The customer watchdog’s franchise programme manager told the UK Rail Industry Forum yesterday that previous rail reviews have all been “critically informed and come up with a number of recommendations” and pointed to structural difficulties getting in the way of change.

“But clearly we haven’t had change yet and from a passenger’s point of view we have been round these routes time and time again. We want this to be a review to end all reviews; it’s time for delivery and some action.”

She went on to say that rail users want a system that delivers punctual and reliable journeys that get them to where they want to be “and ideally with a seat, or at least with a degree of space to stand in comfort”.

Sharon added that rail passengers want to see more technology introduced and “far improved levels of information and a degree of personalisation: it is me, my journey, my station and when things go wrong I want to know what I have to do”.

When asked for her thoughts on whether the Williams Review will lead to change, she said: “I am cautiously optimistic. I can’t bear (the railways) to go round in circles again.”

Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport’s rail freight forum chair Julian Worth praised the “calibre and ability” of Keith Williams and said “it helps that he is a transport professional and understands about moving people and freight”.

“Clearly we need closer integration between track and train and we need a better regional focus. But we must not end up with a series of disconnected networks,” he added.

“We need to determine first what the national requirement is for passengers and freight and hand that plan over to regional government, planners and train operators to build around that national framework what their regional services should do.”

Get all that right, he went on, “and local trains might actually connect with long distance trains”.

Julian also called for more senior rail professionals to move between train operation and infrastructure management to “better understand how the other side works” and said that national Government has to be removed from the detailed running of the railway.

“Government’s role is around policy and broad strategy and then to get out of the way.” He added: “You need a central guiding mind, however you divide the railway up, and we are all desperately trying to find a name that doesn’t include the initials SRA (Strategic Rail Authority) but something of that nature is going to be required.”

He also called for the rail industry to set out to the country and to politicians just what it does for the environment and the economy. “Let’s take it up a step,” he said. “This is not just about running trains, it is about filling the shelves in supermarkets, keeping the lights on, building cities and about getting people about in a low carbon emitting manner.

“This is about raising the profile of transport and particularly the railway as the mode for the future.”

Earlier at the conference, the Office of Rail & Road’s head of strategic projects Robert Cook said that one of the key tests for whether the Williams Review is to succeed is if his recommendations command the public’s trust.

But he also described the challenge of reforming the railways as like performing “open heart surgery on a patient that is running a marathon”.

Also this week, upgrading railways in the north of England has been confirmed as a priority for the Liberal Democrats at its annual conference in Bournemouth.

The party warns that rail infrastructure across the region “is at breaking point” and that the Government is “too distracted to fix it”. Senior party figures including John Leech – a former member of the Transport Select Committee – support High Speed 2, but say the project should start in the north and not London.

(Photograph: Office of Rail and Road and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence)