London TravelWatch Chair, Arthur Leathley, spoke to the London Assembly Transport Committee at City Hall yesterday (Tuesday 15 November) on a wide range of topics, including rail reform.

In light of recent news around delays to Great British Railways, Arthur warned against industry navel-gazing.

He said that the public doesn’t talk about ‘WISP’ (whole industry strategic plans). People are not talking about strategic reforms, transformation or transition.

They talk about reliability, value for money, safety, and security. ‘If we drift for too long we’re going to lose those elements’.

The session on rail reform was also attended by senior representatives from the RMT Union, Transport for London, Rail Partners, and Great British Railways transition team.

Afterwards, along with Chair Arthur Leathley, London TravelWatch interim CEO, Joanna Davidson, presented the organisation’s business plan for 2023.

It was unanimously approved, paving the way for research and campaigns covering a wide range of issues in the year ahead that are important to Londoners, including: rail reform, safety and security, bus services, digital exclusion, transport timetables, and communications from operators before, during and after strike action. Statutory duties such as facilitating consultations around ticket office closures are also on the agenda.