Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many open access applications (a) were approved in 2024 and (b) are awaiting a decision from the Office of Rail and Road.

The Office of Rail and Road has confirmed to us that in 2024 they approved 2 applications from Open Access operators to provide completely new services and approved a further 8 applications from existing Open Access operators to either continue or make small-scale amendments to existing services.

The Office of Rail and Road is currently considering 13 applications from Open Access operators. Details of all decisions and live applications are published on the Office of Rail and Road’s website.