Nigel Pendse wrote:

I agree with most of what you say, but not this bit ...

I suspect the two recent derailments are almost certainly due
to standards that have been falling for some time and not as a
result of PFI.

True for Hammersmith, but there is no evidence that the Camden Town
derailment was due to falling standards. At present the cause looks like a
system design weakness not previously understood (where system = track +
train).
--
Richard J.
(to e-mail me, swap uk and yon in address)