Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
|
London Transport (uk.transport.london) Discussion of all forms of transport in London. |
Reply |
|
LinkBack | Thread Tools | Display Modes |
|
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Reuters announce Chiltern Railways for sale
On Jul 6, 11:36 am, Steve Broadbent wrote:
In article . com, wrote: There are suggestions going round that whilst Chiltern is doing very well on punctuality etc. there are many problems to do with other "key performance indicators" linked to retaining the franchise that need very urgent attention. (suggested as one reason behind the change of MD recently announced) - so whilst it may seem to be doing very well it could be that there are issues that need to be resolved elsewhere in the company that we aren't aware of. Tony and this weeks Transit magazine shows chiltern's latest financial figures, indicating that the previous year's decent profit has been turned into a reasonable loss.... SB I spy a bank or venture capitalist firm lurking about...! Chiltern Railways- "Not As Good As We Think We Are" --- But they are better than some of the rest! |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Reuters announce Chiltern Railways for sale
"chunky munky" wrote in message ups.com... On Jul 6, 11:36 am, Steve Broadbent wrote: In article . com, wrote: There are suggestions going round that whilst Chiltern is doing very well on punctuality etc. there are many problems to do with other "key performance indicators" linked to retaining the franchise that need very urgent attention. (suggested as one reason behind the change of MD recently announced) - so whilst it may seem to be doing very well it could be that there are issues that need to be resolved elsewhere in the company that we aren't aware of. Tony and this weeks Transit magazine shows chiltern's latest financial figures, indicating that the previous year's decent profit has been turned into a reasonable loss.... SB I spy a bank or venture capitalist firm lurking about...! What isn't clear is if Henderson is selling Laing Rail, which is Chilterns parent, or just Chiltern. If they are selling Laing Rail division, is there any reason why GoVia, the second placed for the London Rail concession, couldn't buy it? I thought they were in with a shout for the Ovewrground, if only because there will be a lot of interaction between the ELL/WLL and other GoVia/Southern routes. Same applies to services through Snow Hill now as well of course with West Midlands... Paul Paul |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
Reuters announce Chiltern Railways for sale
In article ,
"Paul Scott" wrote: "chunky munky" wrote in message ups.com... On Jul 6, 11:36 am, Steve Broadbent wrote: In article . com, wrote: There are suggestions going round that whilst Chiltern is doing very well on punctuality etc. there are many problems to do with other "key performance indicators" linked to retaining the franchise that need very urgent attention. (suggested as one reason behind the change of MD recently announced) - so whilst it may seem to be doing very well it could be that there are issues that need to be resolved elsewhere in the company that we aren't aware of. Tony and this weeks Transit magazine shows chiltern's latest financial figures, indicating that the previous year's decent profit has been turned into a reasonable loss.... SB I spy a bank or venture capitalist firm lurking about...! What isn't clear is if Henderson is selling Laing Rail, which is Chilterns parent, or just Chiltern. If they are selling Laing Rail division, is there any reason why GoVia, the second placed for the London Rail concession, couldn't buy it? I thought they were in with a shout for the Ovewrground, if only because there will be a lot of interaction between the ELL/WLL and other GoVia/Southern routes. Same applies to services through Snow Hill now as well of course with West Midlands... any body can buy it, another TOC's parent, a would be TOC, merchant bank, Sainsburys, but what is it worth... Transit says the company net worth is £3 million, it is making a loss and has 15 years to run as a franchise, so £50 should easily buy it?? Plus, if relevant, the half share in London Overground. SB |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
Reuters announce Chiltern Railways for sale
On 6 Jul, 13:10, Steve Broadbent wrote:
In article , "Paul Scott" wrote: "chunky munky" wrote in message oups.com... On Jul 6, 11:36 am, Steve Broadbent wrote: In article . com, wrote: There are suggestions going round that whilst Chiltern is doing very well on punctuality etc. there are many problems to do with other "key performance indicators" linked to retaining the franchise that need very urgent attention. (suggested as one reason behind the change of MD recently announced) - so whilst it may seem to be doing very well it could be that there are issues that need to be resolved elsewhere in the company that we aren't aware of. Tony and this weeks Transit magazine shows chiltern's latest financial figures, indicating that the previous year's decent profit has been turned into a reasonable loss.... SB I spy a bank or venture capitalist firm lurking about...! What isn't clear is if Henderson is selling Laing Rail, which is Chilterns parent, or just Chiltern. If they are selling Laing Rail division, is there any reason why GoVia, the second placed for the London Rail concession, couldn't buy it? I thought they were in with a shout for the Ovewrground, if only because there will be a lot of interaction between the ELL/WLL and other GoVia/Southern routes. Same applies to services through Snow Hill now as well of course with West Midlands... any body can buy it, another TOC's parent, a would be TOC, merchant bank, Sainsburys, but what is it worth... Transit says the company net worth is £3 million, it is making a loss and has 15 years to run as a franchise, so £50 should easily buy it?? Plus, if relevant, the half share in London Overground. Just to clarify, the share in London Overground belongs to John Laing Group, not Chiltern Railways, so it will not necessarily be included in any sale of the latter. Also, as far as I am aware, it has not been stated that the split between John Laing and MTR in the London Overground Consortium is 50/50. It might be 60/40 or 40/60 for all we know. Or 10/90 ... etc. The