HALF MEASURES OR A GLASS HALF FULL?

The devolution of control of the rail franchise (back in 2014) was welcomed along with the news that the Welsh Government would actively seek for the rail franchise to be run on a not for profit basis (something that Plaid have been calling for several years). This was important as it meant that we in Wales would be able to choose who operates its own railway for the first time. The not for dividend profit option makes the most sense as any profits made will remain within the franchise area rather than paying share holder dividends.

While that is positive stuff, it may be a case of glass half-full, as yet the element of Network Rail that covers Wales (and the marches) remains under the remit of the Department for Transport. Without full control of that portion of Network Rail the next Welsh Government will face a significant challenge when it comes to preparing for and delivering the next franchise; it is a task that must be accomplished.

One of the key elements in rebooting our economy is infrastructure investment and investing in our neglected railways.  Many of our existing railway stations suffer from some pretty significant gaps in services, and so are underused. The final stage of the rail-link from Ebbw Vale to Newport needs to be completed and new railway stations at Caerleon (which has been in the local UDP since the 1980’s), Llanwern, Magor and Little Mill (with secure park and ride facilities) provide local communities with a regular rail service and reduce the ever-increasing traffic burden from already overcrowded roads.

Over twenty five years ago as a trainee journalist with the Pontypool Free Press, I interviewed commuters on wet and windy mornings at Cwmbran and Pontypool railway stations and  wrote up news stories about the poor service and train overcrowding. I am consciously aware that we have not progressed as far as we could when it comes to developing and sustaining a decent rail service for commuters here in the South East - something which goes someway to explain why so many people chose to drive to and from work.

We need our railway stations to be real transport hubs with fully integrated local bus services and expanded safer secure reasonably priced parking. We also need better facilities at Abergavenny, Caldicot, Chepstow, Pontypool, Severn Tunnel Junction and Lydney railway stations. We need feasibility studies into the development of a Parkway Station at Little Mill and the possibilities of re-opening the old line from Little Mill to Usk along with the development of a new railway station at Usk.

Outside of the South East, the next Welsh Government should take a more strategic view and commit to rebuilding and reopening the line from Carmarthen to Aberystwyth and push to redevelop the line north to Caernarfon and Bangor.  In Scotland, significant strides have been made to reopen; redevelop and build a coherent and integrated public transport system, something that we in Wales need to aspire to.

In Wales, we lag significantly behind Scotland, over the last 16 years there have been two successful railway re-openings carried out by Network Rail at the request of the National Assembly; the Vale of Glamorgan Railway Line (re-opened on Friday 10th June 2005) and the Ebbw Valley Railway Line (which was partially re-opened on Wednesday 6th February 2008). Unlike in Scotland here in Wales we have lacked any real political dynamism; as these were largely administrative rather than legislative projects.

Plaid Cymru believes that a revitalised not for profit railway service in Wales can and should lead to more areas of our country being opened up to both new and reopened rail services. This combined with the long overdue electrification of the valley lines no to mention the Great Western mainline to Swansea would be the basis for a decent rail network. Yet the job will remain only half done until full control of railway infrastructure is devolved to Wales so that both the development of the franchise and the development of our railway infrastructure can be planned together.

GIVING GOVERNMENT A NUDGE!

The grim reality is that by the time we get to Polling Day (in May) we will be 40% through the planned Con Dem Coalition Governments austerity programme of public sector cuts, which means that we have another 60% of cuts to follow. Austerity hits in so many people in so many different ways, yet almost unnoticed it has also changed what ‘Government’ at various levels actually offers to do for us. 

The future trend is for Government at all levels to simply be there and to provide nothing or at least next to nothing for this costs the least if it can get away with it. The big society has quietly been ditched (along with the photo opps with the huskies) and despite the spin the new bottom line, particularly when you have ineffective and inert Government, is focused intense campaigning to get things done. 

If we want to get something done that government won’t provide then we will have to fight for it like we have never fought before. If we want regeneration, decent facilities in our towns and communities or want to reopen an old railway station then we have to make Government act on our behalf, whether it wants to or not.

