Rail is vital to future vision of freight transport
The Rail Freight Group (RFG) was delighted to welcome the Minister of State for Transport, Theresa Villiers, to its 18th Annual Rail Freight Conference recently and hear how rail will increasingly be a vital part of the Government's growth and sustainability agenda.
The minister left delegates in no doubt that not only does sustainable transport remain high on the coalition Government's agenda, but that rail freight would form a key part in the plan to create a more environmentally friendly Britain.
Though there are still concerns over spending cuts and how exactly the sector would be affected, the minister was forthright in her support for moving more freight by rail.
In her first major speech as rail minister, she claimed that “rail freight mattered” and that it was “a truth” she had quickly come to learn when taking up office.
“It matters for our economy and our prosperity,” she said. “It matters for producers and consumers, importers and exporters and it matters for our environment. We want rail freight to grow in the years ahead. Rail freight produces five times less CO2 per tonne-km than road haulage.”
While she would not make specific promises ahead of the Comprehensive Spending Review in October, she added: “I am well aware of how strongly the industry supports the retention of the mode-shift revenue grant and the Freight Facilities Grant programme.
“I can confirm that we have agreed to the revenue grant budget until 2011-2012 and the quarterly bid rounds will continue for grant applications until then.”
On the likely shake-up of Network Rail, she added: “We need a railway that’s more accountable and better incentivised to deliver high quality services for users. If we’re to deliver that, we need an infrastructure provider that is responsive to customer concerns. We’re carefully considering the best options for reform at Network Rail.”
Anna Walker, Chair of the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) launched the findings of the ORR's latest study The Rail Freight User Survey 2010. She said there was a great optimism for rail freight sector and the study had highlighted that.
“This was our first freight customer survey for several years, and the results show that there is real appetite for using rail to transport goods," she said.
“Through this survey, freight customers have sent the rail freight sector a message that in order for it to achieve growth and prosperity, they want to see significant improvements in what matters most to them – competitive pricing, responsiveness to customer needs, reliability of service and journey time.
“We all have a role in delivering these improvements and helping the rail freight sector go from strength-to-strength.”
Tony Berkeley, Chairman of the RFG, said: “Rail Freight 2010 was a real success, with a wide range of very interesting speakers, from Theresa Villiers MP, Minister for Railways; Enrico Grillo-Pasquarelli, Head of Land Transport at the European Commission; and a large and lively audience who participated in some excellent debate.
“On policy issues, railway costs of course came high on the agenda, as did possible changes to the planning law which might make the development of rail freight terminals more difficult. We also welcomed the minister's positive words.
"However, the presence of customers such as Bakkavor and Drax Power, giving in depth descriptions of their businesses and their need for rail freight, caught the imagination of many of the delegates and reminded them, be they industry or government, of the need never to forget that the customer is king.”
For further information, visit: www.rfg.org.uk
Published: 26/07/2010
