RAIL MANIFESTO LONDON & SOUTH EAST Key Regional Stats In London & the South East, rail contributes: • £20.7bn GVA to the economy; • 305,000 jobs;
As London and the South East recovers from the Coronavirus pandemic, transport, and rail specifically, is well-placed to spur economic growth and provide jobs and investment for communities. The region will also no doubt play a key role in the UK’s wider recovery, especially given its international connectivity and transport links.
• £6.5bn in tax revenue.
The London Mayor has considerable authority to determine transport policy and deliver key projects in the city. So, looking to the May 2021 London mayoral and London Assembly elections, transport should be high on the agenda.
RIA’s Key UK Asks
Ahead of the elections, RIA has set out five recommendations for London and the South East’s future political leaders, complimenting our five key UK asks (left).
1. Continue to invest in major rail schemes post-Coronavirus and support rail’s role in supporting the economic recovery; 2. Increase visibility of rail schemes, including publishing the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline; Williams Rail Review; Integrated Rail Plan and Transport Decarbonisation Plan; 3. Begin a rolling programme of electrification and orders for low carbon rolling stock, in order to decarbonise the network; 4. Bring forward digital signalling work to ensure the UK is able to meet the backlog in signalling work; and 5. Include rail in future trade deals and support the sector as a significant export in its own right.
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Recommendation 1 To establish long-term, multi-year financial settlements for Transport for London (TfL), in order to provide funding certainty for businesses and an investment pipeline. Following the pandemic, the rail supply chain, like many industries, will need certainty from Government about upcoming work. This need is particularly acute in the rail industry given the long-term nature of funding and projects and the technical skills required to complete these projects. Moreover, TfL has continued to receive short-term emergency funding settlements from the Government, the latest of which will cover only until shortly after May’s election. Rail businesses all over the UK who work on rail schemes in and around the capital will require certainty over what the future looks like. This is why RIA and our members would recommend longer term, multi-year, funding settlements – similar to Network Rail’s five-year Control Period system – to provide TfL with the support it requires to recover from the pandemic, as passengers return to the network.
ria@riagb.org.uk www.riagb.org.uk
Recommendation 2 Deliver rail major projects as part of a long-term infrastructure plan. Before the pandemic, the region’s rail system was showing signs of strain, with passenger numbers often exceeding capacity and upgrades planned to critical parts of the network. As a result of the Coronavirus pandemic, several major rail projects have been suspended or delayed due to funding uncertainty, including Crossrail 2 and the Bakerloo Line Extension as well as Heathrow surface access, and Brighton Mainline projects. RIA is optimistic that passenger numbers will return to pre-pandemic levels in the coming years, and so extra capacity will continue to be needed. Critical scheme development and shovel ready schemes should continue - delays cause uncertainty for businesses and increase the cost to the taxpayer. We also believe strongly that the short-term challenges from Coronavirus should not be used to justify cuts or scale back long-needed upgrades. With his in mind, we are calling on the region’s political leaders to work with the Government and the industry to deliver these major projects, as part of a long-term infrastructure plan to improve connectivity in London and the South East. Recommendation 3 Make the case for rail travel in the long-term and encourage passengers back onto the railways as we recover from the Coronavirus pandemic. Rail travel and public transport can be a catalyst for the economic recovery and is vital for connecting communities right across the capital and South East. Investment also supports London as a global city and the wider UK economy. However, following the pandemic and as the economy reopens, the future Mayor of London will need to help make the case for the sector and work with the industry to encourages passengers to take the train. Recommendation 4 Speed up the decarbonisation of London and South East’s transport network, to drive modal shift. As Arup and London First’s recent Transport in 22 Headfort Place, London SW1X 7RY +44 (0)20 7201 0777
London report noted, local air pollution in London is already at illegally high levels in certain areas. Rail on the other hand, is already a clean mode of transport for both passengers and freight – contributing just 2% of transport emissions and 0.6% of total UK emissions. To encourage more passengers and freight onto the railways, London’s network needs to continue to be upgraded and integrated with existing and future transport connections. Recommendation 5 Help boost skills and improve the diversity of the region’s transport network. The rail supply chain has been clear that it may face a skills gap in the coming years with many older professionals due to retire. To address this, the industry will need support from its leaders to promote the huge array of opportunities that rail can offer, ranging from engineering and design, to data and people management. We were pleased that TfL is a signatory of the RIA and Women in Rail EDI Charter and look forward to working together further on this, and the wider skills, issue.
About RIA The Railway Industry Association is the voice of the UK rail supply community. We help to grow a sustainable, high-performing, railway supply industry, and to export UK rail expertise and products. RIA has 300+ companies in membership in a sector that contributes £36 billion in economic growth and £11 billion in tax revenue each year, as well as employing 600,000 people—more than the workforce of Birmingham. It is also a vital industry for the UK’s economic recovery, supporting green investment and jobs in towns and communities across the UK. RIA works to promote the importance of the rail system to UK plc, to help export UK expertise around the globe and to share best practice and innovation across the industry. Find out more: www.riagb.org.ukdustry. ria@riagb.org.uk www.riagb.org.uk