Whats the difference between National Express & National Rail?
National Express is a company that operates long distance coaches between cities and also runs some train services. National Rail (NR) is a name given to what used to be known as “The Association of Train Operating Companies” (ATOC). This is the commercial association comprising all of the independent train operators and represents their common interest to the government. The name National Rail is seen as being more customer-friendly than ATOC . It is used on maps and signs to distinguish main-line railways from Underground lines and preservation lines, etc. This is a very reluctant nod from the government towards the travelling public, who like the idea of an integrated transport network. The original integrated railway network (British Rail) was broken up in 1995 and good things like national timetables and through-ticketing were discarded. Only now are they finally realising that this was a big mistake and “Joe Public” doesn’t like it. Your use of “subways” suggests that you’re not
