Railways Bill

House of Commons

Session 2004 - 05
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Railways Bill

Railways Bill
Part 4 — Network modifications etc.
37

(6)
The person who makes a determination under this section in relation to a
particular closure must notify the Office of Rail Regulation about that
determination.
(7)
A determination under this section in relation to a description of closures may
be revoked at any time by the person who made it.
5
(8)
A person who makes or revokes a determination under this section in relation
to a description of closures must—
(a)
send a copy of the determination or revocation to the Office of Rail
Regulation; and
(b)
publish it in such manner as he considers appropriate.
10
(9)
The revocation of such a determination shall not affect any closure if its status
has been relied on before the revocation as grounds for—
(a)
a failure to give a notice under this Part; or
(b)
the carrying out of any closure.
(10)
Any general determination which—
15
(a)
has been made under section 46A of the 1993 Act,
(b)
is a determination that closures of a particular class or description are
minor closures, and
(c)
is in force immediately before the coming into force of this section,

shall have effect after that time as a determination made under this section that
20
closures of that class or description are minor modifications for the purposes
of this Part.
(11)
Any conditions agreed to under section 37(1), 39(1) or 41(1) of the 1993 Act in
connection with any determination under the section in question that a closure
is a minor closure shall have effect after the commencement of this section as if
25
agreed to for the purposes of subsection (5).
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Closures eligible to be treated as minor modifications
(1)
The discontinuance of a railway passenger service is eligible to be treated as a
minor modification so far as the service is a service on a stretch of line along
which there is no station (or no station in use) and the circumstances are such
30
that—
(a)
trains that would otherwise use that stretch of line in travelling
between two stations will instead pass along an alternative route; and
(b)
passengers travelling on such a train will not be required to make
additional changes and will not incur significant increases of journey
35
times.
(2)
The discontinuance of the operation of a part of a network is eligible to be
treated as a minor modification so far as that part of the network consists in a
stretch of track along which there is no station (or no station in use) and the
circumstances are such that—
40
(a)
trains that would otherwise use that stretch of line in travelling
between two stations will instead pass along an alternative route; and
(b)
passengers travelling on such a train will not be required to make
additional changes and will not incur significant increases of journey
times.
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Railways Bill
Part 4 — Network modifications etc.
38

(3)
The discontinuance of the operation of a part of a network is eligible to be
treated as a minor modification so far as that part of the network does no more
than serve a station or light maintenance depot, or some part of it, and the
circumstances are such that—
(a)
that part of the network is not necessary for the operation or use of a
5
station, or part of a station, for the purposes of or in connection with the
provision of railway passenger services; or
(b)
the operation or use of such station or part of a station as is served by
that part of the network is or has been the subject of a proposal which
is a proposal for a minor modification.
10
(4)
The discontinuance of the operation of a part of a network is eligible to be
treated as a minor modification so far as—
(a)
that part of the network consists of installations associated with any
such stretch of track as is mentioned in subsection (2) or (3); and
(b)
the circumstances are as mentioned in that subsection.
15
(5)
The discontinuance of the operation or use of—
(a)
a part of a network (other than track), or
(b)
a part of a station,

is eligible to be treated as a minor modification so far as the operation or use of
that part of the network or that part of the station is not necessary for the
20
operation or use of the network or station for or in connection with the
provision of railway passenger services.
(6)
Where it appears to the Secretary of State or the Scottish Ministers that closures
of any description not specified in this section should, because of their
temporary nature or limited effect on the provision of railway passenger
25
services, be treated as minor modifications, the Secretary of State or, as the case
may be, the Scottish Ministers may, by order, provide for closures of that
description to be treated for the purposes of section 34 as eligible under this
section to be so treated.
(7)
It is the Scottish Ministers who may make an order under subsection (6) where
30
the only closures to which the order relates consist in—
(a)
the discontinuance of one or more Scotland-only services;
(b)
the discontinuance of one or more cross-border services in relation to
which no funding is provided by a railway funding authority other
than the Scottish Ministers;
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(c)
the discontinuance of two or more services none of which is a service
not mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b);
(d)
the discontinuance of a network or part of a network that is wholly in
Scotland; or
(e)
the discontinuance of a station or part of a station that is wholly in
40
Scotland;

and it is the Secretary of State who may make such an order in any other case.
(8)
An order under subsection (6) is subject to the negative resolution procedure.
36
Designation of experimental passenger services
(1)
The power to designate a railway passenger service as experimental for the
45
purposes of this Part is exercisable—
(a)
if it is a Scotland-only service, by the Scottish Ministers;