Small-scale local transport projects and well-organised local campaigns may provide the best opportunity to make a real difference when it comes to reopening or improving the services of our railway stations. There are plenty of good examples of successful campaigning groups to follow; including the Carno Station Action Group, the Severn Tunnel Action Group have campaigned to restore rail services and improvements in the passenger infrastructure, Better Trains 4 Chepstow who are campaigning amongst other things for more stopping services at Chepstow, and the campaign for a railway station at Magor.

Locally our rail network remains unconnected in so many ways, with the tantalising possibilities of small changes delivering big wins. The final stage of the rail-link from Ebbw Vale to Newport needs to be completed and railway stations at Caerleon and Magor would help to reduce road congestion and enable commuters to get to work in Cardiff, Bristol and other nearby destinations.

Such developments would provide a regular rail service to local residents and reduce the ever-increasing traffic burden from already overcrowded roads. The re-opening of Pontrilas Railway station (in south Herefordshire) for passenger traffic (and timber shipments) would also help, as would a feasibility study into developing regional rail freight services, removing heavy Lorries from local roads.

We should nudge our government to commission feasibility studies into the development of a Parkway Station at Little Mill and the possibilities of re-opening the old line from Little Mill to Usk and the development of a new railway station at Usk. We need Abergavenny and Chepstow railway stations to be real gateway stations; with integrated local bus services and the provision of more and cheaper safe secure parking. We still need better facilities at Severn Tunnel Junction and Caldicot railway stations and the provision of adequate safe secure parking facilities.

REBOOTING OUR RAILWAYS

The recent devolution of the rail franchise should be welcomed along with the news that the Welsh Government will seek for the rail franchise to be run on a not for profit basis (something that Plaid have been calling for several years). For the first time, we in Wales will be able to choose who operates its own railway, the not for profit option makes the most sense as any profits made will remain within the franchise area rather than paying share holder dividends. The current and next Welsh Governments will face a significant challenge when it comes to preparing for and delivering the next franchise; it is a task that must be accomplished.

One of the key elements in rebooting our economy is infrastructure investment and investing in our neglected railways.  Many of our existing railway stations suffer from some pretty significant gaps in services, and so are underused. The final stage of the rail-link from Ebbw Vale to Newport needs to be completed and new railway stations at Caerleon (which has been in the local UDP since the 1980’s), Llanwern, Magor and Little Mill would provide local communities with a regular rail service and reduce the ever-increasing traffic burden from already overcrowded roads.

We need our railway stations to be real transport hubs with fully integrated local bus services and expanded safer secure reasonably priced parking. We also need better facilities at Abergavenny, Caldicot, Chepstow, Pontypool, Severn Tunnel Junction and Lydney railway stations. We need feasibility studies into the development of a Parkway Station at Little Mill and the possibilities of re-opening the old line from Little Mill to Usk along with the development of a new railway station at Usk.

Driver training on the Gaer spur (Ian Brewer) 

In Scotland, significant strides have been made to reopen, redevelop and build a coherent and integrated public transport system. In Wales over the last 15 years there have been two successful railway re-openings carried out by Network Rail at the request of the National Assembly; the Vale of Glamorgan Railway Line (re-opened on Friday 10th June 2005) and the Ebbw Valley Railway Line (which was partially re-opened on Wednesday 6th February 2008). Unlike in Scotland here was not any real political dynamism at work here; these were administrative rather than legislative projects.

Plaid Cymru believes that a revitalised not for profit railway service in Wales can and should lead to more areas of our country being opened up to both new and revitalised rail services. This combined with the deal over electrification of the valley lines along with the Great Western mainline to Swansea is good news, but the job remains only half done until full control of railway infrastructure is devolved to Wales so that both the development of the franchise and the development of our railway infrastructure can be planned together.

SMALL RAIL SUCCESSES WIN BIG

Many of our existing railway stations suffer from some pretty significant gaps in services, so are underused. The future trend is merely for Government at all levels to simply be there and to provide nothing or at least next to nothing for this costs the least. The new bottom line, being when you have ineffective and inert Government, is that if we want a civic society or want to reopen an old railway station then we have to make Government act on our behalf, whether it wants to or not.

