News Release : 13 December 2005

ASSEMBLY PUSHES FOR RAIL INVESTMENT

Government must act now to increase capacity on rail services provided by the Greater Western and South West franchises or risk undermining planned growth in the South East, warns the South East England Regional Assembly's Planning Committee.

The Committee's call for action is timed to influence negotiations on these two key rail franchises. The Department for Transport (DfT) awarded the Greater Western Franchise contract to First Group today (13 December), which runs services from Paddington to the South West and Wales, and will now be finalising the details with the train operator. The South West franchise contract is expected to be awarded in autumn 2006.

Cllr Christine Field, Chairman of the Assembly's Regional Planning Committee, said: “Rail services covered by the Greater Western and South West franchises need serious improvements. The rail industry's own analysis shows overcrowding will continue without further capacity. The Assembly's 20-year South East Plan requires sustainable growth and public transport plays a vital part in this. Government must face the challenge and provide the conditions that allow rail services to support growth in the longer term.”

Greater Western Franchise
The Assembly argues that the new Greater Western franchise should:

• Provide additional capacity to support planned growth in the Western Corridor and Blackwater Valley
• Improve capacity at Reading Station to remove a major bottleneck – for example by building an extra platform.

Improvements could also bring economic benefits to the region by providing better links to South West England, the West Midlands and Wales.

The Assembly is seeking a meeting with the DfT to discuss the franchise specification.

South West Main Line
The Assembly is also pressing for further investment in capacity in its response to consultation on the South West Main Line Route Utilisation Strategy and the franchise Invitation to Tender. This franchise provides services from Waterloo to Brighton, Guildford, Basingstoke and the Solent area. It wants:

• Discussions with the DfT on changes that will improve freight and passenger services
• Support for proposals to address a bottleneck at Woking
• Improvement to the freight gauge on the Southampton to West Midlands route.
  

Contacts

Lesley van Dijk, PR Executive - 01483 555223

Heather Bolton, Head of Communications - 01483 555220

Notes to editors:

1. The rail services were discussed at the Regional Planning Committee on 7 December 2005.
   
   
2. Greater Western Franchise runs services from Paddington to the South East (Reading, Oxford, Gatwick, the region’s coast), South Wales and the South West. www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/franchise/map/
   
   
3. A gauge is the space between the tracks and/ or the space around a train. Improvements could mean that bridges need to be raised and tunnels need to be widenened.
   
   
4. The South East England Regional Assembly is the "voluntary regional chamber" for the South East. It was established in January 1999 to give a representative voice to the South East region which covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East and West Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, and Surrey.
   
   
5. The Regional Assembly is made up of 112 members including elected councillors nominated by the region's local authorities and 37 representatives from other sectors of the community (including business, trades unions, education, housing, health, sports, culture, tourism, faith groups, environmental, community and voluntary organisations) as well as the New Forest National Park Authority..
   
   
6. The Assembly has three areas of core business:
1. It is the representative voice of the South East, engaging and representing its member organisations and, through them, the wider public.
   
   
2. The Assembly has a specific role under the Regional Development Agencies' Act 1998 to ensure the accountability of the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) to the region.
   
   
3. The Assembly has been the Regional Planning Body for the South East since April 2001. It has responsibility for proposing strategic planning and transport policies to Government.

Last updated: 21 August 2007

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