Arriva Group publishes proposals to UK Government to help fix Britain’s railways

London, September 18, 2024. Leading passenger transport company, Arriva Group has today published its recommendations to the UK Government under a five-step plan to deliver urgent reform.  The report, called ‘Accelerating the Government’s Ambition to Fix Britain’s Railways’, aims to kick-start immediate improvements which could work alongside the longer-term change the Government aims to deliver.

Amongst the proposals are recommendations such as making more effective use of the existing networks, train fleets, and other assets; making timetabling more flexible and responsive, while also empowering train operating companies to make timetable decisions which deliver passenger growth and support the public finances; and improving workforce skills to break down barriers to opportunity and tackle the skills gap.

The practical plans outlined could be implemented alongside the Government's wider rail reform agenda and start to deliver better outcomes for passengers and taxpayers, support economic growth, and take the railways out of reverse gear. The measures would first help to stabilise the railway, addressing common complaints which impact passengers on a daily basis; then build on these reforms to unlock the railway's true potential as a growth engine, such as through the approval of new ‘open access’ routes.

David Brown, Managing Director of Arriva UK Trains, commented: “The last few years have been a challenging time for the British railway - but now is the time for optimistic, forward-looking change under a new Government. There is a real opportunity to marry long-term structural reform, which Labour has set out, with further short-term improvements for passengers and the taxpayer. Our proposals set out a series of crucial steps for the Government to help deliver on that promise, accelerate their ambition to fix Britain’s railways, deliver tangible change for passengers, and realise the railway’s potential as an engine of economic growth”.

Arriva Group owns the London Overground concession, Arriva Rail London, as well as Chiltern Railways, Grand Central and CrossCountry.  It is the only owning group to have experience with all contract types currently in use on Britain’s railway.

The recommendations include:

Steps to stabilise Britain’s railway:

• A national fleet capacity strategy, helping to reduce passengers’ overcrowded journeys by more effectively utilising underused trains and provide greater certainty for investors to channel capital into rail infrastructure.
• An overhaul to timetabling, allowing for quicker and more effective decision-making to reflect passenger demand, helping to unlock economic growth.
• Expanding the number of skilled workers in British rail through extending internal upskilling schemes, to help the industry retain and get the most out of talent.

Proposals to build Britain’s railway:

• Greenlighting new services, including open access route proposals sitting with the Regulator for approval, and the ambitious Oxford to Cambridge arc connecting the UK’s science hubs.
• Accelerating the rollout of Pay-As-You-Go travel and introducing a Friday peak saver ticket.

The UK Government’s ambitious agenda for long-term structural reform of Britain’s railways will take years to implement and for passengers and taxpayers to see the benefits, if it delivers the intended outcomes.  Arriva’s proposals could deliver accelerated change, helping to drive revenue growth and support the public finances while the longer-term reforms roll-out.

Notes to editors:

• Arriva’s ‘Accelerating the Government’s Ambition to Fix Britain’s Railways’ report can be downloaded by clicking on the link and scrolling to 'download'.
• Arriva Group has extensive operating experience across long-distance, commuter, urban, inter-urban and regional train services, through its UK Trains division which includes Grand Central, Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry and Arriva Rail London.  It is the only owning group to have experience with all contract types currently in use on Britain’s railway, including national rail contracts, a concessionary contract and the open access company under the Grand Central brand. It also runs Arriva TrainCare, a rail maintenance business, and Arriva Road Transport Solutions, which provides customer focussed rail replacement services.
• Grand Central’s open access services support and connect underserved communities, boosting economic growth and regeneration in the UK’s regions, including outside of major hubs, and operate without any government subsidy.

About Arriva Group:

Arriva is a leading provider of passenger transport across Europe, employing around 34,400 people and delivering around 1.6 billion passenger journeys. With buses, trains, coaches, trams, waterbuses, bike-sharing systems, on-demand transport solutions and a rolling stock leasing company, Arriva proudly connects people and communities safely, reliably and sustainably across 11 countries, delivering these services in a better way, every day. The activities of Arriva are divided into four business units: UK Bus, UK Trains, The Netherlands and Mainland Europe. Arriva has passenger transport operations in the Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom, and also operates a rolling stock leasing company in Romania.