All articles by Rail Business UK – Page 47
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Rail Business UKStandards revised to lower electrification costs
UK: The Rail Safety & Standards Board has introduced new and revised standards for AC electrification systems and rolling stock which Director of Standards Tom Lee anticipates ‘will help the rail industry save millions of pounds when rolling out new electrification schemes’. The introduction of Standard ...
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Rail Business UKYork Street station project officially launched
UK: Lord Mayor Tina Black has cut the first sod to formally launch a two-year project to rebuild Belfast’s Yorkgate station, which is to be renamed York Street to better reflect its location. The £10m project is being funded by the Department for Infrastructure and undertaken ...
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Rail Business UKRecognition of EU rail certifications extended
UK: The government has announced that European Union conformity assessment for interoperable rail products will continue to be recognised in Great Britain until December 31 2024, while the ending of recognition of EU certification of entities in charge of maintenance of wagons has been postponed until ...
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Rail Business UKHull DMU depot improvement work completed
UK: Northern has completed a refurbishment of its Hull Botanic Gardens Traincare Centre to increase maintenance and servicing capacity. The operator’s Class 170 DMUs will be based at the depot, with four teams totalling 30 people responsible for routine servicing, maintenance, upkeep ...
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Rail Business UKMidlands Rail Hub upgrade package dubbed ‘biggest step possible in levelling-up the Midlands’
UK: Sub-national transport body Midlands Connect has published Going for Growth, proposing up to £1·5bn of new or improved infrastructure in 2025-30 to ‘transform east-west connections in the Midlands’ by facilitating the operation of more than 100 extra trains. The outline business case for the ‘biggest ...
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Rail Business UKCompetition concerns over Hitachi’s planned acquisition of Thales signalling business
UK: The Competition & Markets Authority has expressed concern that Hitachi Rail’s planned acquisition of Thales’ Ground Transportation Business could eliminate a credible competitor for the supply of signalling systems, at a time when efforts are being made to increase competition in the UK market. Hitachi ...
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Rail Business UKFunding available for rail construction innovation projects
UK: Innovators from across the UK are being invited to submit proposals for the Innovation in Railway Construction Competition, which is making £7·44m available for ideas which could be tested at the Global Centre of Rail Excellence in South Wales. The competition is being run by ...
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Rail Business UKNo timescale for Great British Railways legislation, Transport Secretary confirms
UK: Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper says he cannot give a timescale for the legislation which will be needed to set up Great British Railways.
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
This week’s round-up of business news from the UK railway industry.
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Rail Business UKModernisation and efficiency improvements included in High Level Output Specification
UK: There is ‘an urgent need for continued modernisation and significant efficiency improvements to bear down on the cost of the railway’, according to the High Level Output Specification which sets out what the Secretary of State wants to be achieved from the management of rail ...
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Rail Business UKVolkerRail gains new track renewals client
UK: VolkerRail has been awarded a contract to undertake track renewals at DP World’s London Gateway port. Over 20% of London Gateway’s traffic moves by rail, with more than 50 trains per week. VolkerRail is to replace up to 700 m of track and a switch ...
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Rail Business UKWrexham line compromise shows the need for more capacity
UK: Capacity has been allocated to enable an increase in passenger services between Wrexham and Bidston, but local stakeholders say the compromise required shows the need for urgent investment in the route.
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Rail Business UKTrain operators respond as Vivarail enters administration
UK: Vivarail Ltd went into administration on December 1, with the appointment of joint administrators from Grant Thornton UK. Vivarail produces multiple-units using old London Underground cars and develops battery traction technology. In a post on LinkedIn, Managing Director Steve McBride wrote ‘it feels like we ...
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Rail Business UKAcademy helps Network Rail to address adverse weather
UK: A Weather Academy pilot programme has been launched by Network Rail, Newcastle University, the Met Office and weather forecasting service MetDesk, bringing together rail operations staff, asset engineers and meteorology experts to identify ways of mitigating the effects of adverse weather. Network Rail staff have ...
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Rail Business UKGrand Union’s Carmarthen to London service approved
UK: The Office of Rail & Road has approved Grand Union Trains’ plans to launch an open access passenger service between London and southwest Wales using bi-mode trains with a high-quality interior including 2+1 seating in standard class. On December 1 ORR announced that it had ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
This week’s round-up of business news from the UK railway industry.
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Rail Business UKRail industry finances showed signs of recovery in 2021-22
UK: The rail industry’s finances showed signs of recovery from the effects of the pandemic in the last financial year but passenger revenue remained well below pre-pandemic levels, according to the latest statistical report from the Office of Rail & Road. The Rail Industry Finance report ...
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Rail Business UKHolistic design concepts rethink train interiors for sustainability
UK: PriestmanGoode has unveiled Green Carriage, a collection of train interior design concepts developed to ’push boundaries for greener systems and processes across the entire interior, rethinking what a future interior can be’. The transport design consultancy’s ‘reductive, modular and circular’ approach takes a holistic view ...
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Rail Business UKRail Partners calls for changes to prevent cuts leading to a ‘spiral of decline’
UK: The Rail Partners association of train operator owning groups has called for changes which it says are needed to prevent lower post-pandemic revenues, rising industry costs and delays to reform triggering a ‘spiral of decline’ with a ‘protracted hiatus, stunted recovery from the pandemic and ...
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Rail Business UKVivarail files intention to appoint administrators
UK: Vivarail has filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators, after failing to secure new investment. ‘We will now be consulting with our customers and other stakeholders to try and drive the business forwards, but we must be realistic in that if we are unable ...