Standing room only! (Railway crisis)

Member Name: The Daz

Product:	Railway crisis
Date:	23/08/07 (69 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Supposedly efficient and quick.

Disadvantages: Rarely either...

Ah Railways - the chunter of engines, the smooth glide through rolling countryside - *wakes up* - the endless wait on crammed platforms, the travel conditions considered substandard for the movement of cattle.

It never seems to get any better, no matter how much fares rise or investment figures are bandied about - despite even the constant upgrading of track and signals - the network seems incapable of speeding up.

Part of this is admittedly our legacy of pioneering rail travel - Much of our line network was built in the steam age or the early diesel years - when passenger numbers were low, commuting didn't really exist beyond the inner cities, the leisure factor of the travel was more important. Many branch lines run through winding countryside and have speed limits. Many mainline stations are choked into the middle of cities with little room to increase flow through these bottlenecks.

Splitting of rail areas into franchises has certainly saved the Treasury a bob or three, and many people think that the greed of private enterprise should be subsumed by the socialist intent of the government. Yet - how would it be paid for? Most likely by increased taxation. The days of running utilities and travel as state subsidised entities are long gone - most of the modern world has followed suit to some extent, and whilst the interests of the voting passenger would be more prominent, the fact is that we would be loath to pay more taxes towards it.

So - should the government turn it's back on PFI and take matters into it's own hands?

Would it make any difference? Will commuters continue to see Season Tickets leap above inflation, will these mysterious extra carriages appear and allow most travellers to actually have a seat?

Summary: A growing crisis - will anything be done?