(Title Image: Transport for Wales, copyright free)
The day-to-day operations of the Wales & Borders rail franchise have been nationalised by the Welsh Government.
Publicly-owned company Transport for Wales will take full operational control of the franchise – awarded in 2018 – from Keolis Amey in February 2021.
It follows a sharp fall in passenger numbers as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic – said to be presently as low as 30% of pre-pandemic figures – which has made a commercial operation unsustainable.
Keolis Amey will still be involved in delivering infrastructure for the South Wales Metro and will also act as a technical consultant to Transport For Wales on issues such as integrated ticketing and allowing light and heavy rail to mix on the same tracks.
“The last few months have been extremely challenging for public transport in Wales and across the UK. Covid has significantly impacted passenger revenues and the Welsh Government has had to step in with significant support to stabilise the network and keep it running.
“We have decided to transfer of day to day rail services to a new publicly owned subsidiary of Transport for Wales.
“The decision follows the collapse of rail franchises across England as the privatised model comes under strain from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.”
– Economy & Transport Minister, Ken Skates (Lab, Clwyd South)
Rail infrastructure is already in public ownership through Network Rail, while the Welsh Government recently took ownership of the Cardiff Valley Lines as part of the South Wales Metro project. Trains/ rolling stock are privately-owned and leased to train operators by specialist companies.
