Editing British Railways

{{About|the specific corporate entity|an overview|History of rail transport in Great Britain}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2015}}
{{Infobox company
| name = British Railways<br>British Rail
| image = [[File:BR-logo.svg|200px|British Rail]]
| logo_size  = 250
| image = File:24.07.84 Carlisle 85037 (5988267901).jpg
| image_size     = 250
| image_alt = InterCity carriages in British Rail blue-grey livery hauled by a blue Class 85 electric locomotive
| image_caption = A British Rail InterCity train at {{rws|Carlisle}} in 1984
| fate         = [[Privatisation of British Rail|Privatised]]
| successor    = [[Railtrack]]
| foundation   = 1 January 1948
| defunct      = 2001<!-- this is the year that the organisation ceased trading -->
| location     = [[London]], United Kingdom
| industry     = Land and sea transport
| parent       = British Transport Commission (1948-1962), British Railways Board (1962-2001)
}}
'''British Railways''' ('''BR'''), which from 1965 traded as '''British Rail''', was the operator of most of the [[rail transport in Great Britain]] between 1948 and 1997.  It was formed from the [[nationalisation]] of the [[Big Four (British railway companies)|"Big Four" British railway companies]] and lasted until the gradual [[privatisation of British Rail]], in stages between 1994 and 1997. Originally a trading brand of the Railway Executive of the [[British Transport Commission]], it became an independent [[statutory corporation]] in 1962: the [[British Railways Board]].

The period of nationalisation saw sweeping changes in the national railway network. A process of [[dieselisation]] and [[Railway electrification in Great Britain|electrification]] took place, and in 1968 steam locomotion had been entirely replaced by diesel and electric traction, except for one narrow-gauge tourist line. [[Passenger train|Passengers]] replaced [[freight train|freight]] as the main source of business, and one third of the network was closed by the [[Beeching Axe]] of the 1960s.

On privatisation, responsibility for track, signalling and stations was transferred to [[Railtrack]] and that for trains to the [[train operating companies]].

The British Rail "double arrow" logo is formed of two interlocked arrows showing the direction of travel on a [[double track]] railway and was nicknamed "the arrow of indecision".<ref>{{cite web  | last = Shannon| first = Paul| title = Blue Diesel Days| work = <!--This webpage is actually a publisher's advert for the book (ISBN 9780711032255), but shows online the usage of the phrase referenced. A link to the book itself might be better in due course...--> | publisher = [[Ian Allan Publishing]]| url = http://www.ianallanpublishing.com/product.php?productid=56658&cat=1027&bestseller=Y| accessdate = 2008-11-16}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> It is now employed as a generic symbol on street signs in Great Britain denoting railway stations, and as part of the [[Association of Train Operating Companies]]' jointly-managed [[National Rail]] brand is still being printed on railway tickets.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2002 (SI 2002:3113)| author=Her Majesty's Government | year=2002| url=http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2002/023113dh.gif| accessdate=2009-03-27 }}</ref>

== History ==
{{Main|History of rail transport in Great Britain 1948–1994}}

===Nationalisation in 1948===
[[File:70013 Oliver Cromwell Carlisle Kingmoor.jpg|thumb|BR steam locomotiive: number 70013 ''Oliver Cromwell'']]
[[File:Bishops Lydeard - D832 and D821 side by side.JPG|thumb|As BR modernised, diesel and electric locomotion gradually replaced steam. Pictured: two preserved 'Warship' class diesel-hydraulics]]
The rail transport system in Great Britain developed during the 19th century. After the grouping of 1923 under the [[Railways Act 1921]] there were four large railway companies, each dominating its own geographic area: the [[Great Western Railway]] (GWR), the [[London, Midland and Scottish Railway]] (LMS), the [[London and North Eastern Railway]] (LNER) and the [[Southern Railway (UK)|Southern Railway]] (SR). During [[World War I]] the railways were under state control, which continued until 1921. Complete [[nationalisation]] had been considered, and the [[Railways Act 1921]]<ref>{{cite hansard | title = The State and the Railways | url=http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/lords/1920/aug/03/the-state-and-the-railways | publisher = [[Hansard]] | house=[[House of Lords]] | date=1920-08-03 | accessdate= 2009-07-18 | column_start=711 | column_end=713 }}</ref> is sometimes considered as a precursor to that, but the concept was rejected; nationalisation was subsequently carried out after [[World War II]], under the [[Transport Act 1947]]. This Act made provision for the nationalisation of the network, as part of a policy of nationalising public services by [[Clement Attlee]]'s [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] Government. British Railways came into existence as the [[business name]] of the [[Railway Executive]] of the [[British Transport Commission]] (BTC) on 1 January 1948 when it took over the assets of the Big Four.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=67| title=Transport Act 1947| author=Her Majesty's Government | year=1947| work=The Railways Archive| publisher=(originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office)| accessdate=2006-11-25}}</ref>

There were also [[joint railway]]s between the big four and a few light railways to consider (see [[list of constituents of British Railways]]). Excluded from nationalisation were industrial lines like the [[Oxfordshire Ironstone Railway]]. The [[London Underground]] — publicly owned since 1933 — was also nationalised, becoming the [[London Transport Executive]] of the British Transport Commission. The [[Bicester Military Railway]] was already run by the government. The electric [[Liverpool Overhead Railway]] was also excluded from nationalisation.

