By ROGER FORD
Feature
- Discussions continue to last minute
- No ‘one size fits all’ ERMA
- Varying appetites between owning groups
- OLR on emergency standby

Longer EMA: CrossCountry’s emergency arrangement was due to run out concurrent with its direct award franchise in October. Power car No 43303 nears Totnes at Follaton leading the 12.27 Plymouth to Edinburgh service on 31 July 2020.
Stewart Armstrong
Sometimes writing this column is like walking a tightrope without a safety net. This is one example.
By the time you are reading this the Department for Transport should have announced what is to succeed the Emergency Measures Agreements (EMA) introduced to keep passenger services running through the coronavirus lockdown. Under an EMA, the train operating company (TOC) hands over any revenue to DfT and the Department pays the operator’s costs.