Small scale local transport projects and well organised local campaigns may provide the best opportunity to make a real difference when it comes to reopening or improving the services of our railway stations. There are a number of good examples to follow; including the Carno Station Action Group, the Severn Tunnel Action Group who have campaigned to restore rail services and improvements in the passenger infrastructure, Better Trains 4 Chepstow who are campaigning amongst other things for more stopping services at Chepstow, and the campaign for a railway station at Magor.

Driver Training on Gaer Spur in 2009 (Photo: Ian Brewer)

The final stage of the rail-link from Ebbw Vale to Newport needs to be completed and railway stations at Caerleon and Magor would help to reduce road congestion. Such developments would provide a regular rail service to local residents and reduce the ever increasing traffic burden from already overcrowded roads. The re-opening of Pontrilas Railway station (in south Herefordshire) for passenger traffic (and timber shipments) would also help, as would a feasibility study into developing regional rail freight services, removing heavy Lorries from local roads.

In the south east, we need Abergavenny and Chepstow railway stations to be real gateway stations, with fully integrated local bus services and more safe secure parking. We need better facilities at Severn Tunnel Junction and Caldicot railway stations and the provision of adequate safe secure parking facilities. We need feasibility studies into the development of a Parkway Station at Little Mill and the possibilities of re-opening the old line from Little Mill to Usk and the development of a new railway station at Usk.

WORKING FOR SCOTLAND

There are clear signs that the Scottish Government is delivering for Scotland, one example of this took place yesterday when the responsibility for delivering a rail route from the Borders to Edinburgh was been officially passed to Network Rail. Scottish Government Transport Secretary Keith Brown signed the agreement at a ceremony at Newtongrange in Midlothian. The agreement passed responsibility for completing the Borders line, with 30 miles of new track and seven new stations, from Transport Scotland to Network Rail.

Visible progress on the Borders Rail Project

Scottish Government Ministers hope that the £294 million pound project will be completed by the end of 2014, although the contract sets a final deadline of summer 2015. One visible measure of progress is the preparatory work to clear clearing vegetation and removal of buildings and bridges, has already been carried out along the line. Once the project is completed trains return to the Borders for the first time in more than 40 years.

When it comes to the Welsh Government visibly delivering for Wales I struggle to find significant concrete evidence beyond some the transport infrastructure projects brought in by the One Wales Government. Unfortunately for us here in Wales, the Con Dem Westminster Government and the Labour in Wales Government in Cardiff are nominally running the shop. They are not really interested in developing an integrated public transport across the valleys, across the south east and the rest of our country.

Plaid in Monmouth has regularly called for improvements to existing rail services and facilities and a series of feasibility studies to investigate re-opening previously closed railways as has happened in Scotland. In the south east, we need Abergavenny and Chepstow railway stations to be real gateways, with fully integrated local bus services. We need better facilities at Severn Tunnel Junction and Caldicot railway stations and the provision of adequate safe secure parking facilities. We need feasibility studies into the development of a Parkway Station at Little Mill and the possibilities of re-opening the railway line from Little Mill to Usk and the development of a new railway station at Usk.

Driver Training on Gaer Spur in 2009 (Photo: Ian Brewer)

The Welsh Government needs to commit to reopening the final stage of the rail-link from Ebbw Vale to Newport along with new railway stations at Caerleon and Magor which would help to reduce road congestion. Such developments would provide a regular rail service to local residents and reduce the ever increasing traffic burden from already overcrowded roads. The re-opening of Pontrilas Railway station (in south Herefordshire) for passenger traffic (and timber shipments) would also help, as would a feasibility study into developing regional rail freight services, removing heavy Lorries from local roads.

Buying our heads in the sand is not an option, as we face a future where cheap fuel is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. We need to ensure that all our communities have reasonable access to a reliable cheap system of integrated public transport, at the heart of which should be our long neglected rail network. The old excuses about a lack of funding are not acceptable, as even when times were good, there was little evidence of any real commitment or action to improve things here in Wales from Westminster.

A devolutionary half-way house won't work anymore; it will not deliver or even give us the chance to deliver, even with legislative powers. We make up 5% of the population of the UK, and have made (and continue to make) significant contributions to the exchequer.  If Unionists want to the Union to work then we need 5% of the UK transport spend, and full control of our transport planning and our transport budget.

