Episodes

  • 118: Laura Laker

    118: Laura Laker
    Mar 24 2026
    Leon delves into the world of active transport in this week's episode, joined by cycling journalist and co-host of the Streets Ahead podcast, Laura Laker. Laura, who has forged a career focused on cycling and urban transport, discusses how she first fell in love with cycling, the success of the cycling lobby in persuading city mayors to allocate road space for cyclists and the challenges of implementing cycling infrastructure, alongside the rise of e-scooters and electric bikes.
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    33 mins
  • 117: Gareth Williams

    117: Gareth Williams
    Feb 24 2026

    Leon’s guest is Gareth Williams, General Secretary and Chief Strategic Partnerships Officer at Eurostar. After a twenty-year career in government, including prominent leadership roles at the Department for Transport, Gareth joined Eurostar almost fifteen years ago. In this episode, he and Leon discuss how Eurostar bounced back after COVID (despite a lack of government funding), its upcoming double-decker trains designed to reach Germany and Switzerland by the early 2030s, and the extraordinary business costs behind the cost of a Eurostar ticket.

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    36 mins
  • 116: Marie Daly

    116: Marie Daly
    Jan 27 2026
    This week, Leon Daniels speaks with Marie Daly, Chief Operating Officer for Transport for Wales and Chair of Women in Rail. Marie covers a range of topics, from her non-traditional career path into transport from telecomms and energy, to crisis management during severe weather and the "one network" vision for Wales. The pair also discuss the upcoming transition to Great British Railways, and the evolving landscape of gender diversity and representation within the industry.
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    35 mins
  • 115: From Freewheeling: a discussion with Thomas Ableman

    115: From Freewheeling: a discussion with Thomas Ableman
    Jan 13 2026
    Previously broadcast on Thomas Ableman's Freewheeling podcast, Leon and Thomas discuss progress towards the Buses Policy document originally announced by Boris' government
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    53 mins
  • 114: Leon Daniels OBE

    114: Leon Daniels OBE
    Dec 16 2025
    In a special Christmas edition of Lunch with Leon, Leon Daniels is in the hotseat! Guest host Simon Lederman grills Leon on his 40+ years in the transport industry, with Leon sharing some stories from throughout his career and his hot takes on topical transport issues. He also answers some listener questions (some of whom have been special guests on the podcast themselves!).
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    43 mins
  • 113: David Leeder

    113: David Leeder
    Nov 18 2025
    Ahead of the UK's Autumn Budget, Leon explores the UK's somewhat gloomy economic situation with eminent transport expert David Leeder. With soaring national debt squeezing essential transport budgets, David shares his insights on the potential impact on the transport industry and his crucial advice for local authorities on quickly securing promised settlements and tapping into private sector funding.
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    35 mins
  • 112: Karen Dee

    112: Karen Dee
    Nov 4 2025
    In this episode of Lunch with Leon, Leon speaks with Karen Dee, CEO of Aiports UK, the trade association representing the interests of UK airports. The conversation covers growth in the aviation market, the challenge of decoupling emissions from demand, tackling the transport-wide skills crisis, leveraging high-value air freight and the critical role of retail revenue in supporting low-cost carriers.
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    34 mins
  • 111: Paul Whitnell

    111: Paul Whitnell
    Oct 7 2025
    In the latest episode of Lunch with Leon, Leon pops his head out of the transport bubble and speaks with a transport-adjacent guest: Paul Whitnell, president of the British Irish Trade Alliance (BITA), a trade and commerce business organisation who describe themselves as "people that know people who help people". Paul shares more about his philosophy when it comes to business and the BITA organisation, whose members across the construction, hospitality, rail and logistics industries help each other through collective wisdom and experience.
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    34 mins