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It may not have been better (tho it was) but at least you knew who to
complain to. The current fractured system is a mass exercise in buck
passing if nothing else (I have a friend who works in Train Care who
spends much of her time trying to prove that the trains which failure
are due to Railtrack, the train operator and not the lack of care she
puts into looking after said trains because she is constantly passing
the buck).
With one central management at least there can be vision and drive. I
have been genuinely impressed by the improvement in London's buses
over the past two years, its people friendly management which
improves the easy stuff (single pricing scales, intergrated
timetabling) whilst it goes about the serious and tough stuff.
― Pete, Friday, 4 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
Nobody is saying that pre-privatisation the train service was
particularly great (and we all used to moan about it incessantly), DG,
but almost everyone I know thinks it was better. The train lines I
know best: Gypsy Hill to Victoria, Kings Cross to Leeds, Paddington to
Teignmouth - were normally OK six days a week (Sunday was always
hopeless) - now they are not. Sorry, I don't have stats to back up my
argument, although I'll find them if you insist. But this view is
shared by a lot of people who are generally in favour of privatising
whatever is on offer (& none of whom have ever read a copy of the NME
in their lives). Even the Economist, which tried to defend the policy
for a while, now says it was a disaster - although clearly they are
not in favour of renationalisation. What we've got now is chaos: the
only question is which way forward.
― Mark Morris, Friday, 4 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
Mark S is right: DG's father is typical of all BR commuters ever.
British Rail was a national joke / laughing stock, but in an
affectionate way - deep down, most people had some kind of notional
respect for it. And I think most people *did* expect trains to be on
time unless they weren't, whereas now most people expect trains not
to be on time unless they are.
I'm sorry, but DG is wrong. I remember feeling a relationship and
affinity with BR, as a traveller, however underfunded and neglected
it was, that I don't believe anyone ever feels with any of the myriad
companies that make up the privatised rail system. I hope the
tabloids who used to rant and rave against BR as though they
genuinely hated it (which I think very few of its customers did)
choke on old "Speed Up British Snail" headlines, while the Mail
desperately tries to persuade us that it never advocated
privatisation.
Mark S has a point - no, people will never again feel the kind of
respect / automatic admiration for the national rail system they did
in the days of British Transport Films and the modernisation plan.
All a renationalised rail company would be is a rail company
providing a service, but if it was an efficient service in an
increasingly integrated transport system, that'd be enough. Compared
to the shambles we're in now, it'd still be a thing of utopian wonder.
And MJH is wrong about Birmingham New Street.
― Robin Carmody, Friday, 4 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
One body to manage the railways = good idea obviously, but I don't
honestly see the need to nationalise rail as it would cost a fortune
and probably not be much better. Surely some super hard bastard
watchdog org would be enough if they could fine the trousers off
rogue operators?
― DG, Saturday, 5 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
Thing is, since the railways will always have to be heavily
subsidized, any private company would have to squeeze a profit out of
us as passengers and as taxpayers, which is bound to cause resentment
unless they do a fucking incredible job. Which is why while I have
kind of changed my mind about phone lines and power, I still think
that public ownership is the most logical way of running a railway.
― Mark Morris, Saturday, 5 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link