Q&A MICHAEL ROBERTS


What brought you into the industry/your position?


My first significant job was at a London political consultancy, working on campaigns such as Arup’s successful CTRL proposal into London via Stratford. I spent the next 17 years at the CBI, initially as Transport Policy Adviser and ending as Director of Business Environment. During that time, I sat on the panel which advised John Prescott on his transport White Paper and I served on the Commission for Integrated Transport under David Begg and Peter Hendy. Rail has always been a positive part of my professional life, so moving more extensively into the industry made a lot of sense.


What developments do you expect to see in the next 5 years at ATOC?


In May, we published our business plan for the next three years. It sets out our mission - to champion the interests of passenger rail operators in serving customers and supporting a safe, reliable, attractive and prosperous railway – and our plans to do that better by strengthening our trade association work and business service activities.


Over the coming years, we aim to make more of a positive difference in three ways: generating policy and technical solutions for a better railway with industry partners, such as the RDG; managing systems to facilitate an enhanced retail environment; and providing good quality information about services and passenger rail more generally.


What is your greatest career achievement to date?


I am proud of what we have done in recent years at ATOC, such as successfully making the case for franchise reform, though there is much else we want to achieve. Perhaps my greatest career achievement to date though has been working with some of the most senior figures in British business on the CBI Climate Change Task Force. This helped mainstream climate change as a core business issue, transformed the conversation between Government and business on this topic, and set out a road map towards a low carbon economy which has fundamentally shaped national policy to reduce emissions.


What do you enjoy most about your job?


I get out of bed in the morning because, at its best, ATOC can make a real difference through its work on strategy and delivery, and I can make a genuine contribution to the expertise of our team and partners, not least through my experience in results through consensus.


Working with others to develop the Initial Industry Plan, which has led most recently to the HLOS announcement, has been one of many highlights in my time here so far. But perhaps more striking was the moment when we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Disabled Persons Railcard, managed by ATOC on behalf of its members: nothing quite prepared me for the moment when one railcard holder approach me and thanked ATOC, as she put it, “for giving me back my mobility”.


“Over the coming years, we aim to make more of a positive difference in three ways: generating policy and technical solutions for a better railway with industry partners, such as the RDG; managing systems to facilitate an enhanced retail environment; and providing good quality information about services and passenger rail more generally.”


If you could change anything about the rail industry, what would it be and why?


I would get the top 200 railway people – not just train operators and Network Rail, but also Government, ORR, suppliers, the unions, interest groups and our trade press – to swap jobs with one another for 3 months. By understanding better how different parts of the of sector work, we would advance the cause of reform immensely. The amount of half truth and opinion that passes for fact is extraordinary and only hampers our ability to meet the needs of our customers.


What is the best advice you’ve been given?


I spent some time working closely with Ben Vervaayen when he was Chief Executive at BT. He would make a pointing gesture with his hand and say: “always remember that when


you point the finger at someone else, three fingers point back at you”. It was a salutary reminder that if you are going to criticise and challenge, then make sure you are doing all you can to put your own house in order.


What advice would you give to someone starting out in the industry?


Spend 24 hours doing what I did over several weeks – do a cab ride, see revenue protection in action, sit in a control room, join a depot shift, handle media enquiries. Still interested? Then strive to be excellent in three departments - technical ability, people skills and commercial nous – and above all, think “customer first” in all you say and do.


What inspires you?


The belief that in the not-too-distant future it will be possible to be invited to dinner, say “I work in the railways” over hors d’oeuvres, and still be friends when dessert arrives.


What law/legislation would you like to see introduced?


How about a law requiring carmakers to install in every dashboard a meter which displayed the true cost of motoring as you drive? This would include everything – not just the cost of fuel, but depreciation, car maintenance, insurance, congestion caused to other users, road wear and tear, pollution and so on.


Such a move at one level would be uncontroversial – after all, we are all used to seeing a meter in a taxi. It would not involve drivers paying a penny more than they do today, but it would expose how expensive private motoring already is. Rail value for money scores would rocket overnight. But if I couldn’t succeed in convincing lawmakers to go down this route, getting them to pass the legislation needed to approve construction of HS2 would be my next choice!


Where do you see the UK rail industry in 10 years?


The industry will look much as it does today, but the culture which underpins it will be fundamentally different. It will be an industry far less dependent on subsidy – parts of the passenger market are already essentially commercial. Government and regulation will focus solely on preventing market abuse and securing the wider social/economic benefits of rail, and step right out of the business of trying to second guess the market. Train operators will be given longer tenure and more freedom to think strategically and develop their stake in the industry. They will work in partnership and as genuine equals with infrastructure providers who see operators and rail users as their key customers, rather than government and regulators.


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