The Railway Executive was conscious that some lines on the (then very dense) network were unprofitable and hard to justify socially, and a programme of closures began almost immediately after nationalisation. However, the general financial position of BR became gradually poorer, until an operating loss was recorded in 1955. The Executive itself had been abolished in 1953 by the Conservative government, and control of BR transferred directly to the parent Commission. Other changes to the British Transport Commission at the same time included the return of road haulage to the private sector.

{{clear left}}

====Regions====
British Railways was divided into regions. Initially based on the areas the former Big Four operated in, however several lines were transferred between regions over the years; Notably, this included the former [[Great Central Railway|Great Central]] lines from the Eastern Region to the London Midland Region, and the [[West of England Main Line]] from the Southern Region to Western Region
* [[Southern Region of British Railways]]; Former Southern Railway lines.
* [[Western Region of British Railways]]; Former Great Western Railway lines.
* [[London Midland Region of British Railways]] Former London Midland and Scottish Railway lines in England.
* [[Eastern Region of British Railways]] Former London and North Eastern Railway lines south of York.
* [[North Eastern Region of British Railways]] Former London and North Eastern Railway lines in England north of York.
* [[Scottish Region of British Railways]] All lines, regardless of original company, in Scotland.

The North Eastern Region was merged with the Eastern Region in 1967. In the 1980s, the regions were abolished and replaced by "business sectors", a process known as [[sectorisation]].

The Anglia Region was created in late 1987, its first General Manager being John Edmonds, who began his appointment on 19 October 1987. Full separation from the Eastern Region – apart from engineering design needs – occurred on 29 April 1988. It handled the services from {{stnlnk|Fenchurch Street}} and {{stnlnk|Liverpool Street}}, its western boundary being: {{stnlnk|Hertford East}}; {{stnlnk|Meldreth}}; and {{stnlnk|Whittlesea}}.<ref>{{cite journal |date=December 1987 |editor-last=Slater |editor-first=John |title=Anglia Region created |magazine=[[Railway Magazine]] |location=Cheam |publisher=Prospect Magazines |volume=133 |issue=1040 |page=758 |issn=0033-8923 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |date=July 1988 |editor1-last=Slater |editor1-first=John |title=Anglia takes over |magazine=[[Railway Magazine]] |location=Cheam |publisher=Prospect Magazines |volume=134 |issue=1047 |page=426 |issn=0033-8923 }}</ref>

===1955 Modernisation Plan===
{{see also|1955 Modernisation Plan}}
The report latterly known as the "Modernisation Plan"<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=23| title=Modernisation and Re-Equipment of British Rail| author=British Transport Commission| publisher=(Originally published by the British Transport Commission)|year=1954| work=The Railways Archive| accessdate=2006-11-25}}</ref> was published in January 1955. It was intended to bring the [[Rail transport|railway system]] into the 20th century. A government [[White Paper]] produced in 1956 stated that modernisation would help eliminate BR's financial deficit by 1962, but the figures in both this and the original plan were produced for political reasons and not based on detailed analysis.<ref name="last trains">Loft, Charles (2013) Last Trains - Dr Beeching and the Death of Rural England ISBN 9781849545006</ref> The aim was to increase speed, reliability, safety, and line capacity through a series of measures that would make services more attractive to passengers and freight operators, thus recovering traffic lost to the roads. Important areas included:
* [[Railway electrification system|Electrification]] of principal main lines, in the [[Eastern Region of British Railways|Eastern Region]], [[Kent]], Birmingham Liverpool/Manchester and Central [[Scotland]]
* Large-scale [[dieselisation]] to replace [[steam locomotives of British Railways|steam locomotives]]
* New passenger and freight [[rolling stock]]
* [[Railway signalling|Resignalling]] and track renewals
* Modern [[marshalling yard]]s
* The closure of an unspecified, but relatively small, number of lines

