The Open Access Gravy Train — Why It Must End
RMT response as 15 new open access routes are being planned after FirstGroup submits Hereford Lumo bid
Listen to this article
The UK is finally turning the page on a broken, privatised rail system. With Great British Railways (GBR) on the horizon and the first train services returning to public hands, there’s a sense that a long-overdue shift is taking place. But as the government begins to close the chapter on profiteering and fragmentation, one stubborn loophole remains wide open: open access rail.
RMT’s February 2025 briefing lays bare what the open access lobby doesn’t want the public to know: these privately operated, for-profit rail services aren’t just outdated. They are actively undermining the government’s policy goals and draining value from the rail system.
What is Open Access — and Why Does It Matter?
Open access operators run services on publicly owned track but outside any contractual relationship with the government. That means they:
Cherry-pick only the most profitable routes
Contribute little to the long-term maintenance of the network
Face virtually no accountability to passengers or taxpayers
In fact, the biggest players in open access — Lumo, Hull Trains, and Grand Central — paid out nearly £55 million in dividends in the last decade. In 2024, Lumo alone paid out £14.5 million to its shareholders — more than some of its own sister franchises under contract with the government.
Fragmentation, Not Innovation
While private operators claim open access is about "competition," the real impact is the opposite: fragmentation and duplication. These services increase congestion, reduce timetabling flexibility for GBR, and make fare integration and passenger experience worse. Worse still, the rail regulator (ORR) — not the elected government — approves these services, with little public scrutiny.
That undermines the very vision Heidi Alexander MP set out when she announced the move to public ownership: a simple, accountable, publicly owned railway focused on passengers, not profits.
A Quiet Surge
Applications for new open access services have surged since Labour’s election victory. From Virgin’s proposed rival service on the West Coast Main Line to First Group’s expansion of Lumo, these bids aim to carve out private revenue streams just as the government is trying to integrate the system under GBR. It’s a last-ditch effort by rail profiteers to stay in the game.
The Hidden Subsidy
Open access operators often claim they operate without subsidy. That’s misleading. They benefit from:
Significantly lower (or no) fixed track access charges
The ability to skim revenue from publicly run services through fare pooling systems like ORCATs
Avoidance of long-term infrastructure costs borne by public operators
It’s public infrastructure and passenger fares — not entrepreneurial risk — funding private shareholder profits.
Undermining Workers’ Rights
Staff working for open access services often receive worse pensions and conditions than their counterparts in public operations. Some services, like Lumo, operate with minimal safety staffing under a low-cost airline model, using Driver Only Operation. This creates a two-tier workforce and threatens the safety and cohesion that GBR is meant to restore.
The Way Forward
RMT’s position is clear: open access is incompatible with an integrated, publicly accountable railway. The government must:
Stop all new open access approvals — via new statutory guidance to ORR
Bring existing services into GBR — as their access contracts expire
Guarantee job security for open access staff — ensuring a just transition into the new public system
We’ve waited decades to get private profit out of our public transport. Let’s not let the open access gravy train derail that progress.
Follow RMT on Bluesky, X, Threads, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and TikTok
