The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) has today published two consultation documents:
Review of Structure of Costs and Charges; and
Review of the Schedule 8 Performance Regime.
Chris Bolt, ORR’s Chairman, said:
“These two reviews are of central importance in ensuring that decisions on service provision are based on sound information about infrastructure costs, and provide appropriate and effective incentives to Network Rail and train operators.
“The structure of costs and charges review will lead to the development of an infrastructure cost model. This can be used by funders and operators, as well as Network Rail and ORR, to assess the impact on infrastructure costs of changes in service patterns. The review will also allow the structure of charges to be revised to align commercial incentives with the public interest.
“The performance regime review will consider how the current regime can be changed to ensure that, taken together with other contractual arrangements such as local output commitments, Network Rail has the right incentives to deliver – and indeed exceed – the performance improvements required by the access charges review 2003.”
Notes for editors
1. The consultation period for both reviews closes on 14 December 2004.
2. These documents are the first in a series of initial reports and consultation papers which ORR will be publishing between now and Christmas 2004 as part of its future work programme set out in its September 2004 document entitled Implementing the Future of Rail: ORR’s role and proposed work programme.
3. Structure of Costs and Charges Review: Initial Consultation Document is available from the ORR website at www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/213.pdfReview of the Schedule 8 Performance Regime: Initial Consultation Document is available from the ORR website at www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/214.pdfBoth documents are also available from the ORR Librarian, Sue MacSwan, 1 Waterhouse Square, 138–142 Holborn, London EC1N 2TQ, tel: 020 7282 2001, fax: 020 7282 2045, e-mail: rail.library@orr.gsi.gov.uk.
Press enquiries
ORR Press Office – 020 7282 2007
out of office hours – pager 07659 127303