The government appeared to endorse the 1955 programme (costing £1.2&nbsp;billion), but did so largely for political reasons.<ref name="last trains"/> This included the withdrawal of steam traction and its replacement by diesel (and some electric) locomotives. Not all the modernisations would be effective at reducing costs. The dieselisation program gave contracts primarily to British suppliers, who had limited experience of diesel locomotive manufacture, and rushed commissioning based on an expectation of rapid electrification resulted in numbers of locomotives with poor designs, and a lack of standardisation.<ref name="b4873">{{cite book|title=British Railways, 1948-73: a business history|author=Terence Richard Gourvish|author2= N. Blake|publisher =Cambridge University Press| year =1986 |pages = 286–288}}</ref> At the same time containerised freight was being developed.<ref name="b4873"/> The marshalling yard building programme was a failure; being based on a belief in the continued viability of wagon load traffic in the face of increasingly effective road competition, and lacking effective forward planning or realistic assessments of future freight.<ref name="b4873">{{cite book|title=British Railways, 1948-73: a business history|author=Terence Richard Gourvish|author2= N. Blake|publisher =Cambridge University Press| year =1986 |pages = 288–290}}</ref>

===The Beeching report===
[[File:Beeching2.svg|thumb|right|upright|Network for development proposed in 1965 report ''"The Development of the Major Trunk Routes"'' (bold lines)]]
During the late 1950s, railway finances continued to worsen, whilst passenger numbers grew after restoring many services reduced during the war, and in 1959 the government stepped in, limiting the amount the BTC could spend without ministerial authority. A White Paper proposing reorganisation was published in the following year, and a new structure was brought into effect by the Transport Act 1962.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=116| title=Transport Act 1962| author=Her Majesty's Government | year=1962| work=The Railways Archive| publisher=(originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office)| accessdate=2006-11-25}}</ref> This abolished the Commission and replaced it by a number of separate Boards. These included a British Railways Board, which took over on 1 January 1963.
[[File:British Railways Delivery Truck London 1962.jpg|thumb|left|A [[Scammell Scarab]] truck in [[British Railways]] livery, London, 1962. British Railways was involved in numerous related businesses including  road haulage]]

Following semi-secret discussions on railway finances by the government-appointed Stedeford Committee in 1961, one of its members, [[Richard Beeching, Baron Beeching|Dr Richard Beeching]], was offered the post of chairing the BTC while it lasted, and then becoming the first Chairman of the British Railways Board.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/beeching_prog1.shtml "Back to Beeching"], BBC Radio 4, 27 February 2010</ref>

A major traffic census in April 1961, which lasted one week, was used in the compilation of a report on the future of the network. This report—''The Reshaping of British Railways''—was published by the BRB in March 1963.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=13| title=The Reshaping of British Railways - Part 1: Report| author=British Transport Commission| year=1963| work=The Railways Archive| publisher=(originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office)| accessdate=2006-11-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=35| title=The Reshaping of British Railways—Part 2: Maps| author=British Transport Commission| year=1963| work=The Railways Archive| publisher=(originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office)| accessdate=2006-11-25 }}</ref> The proposals, which became known as the "[[Beeching Axe]]", were dramatic.  A third of all passenger services and more than 4,000 of the 7,000 stations would close. Beeching, who is thought to have been the author of most of the report, set out some dire figures. One third of the network was carrying just 1% of the traffic. Of the 18,000 passenger coaches, 6,000 were said to be used only 18 times a year or less. Although maintaining them cost between £3m and £4m a year, they earned only about £0.5m.<ref>Richard Beeching "The Reshaping of British Railways",p.15</ref>

Most of the closures were carried out between 1963 and 1970 (including some which were not listed in the report) while other suggested closures were not carried out. The closures were heavily criticised at the time,<ref>[http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=236 "The Economics and Social Aspects of the Beeching Plan"]—Lord Stoneham, House of Lords, 1963</ref> and continue to be controversial.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://hitchensblog.mailonsunday.co.uk/2009/06/can-beeching-be-undone.html| title=Can Beeching be undone?| year=2009}}</ref> A small number of stations and lines closed under the Beeching programme have been reopened, with further reopenings proposed.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/8099912.stm "Move to reinstate lost rail lines"], BBC, 15 June 2009</ref>

A second Beeching report, "The Development of the Major Trunk Routes", followed in 1965.<ref>{{citation| url = http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docsummary.php?docID=14| title = The Development Of The Major Railway Trunk Routes | work =The Railways Archive|publisher = British Railways Board|date = February 1965}}</ref> This did not recommend closures as such, but outlined a "network for development". The fate of the rest of the network was not discussed in the report.

