SIR ROY McNULTY has told a news conference in London that the railways must reduce their costs by 30 per cent within the next eight years, so that they gain a sustainable 'licence to grow'. Sir Roy has quashed fears that the price of rail travel is set to soar, although he is recommending that the balance of peak and off peak charges is reviewed.

His wide-ranging study study into railway 'value for money' has taken fifteen months, and is highly detailed.

But at first glance there are some definite recommendations, including no line closures and no overall increase in fares.

He is warning that pay rises beyond the rate of inflation are not sustainable, and wants staffing to be reviewed. One 'default posiition' being recommended for all trains in Britain is driver-only operation. The report says: 'A second member of traincrew only being provided where there is a commercial, technical or other imperative.'

A new Rail Delivery Group is being set up to bring the industry together, and there will be supply chain improvements.

Sir Roy said: "There is no single silver bullet. Everyone needs to co-operate to bring down costs. Various global solutions were suggested during the course of our study. The trouble is they were different. But there must be better alignment between industry parties, and more devolved decision-making."

Other big changes on the way include trials of vertical reintegration. The most likely candidate at the moment is Anglia, with a target date of 2014.

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