The changes and reforms that are necessary to fix the problems in our country means that we need the tools to do the job. The botched and complicated LCO system for creating legislation barely worked and was consigned to the dustbin of history. The old system did not work with a nominally Labour Government and was never going to work with a Conservative dominated Government which is indifferent to any concept of devolution in particular and the needs of Wales in particular.

Even with legislative powers, we are still in some sort of half devolved limbo state of governance, lacking a fair financial settlement. With all the good wishes in the world this is not going to work well, even with an inert visionless former New Labour government in Cardiff. The governance of Wales if it is to be cost effective can no more be half devolved anymore than someone can be half free.

Wales needs a fair financial settlement so we can finance the construction of a decent system of integrated public transport after years of indifference. In Scotland, significant strides have been made to reopen, redevelop and build a coherent and integrated public transport system. In Wales over the last thirteen years there have been two successful railway re-openings carried out by Network Rail at the request of the National Assembly; the Vale of Glamorgan Railway Line (re-opened on Friday 10th June 2005) and the Ebbw Valley Railway Line (which was partially re-opened on Wednesday 6th February 2008).

Unlike in Scotland there was not real political dynamism at work here, these were administrative rather than legislative projects. In Scotland things were different, bills to reopen old railways were vigorously discussed, debated, scrutinised, amended and duly passed by the Scottish Parliament. If we are serious about integrated public transport then we are going to have to get serious about how we are going to develop and redevelop our public transport infrastructure.

The Transport (Wales) Act (effective from February 2006) gave the National Assembly the power to plan and co-ordinate an integrated transport system, how much longer do we have to wait to see some vision let alone any action? Meanwhile the rail companies are busy ramping up rail fares, and trying to reduce services, all with the tacit co-operation of Westminster Government (of various political hues) and the Department for transport.

Such blatant duplicity is not acceptable - it’s time for our government in Cardiff to take the long view and actually put its money where its mouth. The Welsh Government in Cardiff needs to work to redevelop our rail services, boost the development of rail freight and to co-ordinate rail and bus services – because Westminster even with a Labour Government will not deliver for Wales.

Wales needs to have full control of its transport policy and transport budget devolved as quickly as possible and the franchise when it is renewed in 2017 should be run on a not for profit basis.  The time for excuses has passed, ending years of neglect and indifference to our needs won’t be cheap and it won’t be easy as there is no quick fix.

We need to plan for our future but it can be done if the political will is there, as has happened in Scotland. Much can be accomplished by a combination of the will, the funding and interested private and community partners. If the Governments in London and Cardiff are really serious about cutting carbon emissions, reducing road congestion and building sustainable communities then they need to work to get people and heavy goods back onto our railways and revitalise our communities.

THE TIME FOR EXCUSES IS PAST...

When it comes to railways in Wales, we tend to focus on anniversaries of rail closures rather than anniversaries of openings. This may well be because transport policy was something that was done to us rather than done for us. I mention this, because I noticed that a plaque has been unveiled marking the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the railway in Knighton (Powys).

The spectaular 22-mile section of the Heart of Wales line from Craven Arms, Shropshire, to Knighton was constructed in 1861, and manged to avoid being closed in the 1950's and 1960's.  A £5m project which upgraded parts of this rural railway was finished last year, reinstating five passing loops at Knighton, Llandrindod Wells and Llanwrtyd Wells in Powys, and at Llandovery and Llandeilo in Carmarthenshire. This is a small but positive step which could, with extra services lead to more regular and better used trains.

The Con Dem Westminster Government and the New Labour Government in Cardiff need to get serious about developing integrated public transport across the valleys and the south east in Monmouth constituency and beyond. For more than a few years Plaid in Monmouth has called for improvements to existing services and facilities and a series of feasibility studies to investigate re-opening previously closed railways as has happened in Scotland.

We face a future where cheap fuel will be a thing of the past, so we need to ensure that all our communities have reasonable access to a reliable cheap system of integrated public transport, at the heart of which needs to be our long neglected rail network. The old excuses about a lack of funding (despite the banking related financial crisis) are no longer acceptable; Wales making up 5% of the population of the UK, and makes significant contributions to the exchequer over the years - so we need 5% of the UK transport spend, and full control of our transport planning and our transport budget.

