TfN chief: Devolution key to improving railways

Transport for the North chief executive Martin Tugwell said empowerment, devolution, and investment are key to accessing the “huge economic prize” that a world-class Northern transport system could unlock. 

Speaking to Place North West at the Northern Transport Summit in Liverpool last Thursday, Tugwell discussed his hopes for the future of the North’s railways.

It is almost two years since Tugwell took over from Barry White as TfN boss. In that time, the organisation has seen its plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail pared back by the government, while public confidence in the railways has plummeted amid endless strikes and delays. 

Despite these setbacks, Tugwell was keen to impress that TfN is still battling. 

“If you want to get the transformation of the North, if you want to connect in the way that we need to do, then we’ve got to keep pushing for the full NPR as originally set out,” he said. 

Tugwell pointed to Leeds Station as one part of the network in need of immediate intervention. 

Behind Clapham and Birmingham New Street, Leeds is the source of the most delays on the country’s entire rail network, he said. 

“Finding a solution for Leeds station isn’t just for the North. It’s actually for the whole country.” 

“We know the gap with the rest of the country remains,” he said. “We have got to close that gap and that requires more investment.” 

That investment, Tugwell believes, should be given to local leaders and Metro Mayors to spend as they see fit to “build on the devolution and the empowerment that’s already happened”. 

In January, the North’s Metro Mayors called for Transpennine Express to be stripped of its franchise, saying it was not fit for purpose.  

In response, TPE said it had implemented a recovery plan to address issues around cancellations. 

Tugwell described the plan as “a step” but said: “we need to go faster and further”. Something devolution could help with. 

“It is fair to say that people’s confidence in our railway network is really low at the moment and I can understand that,” he said. 

“The disruption in the North is costing our economy something like about £8m pounds a week. This has been going on now for nearly a year; that is the best part of half a billion pounds of economic impact.” 

It cannot be left to the public sector alone to push for more investment in transport – the private sector also has a role to play, Tugwell said. 

“If you’ve got clarity on what the public sector contribution is, you can have a different conversation with the private sector. 

“You can start saying ‘here’s our contribution, that we know is going to unlock economic opportunities and that we know is going to regenerate areas, how can you work with us?’” 

One area where the private sector is getting involved is at Manchester Piccadilly, where there is an ongoing debate about what the city’s HS2 hub should look like. 

The government wants to build an above-ground terminus, while Manchester’s political and business leaders want to see an underground through-station. 

The underground option would cost more upfront but would greatly increase the economic potential of HS2’s arrival in Manchester, according to its advocates. 

Tugwell points to Kings Cross in London and Curzon Street in Birmingham as good examples of where public sector investment is acting as “a catalyst for a much wider confidence among the private sector”. 

In Manchester, not enough credit is being given to the opportunity to transform the area in and around Piccadilly, Tugwell said. 

“We need to make sure we’re capturing and understanding the scale of that opportunity, because it is a once-in-a-lifetime, once-in-a-generation opportunity.” 

The Northern Transport Summit was successful in highlighting obstacles and potential solutions, but without a government willing to cede power and money to the cause, little is likely to change. 

This is not lost on Tugwell. 

“I’m always optimistic about things, but I don’t underestimate the challenge.”