Going Off Road

The author reports on the future of rail freight in the UK, as discussed by the Rail Freight Group (RFG) at a recent House of Lords reception. Since 2002, intermodal rail traffic has nearly doubled, with growth increases attributed to investment by the government and port owners in infrastructure as well as operators' investment in new rolling stock. The article highlights four key ares that the RFG is asking the government to focus on in order to continue and expand this success, including: maintaining affordable track access charges; increasing strategic rail freight interchanges; ensuring efficient links to ports; and developing a structure for the rail industry that can accommodate freight, where vertical integration experiments don't exclude the carriage of goods. As industry forecasts show a potential for freight volume to double by 2030, the article suggests that government has an important role to play. Effective collaboration between all parties interested in rail freight -- operators, customers, logistics companies, Network Rail and the government -- can ensure that rail continues to be an effective way of transporting goods for the 21st century.