===Post-Beeching===

The basis for calculating passenger fares changed in 1964. In future, fares on some routes—such as rural, holiday and commuter services—would be set at a higher level than on other routes; previously, fares had been calculated using a simple rate for the distance travelled, which at the time was 3d per mile second class, and 4½d per mile first class<ref>{{cite journal |editor-first=B.W.C. |editor-last=Cooke |date=July 1964 |title=Notes and News: New fares structure |journal=[[Railway Magazine]] |volume=110 |issue=759 |page=592 |publisher=Tothill Press |location=Westminster }}</ref> (equivalent to £{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|{{#expr: 3 / 240}}|1964|{{CURRENTYEAR}}|r=2}}}} and £{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|{{#expr: 4.5 / 240}}|1964|{{CURRENTYEAR}}|r=2}}}} respectively, in {{CURRENTYEAR}}{{Inflation-fn|UK}}).

Passenger levels decreased steadily from 1962 to the late 1970s,<ref>The UK [http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_transstats/documents/divisionhomepage/031571.hcsp Department for Transport] (DfT), specifically Table 6.1 from [http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_transstats/documents/downloadable/dft_transstats_613483.pdf Transport Statistics Great Britain 2006] (4MB PDF file)</ref> but experienced a renaissance with the introduction of the high-speed [[InterCity 125]] trains in the late 1970s and early 1980s.<ref name="BRMP">{{cite book |last=Marsden |first=Colin J. |title=British Rail 1983 Motive Power: Combined Volume |year=1983 |publisher=Ian Allen |location=London |isbn=0-7110-1284-9}}</ref> Network improvements included completing electrification of the [[Great Eastern Main Line]] from London to Norwich between 1976 and 1986 and the [[East Coast Main Line]] from London to Edinburgh between 1985 and 1990.  A main line route closure during this period of relative network stability was the 1500V DC-electrified [[Woodhead Line]] between Manchester and Sheffield: passenger service ceased in 1970 and goods in 1981.

The 1980s and 1990s saw the closure of a number of railways which had survived the Beeching Axe a generation earlier, but which had seen passenger services withdrawn. This included the bulk of the [[Chester and Connah's Quay Railway]] in 1992, the [[Brierley Hill]] to [[Walsall]] section of the [[South Staffordshire Line]] in 1993, while the [[Birmingham]] to [[Wolverhampton]] section of the [[Great Western Railway]] was closed in three phases between 1972 and 1992.  

A further British Rail report, from a committee chaired by Sir [[David Serpell]], was published in 1983.  The [[Serpell Report]] made no recommendations as such, but did set out various options for the network including, at their most extreme, a skeletal system of less than 2000 route km.  This report was not welcomed, and the government decided to quietly leave it on the shelf.  Meanwhile, BR was gradually re-organised, with the regional structure finally being abolished and replaced with business-led sectors. This process, known as "sectorisation", led to far greater customer focus, but was cut short in 1994 with the splitting up of BR for privatisation.

[[File:Charing Cross station geograph-3300926-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg|thumb|[[Network SouthEast]] with a [[Networker (train)|Networker]] at [[Charing Cross railway station|Charing Cross]] serving [[Kent]].]]
Upon sectorisation in 1982, three passenger sectors were created: [[InterCity (British Rail)|InterCity]], operating principal express services; London & South East (renamed [[Network SouthEast]] in 1986) operating commuter services in the London area; and Provincial (renamed [[Regional Railways]] in 1989) responsible for all other passenger services.<ref name="Thomas"/>  In the [[metropolitan county|metropolitan counties]] local services were managed by the [[Passenger Transport Executive]]s.  Provincial was the most subsidised (per passenger km) of the three sectors; upon formation, its costs were four times its [[revenue]].<ref name="Thomas">{{cite book | first=David St John | last=Thomas |author2=Whitehouse, Patrick | year=1990 | title=BR in the Eighties | publisher= David & Charles | location=Newton Abbot | isbn=0-7153-9854-7 }}</ref>

Because British Railways was such a large operation, running not just railways but also ferries, steamships and hotels, it has been considered difficult to analyse the effects of nationalization.<ref>{{cite book|last=Boocokc|first=Colin|title=Spotlight on BR: British Railways 1948-1998 Success or Disaster?|isbn=9780906899984}}</ref>  During the 1980s British Rail ran the [[Rail Riders]] membership club aimed at 5–15 year olds.

==Branding==
{{main|British Rail corporate liveries}}
[[File:40128 LLG 070882.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Rail Blue colours - [[British Rail Class 40|Class 40]] 40128 with blue and grey coaching at [[Llandudno railway station|Llandudno]] in 1982]]
Following nationalisation in 1948, British Railways began to adapt the corporate liveries on the rolling stock it had inherited from its predecessor railway companies. Initially, a [[Great Western Railway|GWR]]-style [[Brunswick green]] was used on passenger locomotives, and [[London and North Western Railway|LNWR]]-style lined black for mixed-traffic locomotives, but later green was more widely adopted.<ref>Brian Haresnape ''Railway Liveries. BR Steam 1948-1968''</ref>{{sfn|Height|Cresswell|1979}}

