Guy Bates

Head of Freight Development
Great British Railways Transition Team

As Great British Railways Transition Team’s Head of Freight Development, Guy leads on freight estate and freight network development initiatives to enable traffic growth in line with CP6 forecast trajectories. His direct input to the formulation of the freight elements of the forthcoming whole industry strategic plan has been informed both by his previous freight operational and commercial experience plus current ongoing oversight of a number of Strategic Freight Network and terminal development schemes nationwide.

He designed and led NR's 2014 acquisition & assimilation of 100+ freight sites nationwide (Mountfield programme), the programme that significantly expanded NR’s freight estate holding.

Previously Guy spent 4 years as NR's Senior Route Freight Manager for the SE, pioneering lineside loading in this area, sowing the seeds for NR's first Nodal Yard at Ipswich and championing trials of longer and heavier trains from the UK's two biggest container ports.

Guy started his railway career in traffic operations with BR Trainload Freight at Bescot in 1993; following a period of freight operations management in the W Midlands and North West he subsequently moved into traffic development roles spanning both the domestic and channel tunnel freight markets.