Abstract: This article heavily criticises British Government policy for financing railway capital expenditure, and argues that this expenditure is still inadequate, despite the Transport Minister's claimed belief in public transport. It claims that his measures to attract freight from road to rail will cost the Government little, even if the increased grants find takers. His promise of a more open track system for private firms fails to address the problem that a national transport system requires much larger investments than the private sector can manage. The Government's wish to privatise British rail is seen as a threat to its further funding. The main obstacle to either British Rail or London Transport obtaining the capital that they want is said to be the Treasury; their present capital expenditures are of the order of U1 billion per annum each. The likely consequences will be: (1) worse rail services; (2) possible neglect of the Channel Tunnel's potential; (3) less likelihood of reduced pollution by traffic; (4) increasingly congested cities (it is estimated that congestion costs the UK U15 billion per annum). Through lack of orders, engineering companies, producing capital goods for railways, are suffering recession after two boom years.
Publication Year: 1991
Publication Date: 1991-06-06
Language: en
Type: article
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