As Open Access takes on a growing role in UK rail strategy, Stuart Jones - Managing Director of First Rail Open Access - lays out his ambitions for innovation, expansion and making rail a mainstream alternative to road and air...
When Stuart Jones laces up his running shoes before dawn, he isn’t just chasing personal bests. He’s preparing for one of the most demanding endurance tests in British transport – making Open Access rail into a lasting part of the UK’s rapidly evolving rail network.
Newly appointed as Managing Director of First Rail Open Access, Jones has already run a marathon in every sense of the word. From helping lay the commercial groundwork for the company’s highly successful Lumo brand nearly a decade ago to now overseeing an expanding portfolio of Open Access operations across the UK, he is one of the most influential figures in a corner of the industry once seen as niche, but now increasingly central to conversations about rail’s role in decarbonisation, market growth, and innovation.
Yet, Jones’ ascent comes at a time of huge change in the rail industry. As the long-anticipated Great British Railways (GBR) reforms inch forward and the wider rail sector faces increased scrutiny, Open Access sits in a curious space, independent of government subsidy, reliant on nimble strategy, and largely overlooked in the wider national narrative around transport. But not for much longer, if Jones has anything to do with it.
“We’ve proven Open Access works,” he says, speaking from FirstGroup’s head offices with characteristic calm. “We’ve proven it can attract new passengers, lower emissions, and create great customer experiences. Now we’re focused on showing how far it can go.”
A brand evolution, not revolution
While the spotlight today often falls on newer ventures, the story of Open Access in the UK stretches back decades – and FirstGroup has long been part of it. Hull Trains, one of the country’s earliest Open Access operators, launched in 1999 to fill a gap left by the existing franchise, restoring direct rail services between Hull and London King’s Cross. What began with just three daily services gradually grew into a robust timetable offering seven weekday and five weekend services by 2009.
Now under Jones’s remit, Hull Trains is a major success story and evidence that Open Access isn’t a disruptive idea, but a proven model for connecting underserved routes and growing the overall market. It laid the groundwork for First’s wider Open Access ambitions. Lumo has become perhaps the clearest distillation of how that groundwork has allowed the company’s vision to flourish. Launched in 2021 in the pandemic’s aftermath, Lumo’s all-electric, low-cost service between London and Edinburgh promised a greener, smarter alternative to domestic flights and road travel. Backed by no government funding and built on razorsharp margins, it was a risk and Jones’ was instrumental in its early development. He wrote the commercial case for the service as far back as 2015, long before most people had even heard the name.
“When we first proposed Lumo, Open Access was still seen as a fringe play,” he recalls. “But we believed then, as we do now, that with the right model, Open Access can grow the overall market. It’s not about taking passengers from others – it’s about giving people another reason to choose rail.”
And it has worked. Lumo quickly found an audience of budget conscious, environmentally aware travellers and saw record breaking passenger numbers in its early months. Its sleek blue livery and paperless, app-driven experience soon became a familiar sight on the East Coast Main Line, and it’s regularly cited by ministers and campaigners as a model of success.
Now Jones oversees the company’s whole Open Access operations, including new ventures under development via First Rail Stirling and First Rail Wales & Western. These new operators are set to follow in Hull Trains’ and Lumo’s footsteps, expanding the Open Access footprint far beyond its current stronghold in the north and east.
The man behind the vision
Jones is not your typical rail boss. He doesn’t come from a traditional railway family. Nor does he trade in bravado or boardroom jargon. What he brings instead is a rare combination of commercial intellect, operational grounding, and personal humility.
After studying maths and later management science at the University of Kent, Jones worked in consultancy and cut his teeth on transport modelling and infrastructure forecasting.
His early projects included working on the business case for Crossrail and was involved in the early stages of HS2, particularly regarding its route into the East Midlands. “Big-picture stuff,” as he puts it. It’s a skillset that has proven invaluable as he’s climbed the ranks within FirstGroup, helping translate large trends into real life service decisions.
But he’s not just a boardroom strategist. Over his career, Jones has worked across multiple parts of the railway and has advised on international rail models across Europe, giving him a rare all-round perspective on how the system functions. This big picture insight makes him adept at navigating rail’s notorious complexity. It also helps explain his measured approach to leadership. “Rail is never simple,” he says with a smile. “But that’s part of what makes it so rewarding. It’s this living, breathing system that connects people, communities and economies. When you get it right, the impact is huge.”
Outside of work, Jones is an endurance runner who has clocked countless miles in training for marathons and ultra-distance races, often squeezing in pre-sunrise runs before back-to-back meetings. “It helps me think,” he says. “It clears the head, helps structure the day. There’s a lot of crossover. You learn how to pace yourself, when to push, when to hold. Running teaches you discipline and resilience, which are qualities that are essential in leadership.”
