All articles by Rail Business UK – Page 113
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Rail Business UKUnited call for a rolling programme of electrification
UK: Business, passenger, freight and community groups have published an open letter calling on Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps to end the stop-start nature of railway electrification projects and instead kick-start an ‘ambitious’ rolling programme. The letter says electric railways: have carbon emissions ...
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Rail Business UKOn-train connectivity ‘stuck in the digital dark ages’
UK: The National Infrastructure Commission has published its Connected Future: Getting Back on Track report, saying that progress with providing mobile connectivity on trains has stalled since the government accepted the findings of its 2016 Connected Future report. NIC found there are few technical barriers to delivering ...
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Rail Business UKWigan multiple-unit depot inaugurated
Source: Tony Miles UK: Northern and Network Rail have inaugurated a £46m rolling stock stabling and light maintenance facility at Wigan Springs Branch, alongside the former diesel locomotive depot now used by Network Rail. The four-road depot provides Northern with an additional base for its expanding fleet, ...
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Rail Business UKUnite seeks reassurance about future of Bombardier’s Derby factory
UK: Trade union Unite said it was seeking reassurances about the long-term future of the Bombardier Transportation factory in Derby following Alstom’s announcement on February 17 that it had signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire Bombardier Inc’s activities in the rail sector. ‘The Bombardier factory in ...
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Rail Business UKTransport Focus publishes penalty fare appeals investigation
UK: Transport Focus has published its Penalty Fares – the Appeals Process investigation into how passengers are treated when they appeal a penalty fare to two independent bodies under the regulations which came into force in 2018. The watchdog found problems with the signposting of the service, ...
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Rail Business UKWest Midlands Trains required to spend £20m on improvements
Source: Tony Miles UK: West Midlands Trains must spend an extra £20m on improving services for passengers as a penalty for breaching its performance targets, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said on February 9. The £20m will be used for a variety of measures including compensating passengers by ...
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Rail Business UKWilliam Cook Rail commissions bogie overhaul workshop
UK: William Cook Rail has commissioned a 750 m2 bogie overhaul workshop where it can undertake cleaning, shot blasting, non-destructive testing, repair welding, component replacement, painting and rebuilding work. This is complemented by machining facilities capable of accommodating complete bogie frames after repair. The company said the ...
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Rail Business UKFive ‘crunch points’ for the UK rail network
UK: Ahead of the government delivering the first budget of the new parliament on March 11, the Railway Industry Association has highlighted five ‘crunch points’ for the rail network in 2020-24. These are: ‘boom and bust’ renewals; a lack of shovel-ready enhancements and, whilst acknowledging the ...
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Rail Business UKRailway Gazette to launch Richard Hope award
UK: To commemorate the life and career of former Railway Gazette Editor Richard Hope, who died in October 2019, the Railway Gazette Group is to launch a new award, which will be presented at the 22nd Rail Business Awards taking place in London on February 27.
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
Network Rail and Transport for London have agreed to join the board of Transport for the South East. The subnational transport body which brings together local authorities, business groups and the transport sector expects to publish a 30-year transport strategy for the region this summer. ...
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Rail Business UKSupply chain to collaborate on ETCS deployment
UK: An agreement for the original manufacturers of existing rolling stock to take a more active role in the retrofitting of ETCS has been reached by leasing company Porterbrook, Siemens Mobility and Bombardier Transportation. ‘This is an excellent example of collaboration and partnership across the supply chain, ...
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Rail Business UKEnergy Innovation Centre works with Network Rail
UK: The Energy Innovation Centre not-for-profit organisation is working with Network Rail to find ways of monitoring the condition of uninterruptible power supplies. ‘Having run similar collaborations with some of the UK’s biggest energy networks and water companies, we are really excited to have the opportunity to ...
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Rail Business UKRail sector responds to High Speed 2 approval
UK: The rail industry has welcomed Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s February 11 announcement that the first phase of High Speed 2 is to continue. Rail industry Paul Plummer, Chief Executive of the Rail Delivery Group, said ‘these are crucial decisions that will turbo-charge rail’s role in ...
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Rail Business UKHS2 to proceed as government adopts High Speed North vision
UK: Construction of the first phase of High Speed 2 is to continue, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the House of Commons on February 11. In recommitting to the national high speed rail programme, Johnson also said the government intended to rename the sections of HS2 serving ...
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Rail Business UKPassenger information improvement plan to be presented
UK: A plan for the improvement of passenger information is to be presented to the Office of Rail & Road by the Rail Delivery Group on April 20. ORR said there had been improvements to passenger information systems in recent years. However, research commissioned from Winder Phillips ...
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Rail Business UKNetwork Rail awards major signalling framework contracts
UK: Network Rail has awarded five geographical framework contracts for major signalling renewal programmes: Alstom (Southern Region and Eastern region); Siemens Mobility (Scotland Region and North West & Central region); Hitachi Rail STS UK and Linbrooke Services joint venture (Wales & Western region). The frameworks ...
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Rail Business UKFugro’s RILA approved for platform gauging
UK: Fugro has obtained Network Rail approval for its RILA train-borne track measurement system to be used for gauging the clearance between trains and platform edges. The infrastructure manager has made extensive use of RILA for a range of projects since 2013, collecting absolute track position and ...
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Rail Business UKWest Midlands Mayor holds off calling for West Midlands franchise termination
West Midlands Mayor Andy Street tells Rail Business UK’s Tony Miles why he has held back on his threat to ask the Department for Transport to remove the West Midlands Trains franchise from Abellio.
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
Govia Thameslink Railway is to double the number of apprenticeships it will offer in 2020, with more than 300 apprenticeships across 14 roles ranging from drivers, engineers and operations to business administration and marketing. The operator has been accreditated by the Education Skills Funding Agency as a ...
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Rail Business UKVP plc awarded £257m Network Rail portable plant contract
UK: Network Rail has awarded VP plc a contract worth up to £257m for the hire, supply and maintenance of all small plant powered by external means. This includes rail drills, torque wrenches, chainsaws and handheld tamping machines, as well as related consumables such as oil, and ...