Development of a corporate identity for the organisation was hampered by the competing ambitions of the [[British Transport Commission]] and the [[Railway Executive]]. The Executive attempted to introduce a modern, curved logo which could also serve as the standard for station signage totems. Due to its similarity to a [[hot dog]], it became known as the "flying sausage". BR eventually adopted the common branding of the BTC as its first corporate logo, an [[Art Deco]]-style motif of a [[Lion (heraldry)|lion]] astride a spoked wheel, designed for the BTC by [[Cecil Thomas (sculptor)|Cecil Thomas]]; on the bar overlaid across the wheel, the BTC's name was replaced with the words "British Railways". This logo, nicknamed the  "Cycling Lion", was applied from 1948–1956 to the sides of locomotives, while the sausage logo was adopted for station signs across Great Britain, each coloured according to the appropriate BR region.{{sfn|Jackson|2013}}

In 1956, the BTC was granted a [[Achievement (heraldry)|heraldic achievement]] by the [[College of Arms]] and the [[Lord Lyon]], and then BTC chairman [[Brian Robertson, 1st Baron Robertson of Oakridge|Brian Robertson]] wanted a grander logo for the railways. BR's second corporate logo (1956–1965), designed in consultation with [[Charles Franklyn]], adapted the original, depicting a rampant lion emerging from a [[Crown (heraldry)|heraldic crown]] and holding a spoked wheel, all enclosed in a roundel with the "British Railways" name displayed across a bar on either side. This emblem soon acquired the nickname of the "Ferret and Dartboard". A variant of the logo with the name in a circle was also used on locomotives.{{sfn|Jackson|2013}}

The zeal for modernisation in the Beeching era drove the next rebranding exercise, and BR management wished to divest the organisation of anachronistic, herdaldic motifs and develop a corporate identity to rival that of [[London Transport Board|London Transport]]. BR's design panel set up a working party led by [[Milner Gray (designer)|Milner Gray]] of the [[Design Research Unit]]. They drew up a Corporate Identity Manual which established a coherent brand and design standard for the whole organisation, specifying [[Rail Blue]] and pearl grey as the standard colour scheme for all rolling stock; [[Rail Alphabet]] as the standard corporate typeface, designed by [[Jock Kinneir]] and [[Margaret Calvert]]; and introducing the now-iconic Corporate Identity Symbol of the "Double Arrow" logo. Designed by [[Gerald Barney]]  (also of the DRU), this arrow device was formed of two interlocked arrows across two parallel lines, symbolising a double track railway. It was likened to a bolt of [[lightning]] or [[barbed wire]], and also acquired a nickname: "the arrow of indecision". The new BR corporate identity and Double Arrow were rolled out in 1965, and the brand name of the organisation was truncated to "British Rail".{{sfn|Jackson|2013}}{{sfn|Height|Cresswell|1979}}

The uniformity of BR branding continued until the process of [[sectorisation]] was introduced in the 1980s. Certain BR operations such as Inter-City, Network SouthEast or Railfreight began to adopt their own identities, introducing logos and colour schemes which were essentially variants of the British Rail brand. Eventually, as sectorisation developed into a prelude to privatisation, the unified British Rail brand disappeared, with the notable exception of the Double Arrow symbol, which has survived to this day and serves as a [[generic trademark]] to denote railway services across Great Britain.{{sfn|Jackson|2013}}

<gallery>
File:The first emblem of British Railways (6870888583).jpg|The first emblem of British Railways, the "Cycling Lion" (1950-1956)
File:British Railways London Midland Region station totem for Liverpool Central Low Level.jpg|Liverpool Central station sign using the "Flying Sausage" format
File:British Railways 1956 logotype.jpg|The "Ferret & Dartboard" crest (1956–1965)
File:British Railways 1956 logotype.png|A circular variant of the 1956 logo
File:Good old British Rail logo (7417051300).jpg|The British Rail "Double Arrow" (1965)
</gallery>

