Last week's poll: Powering Britain’s trains after diesel

According to 43 per cent of our 730 poll respondents, full electrification is the way forward, followed by 29 per cent who favoured a batteries and hydrogen combination.

Last week’s poll coincided with a report from IMechE advocating electrification of rail, or the use of hydrogen where electrification is neither economically nor technically feasible. In total, only 12 per cent of poll participants chose the pure-hydrogen option offered by the poll. Of the remaining vote, seven per cent went for batteries and third rail, and nine per cent opted for none of the above.

Challenging the idea that hydrogen is a zero-carbon option, Andy Duffell said: “Almost all hydrogen on the market is produced by steam reforming fossil fuels, so has all the carbon intensity of that fuel stock. It can be made in a zero-carbon way, but generally isn’t, and the large amounts of electricity required to do so would be more efficiently used directly.”