A devolutionary half-way house won't work anymore, it will not deliver or even give us the chance to deliver, even with legislative powers. The changes and reforms that are necessary to fix the problems in our country means that we need the tools to do the job. The botched and over complicated LCO system for creating legislation barely worked and has thankfully been consigned to the dustbin of history.

It didn't work with a nominally Labour Government and was never going to work with a Conservative dominated Government which is indifferent to any concept of devolution in particular and the needs of Wales in particular. Even with legislative powers, we are still in some sort of half devolved limbo state of governance, lacking a fair financial settlement. Let's be honest, with all the best will in the world this is not going to work well, even with an inert visionless New Labour government in Cardiff. Governance can no more be half devolved anymore than someone can be half free.

Wales needs a fair financial settlement so we can construct a decent system of integrated public transport. This is what has happened in Scotland, where significant strides have been made to reopen, redevelop and build a coherent and integrated public transport system. In the last twelve years in Wales there have been two successful railway re-openings carried out by Network Rail at the request of the National Assembly; the Vale of Glamorgan Railway Line (re-opened on Friday 10th June 2005) and the Ebbw Valley Railway Line (partially re-opened on Wednesday 6th February 2008).

Being brutally honest these were administrative rather than legislative projects, this has not been thye case in Scotland, where bills to reopen old railways were vigorously debated, scrutinised, amended and passed by the Scottish Parliament. If we are serious about integrated public transport then we are going to have to get serious about how we are going to develop and redevelop our public transport infrastructure.

The Transport (Wales) Act which came into effect in February 2006 gave the National Assembly powers to plan and co-ordinate an integrated transport system, how much longer do we have to wait to see some vision? In the meantime the rail companies have been busy ramping up rail fares, attempting to reduce rail services, all with the tacit co-operation of the Westminster Labour Government and the Department for transport (in London).

Such duplicity has never been acceptable - it’s time for our government in Cardiff to take the long term view, to bite the bullet and actually put its money where its mouth is and work to redevelop our rail services, boost the development of rail freight and to co-ordinate rail and bus services across the whole of Wales. To do this effectively Wales needs to have full control of it's transport policy and transport budget devolved as quickly as possible and the franchise when it is renewed in 2017 needs to be run on a not for profit basis.

In the south east , we need Abergavenny and Chepstow railway stations to be real gateways, with fully integrated local bus services. We need better facilities at Severn Tunnel Junction and Caldicot railway stations and the provision of adequate safe secure parking facilities. We need feasibility studies into the development of a Parkway Station at Little Mill and the possibilities of re-opening the railway line from Little Mill to Usk and the development of a new railway station at Usk.

The final stage of the rail-link from Ebbw Vale to Newport needs to be completed and railway stations at Caerleon and Magor would help to reduce road congestion. Such developments would provide a regular rail service to local residents and reduce the ever increasing traffic burden from already overcrowded roads. The re-opening of Pontrilas Railway station (in south Herefordshire) for passenger traffic (and timber shipments) would also help, as would a feasibility study into developing regional rail freight services, removing heavy Lorries from local roads.

If the Governments in London and Cardiff are really serious about cutting carbon emissions and reducing road congestion then we need work to get heavy goods back onto our railways. There is no quick fix, but, the time for excuses is over, we need to plan for the future. This may not be cheap but it can be done if the political will is there, as has happened in Scotland, where there is a useful combination of the will, the funding and interested private partners.

HIGH SPEED RAIL CONSULTATION

The Westminster government is to begin its consultation on the proposed high-speed rail line from London to Birmingham. The new route would cut journey times by around half an hour, with work due to begin in 2015 if the plan is approved and might cost £17 billion. Meanwhile the Con Dems are deferring (avoiding to you and me) making any decision on upgrading and electrifying the Swansea to London railway line...

