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The Transport Secretary has today (3 October 2024) appointed Laura Shoaf as Chair of Shadow Great British Railways (SGBR).

In the role, Laura will help drive the government鈥檚 overhaul of the railways, bringing senior leaders together to deliver improvements for passengers and work towards聽a more unified rail system. SGBR will also help design Great British Railways 鈥� a permanent body that will oversee railway infrastructure and services.

Before leading聽the聽WMCA, Laura was managing director of Transport for West Midlands聽where she oversaw a multi-million pound transport investment package for the region. She was the first female chair of the Urban Transport Group, which comprises transport leaders from across the UK, and supported the industry on its recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.聽

A recognised expert who has advised on national policy,聽Laura was also one of the UK鈥檚 first 鈥榯ransport champions for tackling violence against women and girls鈥�.聽Her experience will be key in making the rail network more accessible and safer for all passengers.

Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh, said:

For too long, passengers have suffered from a fragmented rail system that doesn鈥檛 work in their interests 鈥� we鈥檙e going to change that.

Establishing Shadow Great British Railways is a significant step towards delivering a聽unified railway with passengers at its heart by bringing together track and train 鈥� and it鈥檚 fantastic we have someone of Laura鈥檚 calibre to drive forward reforms.

Laura brings immense hands-on experience of delivering change and a shared desire to move聽fast and deliver change 鈥� I鈥檓 looking forward to working with聽her to fix our railways聽and getting Britain moving again.

SGBR Chair, Laura Shoaf, said:

The arrival of the railways fundamentally changed the United Kingdom 鈥� creating huge growth, new connections between communities and opening up the opportunity of jobs and adventure to people across the whole of the country.聽

I recognise the great power that our transport network plays in our day to day lives, but in order for it to work and in order for it to keep opening up these opportunities, it has to be built around our passengers and freight users.

It is my privilege to have been asked to Chair Shadow Great British Railways and my focus will be ensuring people are at the heart of the railways and to ensure this remains a focus for years to come.

The government鈥檚 rail reforms will see an end to wasteful fragmentation on our railways, unifying the oversight of track and train under Great British Railways.

Ahead of legislation being passed, SGBR will lay the groundwork for this new system, ensuring no time is wasted in delivering better聽for passengers and freight.

SGBR brings聽together the leaders of Network Rail, DfT鈥檚聽Operator of Last Resort聽and DfT鈥檚 Rail Services Group, laying the tracks for a properly integrated, customer-focused national rail network.

It will also work closely with industry partners to deliver better services for passengers and tackle the financial challenges facing our railways.

As Chair, Laura will be tasked with ensuring SGBR鈥檚 leadership drives forward plans for improvement and challenging industry to deliver, while ensuring the interests of passengers, freight users and taxpayers remain at the forefront of everything SGBR does.