Private Eye‘s Signal Failures column is a constant reminder of everything that was good about British Rail.
Putting all ideological objections to privatisation to one side, the 1994 sell off of British Rail was inherently unworkable, and would inevitably result in the current fragmented and inefficient system.
Unbelievably, the real cost of the public rail subsidy is now higher than it ever was under British Rail: “In 1994, the total government support received by BR was £1,627m, (£2,168m in 2005 terms, adjusted by RPI), while in 2005, government support from all sources totalled £4,593m” (from Wikipedia).
Come back British Rail – all is forgiven!
Picture courtesy Queeky.
