets its also the peak time restrictions coming back makes days out to the cities less attractive.
Another great video on the big banana. Looks a great working environment with terrific chairs!
Hope you cover Peter Hendy and his approach to safety criticism next week.
Thanks Allan. Glad you enjoyed the West Highland even if the weather was a bit grim and the window was dirty.
Yes, we will be covering the Euston point next week.
I currently work for the Staffs Fire IT Team. PFI is a great concept but badly executed. It causes no end of problems because the people who sign up to the deals don't really understand what they are getting in to. The problems really only become apparent two or three years after the deal has been signed once the dust has settled.
Fair points there - when we do the PFI / PPP show, we’ll cover that exact point.
@@GreenSignalsI spent a lot of my later working life working in and around PFI projects - mostly schools, hospitals and other public buildings. It was quite an eye-opener as to what had been provided by the scheme and what the people on the ground expected - no surprises that they didn’t match up much. As to £400 light bulbs… hmmm… well let me just say my company, Interserve had a profit margin of around 2% and eventually went bust, so they could hardly be accused on exorbitant fees for services. I think what most people lost sight of was that they were provided with modern, clean, efficient buildings often replacing clapped out, filthy buildings and it had all been provided by private money. Looking forward to hearing more about PFI and PPP. Regards Paul
It’s now after the 12 noon quiz cut off time, but due to my “win” (thanks) I haven’t put a lot of effort into finding the answer! My first thoughts were “it has to be in Wales”, but I found one in SE England. I predict some controversial (multiple) answers!
Thanks Trevor! Will get your mug out to you this week, promise.
And yes, you are probably right on the multiple possible answers!
Gents, someone seems to have piggy backed on to my giving. I am Chris Exley. There is no Smith in my surname. And I do enjoy your podcasts and giving to your very good and worthy informative podcasts.
Oh no!! Sorry Chris - will sort that out asap!!
Loved seeing a bit of the West Highland line, though the windscreen was absolutely filthy inside and out and really needed a wipe over before setting off...next time! The measurement train was fascinating. I think the only time I've seen a bit of telemetry to do with the track was on the Tornado 100mph run documentary. Maybe one to add to next episode is the Gareth Dennis/Peter Hendy/Euston safety debacle. Very enjoyable once again. Thank you!
Thanks. A fair point about the windscreen but I wouldn’t have been able to clean the outside at any point. Not only would the driver have had to done it (I suspect) it was only at Helensburgh Upper IIRC that we had the second person’s side of the cab adjacent to the platform and we were only there for a very short period of time.
Yes, we will be covering the Euston issue in detail next week.
the problem with PFI is the MAC that come with it during the life time of the contract and all those MACS have a rate card -- used to bid PFI contracts -!!!! Macs are Moves and Changes -- happy to give you a view on that if your interested
Do agree Colin, but i wonder how much of that was down to lack of clarity of specification (from an output basis) at the outset? Complicated though I agree, as things do change.
Thanks!
Cheers Mark. Really appreciate that.
28.30 Obvious that Hard Lewy was no Rock Fan... still reads ZZ car s top...... Lovely to see the WH from the cab again...and RETB still "doing the job" and its classic exchange sound....
It is a classic sound I agree!
aH AH, THE FLYING BANNANA WAS IN ACTION
It was indeed!
PFI in principle are a good way forward. Especially if the contractors are involved from the very beginning and are fully aware of the risks. The problems as far as I could see was that government could never stand back and wait for the end, they always wanted to tinker on the way through the contract. That's even if they understood what a PFI contract was in the first place. PFI contracts started being treated as standard ICE contracts by the client (government) which changes the whole concept of the original contract and brings about spiralling costs. Once a contract has been awarded where the contractors have been involved from very early on, then the client should just stand back and watch and wait for the end. If you were having your house decorated and after two days decided that you didn't like the colour and want it changed the price is going to rocket, you should have put more thought into what you wanted. It is not the contractors or anyone else's fault other than your own for the price rise.
Some great points there. Always look first at whether there was a capable client in place.
I have a funny feeling the answer to the quiz will entail the Welsh version of the Transport for Wales network map and there will be more than one answer.
I've found three already.
