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Conflicting priorities amongst train operators
In the UK, train operators are pushing their way to tear up traditional rush hour ticket rules in favour of surge pricing similar to airlines.
Andy Bagnall, chief executive of the new rail operator body Rail Partners believes that train operators are lobbying for “a more demand-led approach that actually allows you to give better value tickets but give a better customer experience”.
Should the move go ahead, the industry would mirror methods used by all airlines and more recently Uber by scrapping the peak and off-peak classifications and replacing them with “demand-led pricing” for all longer journeys.
“You don’t have that awful first rain after the peak ends, which has three times as many passengers [because] everyone’s been waiting for the first train because of that cliff edge” commented Mr Bagnall who also said that “we would like to see dynamic pricing”
At this current time reforms to ticketing are just one of several ideas being discussed by the Government in relation to public transport.
“[Customers want] an industry guarantee that when you sell me the ticket, that does what I want it to do, that will be the best possible price I can get regardless of where I go”.
Mr Bagnall dismissed the need to reduce the estimated 55 million ticket types on the UKs railways but did warn that if this led to a greater involvement in the train network by state, the industry’s future would be doomed.
“We believe that the railway is at a fork in the tracks. If we make the right choices, if we can harness the train companies to respond to customer needs, we can attract customers back”.
“On the other hand, [if] we take the wrong track and the wrong decisions are made — we will build an over centralised railway under Great British Railways with the role of operators unduly constrained… We will ultimately see a railway with lower passenger numbers, lower revenues, [and] probably leading to further service reductions.”
Rail Partners however are pushing for the private sector to play a greater role in the country’s train network under the Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, changes more than a year ago. The company’s predecessor, the Rail Delivery Group, had been previously criticised for serving the needs of state-owned company Network Rail along with other operator of whom had regularly conflicting priorities.
A main factor of Mr Shapps’ reforms was Great British Railways which would bring together the tracks and trains in a new public sector.
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It looks set to be one of ITV’s biggest dramas this year and The Hunt for Raoul Moat is being brought to screen by the same people responsible for smash hit shows Line of Duty, Bodyguard and Vigil.
It was confirmed last April that production on the series had commenced, nearly 12 years after Moat gunman shot ex girlfriend Samantha Stobbart and her new boyfriend Christopher Brown, with Brown dying from his injuries. After fleeing Samantha’s home in Birtley, Moat, who had been released from prison just days earlier, went on the run, shooting on duty policeman PC David Rathband in the face as he sat in a patrol car on the outskirts of Newcastle and leaving him blind.
From there, Moat headed for Northumberland, forcing the quiet village of Rothbury into a lockdown as police launched a frantic search for him. The hunt for Moat reached its conclusion with a tense stand-off between the killer and the police on a riverbank, with Moat eventually shooting himself and dying from his injuries as he was rushed to Newcastle General Hospital.
ITV announced three parter The Hunt for Raoul Moat almost a year ago, as filming got underway in Yorkshire, with a cast including ex Bodyguard star Matt Stokoe as Moat and Inspector George Gently actor Lee Ingeleby as police chief Neil Adamson.
ITV have yet to officially announce an release date for The Hunt for Raoul Moat, but is expected to be form part of the channel’s spring programming.
Peter Kay’s Newcastle show was thrown into chaos when three audience members fell ill.
According to the Sun the Phoenix Nights star halted his latest show and rushed to assist when he spotted a fan on the front row had become unwell and needed assistance.
Minutes later, a member of the audience was escorted out of the venue in a wheelchair.
An onlooker told the Sun: People near the front started shouting for an ambulance.
‘Peter asked if they were being serious, then he asked for the big lights to go on and stewards ran over to see what was going on.
‘He then went off stage for around 10/15 mins and one person was seen getting wheel-chaired out.’
After the situation was under control he got on with his show, but two more audience members then reportedly become unwell.
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On this International Women’s Day, March 8, we highlight the extraordinary contributions made by women in the North East throughout history and the present. For hundreds of years, the women of the North East have shaped our world, and without them, things wouldn’t be the same.
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