He’s also preparing for another kind of marathon. Next year, he’ll marry his long-term partner in her native South Africa, just outside Cape Town in Stellenbosch in the heart of the country’s wine region.
“Being outdoors, running and being active is something we share,” he says. “We use it to explore new places, decompress from the day, and just be present with each other. It’s become a real part of our life together.”
Growing the network
In work, Jones’s challenge is how to take Open Access from outlier to mainstream. That means expanding the model across the UK and convincing policymakers and regulators that it deserves a permanent place in the rail industry as Great British Railways (GBR) takes shape.
First Rail currently has several proposals in play. Hull Trains, which connects London with the East Riding, remains a distinct brand but sits within Jones’ remit. So too do a series of new ventures operating under the Lumo name, as well as First Rail Stirling and First Rail Wales and Western.
Earlier this year, the company secured rolling stock for its planned Open Access service between London Euston and Stirling, due to launch in mid-2026. In July, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) approved further proposals to enhance timetables between London and Hull, Newcastle, and Glasgow.
But progress hasn’t been without setbacks. The ORR rejected some bids, including Hull Trains’ proposed direct service to Sheffield, citing capacity constraints. A separate bid to restore a direct link between Rochdale and London was also turned down, due to concerns over available paths on the West Coast Main Line. That decision was particularly disappointing for a town that had rallied behind the proposal, inspired by the success of Lumo in the North East.
“It’s disappointing, yes,” Jones admits. “But we’re not giving up on Rochdale. We’re exploring other options and remain hopeful that as infrastructure capacity improves, especially with the government’s renewed focus on rail upgrades, we’ll be able to revisit the route.”
He remains optimistic about the broader direction of travel, encouraged by recent government statements backing Open Access and referencing Lumo as a model for future services.
“We’re grateful to the Department for Transport and the ORR for their continued engagement,” he says. “We’re aligned in wanting to grow the rail market and get people out of cars and planes. Open Access has a proven role to play in that.”
A new kind of culture
Perhaps Jones’ greatest strength lies not in trains, but in teams. From its inception, Lumo was built to feel different – not just to customers, but to staff as well. The team was recruited from diverse backgrounds, including aviation and hospitality. Roles were made flexible. Progression routes were prioritised. “One of our onboard ambassadors is now training to be a driver,” he says proudly. “That kind of mobility is rare in rail. But it’s part of the DNA we’re trying to create.”
This approach is now informing the wider Open Access division at First Rail. Recruitment and training are being reimagined with an emphasis on experience and apprenticeships. Local sourcing, like using local coffee and bakeries for onboard catering, helps embed services into communities, too. Partnerships with regional tourism boards and local authorities help build deeper roots, he says.
“Ultimately, we want our services to feel like they belong to the places they serve,” Jones says. “We want passengers to recognise themselves in the experience, whether that’s through the staff, the food, the pricing or the branding.”
The Open Access proposition
With the railway’s future still hanging in the balance, Jones believes Open Access offers something uniquely aligned with modern passenger expectations: low-emission electric trains, simple fares, flexible digital-first booking, and strong local identity. But to survive and thrive, he says, it needs to be supported.
“Open Access has always operated without subsidy. That’s a strength – it means we’re agile and commercially disciplined. But it also means we depend on a fair and transparent path to access and expansion,” he says. “As GBR takes shape, we need to ensure Open Access operators are fully integrated into the conversation. Because we have a lot to offer.”
He points to the numbers. Lumo has taken market share from domestic aviation, achieved among the highest customer satisfaction scores in rail, and brought tens of thousands of new passengers to the network at no cost to the taxpayer, he says.
“We can’t afford to ignore that kind of success,” he says. “Especially when the industry is under pressure to cut costs, reduce emissions, and win back public trust.”
The long view
As the conversation winds down, Jones reflects on the distance the company has already covered – and the journey ahead. He’s realistic about the obstacles too. Regulatory hurdles, infrastructure limitations, and the inevitable resistance to change are all challenges he will face during his tenure, he says, but he remains convinced that the Open Access model he has helped shape is more relevant than ever.
“It’s about showing that rail can be entrepreneurial,” he says. “That it can listen to passengers, innovate quickly, and offer great value. We’ve shown that in spades.”
And like any good endurance runner, he knows the key to success lies not in sprinting, but in sustaining momentum.
“Every mile counts,” he says. “Every improvement we make, every new route we open, every person who chooses rail over a car or a plane – that’s progress. And that’s what keeps us going.”
www.lumo.co.uk