Big decisions needed to deliver future timetable improvements

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has set out its view on actions needed for the West Coast Main Line (WCML) and East Coast Main Line (ECML) after their major timetable projects reached crucial decision-making points.

The new timetables aim to lead to a more efficient use of capacity and better resilience to disruption. This will support performance for the benefit of both passengers and train operators.

In a letter to Network Rail and Department for Transport (DfT), the rail regulator set out its understanding of the necessary decisions and issues needing resolution to ensure successful delivery.

West Coast Main Line timetable
Planned for December 2022, the WCML project is now less than 40 weeks from implementation. However, the issues below need further progress soon to support the timetable delivery.

East Coast Main Line timetable
The ECML project has not yet confirmed the timetable it will implement in May 2023. Given the complexity of the options being considered and issues to resolve here, key decisions need to be made by Network Rail and DfT soon.

The ECML has faced access rights and timetabling issues for several years. Delaying decisions beyond April 2022 risks the same late decision on go/no-go as we saw in 2021. This resulted in uncertainty for train and freight operators requesting access to the network.

John Larkinson, ORR Chief Executive said: “Industry has worked together well to deliver service pattern changes for recent timetables, but these were not full recasts of services at this level of complexity.
“Timely decisions are now needed to show lessons have been learnt and to provide passenger and freight train operators with certainty when planning services.”