Govia Thameslink Railway news
News about Govia Thameslink Railway, the UK's largest passenger train operator, which runs a network of commuter and regional services north and south of London under the Thameslink, Southern, Great Northern and Gatwick Express brands. Govia is a joint venture of Go-Ahead Group (65%) and Keolis (35%).
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Rail Business UK3D digital maps designed to help people navigate stations
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway is testing digital 3D maps designed to help passengers, and particularly those who are disabled, gain more confidence in navigating its stations. GTR had received feedback that the existing bird’s-eye view maps of its stations could be improved, as they were not ...
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Rail Business UKBlind passengers offered accessibility app access at all GTR stations
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway now offers free use of a smartphone app designed to enhance accessibility for blind and partially sighted passengers at all 236 of its managed stations. The Aira Explorer app allows users to place a video call with a trained adviser who looks ...
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Rail Business UKAudio guide to help blind passengers use Thameslink trains
UK: Thameslink has released an audio guide describing its 115 Siemens Mobility Class 700 trains which was written with the help of blind passenger Dave Smith who sits on the operator’s accessibility Advisory Panel. The guide is available on the Assisted Travel pages of the company’s ...
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Rail Business UKWaterbeach station to be relocated
UK: Cambridgeshire County Council has called tenders for an estimated £35m design and build contract for the relocation of Waterbeach station to a new site further to the north. This would support the Waterbeach New Town development of 4 500 homes. Opening is now envisaged for ...
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Rail Business UKRail regulator identifies how assistance for disabled passengers needs to improve
UK: The Office of Rail & Road has identified ways in which the provision of assistance for disabled passengers needs to be improved, following audits of how five operators are meeting regulatory requirements. ORR chose East Midlands Railway, Govia Thameslink Railway, Greater Anglia, LNER and Northern ...
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Rail Business UKThird rail or batteries could replace Southern diesel trains
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway is unable to commit to decarbonisation of its operations unless Network Rail and the Department for Transport agree to fund and implement alternatives to diesel operation on the un-electrified Ashford – Hastings and Hurst Green – Uckfield lines, the operator says in its ...
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Rail Business UKMoorgate branch ETCS goes live
UK: Revenue-earning suburban services have started to use ETCS Level 2 over London’s Northern City Line from Finsbury Park to Moorgate.
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Rail Business UKAI technology aims to help prevent railway suicides
UK: Innovate UK has awarded funding to the Suicide Avoidance via Intelligent Video Examination project, which is being undertaken by Purple Transform, Govia Thameslink Railway and Lancaster University. The project uses three AI technologies. The first uses smart cameras at stations and along the track that ...
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Rail Business UKGo-Ahead appoints rail strategy leader and new head of Govia Thameslink Railway
UK: Patrick Verwer has been appointed Rail CEO at international rail and bus operator The Go-Ahead Group from the end of November. Angie Doll will succeed him as CEO of Govia Thameslink Railway, which Go-Ahead operates though a 65:35 joint venture with Keolis. Verwer will oversee ...
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Rail Business UKSouthern seeks feedback on West Coastway timetable changes
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway is seeking public feedback on a redesign of the timetable for Southern-branded West Coastway services between Southampton, Portsmouth, Brighton and London via Gatwick Airport from next year. GTR said the aim is to provide more evenly-spaced departure times, increase capacity where demand ...
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Rail Business UKThameslink EMUs to get ETCS onboard upgrade
UK: A five-year contract to upgrade the Class 700 Thameslink EMU fleet to the latest specification of European Train Control System has been awarded through the cross-industry East Coast Digital Programme. The £32·7m contract announced on June 21 was signed by infrastructure manager Network Rail, operator ...
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Rail Business UKTrain operator trials assistance app for blind and partially sighted passengers
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway is trialling the Aria wayfinding app which connects blind and partially sighted people to a remote adviser who can use the passenger’s smartphone camera to guide them through a station to a member of staff. Passengers at Brighton, Stevenage, London Blackfriars and ...
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In depthTrain Control: En route to digital signalling
Final testing and commissioning of ETCS Level 2 is underway on the Northern City Line to London’s Moorgate terminus, which is due to go live later this year as a ‘pathfinder’ project for the East Coast Digital Programme. Chris Jackson reports.
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Rail Business UKCrowns, chocolates, a named train and planning ahead as rail industry prepares for the coronation
UK: Additional services, longer trains and queuing systems are planned to handle the crowds who are expected to travel to events marking the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla at Westminster Abbey on May 6 and the concert to be held in Windsor the following day.
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Rail Business UKETCS knowledge sharing in action
UK: DB Cargo UK recently took a Class 66 diesel locomotive to Govia Thameslink Railway’s Hornsey depot, so the freight operator could learn more about the passenger operator’s approach to rolling out ETCS. The companies have been working together for months to share their knowledge, as ...
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Rail Business UKClass 387/1 EMU to be fitted with ETCS
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway has sent its first Class 387/1 EMU to be fitted with ETCS in-cab signalling as part of the East Coast Digital Programme. Alstom will install the Atlas 3 ETCS in Worksop, including a new driver’s dashboard, AWS/TPWS, doppler radar and ETCS ...
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Rail Business UKSupporting military leavers in the rail industry
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway has signed the Armed Forces Covenant, aiming to help ex-military personnel move into the rail industry and ensure fair treatment in the workplace. GTR said veterans and reservists bring a variety of transferable skills to the civilian workplace. The company has ex-Forces ...
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Rail Business UKElectrostar services contract awarded
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway has awarded Alstom a £256m Technical Support & Spares Supply Agreement covering the 1 210 cars in its Class 377 and 387 Electrostar EMU fleets. Alstom and before that Bombardier Transportation have supported the fleets since they were delivered. The latest TSSSA ...
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Rail Business UKRidership doubles year-on-year but still down on pre-pandemic levels
UK: The Office of Rail & Road reports that 990 million rail journeys were made in Great Britain between April 1 2021 and March 31 2022, more than double the 388 million journeys in 2020-21 when the pandemic caused figures to fall to the lowest levels ...
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Rail Business UKETCS lineside equipment commissioned on Northern City Line
UK: In a major step for the East Coast Digital Programme, the ETCS Level 2 signalling and train control equipment on the Northern City Line between Finsbury Park and Moorgate was commissioned over the May Day bank holiday weekend. The conversion is a key element in ...