Peer review: Prof. Paul Salveson MBE
Transport analyst
Anthony Lambert is a highly accomplished writer on railways and transport, from both a contemporary and historical perspective. He is also passionate about issues around climate change and the threat it poses to society. This article covers some critically important ground that is of enormous relevance not only to the rail industry, but also to government and other decision-makers.
He makes the point that travel behaviour is shifting - and the shift is towards sustainable transport and away from the car. There are lots of reasons for this, and most (whether we like it or not) are ‘selfish’ ones. Not many people give up their car because it’s pumping pollutants into the atmosphere, but because driving is becoming less and less of an enjoyable - and affordable - experience. Yet there is no doubting the difficulties in achieving modal shift away from cars. Anthony stresses that there is a need for an element of ‘push’ and ‘pull’ - a degree of coercion combined with offering quality and ease of access to more sustainable forms of public transport.
What seems clear is that there are major cultural issues at work here. Train and bike are seen, particularly by younger people, as ‘cool’ while buses aren’t, at least in the UK. We’re seeing a ‘Beeching of the buses’ in many parts of the UK, as local authorities are forced to cut their supported network.
He makes some useful comments about how this could be addressed, using some of the experience of the Community Rail Partnership movement. Could rail provide more of an integrated package, particularly in rural areas where use of any form of public transport is low? My hope is that in the next few years we will see the first steps towards integrated franchises, where rail provides the spine of the network, with feeder bus services that are (in effect) an extension of the rail network.
Anthony suggests that “Community Rail stations could become hubs for minibus or taxibus services, as well as the bike hire some provide, especially those stations serving national parks or other tourist attractions. Many already have thriving cafes.” He goes on to talk about rural bus services providing a small parcels service and the development of lift-sharing.
These are all good ideas but we need to find a way of integrating all these disparate ‘good ideas’ and driving them forward as a mutually-supporting package. The idea of ‘community business units’ which could develop from existing CRPs into viable social enterprises providing a range of services – with the railway at its heart – needs testing in practice.
It need not just be ‘transport’ services either. but include anything which meets a local need and adds value to the core transport operation. This isn’t microfranchising (let’s leave operating the trains to the people who know how to do it), but get the train operator involved as a partner in a community business that can start to reverse not just the decline in public transport use but also the economic problems facing many rural areas.
One final thought. Travel behaviour can change. but that will take political will. Until our (mainly male and ageing) politicians start using buses and trains, change will be slow.