COMMON SENSE

Plaid has outlined some of ambitious yet achievable proposals for the rail network in Wales calling for the electrification of the railways in the Valleys. This makes sense as it would create a modern transport system, help with carbon reduction programmes and create a quicker, cleaner and more efficient railway network and will allow for larger passenger numbers. hand in hand with the electrification programme newer and more modern electric trains will allow our railways to carry more passengers. As well as this commitment to the electrification of the Valleys lines, Plaid remains committed to electrification of the Great Western mainline.

GET IT DONE!

News that Network Rail managers are exploring whether the Valley Lines should be electrified by the end of this decade, regardless of whether the UK Government abandons main line electrification in South Wales, is good news. The initial Network Rail Valley Lines study could be completed by the summer and this fresh research could help ministers in Cardiff and Westminster decide on future investment.

The Western Mail, notes that so far no funding has been identified yet for the scheme, but the investment could more than pay for itself because electric trains would bring so many advantages over the diesel-powered alternatives. The timing of the scheme's implementation, if adopted would be driven by the fact that the rapidly ageing Sprinter and Pacer trains, which are currently used for Valley Lines services, will have to be withdrawn from service at some point. So lets get it done!

THE TRAIN NOW STANDING AT...

News that Arriva Cross Country has promised to more than triple the number of trains serving Chepstow station (which serves S.E. Monmouthshire, the Wye Valley and the Forest of Dean) from May 2011 is very good news indeed for increasingly hard pressed rail travellers and visitors to Chepstow (the gateway to the Wye Valley).

There is nothing more frustrating (or a more ludicrous situation to be in) than to be standing on a station platform at to endure having to watch a passenger train slow down to pass through the station and not stop. It's especially irritating when, when the train is going in the direction you want to travel. At least this promise should begin to fill some of the gaps in services too and from Chepstow and may attract more passengers.

Arriva’s promise of more stopping services goes some way to undoing the damage that has been done to rail services at Chepstow over the last few years with the appointment of each new train operating company. As of May, ten trains extra a day will stop at Chepstow on each direction of the Cardiff to Nottingham route Mondays to Saturdays.

At the moment, only two trains a day stop there on the northbound service and three a day on the southbound return service. This is a step in the right direction and is due in part to the hard work of the Better Trains 4 Chepstow campaign group, who have been working hard for some years to improve facilities and services for Chepstow.

NORMAL SERVICE HAS BEEN RESUMED

So much for encouraging people to use the train, the Con Dem Government (much like its predecessor New Labour) has looked the other way as rail fares in Wales go up by an average of 6.2 percent. The rail operating companies have said that price rises will pay for newer trains - don't hold your breath! It's worth asking just how much will be left over from any monies secured for investment in our railways after the shareholders dividend (and the Government) have been paid off? No wonder, that despite the rise in petrol or diesel prices which might be expected to encourage people to find other means of getting to and from work, amongst other things that rail passengers (sorry customers) are somewhat disillusioned by the rail franchise holders latest spin.

How much longer are we going to tolerate a shoddy minimalist unconnected service? We need a single rail franchise that directly answers to and works for Wales, not servicing company shareholder dividends and ultimately the Department of Transport who's interest in Wales could be described as peripheral at best. We need to prioritise investment in our railways and provide a decent affordable and reliable service for the passengers. We need a not for profit railway company that serves Wales and we need to break up the comfy cosy financial relationship that exists between the Westminster establishment and the franchise holders whether they railway or power companies.

TIME TO MOVE ON

The Con Dem Westminster Government's failure to stump up the cash for the electrification of the rail line between Swansea (originally Bristol) and London Paddington, a project that the last New Labour Government only considered in the last two years of Government (one does wonder what they were doing in the previous eleven years at times), is disappointing. One lesson that we should have learned by now is that we cannot rely on any Westminster Government to deliver for Wales.

The long awaited reinstatement of the rail link from Rogerstone to Newport, dependent on Network Rail's feasibility study which be announced in March 2011. Even with limited financial resources (a 0.78 billion transport budget) the National Assembly has committed itself to getting the job done – this commitment needs to become firm action next year, along with a new station in Ebbw Vale town.

In the South East, we need railway stations at Caerleon and Magor and better facilities for passengers and more stopping services at Severn Tunnel, Chepstow and Abergavenny along with secure park and ride schemes and better integration of local bus services. Serious consideration needs to be given to reopening the line from Little Mill to Usk. It's time to move on...