== Finances ==
{{editorial|date=December 2014}}{{incoherent|date=December 2014}}{{spacing|date=December 2014}}
Despite being  nationalised in 1947 "as one of the ‘commanding heights’ of the economy",<ref>http://www.rail.co.uk/british-railway-history/british-railways/</ref> British Rail was not profitable for many years, probably most or all<ref>http://www.rail.co.uk/british-railway-history/</ref> with narrow income (according to different sources).<ref>British Railways 1948-73: A Business History, T. R. Gourvish</ref> In fact there were examples (even during the 1990s), according to newspapers, that public subsidy was counted as profit.<ref>http://www.independent.co.uk/news/british-rail-profit-figure-masks-doubling-of-subsidy-1589866.html</ref> As early as 1961, British Railways were losing £300,000 every day.<ref>http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2013/03/fifty-years-on-from-beeching-and-britains-railways-are-better-than-ever/</ref> It was thought that most of the nationalised railways, excluding some freight services, may, like any other privatised business with no income in the UK, cease to operate .<ref>http://cs.trains.com/trn/f/111/t/225359.aspx</ref>  In fact the nationalisation saved private business, helping investors who often achieved income in previous decades (e.g. 1870-1912).<ref>"HOW GOOD WAS THE PROFITABILITY OF BRITISH
RAILWAYS, 1870-1912?, BRIAN MITCHELL, DAVID CHAMBERS, & NICHOLAS CRAFTS"</ref> Other usual discussion arguments cites the role of British rail as a sole transport option for many rural areas. However, after "[[Beeching Axe|The Beeching Report]]" many connections to towns and villages were cut, (whilst car ownership was growing) and public transport was nothing or based on coaches.<ref>http://www.jrtr.net/jrtr09/f12_wek.html</ref> Despite increase in cars and also road fuel prices since the 1990s, British Rail remained unprofitable.<ref>http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/9946655/Petrol-sales-plummet-to-lowest-level-since-1990.html</ref>

[[File:19960604 02 Inverness railway station (5459979006).jpg|thumb|[[Inverness railway station|Inverness station]] with [[British Rail Class 158]]s.]]

===British Rail Investment===
{{incomplete|section|date=February 2013}}
British Rail rebuilt [[London Liverpool Street]] in 1991, opened by [[Elizabeth II|H.M. Queen Elizabeth II]]. British Rail constructed a new station at [[Stansted Airport railway station|Stansted Airport]] in 1991. British Rail re-opened the line to [[Aberdare]] in 1988 and the [[Maesteg Line]] in 1992. Electrified the line to [[King's Lynn railway station|King's Lynn]] in 1992. In 1988, an Advert for ''British Rail'' directed by [[Hugh Hudson]] was made called 'Britain's Railway' and shows some of the most iconic railway structures in Britain including the [[Forth Rail Bridge]], [[Royal Albert Bridge]], [[Glenfinnan Viaduct]] and [[London Paddington station]].<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsyyJaX0j3Y "Britain's Railway Advert"]</ref>

===Privatisation of British Rail===
{{main|Privatisation of British Rail}}
Between 1994 and 1997, [[Privatisation of British Rail|British Rail was privatised]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=12| title=Railways Act 1993| author=Her Majesty's Government | year=1903| work=The Railways Archive| publisher=(originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office)| accessdate=2006-11-26}}</ref> Ownership of the track and infrastructure passed to [[Railtrack]] on 1 April 1994; afterwards passenger operations were franchised to individual private-sector operators (originally there were 25 franchises); and the freight services sold outright (six companies were set up, but five of these were sold to the same buyer).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ews-railway.co.uk/about/history.html |title=EWS Railway—Company History |accessdate=2006-11-26 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20060930234359/http://www.ews-railway.co.uk/about/history.html <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2006-09-30}}</ref> [[File:Waterloo-city-1992.jpg|thumb|[[Waterloo and City line]] was part of [[Network SouthEast]].]]
The [[Waterloo and City line]] had been part of BR Network SouthEast and was not included in the privatisation. It was transferred to [[London Underground]] in December 1994. The remaining obligations of British Rail not mentioned above were transferred to [[BRB (Residuary) Ltd.]]

At the time privatisation of British Rail was proposed by the Conservative government in 1992 many bodies opposed the process, including the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour party]] and the rail unions. The Labour party initially proposed to reverse the nationalisation process;<ref>{{citation| url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/blair-softpedals-over-reversing-br-privatisation-1567308.html| title = Blair soft-pedals over reversing BR privatisation| first  =Donald| last =- Macintyre| date = 10 January 1995| work = www.independent.co.uk}}</ref> however the [[New Labour]] manifesto of 1997 did not propose to reverse privatisation but opposed Conservative plans for privatisation of the [[London Underground]].<ref>{{citation| url = http://www.labour-party.org.uk/manifestos/1997/1997-labour-manifesto.shtml|at = Railways| title = Labour Party Manifesto| year = 1997| work = www.labour-party.org.uk (website unaffiliated with the official Labour Party)}}</ref>

Rail unions have been historically opposed to the privatisation; however in 2004 ASLEF general secretary, [[Lew Adams]] stated on a radio phone-in program: ''"All the time it was in the public sector, all we got were cuts, cuts, cuts. And today there are more members in the trade union, more train drivers, and more trains running. The reality is that it worked, we’ve protected jobs, and we got more jobs."''<ref>{{citation| url = http://www.pppcouncil.ca/pdf/cknw.pdf | title = TRANSCRIPT FROM THE BILL GOOD SHOW, CKNW RADIO, VANCOUVER - Interview with Lew Adams, Board Member, Strategic Rail Authority, UK | date  =26 November 2004| publisher = Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships website| type = transcript}}</ref>

