Red tape clogs Chunnel freight
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by Miles Brignall • Inter-modal freight movements to the Continent through the Channel Tunnel are in crisis because of bureaucratic regulations and punitive security charges, claim rail pressure groups.
The Alliance for Channel Tunnel Rail Freight (ACTRF) has called on Transport Secretary Sir George Young to remove "unduly onerous" security controls.
Rail freight users have to comply with measures more stringent than those using aircraft which, says the ACTRF, puts unfair costs on the industry.
Any operator planning to move freight through the tunnel has to wait for security experts to check his consignments. This causes delays of up to hours and is said to make the service uncompetitive.
The British International Freight Association says any organisation setting up a private rail terminal is forced to invest in security equipment costing more than £250,000. It argues that if Young is serious about encouraging freight on to rail he must remove many of the obstacles facing the industry.
Many of the existing rail freight terminals are of poor design, say critics. Rail Freight Group's Chris Nichols says that Trafford Park terminal in Manchester already faces restrictions on night-time use after local councillors objected to noise, while Willesden terminal in west London gets so congested that trucks are often forced to queue out on public roads.