Should the Railways be Nationalised? Or Whats good about privatised railways?

The reason the railways were badly run prior to nationalisation was the result of deliberate decisions by government (we all know who) to keep them short of money so that they were unable to make any new investment in track or running stock, nor could they afford to improve stations. Inevitable as running stock got older and older and maintenance had to be cut back the rail system became more and more unreliable. I commuted to work in London from 1884 - 1990 and saw the efficient railway I started commuting on deteriorate as spending cuts bit.

There is no reason to suppose that if the old British Rail had been properly funded it would not have developed all the services we have got used to under privatisation. When the public sector has taken over from failing private franchisees, services have always improved and look how 'wonderful' Southern Railway has been in recent years.

Beau - lucky you! I live in the Southern train franchise area, the service we are offered here is appalling! and the fares are ridiculous?
I often have to come to London on training and it costs the company nearly £70 for a standard return! And then no guarantee of a seat? Even smaller local journeys are expensive and appalling. I often travel to see my youngest DD and the journey costs £12 off peak for a 20 mile journey and there are never any seats, we always have to stand because the company only ever puts on 4 carriages and the train is rammed? people who commute this every day are rightly angry. Earlier in the year we had to endure weeks of strikes and cancellations as Southern tried to sack guards and it was a night mare squeezing any refund from them! The trains are often dirty and as for free food?. I went recently on a Virgin train and to be honest thought I had accidentally got on a first class carriage so different that it was! Our local MP’s cross party have all been pushing DOT to remove the franchise yet still the train company fleeces us treats us with contempt and as a cash cow! Where is the competition that privitisation was supposed to bring us?? All I see is that we are being ripped off ???

Free food, free wi-fi, I really enjoy these journeys. I know not all lines are as good as this one but I would never nationalise anything - it just feels to me like living in a communist state having 'the government' run services or utilities.

None of which was available in the 1980s pre nationalisation.

If we're going to be happy with anecdote over data then I can say that I frequently travelled long distance on the 'nationalised' East Coast main line and it was it was as good as, or better, than anything GNER (remember them) or Virgin has had to offer on the same line.

I was also a frequent traveller before nationalisation (from childhood) and I don't recognise the picture painted by the antis.

unreliable, overcrowded and expensive, with rude, unhelpful staff.
This could describe Southern Railway. Which has got to be one of the worse. People commuting with season tickets costing thousands are faced with cancelled services and having to stand for long journeys. If you travel off peak on a longer journey it can be fine. Some journeys are really expensive though and it is cheaper to drive, which perhaps we should be discouraging? I use the trains in Italy a lot and they are a fraction of the cost.

It’s about them being run well though Deedaa not just cheaply.

I have never seen the point of privatising the railways. Surely the government should be able to run them more cheaply than a company with shareholders to be kept happy? I'm glad that Beau enjoys her trips on Virgin but I haven't been able to justify the cost of a train journey to London for several years.

What Lemongrove said. I was also a frequent rail traveller for years, prior to privatisation, from the age of 11, and the railways gave an appalling service - unreliable, overcrowded and expensive, with rude, unhelpful staff.

I rarely travel by train nowadays as I'm not near a train line so I can't really comment on the modern service but I do know it wasn't a golden age of travel in the 60's & 70's!

No, nationalised trains were dreadful - now my Virgin journeys from Liverpool to London etc. are pure relaxation - I always book ahead and go first class for sometimes less than a standard fare bought on the day. Free food, free wi-fi, I really enjoy these journeys. I know not all lines are as good as this one but I would never nationalise anything - it just feels to me like living in a communist state having 'the government' run services or utilities.

Not that every line is being well run now either, some are and others are terrible, but I can’t see that going back to nationalising is the answer.

Sorry MaizieD but they were being badly run!
I was a frequent train traveller at that time and saw it first hand.

They weren't privatised because they were being badly run. The privatisation was purely ideological and 'badly run' was just an excuse which the public would lap up. Privatised railways have continued to cost the taxpayer billions in what have been, in effect, state subsidies and have been no more efficient.

When the East Coast line was previously 'renationalised' it was a profitable and efficient service with high levels of customer satisfaction. And profits were returned to the Treasury instead of being given to shareholders. There was nothing about it that was not to like.

Re-nationalise the railways. Privatisation was a stupid idea right from the start.

What lemon said.

They were privatised because they were being badly run.
I have no beef with railways being nationalised if it really meant a better service all round, but I would not want to see it done merely for idealogical reasons.

Yes.

Of all the privatisations that were done because of the Thatcherite creed of "private good, public bad", the nationalisation of the railways was the most ridiculous.

It never made sense to have one company owning the railway line and others owning the trains. It has resulted in chaos and far larger subsidies by the poor old taxpayer than we ever had when the railways were in public ownership.

Railways should be nationalized ,that way any profit can be put back into keeping them up to standard.At the moment the profits are all being taken by foreign companies