Gerrards Cross fiasco has cost Chiltern dear. Apparently, during the blockade, many Chiltern passengers found viable alternatives and have not returned to rail in the numbers expected. The nearby M40 is not such a bad option, either by coach or by car. In addition, at long last, the Virgin Trains service between Birmingham New Street and London Euston has experienced a strong revival. At least some of the passengers using this must have moved back from Chiltern Railways' services between Snow Hill/Moor Street and London Marylebone. Anyway, the result is that the Birmingham traffic on Chiltern, which experienced explosive growth, only to be cut short by the Gerrards Cross blockade, is now being hit by competition from a much faster (although vastly more expensive) Virgin Trains service, and is therefore growing much more slowly than expected. The ownership of John Laing Group by Henderson was always going to mean changes. Whereas Laing had always taken a longer-term view, and made strategic decisions, Henderson Global Investors Limited is unashamedly focused on shareholder value, which means that underperformance will not be tolerated for long. It will be interesting to see who buys Chiltern. In my view, a trade sale to another transport operator is far more likely than a sale to another finacial institution. A Train Operating Company is unlikely to appeal to a private equity firm, for example, as there are few assets that can be realised and the scope for rapidly increasing profit performance simply does not exist because of the inertia that is built into the franchise agreement. My money will be on one of the TOCs that will have been disappointed in the current tound of franchise awards. National Express Group is one possibiity, but there are others. |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
Reuters announce Chiltern Railways for sale
In addition, at long last, the Virgin Trains service between Birmingham New Street and London Euston has experienced a strong revival. At least some of the passengers using this must have moved back from Chiltern Railways' services between Snow Hill/Moor Street and London Marylebone. Anyway, the result is that the Birmingham traffic on Chiltern, which experienced explosive growth, only to be cut short by the Gerrards Cross blockade, is now being hit by competition from a much faster (although vastly more expensive) Virgin Trains service, and is therefore growing much more slowly than expected. I can't say I've ever noticed much demand from Birmingham whenever I've used it. Warwick Parkway is a different story, in the peak it's Warwick that fills the trains and I would guess Virgin's business from Coventry has been hit hard. The Parkway station is so much easier to drive to than the congested city centre. |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Reuters announce Chiltern Railways for sale
On Jul 6, 11:58 am, "Paul Scott"
wrote: "chunky munky" wrote in message ups.com... On Jul 6, 11:36 am, Steve Broadbent wrote: In article . com, wrote: There are suggestions going round that whilst Chiltern is doing very well on punctuality etc. there are many problems to do with other "key performance indicators" linked to retaining the franchise that need very urgent attention. (suggested as one reason behind the change of MD recently announced) - so whilst it may seem to be doing very well it could be that there are issues that need to be resolved elsewhere in the company that we aren't aware of. Tony and this weeks Transit magazine shows chiltern's latest financial figures, indicating that the previous year's decent profit has been turned into a reasonable loss.... SB I spy a bank or venture capitalist firm lurking about...! What isn't clear is if Henderson is selling Laing Rail, which is Chilterns parent, or just Chiltern. If they are selling Laing Rail division, is there any reason why GoVia, the second placed for the London Rail concession, couldn't buy it? I thought they were in with a shout for the Ovewrground, if only because there will be a lot of interaction between the ELL/WLL and other GoVia/Southern routes. Same applies to services through Snow Hill now as well of course with West Midlands... Paul Paul- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - Their is a link between Laing Rail & Renaissance Trains, that gave rise to WSMR. It will be interesting to see what happens to WSMR application as an open access operator as the sale of Chiltern Railways progresses Hobenius |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
Reuters announce Chiltern Railways for sale
On 6 Jul, 11:39, chunky munky wrote:
On Jul 6, 11:36 am, Steve Broadbent wrote: In article . com, wrote: There are suggestions going round that whilst Chiltern is doing very well on punctuality etc. there are many problems to do with other "key performance indicators" linked to retaining the franchise that need very urgent attention. (suggested as one reason behind the change of MD recently announced) - so whilst it may seem to be doing very well it could be that there are issues that need to be resolved elsewhere in the company that we aren't aware of. Tony and this weeks Transit magazine shows chiltern's latest financial figures, indicating that the previous year's decent profit has been turned into a reasonable loss.... SB I spy a bank or venture capitalist firm lurking about...! How about a managment buy-out? Or even, purchase by MTR? AE |
#8
|
|||
|
|||
Reuters announce Chiltern Railways for sale
On Fri, 06 Jul 2007 03:39:28 -0700, chunky munky
wrote: Chiltern Railways- "Not As Good As We Think We Are" --- But they are better than some of the rest! I'd rather have Silverlink (County), who are getting to rather impressive standards of punctuality and reliability[1], not to mention lack of overcrowding. Just proves it *can* be done. [1] I don't remember the last time I saw "Cancelled" on the board at MKC. Neil -- Neil Williams Put my first name before the at to reply. |
Reply |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Forum | |||
Olympic Legacy - or lack of. (Reuters) | London Transport | |||
HLOS - Thameslink rumours from Reuters | London Transport | |||
ANNOUNCE: PlanAJourney - The BEST UK Journey Planner | London Transport | |||
Announce - New Oytercard Forum | London Transport | |||
Announce: 'Building London's Victoria Line': BTF on DVD | London Transport |