What We Plan to Deliver in 2022-23

For the rail industry, as for many, the past year has been disrupted by the continued effects of Covid-19. We still don't know what the 'new normal' will look like. And the coming year will, again, be one of change, or rather transition. But we are clear on one thing for 2022-23, we will continue to concentrate on the maintenance of safety and the development of standards.

Our 2022-23 Business Plan lays out our high-level thinking for how we will do this. Our work on safety is highlighted in the Safer Rail and Harmonised Rail sections of the plan. But our work in the coming year won't just be about safety. We recognise the government's priorities, and will be working with our members and other partners to deliver for the industry. This will include:

• support for the reopening of branch lines, and other initiatives that will deliver social value for the economy and wider society
• decarbonisation, alternative fuels, and improved air quality
• development of the Whole Industry Strategic Plan (WISP), in particular its health and safety elements
• working with the industry on sector reform, contributing to relevant target operating models and to safety validation during rail reform.

The storms that hit the UK in February 2022, showed us some of the effects of climate change. This made clear the importance of our innovation work. We will work with the Great British Railways (GBR) Transition Team to embed the Rail Technical Strategy and align its long-term vision with that of the WISP. We will use risk-based foreseeable scenarios to work with the Asset Integrity Group and National Freight Safety Group to gain insights into how environmental vulnerability might affect the risk faced by organisations, operations and assets.

A major part of our work to lessen the impacts of climate change will be led by our leadership of the industry's work on sustainability. The Sustainable Rail Blueprint will push rail towards net-zero emissions by 2050; and support our position as the backbone of Britain's sustainable transport network. Our efforts on noise, biodiversity, and other resources will further that reputation.

One of GBR's aims is to increase the efficiency of the railway network. Much of our work in the field of Efficient Rail will be based on new and better use of data. This will support both operational and investment decisions. We will pilot the Managing Disruption Toolkit, look at how very-short-term planning for freight routes can be made more effective, and the ways that industry data is formatted, shared, and analysed.

All of these plans are baked into our own strategic objectives. We have already reorganised our engagement team to help our members get the best out of our services and resources, introducing a delivery unit to support effective implementation. To deliver an excellent customer experience and the best value for money that we are able. We will develop our range of services and resources and, where appropriate, offer them on a commercial basis, to reduce the burden of the member levy.

Throughout the coming transition period, RSSB will remain a centre of certainty. Certainty that we will not allow safety to be compromised. And that we will continue to support our members through this period of change.