DfT payments to passenger rail operators under emergency agreements and National Rail contracts
Summary of payments, including management fees, payable by DfT to train operating companies from 1 March 2020 to 11 December 2022 under emergency agreements and National Rail contracts.
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Details
The Department for Transport (DfT) put in place emergency measures agreements (EMAs) with privately owned franchised train operating companies (TOCs) to mitigate the financial impacts resulting from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and ensure that rail services could continue to operate.
The EMAs were agreed in March 2020 and took effect from 1 April 2020 with their financial provisions back-dated to 1 March 2020. For the majority of TOCs, the EMA applied until 20 September 2020 and operated as a temporary amendment to the underlying franchise agreement, which remains in place.
From 21 September 2020 onwards, the EMAs were replaced by emergency recovery measures agreements (ERMAs) for the majority of TOCs. The ERMAs are a further temporary amendment to the underlying franchise agreements to allow for a phased transition of TOCs onto the new National Rail Contracts (NRCs).
There are some exceptions to these arrangements for certain TOCs. These are described in more depth in the details of operational support payments to franchised passenger rail operators under emergency agreements and NRCs, which explains how these payments are calculated and made, and process for determining performance scores under EMAs and ERMAs, which outlines how DfT determines EMA and ERMA performance scores.
Operational support payments
Under EMAs, ERMAs and NRCs, DfT receives revenue collected and pays most operating costs incurred by TOCs through a regular franchise payment, made roughly every 4 weeks. This payment is entirely to fund the ongoing provision of passenger rail services by these operators. None of this money is passed to shareholders.
Operational payments to TOCs under emergency agreements and NRCs (ODS, 15KB) provides data on these operational support payments for each TOC from 1 March 2020 to 11 December 2022.
Management and performance fees
Separately, TOCs can also earn management and performance fees. These are payable retrospectively on receipt of audited statutory accounts covering the period to which the fees relate. In due course, and subject to conditions, they represent earnings that can be passed on to shareholders.
The process of assessing and scoring TOCs’ performance, and determining the management and performance fees payable as a result, has been concluded for 2 EMA assessment periods from 1 March 2020 to 31 March 2021 and for 2 ERMA assessment periods from 20 September 2020 to 18 September 2021.
EMA and ERMA performance scores and fees (ODS, 12KB) provides data on EMA and ERMA performance scores, and the management and performance fees payable to those TOCs in private ownership.
Updates to this page
Last updated 27 April 2023 + show all updates
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Added operational support payments to operators for the period 24 July 2022 to 11 December 2022.
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Updated details of operational support payments to operators under emergency agreements and NRCs and EMA and ERMA performance scores and fees to Sep 2021.
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Added operational support payments to operators for the period 25 July 2021 to 16 October 2021.
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Added operational support payments to operators for the period 1 April 2021 to 24 July 2021 and management and performance fees data for September 2020 to March 2021.
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Addition of March 2021 data.
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Added operator payment data for March 2020 to February 2021, and management and performance fees data for March to September 2020.
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First published.