The proposal for a cheaper slower replacement for the cancelled HS2 phase 2 between Birmingham and Manchester is welcome, even though the through-life cost is likely to be higher railfuture.org.uk/article1908#th…

Railfuture welcomes Laura Shoaf Laura Shoaf as Chair of shadow Great British Rail and looks forward to the actions at railfuture.org.uk/article1912 to create a rail system that delivers for passengers and freight

On comments from Rachel Reeves in today's budget, Neil Middleton, Vice Chair of Railfuture said: “We’ve been promised change and a decade of national renewal, but there are no signs that travel will be renewed or changed .... Read on at linkedin.com/posts/railfutu…

And on the investment element of Rachel Reeve’s budget speech: “We very pleased to hear the commitment to funding the Transpennine Upgrade ...... It was also great to hear the commitment to East West Rail... Read on: linkedin.com/posts/railfutu…

We have additional comments - in around 2,800, not X's 280 characters. "Quite a lot of disappointments".. "Before the budget, we identified 10 items to watch. The score for each of these is..." Read on at linkedin.com/posts/railfutu…

East West Rail's Consultation 2024 launches tomorrow. We think there needs to be a high performing railway - read on: railfuture.org.uk/eastwestrail It is another key milestone for a railway that we once called "Middle England's missing link" (how the use of words has moved on...).

Our day one conclusion on East West Rail: It's not about the region, it is about how the region connects to the nation. Read more at railfuture.org.uk/eastwestrail

The Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill is due to receive Royal Assent today. Chris Page, Railfuture Chair said: “The easy part is taking a Train Operator into public ownership. Then the heavy work starts.... Read on at: linkedin.com/posts/railfutu…

The Transport Secretary has announced the first 3 operators to be taken into public ownership. Any change greater than just a change of shareholder risks distracting management and disrupting passengers. ow.ly/kf8e50UkxOo

It's good to see the government trying to attract new rail passengers. The rail sale must be coupled with a survey to see what percentage are journeys that would not otherwise have been made by rail and whether new rail passengers will use rail again. ow.ly/NGH450UEb6X

Railfuture on telly: BBC One tomorrow, Morning Live between 9.30 and 10.45 will feature Railfuture and no doubt Dennis Fancett too, talking about reopenings. It was recorded before the good news about Portishead.

Read our views on tomorrow's Spring Statement from the Government. They're on LinkedIn, due to message length limits here: linkedin.com/posts/railfutu…

And its not just about travel to/from London and the South East - this will be a national destination, indeed international as will be just one change of train from Paris, Brussels et al.

Railfuture on Rachel Reeve's 'Biggest ever investment in city region local transport' .. Public transport as sustainable and sociable transport - especially rail whether mainline or light rail - is the great economic enabler and lifestyle liberator.. linkedin.com/posts/railfutu…

A day of two halves for us, so we have: 1) Thoughts on today's Spending review (...The devil will be in the detail ..): railfuture.org.uk/Media-comment-… 2) Commentary on Eurostar's plans for services to Germany and Switzerland: railfuture.org.uk/Press-release-…

The expected U-turn on Personal Independence Payment benefits will cost the government approximately £2Bn per year. The Treasury loses the same amount each year through the 'temporary' 5p cut to fuel duty introduced in March 2022. Fuel duty hits the more affluent not the poorest

We were pleased to rail related investment in today's Government announcement. Read on for the detail and what we hope to see in imminent announcements: railfuture.org.uk/article1921

Register your support for one of Railfuture's campaigns to receive our quarterly Chair's column by email, reviewing our campaigns and the state of the railway. railfuture.org.uk/support