ON THE RIGHT TRACK

It's worth noting that in 2003, a 15 year franchise for running railway services in Wales was awarded to Arriva Trains Wales. Arriva Trains Wales is currently making a healthy profit from this agreement. Despite this, most demand for additional rail services are currently met directly by Welsh Assembly Government funds and are not funded by Arriva Trains Wales which as its priority is to service its shareholders.

Plaid Cymru's announcement that we will consider putting the management of Welsh railways in the hands of a 'not for profit' company when the current franchise contract with Arriva Trains Wales ends in 2018 is significant. This is major step forward when it comes to developing a transport system to suite the needs of the people of Wales, rather than as an add on to transport policy in England.

In Wales we should consider ensuring the transfer of control over the franchise to Welsh Ministers in order to put the franchise in the hands of a ‘not-for-profit’ company. This would allow the new company to reinvest its profits in developing better and more train services for people, instead of the current model where the majority of profits are returned to Arriva Trains Wales' shareholders. This could release extra money to invest in an improved All-Wales Rail Service which could amount to between £100m - £120m over a decade.

There are some serious potential benefits:

• Significant savings – releasing a fund for possible reinvestment projects such as re-opening lines across Wales, improving journey times or purchasing additional rolling stock.

• The development of an All-Wales transport network – with integrated ticketing and timetables across public transport in Wales.

The Glas Cymru model of how a ‘not-for-profit’ company can operate, already provides an excellent example of what's possible and could have great potential for the delivery of much better and more integrated rail services here in Wales.

Plaid Cymru, in government, has gone to great lengths to ensure that improvements to current rail services where they can be made, have been made, running 'rail in Wales,for Wales, means that the possibilities of reopening previously closed railway lines and closed railway stations becomes something more than a pipe-dream. It would also make sense to get the powers to take over responsibility for running the tracks from Network Rail - as any rail projects in Wales are going to be well down the list of priorities. There needs to be much better integration of track and train - something that will allow for far greater efficiencies.

There is a clear need to ensure that easily accessible rail services are available to far more people in the near future. Improving infrastructure, including rail, is absolutely vital to the development of the Welsh economy - to create the successful, sustainable, prosperous and green nation that we know Wales can be.

LETTING THE PASSENGERS TAKE THE STRAIN

News that overcrowding on trains in England and Wales will get substantially worse over the next four years despite rises in ticket prices should come as no surprise to passengers. The House of Commons's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has noted that the Department for Transports own plans for suggested targets for increasing passenger places would be missed.

The PAC blames the failure on the absence of any requirement to improve capacity within train operators' contracts. The Con Dem government has said plans to improve the situation would be unveiled soon. However, consider that the Conservatives privatised the railways in the first place, it might be best not to have any great expectations on any firm hand being taken with the privatised rail companies. It's also worth remembering that New Labour actually said when they came to office that if the railways had not been privatised then they would have privatised them themselves.

Westminster MPs have expressed their concern about that the "already unacceptable levels of overcrowding will simply get worse and ever more intolerable". Public Accounts Committee - Fifth Report - Increasing Passenger Rail Capacity - makes interesting reading notes that the fundamental problem was a lack of any real incentive for the industry to supply extra capacity without additional taxpayer support.

Basically the current franchise agreements, train operators are required to make "reasonable endeavours" to give peak passengers "a reasonable expectation of a seat within 20 minutes of boarding", but there is no legal burden upon them to expand fleets or improve stations to achieve this.

So what this means is that it has fallen to the taxpayer to provide funds to Network Rail to carry out any upgrade work And that the franchise agreements are merely allow the privatised rail companies to milk their franchises for all they are worth at our expense. This is somewhat ironic because as a result of the economic downturn, the Association of Train Operating Companies actually expects demand for rail travel to grow by around a quarter over the next five years. So the long suffering rail passengers will get a double whammy - having to pay more to be less comfortable.

And this after 13 years of New Labour Government - what a mess!

MAXIMISING THE PROFITS...

