Latest figures show train operators doubled the amount of dividends they paid last year to £165million
Train firms have dished out nearly £2billion in dividends since 2015, figures have revealed.
Shareholders of private firms, including a number owned by foreign stated-owned transport giants, have enjoyed bumper payouts while millions of passengers have endured delays, cancellations and fare hikes.
A report from the Office of Road and Rail showed nearly a dozen train firms paid out another £165million in dividends last year – more than double the amount the previous year.
It comes as Labour prepares to take operators back into public ownership when their franchises expire. The pre-election pledge comes amid anger over the way the country’s railways have been run since privatisation.
Merseyrail, a joint venture between Serco and Transport UK Group, paid a £43.8million dividend last year, while Great Western Railway, owned by FirstGroup, paid £24.3million.
East Midlands Railway paid £20.5million and West Midlands Railway just under £10million. Both are also operated by Transport UK Group. London North Eastern Railway (LNER) – which is now owned by the government – paid a £20million dividend.
The payouts to operators are on top of those to companies that own the trains themselves, known as rolling stock companies. These firms handed over a combined £331million to shareholders last year alone.
The Mirror recently revealed how Porterbrook Leasing gave £80million to its shareholders last year. Porterbrook’s rolling stock is used by Chiltern Railways, Great Northern and South Western Railways. Its accounts showed CEO Mary Grant’s pay package was up £200,000 to just under £1.4million last year.
The ORR data also showed passengers shelled out £10.4billion on train fares in the year to March, up 14% on the previous 12 months. The number of passenger journeys rose 16% to 1.6 billion, but that was still below pre-pandemic level of 1.7 billion. Funding from the UK and devolved governments towards the operation of the railway amounted to £12.5billion.
Will Godfrey, the ORR’s director of economics, finance and markets said: “Our official statistics are an important barometer of the financial health of Britain’s railways. In the latest year, passenger journeys and fares revenues continued to increase, but remain short of pre-pandemic levels. Our figures also show that government support remains substantial, at just under half of income for the day to day running of the railway.”