Email them to us, please! You have to be "in it to win it' (as my kids always tell me re the Lottery.....!}
Another great video guys, i do so much enjoy the information and the banter, a winning formula. A question if I may, this talk of HS2 and progress toward Birmingham reminded me of a few years back when there was talk of fixing congestion on The Brighton mainline, part of the proposal was lengthening platforms to accommodate longer trains, but another was by re-creating the link through the Lavender Line (part of which was/is a heritage line, and restoring the line into Lewes, and thus onward to Brighton. I could have sworn my memory is that the media referred to this as BML2? and included having to create a new linking line at the southern end it was largely seen as overflow to take some traffic off the mainline, being a Brighton boy and working for BR on the Southern Region this was of great interest but in Googling the topic I can't find any reference to it?
I vaguely recall that, yes. And I think I know just the person to ask. Will report back once I have! Richard
The easiest way to continue the northern leg of HS2 is to re-open the Woodhead line.
Not going to happen with all the power cables in it
A Leeds/Sheffield to Manchester link would be a great thing to create, but I think it would do nothing to replace Ph2 of HS2.
The current service times between Leeds and Manchester are over an hour for what is only 58km so that's an average of about 35mph rough conversion. If you were to create a new link then the Woodhead route would certainly be a good option, except the tunnels can't be re-used so it would need one bored right underneath the originals and about twice the length. That would be expensive. It wouldn't need to be an HS line at that distance 100 or 125mph would be enough to reduce the journey time significantly.
@GDGRailway47712 surprised it's only 58km by rail as by car it's 59miles mostly by motorway from Stockport to Leeds centre and at best that's a 1:10 min drive (you'd be lucky!). The current train times are very competitive unless travelling to outside the city or taking a family or "stuff".
@MrMWRMWR it's about capacity too.
@@MrMWRMWR It's 58km as the crow flies. I don't know the distance by rail or road.
Even assuming it's 100km winding it's way through all the towns and villages, the average speed is ~90km/h for the fastest service where 200km/h lines generally average 120-130km/h.
West Highland line was originally conseved for passenger and fish. Latterly forestry products and the alumina train. Thinking out loud, the smelter and Kinlochleven closed, but the hydro power station and dams still exists. Could that be converted to power an electrified West Highland line with hydro electric power making a very green railway? Richard your son is a chip of the old block!
Genuinely don’t know about that Chris but the smelter would be quite a political issue I suspect. And yep, definitely a fair amount of MiniMe going on with Charlie!
Something by the way to feature on your fares and ticketing debacle is that I would like to bring to your attention the recent TfW decision to ‘review’ as they call it the Welsh / North / South Wales rover tickets which I and no doubt many others have had quite a few of. They have very recently gone up for the 4 days in 8 ticket from £71.20 with my railcard to £98.30 which is some rise in percentage terms. The stock response from TfW is they have ‘reviewed’ the fare, no you damned well haven’t you have increased it by a whacking amount without any notice at all! They have then had the sheer gall to publicise them very heavily saying what great value they were!!! Incredible and made me VERY 😡😡
OMG I LOVED the Craigendoran junction footage. I have lived in Sydney now for 24 years, but for the first 24 years of my life I was born and bred in Helensburgh, as the train curves around to the right, it crosses a stone arched bridge that was at the end of the street I grew up from the age of 4-16, then as it comes through Helensburgh upper and passes the spectacular Charles Rennie Macintosh Hill House and past the secondary school I went to before going to university in Glasgow ❤️❤️❤️❤️ Also Rannoch, is the location of many a rugby tussle which was the furthest we used to travel to play the school there, one of the most isolated boarding schools anywhere in the world. :-)
What wonderful memories. Thanks for sharing!
I bet you chuckled at "Helenburgh Upper"😅
My late dad had wartime memories of Helensburgh and Alexandria for training so I explored the area a few years ago to grab some location photos for him.
Why would I chuckle? :-) Fun fact is there another town of similar size that has three train stations in it? Also if Rhu gets a station that effectively would be four stations
@gorgu08 ...just the typo.🤐
@@MrMWRMWR I know, so sorry about that. We spotted it shortly before publication but had no time to re-render a 4k file (which is many GB) and then upload it to UA-cam - it takes ages. Absolutely hate getting anything wrong so apologies to the good folks of Helensburgh....!
It seems that the Scotrail bringing back peak fares is unfortunate especially as they are still running a very reduced timetable which is also reducing the use of the trains in Scotland
I agree with Mr B: The principles of PPP/PFIs are sound, as long as you have in place the 3 pillars of a project that is highlighted in this report. The same disciplines apply to any outsourcing contract. Let's hope this time we do have an "intelligent client."
Really enjoyed the West Highland Line freight piece: fascinating!
