Research

Track Record: What Great British Railways can learn from British Rail

June 2026

As Great British Railways takes shape, there is much that it can learn from the last incarnation of an integrated, nationalised rail body, British Rail, which operated most rail transport in Britain from 1948 to 1997. To ensure that this invaluable knowledge is captured and shared, Campaign for Better Transport convened two roundtables: one with senior figures who led British Rail through its key transitions, and one with current and emerging rail sector leaders. Track Record: What Great British Railways can learn from British Rail brings together the insights from both. [Homepage image: Jeremy Segrott, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons]

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