Betting on one path risks losing all
2 December 2025
As the UK debates the future of its energy infrastructure, industry voices warn against repeating the mistakes of the past. In his weekly industry blog, CEO of the EUA, Mike Foster, draws parallels between today’s push for electrification and the infamous Beeching rail cuts of the 1960s – a decision that dismantled local rail networks in favour of road transport, only for rail to experience a resurgence decades later.
Last weekend some friends came to visit. Hadn’t seen them for a few years, so it was good to catch up.
They are keen outdoor types – cycling, hiking, kayaking and surfing (despite being older than me) so we thought we’d take them for a stroll locally. Part of our “trek” passed by an old , now disused and derelict railway station. All that’s left are the booking office/waiting room walls with the fireplace and chimney. For my friend, who used to work on the railways, it was fascinating. For me, a reminder of a bygone age when the train was the mode of transport.
The line served was one of those cut by Dr Beeching, a decision made when the establishment thought the future was road transport and only trunk lines needed to be open for rail.
Now, seventy years later, when rail lines are re-opening, is the UK poised to repeat the same mistake? Are our gas distribution networks the equivalent of those local railways? The similarities are there for certain but so is the experience of betting the house on a single vector and losing.
Already we see the regulator looking at ways of speeding up asset depreciation to pave the way for the Beeching-style closure of the networks. The language from the Energy Secretary and the anti-molecule rhetoric from his department suggest they have made up their minds on where the future lies. Coming so soon after the 30-year programme to future proof and make safe the networks with the iron mains replacement programme, any Beeching-style edict would be a colossal mistake.
But we aren’t there just yet. The big difference between the Beeching rail cuts and our energy future, is that huge quantities of energy are still distributed through the gas networks, when in the 1960s rail travel was falling and roads were certainly in the ascendency. That won’t stop the anti-gas sentiments from DESNZ, wedded as they are to electrification. But I do hope that wiser heads prevail when it comes to planning the future of our energy infrastructure. When our future heat requirements depend on low carbon molecules flowing through future-proofed pipes I hope we aren’t wistfully looking at disused relics of the gas networks, thinking ‘if only the Miliband Cuts hadn’t happened’.
Betting the house on one solution is a gamble we’ve lost before. Gas networks still deliver vast quantities of energy, unlike rail travel in the 1960s, which was in decline. Eliminating this infrastructure prematurely could leave us looking back at disused pipelines with regret.
The call to action is clear: policymakers must balance ambition with pragmatism, ensuring that the transition to a low-carbon future does not sacrifice flexibility or security.
