RICHARD BOWKER strikes such fear into the hearts of train company managers that they have dubbed his organisation the “Stalinist Rail Authority”.

Yesterday Connex became the latest company to be purged by the uncompromising chairman of the Strategic Rail Authority. Previous victims include First Group, one of Britain’s biggest public transport operators, which was unceremoniously dumped from its Great Eastern franchise.

Mr Bowker, 37, who was appointed 18 months ago from Virgin Trains to rescue a rail industry slipping into the abyss, was happy to tell journalists yesterday that he had been “extremely brutal” with Connex. But he said that only a ruthless approach would work: “I think over the past five or six years generally we have accepted second best. I am not in the business of accepting second best.”

Mr Bowker detests the phrase “creeping renationalisation”, but he does not deny that he has steadily extended the SRA’s control over the rail industry. He has abolished 20-year contracts for train companies and replaced them with tightly drawn franchises lasting only five to eight years.

Mr Bowker invited the 15 most senior train company bosses to a private dinner six months ago to discuss the new contracts. The guests included Brian Souter, of Stagecoach, Moir Lockhead, of First Group, and Phil White, of National Express. They have a collective personal wealth of more than £500 million.

There was a stunned silence round the table after Mr Bowker told them: “I want to work together, but if you don’t do it then I will do it to you.”

Mr Bowker has also risked the wrath of passengers by raising fares above inflation and cutting 180 trains a day to reduce congestion on the network. His next big battle is expected to be with Network Rail, which Mr Bowker believes is falling far short of delivering what it promised when it replaced Railtrack last October.

The main rail passenger groups have so far reserved judgment on Mr Bowker’s performance, either because they are funded by the SRA or because they are waiting to see what impact his decisions and style of leadership will have.

The decisive moment will come early next year when Mr Bowker asks the Government for billions of pounds of extra taxpayers’ money for the rail industry.

Unless he can demonstrate then that train performance has improved and costs have been brought under control, his reign at the SRA will be cut short.

Explore UK News

• Crime News

• Education News

• Health News

• Scotland News

Times Recommends

• The bright side of this winter rain
• Story behind the picture: Snow Leopard, 2008
• Times Charity Appeal: The Place2Be