GovWire

Condition 7.18 of Network Rails network licence requires Network Rail to provide train operators with timetable information 12 weeks in advance of trains running following a timetable change.

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) proposed to remove the explicit reference to 12 weeks. It would be replaced with a requirement for Network Rail to follow the timescales in the network code.

In parallel, Network Rails timetabling reform programme, Better Timetables for Passengers and Freight, has agreed to formalise different timelines in the network code for the publication of train timetables.

The network code proposal would introduce 8 weeks as the deadline for publishing a timetable in advance of trains running.

ORR asked whether the proposed Network Rail licence changes achieved the following objectives: ?

• future proofing the timetable information deadlines for industry by explicitly linking the licence and network code
• improving the clarity of the relevant timetable change definition
• enabling Office of Rail and Road to consider the industry-agreed proposal to amend the network code at a future point, so timetables are finalised 8 weeks prior to trains running

ORR also asked respondents to provide evidence of how finalising a timetable with fewer than 12 weeks notice would impact on planning journeys.