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Has rail privatisation worked?
The East Coast rail service is to return to public ownership. Is it a sign that rail privatisation hasn't worked?
The troubled rail franchise, currently run by National Express, is suffering from slumping passenger numbers and is expected to have lost £20m in the first half of the year.
Ministers have already refused the company's requests for its contract with the government to be renegotiated.
Existing operational staff will transfer to the new state company which will be set up to operate the route. All current services will continue and tickets will be honoured.
What do you think of this news? Do you use this service? Are you an employee? Will the change make a difference? Can nationalisation work better than private enterprise?
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Published:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:16 GMT
11:16 UK
All comments in recommendation order
Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:46 GMT
11:46 UK
It's been an utter disaster !
Rail services (and utilities for that matter!) should NOT be in private ownership !
The rail services are run to make a profit for the shareholders; they are not run as a service !
Rail travel in this country is hideously expensive (most expensive in the world!) and is some areas have a dreadful service.
Re-nationalise the lot !!!
[CeeofGee], Oxford (EGTK), United Kingdom
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:32 GMT
11:32 UK
As i understand it the railways were privatised in order to improve the service available to the public, whilst reducing the responsibility for infrastructure maintenence on the public purse.
Naturally it was also expected that private operators would increase efficiency and be able to generate a profit for investors.
Judged on the above criteria rail privitisation has hardly been a run away success.
Richard Hill, Birmingham, United Kingdom
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:33 GMT
11:33 UK
The rail service is a disgrace - especially considering rail travel was pioneered in England.
The rail network should be redone from scratch. I suggest that the £40 million a day we give to the EU would be better spent on doing something for us - like building a 21st century mass transit system.
For once lets have some ambition!
Freeborn Englander, Birmingham, England
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:29 GMT
11:29 UK
British rail was'nt brilliant and neither have the private companies been.
Mind you, i always assumed the private rail companies were charging massive fees while neglecting the infrastructure in order to increase shareholder profits.
It never occured to me that with the prices they charge along with the government subsidies theyr receive they could still run the company into the ground.
So in summary, privatisation has neither improved the service or made it more efficient.
Darkseid Jones
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:27 GMT
11:27 UK
Ask the millions who suffer daily misery through overcrowded, late or cancelled trains.
One who knows
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:29 GMT
11:29 UK
Of course not; the entire network should be state run - including the infrastructure.
As long as they remain private, the welfare of the commuter will always come 2nd best to the profits of the shareholders; even if this means increasing the likelihood of disaster.
James, Southminster
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:29 GMT
11:29 UK
No privatisation has not worked. It is not just the fact that the company has been renationalised that points to this either. The overcrowding, the late trains, the extortionate fares. It all indicated that things were going wrong.
They should never have privatised it in the first place. It did nothing for the standard of the train provision, and merely encouraged more people to drive!
Fed up with Britain, Nottingham, United Kingdom
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:36 GMT
11:36 UK
It has been proven time & again that privatisation does not owrk. Since the railways have been privatised the ticket prices have rocketed with little or no supervision of prices and the service have declined with too few trains in service to cope with the number of passengers and pot luck as to whether the trains are running on time if at all. Time to nationalise the whole railway again, make it fair for everyone.
Rebecca Bradbury, Exeter, United Kingdom
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:33 GMT
11:33 UK
The whole privatisation of public services has been a total failure resulting in unaffordable fares on trains and buses and private cartels on energy and phones milking us all.My son used to travel by train from Ipswich to London at a cost that would represent a third of his weekly wage before tax.Mostly he had to stand going and coming home.This service was supposed to "reasonable"!
Lets have the railway run for non profit with affordable fares and back where it should be-in state control.
Winston Smith, Ipswich, United Kingdom
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:35 GMT
11:35 UK
The moment the going gets tough the private sector rail companies expect the government to sort out their mistakes. It seems companies are only interested in running public utilities when times are easy.
We were all told that privatisation would reduce ticket prices. What a big lie that turn out to be. We now have some of the most expensive railway prices in Europe
I'd say renationalise the railways but we haven't got any money left since we spent it all on bailing out the banks.
[tvkev45]
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:35 GMT
11:35 UK
After a particularly horrendous journey, my son wrote to a railway company and addressed his complaints NOT to Customer Services but to Victim Support.
His ticket was refunded in full.
Bronwen
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:33 GMT
11:33 UK
All privatisation as done is left us with a disjointed network rail system which serves the business passenger and does nothing for the everyday commuter and passenger.
This country needs a national transport policy in which we see trains and buses working together and not in competition and remove the stupidity of bus operators vying for business on the more lucrative routes whilst the lesser routes have no buses at all. The same will happen to our mail service when they privatise Royal Mail
[RantingRonC], Stoke on Trent
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:38 GMT
11:38 UK
No, rail privatisation has not worked because the greed of the train operating companies is similiar to that of our MP's.
The majority of people have no choice about train travel as it is essential for travel to work.
All trains must be run by the people for the people and not for huge profits for the managers.
Furthermore the cost of travel must be reduced because currently it is still cheaper for a single person to travel by car than train, for example, London to Bournemouth
Shah, London
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 13:20 GMT
14:20 UK
It has occurred to me that if we had a fast efficient cheap rail network, most folk would stop using their cars, thus reducing the governments tax take on petrol.
Am I being cynical? or is it not in the governments own interests to deliver a efficient rail network to the country.
Stealth taxes have a lot to answer for.
pete tong
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Added:
Wednesday, 1 July, 2009, 10:36 GMT
11:36 UK
I travel regularly on the East Coast Line, the service has become a little more reliable recently. In general though it's still the same old 1970s BR carridges, being hauled by dirty diesel motors. The fares have gone up and up. Whenever I can I travel by Hull trains now, which are a bit better and a bit cheaper.
Privatisation has failed, the whole lot should be brought back into public hands, it's vital for a modern economy to have a fast, efficient, affordable electric rail service.
The Mighty Rover, Doncaster, United Kingdom
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