When do you think it will be appropriate to drop the "New" from the NMT? Great piece of kit, though. The last time I travelled to Skeggy on a train it was on The Jolly Fisherman that was hauled by a pair of class 20s.
I was disappointed with the cost of membership. I liked the inaugural "after hours / uncut" element, but at £9 per month it is not viable for me. Oh well...
The simpler fares by LNER is con. I'm a walk on reguler passenger between Darlington and Newcastle. I don't like pre booking as I don't know what time I'll need the return. So the new ticket system offers better offers if I buy 60 minutes before travel. So I buy the out journey for the discount price. And the return journey 30 minutes before I travel. BUT! If there's an issue and all trains are cancelled I can't buy the return ticket. Which means I'm stranded because with the ticket they have to get me home. Without the ticket they don't. And to have the flexibility which I often need I have to pay the most expensive ticket. So since the introduction of these fairs I've only ever had the option of cheaper ticket once. And the cheaper ticket is so restrictive to specific train operators. So if your ticket is on cross country and that train is cancelled. You then have to pay the most expensive fair of another operator. And it's not easy to claim train fares back and may people can't be doing with the chew. So LNER specifically is in a win win situation with its passenger in a losing situation if things go wrong.
Thank you both for another hreat show.
HS2 will keeping us all talking for years to come i think.
Phase 2A and old oak to Euston needs to be done as a matter of urgency. Agter these get 2b tomamchsstet and put plans into place to get the eastern leg built.
Brings us back to what i suspect is going to be a blubder and that is lack.of ectra platforms at Euston
Cheers Anthony. Suspect you may be spot on with all those points!
@@GreenSignals need to plan future hs3 route too
Very interesting as always. I loved the sight of the West Highland line having stayed at Corrour. I would just love to go on the measuring train for a tour and see the technology working and wonder if they have food and accommodation too? Hope they do for the staff covering 800 miles at a time. I also wondered if you would mention about the usual station platforms not being high enough for the proposed HS2s or was this false news? Another good reason to carry on withe scrapped plan. Thank you for another really brilliant vlog.
Overnight accommodation, no, I don't think so because the trips are designed to work within an ordinary shift. There's a kitchen, rest areas and a lovely meeting room as well and of course appropriate facilities.
At Skegness, we all popped into town to grab a sandwich - and the temptation to go for fish and chips was considerable, but avoided - just!
We'll try and look at station heights at some point (I think the whole question of level boarding is rightly a hot topic for many people) so we'll probably try and come at it from a level boarding point of view.
Brilliant episode.
In terms of fares - anytime / off-peak / advance (and rovers) only. Anytime and off-peak to be one direction only fares. Ie no returns for 10p more. All routes valid on anytime and off-peak. Shouldn’t need to be more complicated.
Thanks - interesting ideas!
That would solve any issue of claiming compensation on the return part of an open return being for a customer asserted day and time of service. That "break of return journey" feature would sadly be lost if there's places to visit en route; a very restricted rover which saves car excursions.
@@MrMWRMWR could a break of journey being added to a single anytime ticket resolve that with maybe the off peak as well or not to help differentiate?
Love the podcast and very interesting to see the Scottish end of the North Blyth to Fort William Alumina service, as ever a very informative and interesting part of the pod!
The potential for a route between Berwick and Newcastle via Bedlington could make for a useful extension of the Northumberland Line? Would be interesting to see what the three of you think?
Thanks - we will definitely give that some thought - but thanks for the Super Thanks - much appreciated!
Seeing the news of Kier Starmer's budget predictions, how much will this affect HS2 - even Stage 1 let alone Stage 2?
It’s going to be a tough budget all round. An awful lot of effort going into setting expectations!
Sad to hear about Scotrail peak fares trial, but how much was it publicized? I see no physical adverts anywhere not even by my local Glasgow area station. Online i get nothing, but do constantly from LNER which I seldom use. The union "action" whereby we have a greatly reduced evening timetable here is another disappointing development that hardly helps. Travel for the iconic Edinburgh Festival was badly let down - just as passenger numbers are returning after Covid ; and after all the massive investment up here in rail. Sadly West Highland Line is nothing like as reliable as bus services to Fort William, being easily shut down by bad weather; and its slower! The road infrastructure in rural Scotland has seen massive improvement, rail comparatively little, over last 5 decades.
Thanks Julian. Some important questions there, notably the issue of publicity. We are hoping to look into a more next week.
You make a very good point about the road network investment. Rail does have its work cut out in the highlands, more than it used to.