==Accidents and incidents==
{{main|List of accidents on British Rail}}

== Network ==
The former BR network, with the trunk routes of the [[West Coast Main Line]], [[East Coast Main Line]], [[Great Western Main Line]] and [[Midland Main Line]], remains mostly unchanged since privatisation. Several lines have reopened and more are proposed, particularly in [[Scotland]] and [[Wales]] where the control of railway passenger services is devolved from central government. However, in England passenger trains have returned to Mansfield, [[Corby railway station|Corby]], [[Chandlers Ford railway station|Chandlers Ford]], the reopened line to [[Aylesbury Vale Parkway railway station|Aylesbury Vale Parkway]] and there are numerous other proposals to restore services, such as Oxford-Milton Keynes/Aylesbury, [[Wealden Line|Lewes-Uckfield]], Bristol-Portishead and Plymouth-Tavistock. In London, Tyne and Wear, Greater Manchester, the West Midlands and Nottingham urban light-rail systems have taken over the routes of some former BR routes.

In Wales, the Welsh Assembly Government successfully supported the re-opening to passenger services, of the [[Vale of Glamorgan Line]] between Barry and Bridgend in 2005. In 2008 the [[Ebbw Valley Railway]] reopened between [[Ebbw Vale Parkway railway station|Ebbw Vale Parkway]] and [[Cardiff Central railway station|Cardiff]], with services to Newport scheduled to commence by 2011. (The Barry-Bridgend route was included in the closures proposed in the Beeching report of March 1963 and its services were duly withdrawn in June 1964, but Ebbw Vale had already been closed to passengers before the report was published.)

In Scotland the Scottish Government have reinstated the lines between [[Argyle Line#Extensions|Hamilton and Larkhall]], [[Stirling-Alloa-Kincardine rail link|Stirling and Alloa]], and [[Airdrie-Bathgate Rail Link|Airdrie to Bathgate]]. The biggest line reinstatement project was the rebuilding of part of the former [[Waverley Route]] from Edinburgh to Carlisle as the [[Borders Railway]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.waverleyrailwayproject.co.uk/route.php| title=Waverley Rail Project route}}</ref>

==Preserved Railway Lines==
On its creation British Railways included the narrow gauge [[Vale of Rheidol Railway]] in Wales. Although built as a working railway, this line was by that time already principally a tourist asset. British Rail continued to operate the line, using steam locomotives, well beyond the withdrawal of standard gauge steam. The line's three steam locomotives became the only steam engines to receive [[TOPS]] serial numbers, and the only steam engines to be painted in BR Rail Blue livery, and to carry the double arrow logo. The Vale of Rheidol Railway was privatised in 1989, and continues to operate as a private heritage railway.

Other preserved lines, or [[Heritage railways]], have reopened some lines previously closed by British Rail.  These range from picturesque rural branch lines like the [[Keighley and Worth Valley Railway]] to sections of mainline such as the [[Great Central Railway]].  Many have links to the National Rail network, both station interchange, for instance the [[Severn Valley Railway]] between {{stnlnk|Kidderminster}} and [[Kidderminster Town]], and physical rail connections like the [[Watercress Line]] at {{stnlnk|Alton}}.

Although most are operated solely as leisure amenities some also provide educational resources, and a few have ambitions to restore commercial services over routes abandoned by the nationalised industry.

==Ships==
{{main|British Railways ships}}
British Railways operated a number of ships from its formation in 1948 on a variety of routes. Many ships were acquired on nationalisation, and others were built for operation by British Railways or its later subsidiary, [[Sealink]]. Those ships capable of carrying rail vehicles were classed under [[TOPS]] as [[British Rail Class 99|Class 99]].
[[File:Larne harbour (1984) - geograph.org.uk - 1158519.jpg|thumb|[[Sealink]] MV ''St David'' berthed in [[Larne]].]]

==Seaspeed==
Hovercraft services run by Seaspeed.

== Successor companies ==
{{See also|History of rail transport in Great Britain 1995 to date|Privatisation of British Rail}}
[[File:Class 156 Manchester 1st North Western.png|thumb|right|A [[First North Western]] Class 156 at Romiley Junction station, near Manchester in the year 2001. It is in its former Regional Railways livery.]]
Under the process of British Rail's privatisation, operations were split into more than 100 companies. The ownership and operation of the infrastructure of the railway system was taken over by [[Railtrack]]. The Telecomms infrastructure and [[British Rail Telecommunications]] was sold to [[Racal]], which in turn was sold to [[Global Crossing]] and merged with [[Thales Group]]. The rolling stock was transferred to three private [[rolling stock operating company|ROSCO]]s (rolling stock companies). Passenger services were divided into 25 operating companies, which were let on a franchise basis for a set number of years, whilst goods services were sold off completely. Dozens of smaller engineering and maintenance companies were also created and sold off.

