Mail belongs on rail say 3,650 signatories

Royal Mail, the modern iteration of the historic first-ever postal service in the world, dispensed with its mail train fleet earlier this year. The company, which is now in private hands, has wasted no time in sending the purpose-built electric multiple units for scrapping. A huge petition, with 3,650 signatures, has been delivered directly to their head office.

Despite the unseemly haste to dispose of the Royal Mail fleet, there are plenty of voices raised in concern. They say it is a retrograde step of exclusively putting mail traffic back on the British roads. The days of the ‘travelling post office’ – where mail was sorted and delivered on the move – have already passed into history. However, many observers say the Royal Mail’s business, which is skewed more and more towards parcels traffic, is tailor-made for trains.

First class giant postcard

There has been an angry response to Royal Mail’s decision to decommission its fleet of mail trains. Some of the 4-car units (built in a batch of sixteen sets in the mid-1990s) have already met with the breakers torch. That has not gone down well with the influential Campaign for Better Transport. The lobby organisation has taken the message to the Royal Mail, by delivering a giant postcard to their head office with the message, ‘Mail belongs on rail!’.

Thousands of people from across all industry sectors have added their names to the postcard, addressed to Royal Mail Chair, Keith Williams, who is also Chair of the Great British Railways Transition Team. The postcard calls on Royal Mail to “work to increase the amount of mail delivered by train, not risk pushing more onto the roads.”

Need not be the end of the line

One vociferous critic of the Royal Mail decision to scrap their rail fleet has been Phil Read, the founder of Varamis Rail, which provides express logistics by rail, using their own dedicated trains, repurposed from mid-eighties passenger stock. Read is among many who are angry. Rail freight operators, including DB Cargo UK, whose chief executive, Andrea Rossi, is at a loss as to why Royal Mail would scrap the trains his company has been maintaining on behalf of Royal Mail.

“Mail and rail have been working together, connecting communities for almost 200 years,” said Michael Solomon Williams of Campaign for Better Transport. “It is tragic that Royal Mail’s iconic red trains are no longer in operation. This need not be the end of the line. Post is changing, not declining, and online parcel orders make the case for greener, faster deliveries, so Royal Mail should lead by example. It should reach out to the Government, which has professed its support for rail freight, and work with it to get deliveries back on track.”

Reach out and find a solution

Rail freight will always be the safest, greenest and most reliable form of logistics transportation in the UK, explained Andrea Rossi. “Whilst we are deeply disappointed at Royal Mail’s decision to switch from rail to road-based logistics, we are actively working with our stakeholders to find a solution to close the cost gap between rail and road to ensure that rail freight remains the backbone of reliable and sustainable logistics.”

The Campaign for Better Transport has told the Royal Mail Chair, Keith Williams that any reduction in rail freight has multiple concerns, particularly for the environment and congestion. “With your roles at both Royal Mail and Great British Railways, you have a perfect opportunity to find a solution,” says their petition. “Only nine per cent of freight is moved by rail in the UK, compared to an average of 17 per cent in Europe. Reach out and find a solution which will send a bold message that freight belongs on rail, and that Royal Mail must lead by example.”

Continue that symbiotic relationship

Well-known rail writer and broadcaster Christian Wolmar added his voice to the disquiet over the decision. “Next year [2025] we will be celebrating the 200th anniversary of railways. For all that time mail has been carried by rail, profitably for both parties. Surely a way must now be found to continue that symbiotic relationship?”

“Businesses across the country are looking to use more rail freight,” said Maggie Simpson OBE, Director General of Rail Freight Group, the representative body for rail freight in the UK. “We need to find new opportunities for the parcels and mail sector to take advantage of green low carbon rail, helping to secure their supply chains and delivering rail freight growth.” 3,645 other signatories echo that sentiment and obvious truism.