Recently I wrote: “Smashing Paradigms – Trains without Timetables ?” , in which I wrote about a speech by Sir Peter Hendy, Chair of Network Rail, that subtly foreshadowed the need for revolutionary rather than evolutionary change in UK railways with the line:
“The ticketing system should be led by passenger behaviour, not act as a constraint to it.”
I then wrote in that article about my own experience around revenue and yield management in both airlines and hotels, having worked and lived through the 1990s and 2000s where there was such radical innovation in both spaces. I was fortunate enough to be at the forefront and work for and with leaders in their fields and sectors.
I finished the article with the thought :
“Sir Peter can act on the idea of timetables to some degree by systems change at Network Rail. It will be interesting to see if (another radical idea!) market forces come into play with ticket sales across the network and perhaps some new player will come in and implement AI for yield management ?”
The other day, then, I read an article n March 24th, in The Times titled “Budget trains to get rail network flying“, which starts with: “A wave of Ryanair-style train operators is planned for British railways. Reforms may lead to more franchises on key intercity routes, driving down fares and increasing the number of seats”.
So, it seems that, even in our archaic UK train system, there is potential for radical change driven by customer behaviour. In Economics terms, led by demand rather than supply.
I’d really love to be part of that change, being part of fostering, stimulating, designing radically new systems to serve the people of the UK through a revolution in train service. Perhaps it may happen, who knows?
In the meantime, I love that I love what I do and do what I love, which is looking for interesting and inspiring ideas for radical, brave and transformative change that is in service of others, then supporting that change to happen.
As you can see from the “My Story” page on this site, My “Why” is To Inspire.
I hope that this and other articles on this site may inspire you to see things differently and step into your own opportunities to conceive and create transformative change!