The Friends of the Far North Line
Cairdean Na Loine Tuath
the campaign group for rail north of
Inverness - lobbying for improved services for the local user, tourist and freight
operator
We are going to have to change our mindset towards railways (heavy and light), and towards public transport more generally.
We constantly hear about 'subsidy this' or 'subsidy that', always implying that it is wasteful or unnecessary. Yet while passenger numbers continue to recover, the revenue isn't doing as well. It would therefore seem that 'subsidy' is very much in the railway's future.
But we should see it and frame it as Operating Cost - in the same way that roads don't have 'subsidy', they have a maintenance cost. Both road and rail are essential infrastructure for the functioning of our society and economy, yet only one is seen as necessary expenditure. The other has to beg to be worthy of funding.
HS2 is constantly bombarded for being 'too expensive'. Meanwhile, the new £9 billion Dartford tunnel is received without comment, especially when we know all this will do is lead to induced demand.
The 'pay its way' mentality must die. Transport in all areas provides greater benefits outside of the farebox than it does within - and you can only grow revenue so much. Thus, the railway should be seen and run as a public service that provides transport, not profits for shareholders. This is also why freight should be renationalised, or Great British Railways should establish a Freight Division.
If we as a country are actually serious about achieving modal shift and lowering carbon emissions, then the mentality and mindset from all quarters and social strata must change.
Adam Scott, Market Deeping
It was good to see RAIL's Mystery Shopper sampling what Scotland's Railway has to offer in the Central Belt (RAIL 1031). However, the opening comment ("Scotland's railways have benefited from major investment where it is needed the most - commuter routes") struck me as debatable.
As a Central Belt resident for over 40 years, but also convener of the Friends of the Far North Line, | have to question fundamentally the assertion about where there was most need. The most people - yes. The most need - absolutely not.
For at least the past 50 years, there have been good, fast, reliable services in the Central Belt, while the railways in the Highlands have languished as single-track lines with a few widely spaced passing loops. We now refer to this as the Highlands Railway Deficit.
Average speed for the inter-city routes into Inverness is shockingly low, and on the Far North Line even worse. There is no spare capacity for the modal shift of freight, and very little enhancement has taken place in the past few decades.
The Highland Main Line received a modest £57 million spend a few years ago, resulting in the improvement of two passing loops. But that didn't even include lengthening them so that 775-metre freight trains could pass.
The Inverness-Aberdeen line has seen significant investment, especially at the south-eastern end, but it still cannot offer the badly needed fast hourly service owing to a lack of passing loops.
Meanwhile, on the Far North Line we have been campaigning for 20 years for the installation of a loop on the line's erstwhile only double-track section, shared with the Kyle Line. Everyone, including the Scottish Transport Minister, agrees this is necessary. But it has not been built.
The lack of this loop quite often causes late arrivals of one-hour or more into Inverness, as slightly late trains wait nearly 14 miles away for northbound departures to clear. Elsewhere on the line there are gaps between loops of 24 and 21 miles on the northern section, causing long delays and lack of capacity.
Quite simply, accountants and politicians apparently don't see the railway system as being of benefit to the whole country. They just count passengers and residents, and invest accordingly.
Despite expressions of support from Transport Scotland, which insists factors such as economic development and social inclusion are considered, this shows no sign of changing.
On a related note, it was great to read Mr Dawson's letter, Fun on the Far North, in RAIL 1032. We concur with his views about the line's attractions.
I was surprised to read that ScotRail missed the opportunity to sing the praises of the Request to Stop kiosks - once a few initial issues had been ironed out, they seem to be a great success and are definitely making the railway more user-friendly.
Our only disappointment is the lack of other language options on the kiosks. This has required the installation of multi-language instruction signs at Dunrobin Castle station for its many tourist passengers.
It would be surprising if the system were not rolled out at all other request stops around the UK.
Ian Budd, Convener, Friends of the Far North Line, Bishopbriggs