News that Southern Railway (one of the privatised rail franchise holders) has opted to forget the facilities on its latest trains running on the Portsmouth to Brighton service should not come as a surprise. The company said trains would run in areas with short journeys where most people travel for less than half an hour. For the record (on a good day) a journey from Portsmouth to Brighton can take up to an hour-and-a-half. Southern Railways said the new trains, which should be introduced in December, have been designed to create more space for passengers (and boost profits).

Oddly enough this news has not gone down particularly well, with the Independent rail passenger watchdog Passenger Focus saying that the decision was a blow for passengers who were elderly, had medical conditions and travelled with children. The Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers' union (RMT) said on a journey of that length it was "unacceptable". Once we abandoned control of key elements of the public transport infrastructure to the whims of the market then this is part of the price that we all will begin to pay. Watch this space for future developments...

A RAIL RESTORATION

Perhaps, in this age of financial austerity, perhaps anticipated by David ("Call me Dave") Cameron's Con Dem's, the future trend is merely for Government (at all levels) to simply be there and to provide nothing or at least next to nothing for this costs the least. Think about it we had 13 years of New Labour Government and at the end of it what did we get, not a lot in my book.

The new bottom line, being when you have ineffective and inert Government, is that if you want a civic society or want to reopen an old railway station then you (as in us the citizens) have to make Government act on our behalf, whether it wants to or not. Now this is not the Big Society that Cameron has droned on about (before the election), this is people making Government (at all levels) pull its collective finger out and do what they want for their communities. And that's the stuff of a collective New Labour and Conservative nightmare ...

This potential future trend, has already been fully anticipated by the rail franchise holding companies, who are there as far I can cypher it, in it to make lots of money and provide a pretty minimal unresponsive service. Lets be honest here, our railways and our rail passengers have been neglected for long enough - we currently fork out a small fortune to the rail companies that hold the franchises - for a pretty poor unconnected service.

Despite the threat or promise (take your pick) of future cuts to the Welsh budget there are opportunities to make a real difference locally whether it be within our communities or to our neglected public transport infrastructure that should serve our communities. Many of our existing railway stations suffer from some pretty significant gaps in services, so are underused.

This is pretty basic stuff, if there are more stopping services then you will get more passengers. There is nothing quite so frustrating as standing on a platform watching a passenger train slow down to pass through the station without stopping. Our existing railway station need better toilet facilities, often lack any waiting room for passengers, if we invest in better facilities and better more frequent services then we will bring more passengers.

Now it's not just our existing railway stations that can be improved, there are plans to reopen a village railway station in Mid Wales that was closed in the 1960's. Passenger trains last stopped in Bow Street, near Aberystwyth over 40 years ago (in the South Caerleon, Magor and Pontrilas spring readily to mind). Now a local campaign group is working to reopen the railway station. Trafnidiaeth Canolbarth Cymru (TraCC), a group that works with councils on transport issues, is carrying out a feasibility study.

At the moment people living in Bow Street have to either drive to Borth or Aberystwyth to catch the train. People who would like to support plans for Bow Street station can write to:

TraCC
Canolfan Rheidol
Rhodfa Padarn
Llanbadarn Fawr
Aberystwyth
SY23 3UE

Or email enquires@tracc.gov.uk between now and September 2010.

Small scale transport projects seeking funding, are appraised under a scheme funded by the assembly government.Then the appraisal is resented to officials so it can be considered for the assembly government's national transport plan. Well organised small scale local campaigns may provide the best opportunity to make a real difference when it comes to reopening or improving the services of our railway stations.

There are a number of good examples to follow; there are campaigns to reopen Carno Station and the successes of the Severn Tunnel Action Group who have campaigned to restore rail services and improvements in the passenger infrastructure and Better Trains 4 Chepstow who are campaigning amongst other things for more stopping services at Chepstow, are but a few good working examples of well motivated well organised local campaign groups working hard to reopen or improve services and facilities at their local railway stations (and not doubt making Government and the rail franchise holders wish that they had never been born).

This is obviously the model to follow to get better rail services for our communities and to re-open old railway stations, it's time to make our Government at all levels far more responsive to what we want not what they want. There has been too much talk and far too little activity over recent years. That has got to change whether it be at UK, Welsh or local Government level. Don't say that you have not been warned...