Hull’s MPs have written to Transport Secretary Grant Shapps asking for support for the city’s train company along the same lines of those operating franchises.
Rail services were returning with limited timetables today, having put measures in place to ensure social distancing.
The Government has agreed a financial package and to share commercial risk - with far less people travelling - or able to travel - than pre-coronavirus, slashing revenues with the same rolling stock required to operate.
It is claimed by the Labour trio that Hull Trains cannot do this without similar assistance - as yet not forthcoming - due to the pure commercial open access operator status it has held for virtually 20 years. It relies purely on fares to sustain the business.
Dame Diana Johnson (Hull North), Emma Hardy (Hull West and Hessle) and Karl Turner (Hull East) have made the representations in an open letter sent today. It follows a request to the Chancellor of the Exchequer in March, followed up with Mr Shapps by Hull City Council in April.
They warned should Hull Trains not emerge, it would leave the city with a single daily weekday service from GNER - risking 130 direct jobs and wider regional damage.
They said: “If this political choice by the Government remains in place, consequences that are currently avoidable will become unavoidable. Not only will Hull Trains not be able to resume their services, but they face the genuine prospect of going out of business permanently and not existing for the time when demand and normal operations return to the rail industry. It would mean the loss of 130 local jobs at a time when we face the prospect of the deepest recession for decades.
“This grim scenario would set back the progression of the direct rail link between Hull/Beverley and London by 20 years. It would send an unfortunate message about the Government’s commitment to the further economic and transport regeneration of our sub-region as part of the ‘Northern Powerhouse’.
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Telling how the service has “emphatically confounded doubts” about viability “year after year,” they said: The opportunity to expand train services provided by open access operators has been the one beneficial and relatively successful aspect of franchising machinery established under 1990s rail privatisation. It would be irrational for the government to now discriminate against open access businesses, who have provided more competition on ticketing and added to the capacity provided by other franchised rail operators.
“Such capacity will surely be sorely needed as the rail industry works through the period of social distancing restrictions, the economy moves out of the difficulties caused by the pandemic and demand returns for transporting key workers - and then others - to workplaces, businesses and leisure pursuits.”
On Hull Trains, with 20th anniversary celebrations due in September, the trio said: “They have proven the demand for their service, from hundreds of thousands of customers on its route - through locations such as Briugh, Howden and Selbv. Improvements made in recent years have extended their direct London services to Beverley. Hull Trains have a great reputation for customer service and recently invested £60 m in new and more reliable rolling stock.
“As an open access operator wholly reliant on ticket revenues, under social distancing restrictions Hull Trains simply cannot restart without the support that the government has given to others in the rail industry. Neither can they continue to exist without at least running some limited services, as they sustain some costs even without running trains.
“Hull Trains has shown great commitment to our city and to our wider region, Now they need similar commitment to help them at this exceptional time.”
Conservative colleagues of the Labour three have been copied in, so too the chief executives of Hull City Council and Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce.
The city is still awaiting a planning decision from Mr Shapps on the £355 million A63 Castle Street upgrade too, having been put back from March 31 having been signed off by the Treasury as part of the Budget package.
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Demand for rail travel remained low on Monday morning despite train companies across Britain ramping up services.
Network Rail, which manages Britain’s 20 busiest stations, said passenger numbers were “very similar” to last week, when they were around 93 per cent below average.