Rail Services between Cardiff
and London
Press Release from the Institute of Welsh Affairs
Not for publication before 0530 Tuesday October 7th 2003
Substantial further investment is needed in rail services between
Cardiff and London, if the Welsh capital is to fulfil its potential
as a key British hub, a new report, Capitals United, published
today claims.
The report for the Institute of Welsh Affairs by the Wales Transport
Research Centre (WTRC) at the University of Glamorgan reveals that
although the frequency of services to and from London has improved
significantly in recent years, there has been no matching improvement
in timings.
Indeed, the report’s analysis of timetables between London and
thee other important UK cities in 1977, 1987, 1997 and 2002 show that
trains to and from Cardiff were making faster average journeys 16
years ago than they are now. In 1987 the fastest train was timed at
1 hour 49 minutes to London and 1 hour 40 minutes from London. Today
these fastest times have been extended by six minutes and 20 minutes
respectively and average journey times have also become longer. In
1987 17 out of 21 services were scheduled to reach Cardiff in less
than two hours compared with none (out of 28) in 2002.
By contrast, services to and from Leeds and Nottingham – regional
capitals respectively of Yorkshire and the East Midlands – have
achieved generally better times over the past 15 years and have also
grown in frequency. Average times to Leeds (which has benefited from
the electrification of the West Coast Main Line) have improved and
the average journey time is only just over 10 minutes longer than
to Cardiff, despite the extra distance.
In addition, the report, which has the backing of CBI Wales, points
out that there is the problem of delays on the Great Western main
line, which means that trains often run more slowly than timetabled.
“By any normal standards Cardiff has good rail services, yet
as frequent travellers will testify, a gap has emerged between promise
and performance,” it says.
A weaker rail service than is available to other leading UK cities
could, the authors of the report note, impact severely on Cardiff’s
future competitive position. “A number of medium-sized cities
up and down the UK, including Cardiff, are seeking to move into a
bigger league of British centres creating the critical mass that will
enable them to capture regional leadership across a wide area. It
is these cities that want to position themselves to play host to big
events, such as celebrity concerts, big sports teams, significant
cultural activity such as theatre, opera, museums and galleries, and
big conferences and exhibitions.
“They want to be on the shopping list for companies seeking
to locate regional or national public and private sector headquarters
and to have facilities that will attract not just UK but international
tourists. They want to be able to boast universities that are among
the top ten in their field and to house prestige research institute.
They want to have vibrant retailing centres where the world’s
top fashion houses and other leading retailers are represented, ”
Rhys David of the IWA notes.
Small countries such as Wales need one of these semi-super cities
if they are to have a strong place in the world. If visitors find
it increasingly difficult to visit the Welsh capital by road or by
rail, it will be disadvantaged in its attempts to attract those international
players, the report states.
The report points to a number of understandable reasons why it is
taking longer to reach Cardiff and other parts of Wales by train from
London, compared with the late 1980s. In particular, the main line
has had to accommodate many more trains of all types both passenger
and freight. Paddington itself is much more congested since the introduction
of the Heathrow Express and trains are making more stops en route.
Half of all Cardiff trains now stop at Didcot to accommodate increased
commuter traffic to and from London.
Signalling has also come under review following accidents such as
that at Ladbroke Grove in 1999. The age of the fleet and of the track
and signalling are also a factor.
The report also includes commentaries from First Great Western (FGW),
operator of Cardiff-London services, and from Network Rail, giving
their perspective on current services. In his comments, Chris Kinchin-Smith,
managing director of First Great Western, says the company has for
some months recognised that a greater priority needs to be given to
the South Wales services, in order to reflect the growing importance
of Cardiff as a European capital city and to support the potential
for economic growth in South Wales.
He says FGW has redoubled its efforts to reduce all causes of delay.
As a priority it has improved its processes for the maintenance of
rolling stock, giving it the most reliable High Speed Train (HST)
fleet in Britain. New Adelante trains have also been introduced on
the line to and from Cardiff.
He also says the company is examining how some limited-stop express
services to and from London might be introduced as well as late-night
services from London. “South Wales to London train services
reached a world-class standard in terms of the combination of frequency
and journey time in the period 1977-87. Although capacity and frequency
have been further enhanced since that time it has not been possible
to continue the journey times that were possible with shorter trains
on the modernised and less congested infrastructure of 1987. We share
the concern that the speed and reliability of these services have
now been left behind those of the best high-speed railways in Europe
and elsewhere in the world, and we wish to work with the private sector
and public sector partners to resolve these issues,” he says.
In their recommendations the authors of the report say rail services
to Wales need to be seen in the context of transport policy as a whole.
“ In the case of south Wales the need is for adequate investment
in rail services to and from London and other major centres, providing
a frequent fast and reliable service, Professor Stuart Cole of the
WTRC says.
“If Cardiff is to grow to its full potential it needs to be
positioned as an easy-to-reach destination enjoying fast frequent
and peak period limited stop access to the UK capital and good services
to other important cities.
“A clear message has to go to the Strategic Rail Authority,
which now hold the purse string on rail funding. The level of investment
required to remove capacity constraints (bottlenecks) and improve
track and signalling to the highest standards need to be given as
much priority on the Great Western route as on the east coast or west
coast main lines,” he observes.
The report also calls for services beyond Cardiff to be speeded up
through track and signalling improvements. It acknowledges that large
sums - a total of more than £500m - will be spent on the Great
Western main line over the next three years, the majority of it on
track and signalling. It argues, however, that the train sets used
and the line between London and south Wales need to be further upgraded
if a modern service comparable with the highest European and world
standards is to be introduced.
For further information contact Professor Stuart Cole, University
of Glamorgan, 01443 482123 Mobile 0775 361 9911 or Rhys David 029
2057 5511 Mobile 0775 400 2688
Copies of the report (price £10) can be obtained from the
Institute of Welsh Affairs, Ty Oldfield, Llantrisant Road, Cardiff
CF5 2YQ. Tel: 029 2057 5511. E-mail: wales@iwa.org.uk
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