Posted 6th July 2010 | 6 Comments
Intercity Express decision deferred
THE decision on whether to buy a new intercity fleet to replace HSTs has been deferred until the autumn by the transport secretary.
Philip Hammond said the autumn spending review needed to come first: "IEP is a complex programme which has interdependencies with several other major rail projects, and as expenditure on rail projects will be re-assessed in the context of the spending review, it would be irresponsible to make a decision on IEP in isolation at this time," he explained.
The project to replace the HSTs has been running since 2008, and a consortium led by Hitachi -- Agility Trains -- was named as the preferred bidder in February last year.
The value of the fleet could be as much as £7 billion, although much depends on its size and the eventual choice of traction, which has varied since more plans for electrification were unveiled by the former Labour government. With these plans now also apparently on hold, it is clear that Mr Hammond is unwilling to make any commitments until later in the year.
However, the report on the IEP proposals by Sir Andrew Foster, who is a former head of the Audit Commission, has now been published and is more positive than some observers were expecting.
Mr Hammond said: "Sir Andrew suggests that the Intercity Express proposition is 'positive and attractive' in a number of ways. He suggests that the PFI-style funding arrangement is novel and well-aligned in terms of financial incentives, faster acceleration and longer carriages would have a positive impact on network and passenger capacity, and the specification has also taken network sustainability and environmental imperatives seriously."
Sit Andrew voices some doubts about the technical aspects of the bi-modal version, which would be able to make use of overhead power supplies where they exist, but Mr Hammond said he saw this as a 'lesser issue'.
But assessment of the IEP project will now continue, because Sir Andrew also believed that not all the alternatives had been evaluated sufficiently. Mr Hammond said the period up to the spending review would be used to give these alternatives further consideration.
The transport secretary has also criticised the previous administration's involvement of the rail industry, which he said had not been good enough and had given rise to 'widespread scepticism'.
Mr Hammond concluded: "Despite involving the rail industry in the procurement process, a sense of disengagement developed, which could have been avoided. This Government fully recognises these concerns and we are already acting on them. In future, we will involve the rail industry more fully in decision making."
Reader Comments:
Views expressed in submitted comments are that of the author, and not necessarily shared by Railnews.
Marcus Mclane, London, Uk
Its best just to leave IC125/IC225 alone and keep upgrading them.
There proven to be more reliable as before so i rekon they just need a full fat makeover (like the class 47 which was rebuilt into class 57)
They can just save millions and focus on thoes two to keep them on rail as long as possible.
HST for example, could add more refinement such as shedding weight, improve safety and a newer more modern looks. The MTU engine proven to be beyond far better then the old Valante could have more modification to make them more powerful yet more efficient and for the MK3's adding power doors, LED destination in the interior and along the outside of the coach, also shreading its overall weight like fitting with new lighter bogies.
If that ever happend im sure all TOC that own the HST would think 'Money Well Spent''
philip russell, carlisle, uk
surely if the western electrification is to go ahead is the simplest ansewer is an additional order of pendilinos with fully automatic couplings for easy onward loco haulage
Llion Wynne Jones, aberdare
Things have gone from bad to worse with the tories, at first I was all for them getting in but now they are making a hash of it. They are doing things far to quick. Today they anounced that rail fares are going up, thats only going to drive people off rail and back to road, its stupud. I think they should re-consider their plans, and I know, we need new trains but forget about it for a while cos the ones wee have now are OK even the 142/143 fleet are getting more reliable. All that needs to happen to the railways is cheaper fairs, that will be followed by more revenue as more passengers will decide to travel, and another thing, maybe the Network rail side of the railways should be privatised. Things have to change, maintinence costs have to come down aswell.
nick moraga, derby, england
Can we not just build more IC125 & 225 trains, all now proved in service over many years, passenger comfort can be upgraded as necessary Virgin did a very good job recently, why re-invent the train, massive savings potentially to invest the money in other areas of the railways that need urgent funding!
Trouble is they were built in Britain and contain simple electronics (if any), do we have the industry/infrastructure to build trains on this scale any more i very much doubt it!
Colin Brown, London
Very soon instead of moaning about the previous government, this one will have to make a decision. They will have three choices, proceed with this project, provide an alternative solution, or do nothing. Then and only then will we see the true transport credentials of this administration.
David Spencer, Bolton, Lancashire, UK
I have to say that I get very tired of politicians and having seen the last 50 years on the railway and how we tinker with good engineering and simple decisions is wearing on the patience.
The HST has always been a good design. The Class 180 is now a good design (ie an HST with engines underneath the carriages instead of each end.
There lies the solution to this whole saga. Why wait until October.
Electrification is mandatory. An electric version of HST or 180 order now. Phase production over time until the whole mainline network is electrified. Use economy of scale. But for Godness sake use the HST as a model. It works, its popular and its has proved superb.