by Ian Brown, TfL London Rail Managing Director
December 2007

Two years ago I asked whether our railways are there solely to provide existing levels of service, albeit hopefully at a more realistic cost? Or alternatively, are the railways potentially a tool of regeneration and growth?
I argued that this is exactly their role, particularly in the case of a world city such as London. Last year, I also set out where that additional capacity was most needed and what the consequences would be of any failure to invest. What a lot has happened since then! The Government’s Eddington report examined the links between the quality of transport and the economy’s productivity, noting that “targeted capacity on commuter rail corridors into major urban areas can offer high returns”. Then the Stern report looked at the costs of climate change; 20% of emissions are transport related, though railways at present are relatively green compared to other modes, and account for only a small proportion of this. At the same time there was also evidence on rising demand and increasing levels of crowding at peak times. Indeed, the last few years have seen exceptional demand growth, not just on National Rail but also in London on the Underground, Docklands Light Railway and buses.
It is in this context that I welcome the 2007 Railways White Paper with its themes of “capacity, customers and carbon” as well as the subsequent positive announcement on the funding of Crossrail. This sits alongside TfL’s own £1.4 billion rail contribution – the newly launched London Overground – which with the delivery of the extended East London line in 2010 will bring great new journey opportunities to London. Capacity is the new refrain. And quite right too. The White Paper recognises the growth pressures in London and the South-east, around 2.5% increase in demand every year. It’s carefully designed ‘specimen options’ deliver significant capacity increases on most routes into London which will make the challenge of accommodating the capital’s growth achievable. Railway strategic planning, which has long been criticised, has come of age.

I also welcome the flexibility of approach over the longer 30-year period that the White Paper covers – especially given that TfL believe that there is in fact significant risk that demand will grow faster than expected. These will be busy days indeed for project managers in making so much happen over the next few years.
Not only will the new capacity support London’s world class finance and business services sector and bring environmental benefits, but it will also promote social inclusion through improving access to jobs, goods and services. Moreover it will support regeneration, which is essential given that London has some of the UK’s most deprived areas.
TfL also welcomes the funding now in place for improving stations and making them accessible to all. Station travel plans will play an important role in making stations more central to the community they serve. The programme to develop a Strategic Freight Network is another important element. This and initiatives to improve energy efficiency will ensure the railways have a major role in making our economy more sustainable.
Does this mean the job is done? No – in fact, there remains some elements that are the hardest to do well. In particular, there is the job of integrating the railways with the rest of the public transport system. An example of this mentioned in the White Paper and already underway is the roll-out of Oyster pay-as-you-go to the National Rail network in London.
However, there is much more to make railways as simple to use and consistent with the rest of the public transport system as possible. TfL would like to see other measures such as a move closer to turn-up-and-go frequencies, analogous to bus and Underground. We would also like to see the times of first and last trains similar to those on the Underground, with comparable standards for security and multi-modal information network-wide. There still remains much to do in the area of improving interchange, not least with walking and cycling, areas which TfL believe can play a much bigger role in meeting the transport challenges that we face. TfL's requirements for quality, safety, security, staffing and train frequency have been written into the London Overground concession for delivery by 2010; we think that they are appropriate for the rest of London too.
There is also one rather obvious missing link. In order to complete the orbital rail network for London, phase two of the East London
line project must be delivered. This is currently unfunded. The delivery of phase two would further extend services west to Clapham Junction and would complement other works in south London – the Thameslink programme and the 10-car upgrade to the Southern inner suburban service.
I finished my earlier foreword by expressing the hope that far from being dormant, the rail industry is potentially set to form a key component of the development of London as a world-class Olympic city. It is now clear that I wasn’t alone in believing this. The last year has seen huge steps to making the railways meet the needs of the economy. Let’s hope that the industry also meets the needs of not just its current passengers, but can meet the expectations of its future customers with an integrated and easy-to-use product.