SIGNAL FAILURES
Customer comes last
THE government has promised that the unified rail network under Great British Railways (GBR) will “put passengers first” from 2027. But innovations by its own companies on the east-coast mainline put operational convenience before passengers.
In February 2024, government-owned LNER started a “pilot” where refundable off-peak walk-up fares were suspended for trips from London King’s Cross to Newcastle, Berwick and Edinburgh (and vice versa). The 1990s rail privatisation legislation protected and regulated those fares to ensure franchisees would always offer a relatively affordable walk-up option, but presumably LNER’s suspension of them is allowed in a “pilot”.