Guest writer article from Tim Danvers, Head of Business Development – Rail at AtkinsRéalis.
Rail has a real image problem. Yet as it faces a series of generational challenges, its future hinges on its ability to galvanise a new generation of talent. If I were a young person choosing my career path, or a parent advising a child, how honestly exciting does the prospect of a job in rail sound? Answering that question will define rail’s ability to become the future of sustainable travel – and there’s reason for optimism.
Pick up a newspaper, and you’ll see rail making the headlines. Unfortunately, it’s for the wrong reasons – over the last year, 72 per cent of headlines were negative, a sharp increase from 58 per cent in the previous year. Strikes, chronic delays, and cost overruns on major projects: together they paint a picture of a railway no longer delivering. This matters especially because our industry is at a crucial tipping point. Through expansion, digitalisation and decarbonisation, rail can become the spine of a national, efficient and integrated system of low-carbon, accessible travel. But to get to that destination, huge, generational challenges must be overcome.
Perceptions will shape our ability to do just that. Like many other sectors, rail is facing a deepening skills crunch over the next few years. With an ageing workforce – and retirements outpacing recruits – skills gaps loom large on the horizon. That means a diverse, passionate and enthusiastic talent pipeline is already essential. Yet to decarbonise and grow in this unprecedentedly complex environment, we need to also reimagine how journeys work and blend skill sets to apply technology in ways we’re yet to imagine. Without a culture that is compelling, attractive and transformational, we risk inertia instead of innovation.
In the past, rail was considered a fantastic and exciting place to build a career. And it should be again. It’s at the cutting edge of societal, environmental and technical challenges, where fresh, diverse thinking holds the potential to reshape our infrastructure for generations. That’s why young people are the key to our every solution. We need to unify the wealth of existing corporate experience with bold, creative problem-solving. In turn, that’s precisely why we must continue the vital work of improving the image of our industry, locking in our progress to date and demanding more. We need to strengthen our vision, because rail is the future of sustainable mass travel. And the only way to reach that destination is to embrace and excite the next generation of talent.
Beyond the headlines
The headlines do reflect real issues, but context matters. Creaking infrastructure has been stretched by surging demand over decades, whilst short-term decision making has taken precedence over long-term plans for skills and technology. Meanwhile, major projects face huge challenges against a backdrop of supply chain disruption, rising inflation and exacting standards. What we’re experiencing now is a confluence of trends that are hitting multiple sectors, particularly public utilities, hard. Unfortunately, there are no quick fixes.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom – we do have things to celebrate. Cultural change will always be slower than ideal, but in recent years our industry has become more diverse, inclusive and forward-thinking. A range of organisations, like the Young Rail Professionals (YRP) and Women in Rail, have helped increase representation, boost diversity and energise young professionals. Thanks to that drive and that focus, rail has begun to change.
There’s still a way to go. The reality is that we don’t yet have enough young people in our ranks, in senior positions, or in the pipeline. Rail’s average age keeps going up, year on year, whilst the proportion of 16 – 25 year olds has halved since 2016. And rail continues to look different from the people who use it – the proportion of other than white workers is around 12.5 per cent, compared to 18.3 per cent in the wider population*. Moreover, we’re lacking the confidence to hand over more responsibility to the people most likely to deliver reform. Radical ideas such as a young person’s shadow board might help nurture an environment where nothing is off the table, where we create an entrepreneurial spark and fully harness our talent potential. Without fresh ideas, we won’t be able to deliver real innovation.
Great expectations
More pressingly, we need to emphatically answer any young person’s question – ‘Why would I work in rail?’. That’s tough, because young people now expect more from their careers. It’s inconceivable a few decades ago that an interviewee would thoroughly query an organisation’s sustainability practices. Yet demands for impactful, interdisciplinary, and flexible career paths are on their way to becoming a norm, rather than an exception. We must be better prepared to showcase the wide range of opportunities that exist working in such a multifaceted industry, promote more forward-thinking ways of working and connect rail to the bigger picture.
While challenges persist, the rail industry has already witnessed notable successes. Projects like HS2 and Crossrail have been huge catalysts for change. They’ve truly raised the bar for our industry and organisations associated with it, transforming how rail projects should look. The impact of cutting edge deployment of sustainability, digital technology, biodiversity, social value, accessibility and customer service are rippling across all industries, not just rail. Instead of judging infrastructure on its build timeline, it might serve us to recognise that these iconic projects are already changing people’s lives for the better.
Adopt and adapt
The railway will always require people to build, maintain, repair and operate it. But now we need an injection of creative, collaborative, and multidisciplinary problem-solving – to adopt and adapt technology from other sectors to meet our own challenges. How can we deploy battery technologies and hydrogen on trains? How can rail use its enormous footprint to generate renewable power, or act as a utility corridor? What are the implications of AI for rail? There are so many groundbreaking technologies and ideas being developed across the world – applying them is vital to nourish our green transition.
At the same time, we can’t lose sight of what’s working. Railways are historic assets (we’re still using parts of our Victorian heritage), so our corporate memory contains a huge amount of wisdom and knowledge. Outstanding standards for health and safety took years to come about, for instance, and that too needs to harmonise with this new vision. We shouldn’t seek disruption and innovation for the sake of it, but to solve problems we haven’t been able to before.
Eyes on the prize
At AtkinsRéalis, our full life-cycle capability puts us at the heart of these challenges, in the UK and globally. People are primary – only the best teams can deliver the best projects. But we now need greater diversity of skills than ever before. Rail in the future will need data scientists and developers as well as engineers and electricians. That’s how we’ll build a more innovative culture, as well as provide meaningful, fulfilling, and dynamic careers.
There’s no time to lose in solving the ‘press problem’. Rail’s future depends on its usage, so all the negative press is more than distracting – it’s detracting, putting up barriers where we need to take them down. The story of rail matters enormously, and we need the next generation to write the next chapter. With vision, investment and ingenuity, rail can revitalise itself and lead the country towards sustainable, low-carbon transportation. The opportunity is there if we dare to be bold. Then, perhaps, we can start making headlines for all the right reasons.
