Transparency data

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 31 March 2024 under emergency agreements and National Rail contracts.

• From: Department for Transport
• Published: 27 November 2020
• Last updated: 17 December 2024 — See all updates

Documents

Operational payments to TOCs under emergency agreements and National Rail contracts, March 2020 to March 2024 data

ODS, 33.7 KB

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Details of operational support payments to franchised passenger rail operators under emergency agreements and National Rail Contracts

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Performance scores and fees, March 2020 to March 2023 data

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Details of process for determining performance scores

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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).

In 2021, DfT introduced NRCs as TOCs moved away from the EMAs and ERMAs. As part of the NRCs, TOC performance is evaluated against specific metrics across different areas for which they can receive a fee as explained below.

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 the process for determining performance scores, which outlines how DfT determines performance scores.

Operational support payments

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 31 March 2024.

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 5 EMA assessment periods from 1 March 2020 to 31 March 2023 and for 4 ERMA assessment periods from 20 September 2020 to 31 March 2023.

For the NRCs, 1 assessment period was carried out for the financial year April 2021 to March 2022 and 1 for the financial year April 2022 to March 2023.

Performance scores and fees (ODS, 12KB) provides data on EMA, ERMA and NRC performance scores, and the management and performance fees payable to TOCs.

Published 27 November 2020
Last updated 17 December 2024 + show all updates

1. 17 December 2024

   Operational payments to TOCs, performance scores and fees and associated details for March 2020 to March 2024 added.

2. 27 April 2023

   Added operational support payments to operators for the period 24 July 2022 to 11 December 2022.

3. 15 December 2022

   Updated details of operational support payments to operators under emergency agreements and NRCs and EMA and ERMA performance scores and fees to Sep 2021.

4. 24 February 2022

   Added operational support payments to operators for the period 25 July 2021 to 16 October 2021.

5. 21 October 2021

   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.

6. 15 July 2021

   Addition of March 2021 data.

7. 12 May 2021

   Added operator payment data for March 2020 to February 2021, and management and performance fees data for March to September 2020.

8. 27 November 2020

   First published.