British Rail's passenger services came to an end upon the franchising of [[ScotRail (British Rail)|ScotRail]]; the final train that the company operated was a [[Railfreight Distribution]] goods train in autumn 1997. The British Railways Board continued in existence as a corporation until early 2001, when it was replaced with the [[Strategic Rail Authority]].

Since privatisation, the structure of the rail industry and number of companies has changed a number of times as franchises have been relet and the areas covered by franchises restructured. Franchise-based companies that took over passenger rail services include:

*[[Midland Mainline]]—superseded in 2007 by [[East Midlands Trains]]
*[[Great North Eastern Railway]]—superseded in 2007 by [[National Express East Coast]], which has since been brought back full circle into public ownership with the creation of the new government controlled [[East Coast (train operating company)|East Coast]] operator.  The East Coast franchise was transferred to [[Virgin Trains East Coast]] on 1 March 2015.
*[[Virgin Trains]] (West Coast)
*[[Virgin CrossCountry]]—superseded in 2007 by [[CrossCountry]]
*[[ScotRail (National Express)|ScotRail]] ''operated by National Express''—superseded in 2004 by [[First ScotRail]]. Control of the franchise has since passed to [[Abellio ScotRail]]
*Great Western Trains—from 1998: [[Great Western Railway (train operating company)|Great Western Railway]]
*[[Wales & West]]—became [[Wessex Trains]] and [[Wales & Borders]] (including the [[Valley Lines (train operating company)|Cardiff Railway Company]] services operated as Valley Lines) in 2001, after being split into two separate franchises, and now run by [[Great Western Railway (train operating company)|Great Western Railway]] and [[Arriva Trains Wales]]
*[[Arriva Trains Northern]] originally Northern Spirit, succeeded in 2004 by [[First TransPennine Express]] and [[Northern Rail]]
*[[First North Western]] originally [[North Western Trains]], succeeded in 2004 by [[First TransPennine Express]] and [[Northern Rail]]
*[[Anglia Railways]], Great Eastern (later [[First Great Eastern]]), and the West Anglia section of [[West Anglia Great Northern|WAGN]] were all merged to become One later renamed [[National Express East Anglia]], superseded in 2012 by [[Abellio Greater Anglia]]
*[[Thameslink]] and Great Northern Section of [[West Anglia Great Northern|WAGN]] grouped together to form [[First Capital Connect]] as part of the Thameslink Great Northern Franchise. 
*LTS later renamed [[c2c]]
*[[Connex South Eastern]] became [[South Eastern Trains]], then [[Southeastern (train operating company)|Southeastern]]
*[[Connex South Central]] became South Central and later renamed [[Southern (train operating company)|Southern]]
*Merseyrail Electrics superseded by [[Arriva Trains Merseyside]] and now [[Merseyrail]]
*[[South West Trains]]
*[[Central Trains]]—divided in 2007 between [[London Midland]], [[CrossCountry]] and [[East Midlands Trains]]
*[[London Underground]] for the short underground [[Waterloo & City line]]
*[[Silverlink Trains]]—divided in 2007 between [[London Overground]] and [[London Midland]]

==Future==
Since Privatisation, many Groups have campaigned for the Renationalisation of British Rail, most notably 'Bring Back British Rail'. Various interested parties also have views on the Privatisation of British Rail future shape of the privatised British railways.

The renationalisation of the railways of Britain continue to have popular support. A poll in 2012 showed 70% support for renationalisation.

Due to Rail franchising in Great Britain lasting sometimes over a decade, full renationalisation would take years unless compensation was paid to terminate contracts early. The former Green Party of England and Wales leader Caroline Lucas has submitted a Private Member's Bill calling for individual franchises, when they expire or when a company fails to meet its franchise conditions, to fall back into public ownership, this will avoid expensive compensation to the rail companies.

When the infrastructure owning company Railtrack ceased trading the Labour government set up a not for dividend company Network Rail to take over the duties rather than renationalise this part of the network. However On 1 September 2014, Network Rail was reclassified as a central government body, adding around £34 billion to public sector net debt. This reclassification had been requested by the Office for Budget Responsibility to comply with European System of Accounts ESA10.

==Parody==
In 1989, the ITV Sketch Show ''Spitting Image'' made a parody of Hudson's ''British Rail'' advert on the plans of the Conservatives to privatise the railways featuring numerous of the show's puppets (including the show's portrayal of Margaret Thatcher), numerous BR trains and landmarks and even a cardboard cutout of Thomas the Tank Engine.