Railways Bill
Part 4 — Network modifications etc.
39

(b)
if it is a cross-border service in respect of which more funding is
provided by the Scottish Ministers than the Secretary of State, by those
Ministers;
(c)
if it is a Welsh service in respect of which more funding is provided by
the National Assembly for Wales than the Secretary of State, by the
5
National Assembly for Wales; and
(d)
in the case of any other service, by the Secretary of State.
(2)
The designation must be in relation to a line or station on or from which the
service will be provided.
(3)
A service may not be designated as experimental for a period exceeding five
10
years.
(4)
Where a service is designated as experimental for a period of less than five
years—
(a)
the designation may subsequently be extended (on one or more
occasions) by the person who made it; but
15
(b)
the aggregate of the periods for which the service is designated as
experimental must not exceed five years.
(5)
In determining for the purposes of this section the period or aggregate period
for which a service is designated as experimental, any period before the service
is introduced is to be disregarded.
20
(6)
The person who designates a service as experimental or extends such a
designation must—
(a)
send a copy of the designation or extension to the Office of Rail
Regulation; and
(b)
publish notice of the designation or extension in two successive
25
weeks—
(i)
in a local newspaper circulating in the area affected by the
designation or extension; and
(ii)
in two national newspapers.
(7)
Where—
30
(a)
a service is designated as experimental or its designation is extended,
and
(b)
the service is to be provided otherwise than in satisfaction of
requirements imposed by a franchise agreement,

the person designating must give notice of the designation or extension to the
35
person who is to provide the service.
(8)
For the purposes of subsection (6)(b)(i) the area affected by a designation, or by
the extension of a designation, is the area in which is situated the line or station
in relation to which the designation is or was made.
(9)
For the purposes of subsection (6)(b)(ii) as it applies in relation to—
40
(a)
a Scotland-only service,
(b)
a Wales-only service,

a newspaper which circulates generally in Scotland or, as the case may be,
Wales is to be regarded as being a national newspaper.
(10)
Where any railway passenger service is treated immediately before the
45
commencement of this section as an experimental passenger service for the
purposes of Part 1 of the 1993 Act—

Railways Bill
Part 4 — Network modifications etc.
40

(a)
that service shall be treated as designated as experimental for the
purposes of this Part; and
(b)
the period for which it is treated as having been designated at that time
shall be taken into account in determining the period or aggregate
period for which it may be designated under this section.
5
37
Discontinuance of experimental passenger services
(1)
Where—
(a)
a railway funding authority is a party to a franchise agreement under
which an experimental passenger service is provided,
(b)
the person providing the service proposes to discontinue it after the
10
requirement to provide it has come to an end, and
(c)
that authority does not propose to secure the continued provision of the
service,

that authority must give notice of the proposed discontinuance of the service.
(2)
Where—
15
(a)
an experimental passenger service is provided otherwise than in
satisfaction of requirements imposed by a franchise agreement, and
(b)
the person providing the service proposes to discontinue it,

that person must give notice of his proposal and must not discontinue the
service before the end of the notice period.
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(3)
The notice required to be given under this section is a notice which—
(a)
sets out the details of the proposed discontinuance; and
(b)
is published in the required manner.
(4)
A notice is published in the required manner if it is published, in two
successive weeks—
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(a)
in a local newspaper circulating in the area affected by the proposal;
(b)
in two national newspapers; and
(c)
in such other manner as appears to the person giving the notice to be
appropriate.
(5)
A person giving notice of a proposed discontinuance under subsection (2)
30
must send to the Office of Rail Regulation a copy of the notice published under
subsection (3)(b).
(6)
In this section “the notice period”, in relation to a proposal to discontinue a
service, means the period of six weeks after the notice of that proposal has been
published in the required manner.
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(7)
For the purposes of subsection (4)(a) the area affected by a proposal to
discontinue an experimental passenger service is the area in which is situated
the line or station in relation to which the service is designated as experimental.
(8)
For the purposes of subsection (4)(b) as it applies in relation to—
(a)
a Scotland-only service,
40
(b)
a Wales-only service,

a newspaper which circulates generally in Scotland or, as the case may be,
Wales is to be regarded as being a national newspaper.