Is it time to bring the rip off railways back into public ownership?

[Dandyman]

At at time when more inflation plus price rises are threatened on our already over-priced railways, is it time to say no to the robber barons and bring the railways back into public ownership?

Vote & discuss.

 

[martyn20]

Bottom line we can't afford it

 

[Jack Daniels]

Well go on then. I will support you.

 

[Smithy]

Something needs to be done. If prices continue to rise every year at these rates, it won't be long before I can no longer afford to get to work.

 

[Dandyman]

Bottom line we can't afford it

Let the current contracts run out and then bring them back as a service without having to line the pockets of shareholders.

 

[Bladders]

Does no one remember British Railways?

Woeful.

 

[Albumen]

Never happen under the Tories. That falls under public interest, not private windfalls.

 

[martyn20]

Let the current contracts run out and then bring them back as a service without having to line the pockets of shareholders.

If you want to bring them back into public ownership to reduce the prices you will need more and more public subsidy and that is what we can't afford to do. The railways would cost our country billions to run every year.

 

[Don Quixote]

They should charge people to use the motorways and subsidise trains.

 

[HawkTheSeagull]

No, because the government cant afford it. THEY are the ones putting the fares up after all - not the TOCs. Rising because they want us to foot the bill for all the electrification/new trains - none of which will affect us of course.

Should add that these price rises are getting pathetic though, and this is from someone who works on the rails.

 

[Tooting Gull]

It certainly isn't a joined-up transport policy.

Just about the only justifiable argument for the bare-faced robbery that is the tax on petrol in this country is that it deters driving (f**king right it does) and encourages use of public transport. But if you then keep racking up the rail fares, it is just a toss-up over which particular way you'd like to be robbed.

 

[albion534]

It's actually cheaper to fly to certain parts of the uk now

THAT IS DISGRACEFUL

 

[Dandyman]

Does no one remember British Railways?

Woeful.

The biggest problem with BR was lack of investment. Close the massive tax gap that exists in this country, end spending on pointless foreign wars and outdated missile systems, promote growth via investment and social house building and we will have money for many things.
many things.

 

[Billy the Fish]

I agree the current setup is a shambles, but making it public again just gives a new set of problems. The money that currently lines the shareholders pockets would just get wasted on lazy staff that you can't get rid of because of the unions. They'd be on strike every other week.

They need to let an independant body set price rises and force the operators to reinvest a certain % of their profit into modernisation.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Renationalisation would have to occur over a period of time , once the franchises expire they are not renewed and come back into Government ownership. The TOC's should be put on notice that a change in Government in 2015 will see the immediate end of tendering for regional franchises.

 

[martyn20]

Yes and the utility companies please.

What would you cut to pay for all these government run companies?

 

[melias shoes]

They should charge people to use the motorways and subsidise trains.

Yes because car owners don't already pay a fortune do they?

 

[timco]

They should charge people to use the motorways and subsidise trains.

This already happens we have the Road Fund Licence which brings in far more money than is ever spent on roads, then there is the tax and VAT on Petrol, the VAT on the cost of maintaining a car oh and the insurance tax on compulsory insurance.

You then want more tax on people who have no choice but to use a car to get to work because no realistic (in some cases not even no realistic but no public transport) exists?

I could not get to work if I did not have a car and I am only going from south of a city to the north of a city but there are no buses (let alone trains assuming they actually went close enough) at the time I would need to leave to get there in time to get to work on the several buses I would need to catch to get there.

Pay the real cost for your chosen mode of transport and stop trying to pick the pocket of car drivers to subsidise your life style.

 

[Dandyman]

If you want to bring them back into public ownership to reduce the prices you will need more and more public subsidy and that is what we can't afford to do. The railways would cost our country billions to run every year.

If costs a fortune to fill the pockets of private shareholders. Public ownership removes the gross profiteering that currently exists.

 

[martyn20]

If costs a fortune to fill the pockets of private shareholders. Public ownership removes the gross profiteering that currently exists.

So why were they such a massive drain on the public purse before privatisation?