The british rail network has reached a crossroads in its journey, if you'll forgive the slight confusion of transport types. Behind it lies a decade of unrelenting struggle. Just about every aspect of its organisation and operation has been attacked, often with a passion that hasn't been entirely rational. And as a result of those attacks, the part of the system that deals with the fixed assets of track and signals has been continually mucked about with. Now the focus has narrowed to a single issue, and another big change to the institutional structure is being contemplated. The issue is cost cutting, and the changes could mean quiet times ahead for major rail contractors. Cost has become such a big issue for the rail sector for a number of reasons. The most proximate cause is that the stewardship of public services has become an electoral issue for the Labour and Conservative parties, both of which are linking the issue with taxation and their managerial competence. At the same time it is proving next to impossible to cost large rail projects. The apotheosis of this is the West Coast Main Line upgrade. The projected cost of this project has risen from C2bn in the mid-1990s to an expected out-turn cost of pound;7.6bn. It would have been pound;10bn had parts of the scheme not been downgraded.
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