Green Signals

MD Mark Hopwood lifts the veil at Great Western. In this episode of Green Signals we are delighted to welcome to the show Mark Hopwood CBE, the Managing Director of Great Western. Mark is a career railwayman but is widely and properly recognised as one of the most visionary railway leaders of his generation. His ‘can do’ attitude backed by years of experience with a passion for delivering for his customers has enabled Great Western to deliver outstanding results, year after year.Mark himself accepts it’s not easy and the period we are living through is one of the toughest in recent times. In a wide ranging interview we talk about the challenges of day to day operations and the very basics of running a railway company in 2023. We cover projects such as the electrification of the Great Western Main line, the opening of the Elizabeth line and the reopening of the line to Okehampton, pretty much the first and so far most successful of the “Reversing Beeching” projects. Mark explains in detail why it is perfectly reasonable of the Government to want to keep a firm grip on costs – who could disagree – but we discuss whether the split of the P&L on today’s railway with the DfT in charge of costs and the Treasury receiving all the revenue really makes sense and whether it is holding us back in a return to growth. We finish with a discussion on whether it still makes sense to be running sleeper trains and Pullman dining cars in these cash constrained modern times. Away from Great Western we talk about whether a Judicial Review of the Government’s decision to cancel HS2 north of Birmingham is a possibility. This is a cracking episode with one of the railway industry’s best known and most experienced leaders and is one not to miss!

Some 700,000 respondents objected to the DfT and train companies proposals to close some 1000 ticket offices. Transport Focus rejected all the proposals. The result is a humiliating climbdown and U Turn for the Government. On this week's Green Signals, we welcome THE expert when it comes to Fares & Ticketing Policy, Mark Smith aka the Man in Seat 61. Mark is a career railwayman but he was also head of the Fares & Ticketing team at the DfT. There is literally no-one with more experience and knowledge. Mark, Richard and Nigel discuss the issues surrounding fares and ticketing on Britain's railway, agree that it was absolutely right that the proposals were rejected as the Government and the train companies had done everything in completely the wrong order. We also discuss what could and indeed should now be done to sort out the mess. Richard explains why this latest debacle provides irrefutable evidence, if any were needed, that the 20 year experiment, started when the SRA was abolished, to bring increasing micro management of the railway into the heart of central Government has completely and utterly failed. He calls for the industry to grow a spine and to now say, and do, what is right instead of meekly parroting the latest 'line to take' from government. We also have a lighthearted chat about favourite railway journeys and the fact that Green Signals was mentioned in dispatches in Transport questions in the House of Commons no less!

In the light of the decision on HS2, we look at the West Coast Route Modernisation of 1997 - 2009 and discuss how close it came to being binned and how bold decisions got it done. We also consider whether the same environment exists today - and draw some depressing conclusions. Nigel and Richard also launch a new feature on great railway journeys they have made and with surprising selections for their first choices! We also touch briefly on a growing problem in the Heritage Railway sector and ask is there a crisis brewing?

The podcast debunks the top 10 myths about HS2 and explores the challenges of preserving heritage rail equipment. They discuss the costs of HS2, analyze the impact of COVID-19 on rail travel, and the importance of regional connectivity. They also address the myth of a worsening cost benefit case for HS2 and emphasize the need for accurate information to counter the numerous HS2 myths.

Welcome to Green Signals, the essential new railway podcast for anyone interested in railways: what they are for, how they work, and why we need them more than ever. In this Trailer, Nigel and Richard reveal their first meeting on a Virgin Trains press trip to Italy, discuss the relative merits of Blackburn and Burnley and most importantly, consider whether the decision to scrap the northern section of HS2 to Manchester was a really, really bad idea. Or far worse than that.