Blogs

Mark Thornley, Arriva Group Talent and Reward Director 

Sian Leydon – Member of the Arriva Management Board and Managing Director of Mainland Europe

Anne Hettinga – Member of the Arriva Management Board and Managing Director, Arriva Netherlands

Matt Greener - Arriva Group Head of Fleet 

David Brown, Managing Director Arriva UK Trains

Jana Siber, Managing Director Mainland Europe

Angelo Costa, Managing Director of Arriva Italy.

I was delighted to be invited to speak at the DevoConnect Northern Transport Summit this afternoon on what is needed to make a success of the National Bus Strategy. Following my opening remarks, I shared a panel discussion with Dan Jarvis MP, the Mayor of the Sheffield City Region, Transport Focus, the Campaign for Better Buses for Manchester, the Confederation of Passenger Transport, the Campaign for Better Transport and the DfT.

The tens of thousands of passionate men and women that work on Britain’s railways have much to be proud of. In the years since privatisation, passenger numbers more than doubled before Covid-19 and the passenger experience has been revolutionised with thousands of new trains with the latest onboard services. Throughout the pandemic also, our people went above and beyond, enabling key workers to make vital journeys and keeping people and communities connected. I firmly believe that the railway exists to serve its passengers and keep communities connected, in good times and bad. That is why I was delighted to welcome the Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail.

Can we recover from COVID-19 while also building back greener?

Paul O’Neil commenting on the National Bus Strategy

Listening to the comments of the UK Rail Minister, Chris Heaton-Harris at the Rail Recovery Conference this morning, I was heartened to hear recognition for the essential role that rail will play in the economic recovery of the UK as we emerge from Covid restrictions.  The way the sector responds and brings passengers back to its services will be critical in a world which has changed.