Why Do Standards Make Now an Exciting Time for Freight?

So why is now such an exciting time for freight? Because simultaneously, different factors are demonstrating the importance of freight services in general to the UK economy, and the advantages specific to rail freight.

First is the railway’s decarbonisation agenda in the context of UK transport. Rail is already the best transport mode from an environmental perspective. However, the UK needs to reach net carbon zero by 2050, and in Scotland by 2045. Increasing rail’s decarbonisation performance would make rail freight the low-carbon freight mode par excellence. From this perspective, the use of rail freight now should increase.

A second factor is the pressures experienced by the road haulage sector as the demand for freight services increased post Brexit. Media coverage of this issue focused on road haulage solutions, such as training more HGV drivers or providing more HGV driver facilities on major routes. Unfortunately, these road-related solutions will take years to deliver real benefits to freight customers. However, although rail freight’s potential has been mentioned very occasionally if at all, significant freight customers have already increased their usage of rail. For instance, Tesco, with their familiar branded container wagons, has increased its rail freight service across the network, with plans to increase this further in 2022. From this perspective, the use of rail freight now can increase.

The third factor needs almost no explanation - that being the significant reduction in commuting passenger numbers since the pandemic. While many will come back, rail can no longer rely on the revenue from the previous continual growth in passenger numbers. From this perspective, the use of rail freight now must increase.

There are also other potential opportunities where the speed advantage of rail, especially for higher value, low volume freight is attractive.  

Individually, these factors are very strong drivers for growth in rail freight. Their occurrence together is a rare and compelling opportunity for rail freight to grow and increase its contribution to the wider UK economy. Hence the excitement.

So why do we need standards to deliver this potential? After all, it’s not rocket science is it? Well, maybe it is. Just like a space rocket, freight trains require a thorough understanding of the physics involved. The art of the possible, whether that’s achieving orbit or running a longer, faster freight train, is made real by research and codified, peer-reviewed practices. This means standards help unlock the potential, enabling the freight sector to grasp new and emerging commercial opportunities, such as major supermarkets or fast-moving goods such as medicines. 

Whether it’s wheelsets, preventing derailment, transporting dangerous goods or enabling fuel-saving, standards are key in establishing the framework for growth in rail freight, including new customers and their needs. By enabling the co-ordination of multiple companies and organisations, standards could enable significant growth in rail freight, and significant benefits to the UK economy. Far from being dull but worthy, work on standards and freight right now is extremely exciting.