@GreenSignals Well the road network investment throughout Britain has been massive over the last 50 years with similar modal shift, unfortunately, both freight and passenger.
I wonder if you're aware of the drastic timetable reduction there is in Scotland at the moment? The last train this evening to my local suburban Glasgow station from Central was 723pm!! Worse than during Covid, before which the service was every half hour till 2320ish. Big cutbacks on weekdays too. Sorry to repeat myself, but all the investment in rail in the Central Belt is wasted if drivers refuse to run trains, and politicians don't have money to waste.
If the line monitoring equipment brings up missing things was developed in the food industry. Does that mean a pizza dumped on the track would be spotted and you could work out what sort of pizza it is and whether an egg. Pineapple. Pepperoni or ham is missing?
Genius. Absolute genius.
Are you covering Belfast central opening soon and the Enterprise upgrade Belfast to Dublin
Wasn't on the radar - but I was thinking about doing something in Ireland at some point - so will add to the list.
Another Good Episode very interesting seeing the NMT,
I remember seeing it on Trainspotting (By Discovery), back when the NMT was brand new, and they showed it having a live camera feeds on all sides of the vehicle including the wheels
I think that the purse strings are very tight on current expenditure but that borrowing for capital investment may still be possible.
I agree that there is a fundamentally different benefit in spending £100m on capital rather than opex.
Pfi - do we risk making the same mistake twice? Historically the use of Pfi appeared incentivised by debt being treated ‘off balance’ sheet rather than for value for money reasons. A way round those fiscal rules Treasury is so keen on? The 2018 national audit office report on Pfi is well worth a read. Surely the answer is a more sensible set of fiscal rules that recognise the difference between investment and day to day spending. Rather than the reintroduction of more complex and inflexible Pfi contracts whose vfm is unproven - just to gain access to (more expensive) private finance?
Perhaps the answer Angus is a more relaxed approach (through fiscal rules) when the public expenditure is capital in nature rather than opex.
My criticism of those discounts Northern has offered is that it’s limited number of schools with large parts of Northerns region missing, in particular more socially deprived areas looking at the very small handful available in NE.
I also think it should have been extended up to age 18 to incorporate sixth form and FE colleges where there is more likelihood of the need for travelling by train.
The list of participating schools also seems to include a considerable number of private and grammar schools so there is a sense of social exclusion in this offer.
Some good points Ben, though why does including a number of private and grammar schools create a sense of social exclusion? If they were not, would that not indicate an element of discrimination?
@@GreenSignals it’s more about what isn’t on this list rather than what is. There are a small handful of schools in NE and only one is the Teesside area all fairly affluent areas but maybe that says more in general about state of local public transport in Tees Valley than anything else.
Would like to see a feature on AWS/TPWS if thats possible please how it all works would be fascinating
Thanks Paul. I like that idea! We’ll stick on the ideas list - though it is a long and growing list!
My favourite part of Thursday, green signals 😅
You’re most welcome!
Should cover bus rail coach interchange and integration debate Leon Daniels and David Boden Stagecoach group
Great Britain Railways looking at intergrated Transport and ferry links
"Greener, faster, cheaper" so the GWR electrification was stopped short of Bristol, Oxford and Swansea! Absolutely ridiculous!!
I think you may be conflating two issues, but yes, ridiculous.
The NMT ride was fascinating guys. I guess they didn't hint at what they are considering for traction after the HST power cars expire?
Nope, not even a hint!
@@GreenSignals - I could have given you a wave as you went by the office as I can remember the NMT passing by on that day and looking where it was going - would not be going to Skegness on a regular basis 😀
Public money is always cheaper than private money, PFI has been a disaster, the sums some councils have had to cough up to service the private funders is eye watering, wanting to to keep borrowing costs off the books is a political choice
……although a lot of the “investments” have been ill-judged, poorly delivered, and suffer from short-termism, where the asset is designed to serve the life of the project, as contrasted to the duration of the requirement .
Thanks. If you mean the WACC (weighted average cost of capital) is higher in the private sector then yes, I would agree if the cost of equity is in there.
However, the decision pivots on whether the NPV of the risk adjusted whole life cost is still greater in the private sector option.
I realise that’s a bit of word soup so we will be discussing it in a future show.
i hope the name of this weeks quiz has a y in there name too. lol.
Fair point!
Any news on the commissioning of the ETCS on Tornado?
We don’t - but we’ll ask!
