The ORR regulates the rail industry’s health and safety performance, we hold Network Rail and High Speed 1 (HS1) to account and we make sure that the rail industry is competitive and fair. We are also the monitor of Highways England and we have economic regulatory functions in relation to railways in Northern Ireland and for the northern half of the Channel Tunnel, situated in the UK.
Our functions – Our safety and economic functions are driven by EU and UK legislation – and we are accountable to Parliament and the public. This provides an overview of our role.
Our strategy – Our long-term vision for the mainline railway industry is a partnership of Network Rail, operators, suppliers and funders working together to deliver a safe, high performing, efficient and developing railway.
The law and our duties – We operate within the framework set by UK and European legislation and we are accountable through Parliament and the courts.
Our enforcement powers are established by UK and EU legislation.
The most important laws that apply to us are:
When planning actions we consider:
Strategic significance – We will consider how our intervention will deliver outcomes which are in line with our strategic objectives; for example to secure value for money from the railway, for users and funders.
Are we best placed to act? – In some cases, it may be more appropriate for a body other than ORR to investigate or take action (e.g. a passenger body, the franchising authority or an industry association). We will consider, on a case-by-case basis, whether or not there are other organisations better placed to take the matter forward.
Costs – For efficiency reasons we will estimate the internal and external costs attached to our intervention. The internal costs will include any opportunity costs (e.g. knock-on effects on our current and future portfolio of strategic work). It is important that the costs of our intervention are proportionate to the impact that we are seeking.
Risks – We will adopt a risk-based approach when assessing whether or not a matter constitutes a priority. The risks that we will consider include:
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