Mail Returns to Rail

18th October 2004

Freight on Rail, a partnership between the rail freight industry, the transport trade unions and Transport 2000, warmly welcomes the Royal Mail decision to return to rail. We have campaigned vigorously for rail to remain part of the RM distribution solution in order to protect the environment, avoid unnecessary road accidents and control road congestion. We have always maintained that rail is ideally suited to provide the trunk haul element in this logistics chain.

Freight on Rail campaign Co-ordinator, Philippa Edmunds said “This is a win/win solution for the economy, environment and society and a common sense decision. There has seldom been a greater need for rail freight with continuing road congestion and the resulting unreliability, HGV driver shortages and the looming costs for road haulage of the imminent Working Time Directive. Royal Mail is joining a long list of major companies turning to rail because it can offer the distribution solutions they need.”

She added that, “Rail has a crucial role to play in the climate change debate; per tonne carried rail produces less than one fifth of the CO2 emissions of road transporti. Only last week international scientists confirmed that they were alarmed by the sharp increase in carbon dioxide increases in the atmosphere over the past two years with levels over 2 parts per million (ppm) in contrast to an average of 1.5 ppm over the previous 50 years.”

GB Railfreight will be running four services for the Royal Mail per day, two each way, between Willesden and Shieldmuir in Scotland via Warrington during December. In the new year it will be running two services each day for Royal Mail on the same route to be reviewed at the end of March 2005. GB Railfreight will provide the train drivers to run the Royal Mail’s class 325 units.
 

Notes to editors:

Freight on Rail, a partnership between transport trades unions, ASLEF, RMT and TSSA, the rail freight operators EWS, Freightliner, GB Railfreight, the Rail Freight Group, Network Rail and Transport 2000, works to promote the economic, social and environmental benefits of rail freight both nationally and locally. It advocates policy changes that support the shift to rail and provides information and help on freight related issues. In particular, it aims to help local authorities through all stages of the process such as planning a rail-freight strategy, accessing grants and dealing with technical matters.
 

The benefits of rail freight to the economy and society

• The simple statistic which shows that an average freight train can remove 50 HGVs from our roads clearly illustrates what rail freight contributes to our economy and society now and its future potentialii.
  
  
• Air pollution reduction
  
  Per tonne carried rail produces around 80 per cent less carbon dioxide than roadiii.

• Rail is safer than road
  
  Transport accident figures for 2001 show that 32 people were killed on the railways, not including trespassers and suicides while there were 3,450 people killed on the roads in same period.
   

For further information contact:- Philippa Edmunds, Freight on Rail campaigner

Tel: 0208 241 9982 email philippa@freightonrail.org.uk; web site www.freightonrail.org.uk
 

i. Railtrack How we’re measuring up 1999
ii. Railtrack How we're measuring up 1999
iii. Railtrack How we’re measuring up 1999