@@GreenSignals Thank you.
What is the number of the class Forty I know it's between 001 and 099
40035 Apapa.
@@GreenSignals thank for that the class Forty is one of my favourite locomotives
Richard more west country coverage Honiton Tunnel.
Exeter Central to London Waterloo inter city main line needs investment infrastructure and trains and catering service back ,First Group plc MTR South Western Railway company Ltd
Thanks David. We are planning to do just that.
Proper nameplate on a locomotive. All transfers now on the passenger fleet. Will new trains ever get plates. ( sell at high value for charity when done). Can't see anyone would have room for s flame cut Azuma name!. To do with leasing companies saying you can't put a hole in the bodyside .
Have to agree - am a sucker for a cast nameplate myself!
@27:22 Helensburgh is only 21 miles from the centre of Glasgow as the crow flies. Do you mean 41 miles by the railway from GLC?
Nope. It means I am absolutely thick - see previous answer to @simonpilk......☹
@@GreenSignals Using km will upset the Brexity people. Lol.
It makes sense now, thank you.
Wasn't the land required for the northern portion sold by the previous government to essentially make it impossible to build future phases?
Nothing has been sold yet
No, not as yet.
Where on earth do you get your mileages from as they are slightly incorrect! Fort William - Mallaig is 41.5 miles…. And as for Glasgow - Fort William…. Where are you measuring from in Glasgow???
Well thank you Mr P for being so kind in the manner in which you rightly point out what an absolute bozo I am.
The answer is fairly straightforward. It helps when talking about miles not to be looking at a sheet full of kilometres. I have already confessed my sins to my fellow presenters (who have offered various helpful and unhelpful comments referencing amongst other things my age / general grip etc) and I shall immediately book myself on a course at the Jacob Rees-Mogg school of imperial measurements to reacquaint myself with rods, perches, barrels, chains, furlongs and of course, miles.
I shall, as they say, get my coat.....
@@GreenSignals put your coat back on the hook and take a pue! I think you are easily forgiven for such a minor error. Having legitimately ridden on the footplate on a 66 in my career with 1600 on the drawbar, that constant horrible thudding does things to your brain! I sadly remember such things as West Highland mileages due to my own misspent youth riding behind Class 37s on the tremendous WHL. Sad to see it like it is but I suppose that is what progress is. (Can I get off now please!)
Just finish HS2
You should take a tip from Don Coffey, and ensure the windscreen is spotless for your cab views.
I was very honoured to be there at all. The trip was not set up to be a cab ride film and indeed I was rather hoping it would be completely authentic - which it was. The loco had just come from Blyth through some pretty wet and miserable weather. We had 2 mins at Springburn as we were occupying a passenger platform. Hope you enjoyed the video though!
HS2 is an insane money pit....why are we building it. ?
Might be worth listening to one of our very earliest episodes - Number 02 to be precise - where we explain (in some detail - exactly why we are building it, and why cancelling Phase 2 has created a series of problems for which there are currently no worked up solutions.
There is one particular problem in Staffordshire - the section between Tamworth and Stafford - and we talk about that in specific detail in a more recent Episode, number 45.
The recent video from ‘Auto Shennanigans’ UA-camr talked about a piece of motorway financed by a private company, which turns out to cost the taxpayer much more in the long run than if the state had paid for it.
Im sick and tired of hearing that we have no money - as long as we have enough money to pay billions in overseas aid, or to scroungers entering our country illegally, we can’t be skint.
Those would be the first things to end if we truly had no cash.
Thanks
Thanks!
Very kind, thank you!
Thanks
Thanks David. That’s very much appreciated.
Thanks
Thank you - really appreciate that!
Thanks
Really kind, thanks so much for the support.
Thanks
Thanks so much Chris - it is very much appreciated.
Thanks
Thanks Matt. That's so kind and much appreciated!
Thanks
Cheers Paul! Much appreciated.
Thanks!
Thanks so much Rob!
Thanks
Thanks so much - hugely appreciated!
Your very welcome. I wanted to make this on behalf of the 4253 Locomotive Company Ltd of which I am a shareholder. The 42XX locomotive hasn’t seen a fire since it was sent for scrap at Barry Island in 1963. It’s almost finished it’s very long and expensive overhaul. Hopefully will have the first steaming within the next 6 months. If you can make the comment that the super thanks is from 4253 Locomotive then that would be great! Plus I promise to do the same each week….. 🙏 please
@@johnsamson-snell9558 That's lovely - and of course we will!