Main works contractor Farrans Sacyr has completed major piling operations for the Belfast Grand Central station development, and Graham’s civil engineering team is building a 51 m span busway bridge over the realigned tracks.
On October 3 ScotRail announced that Dunfermline Town station would now be known as Dunfermline City, recognising the change in status awarded as part of the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations. The operator said it would take some time to complete the logistics of the change across the industry databases and electronic channels. However, Greater Anglia told Rail Business UK it has no plans to rename Colchester Town, as ‘it is not a simple or cheap proposition’ to change ‘all ticketing and journey planner systems across the whole country’, and the name ‘continues to aptly describe it as the station in Colchester’s central shopping, business and tourism district’.
John Sisk & Son has awarded VVB Engineering a contract to deliver mechanical, electrical, telecommunications and fire safety improvements at West Ham station as part of Berkeley Group’s TwelveTrees Park housing development. The London Underground, Docklands Light Railway and c2c station is to get a further entrance and two new pedestrian footbridges as part of the property scheme.
Medway Council has awarded Aecom a £252 000, six-month contract to undertake geotechnical ground investigations for the proposed reinstatement of passenger services on the freight line between Hoo Junction and Grain in Kent.
Mechan has supplied 20 mobile jacks to enable five-car Electrostar EMUs to be overhauled at Govia Thameslink Railway’s Selhurst Depot in south London. The 15-tonne jacks are designed to operate as a set of eight, 12 or 20, and are some of the first to be supplied with the latest version of Mechan’s control system designed to reduce the size of cables and provide 4G connectivity for remote diagnostics.
Julie Carrier has been appointed Chief Commercial Officer at Unipart Rail. She joins from Systra where she led the growth of the business in the UK, predominantly in high speed rail.
The Railway Benefit Fund has relaunched its Energy Support Fund in reaction to the increased cost of living expected this winter. The fund offers applicants up to £200 towards the cost of gas and electricity bills to people with at least one year of experience working in rail (or the widow of a railway worker), household income less than £40 000 and less than £3 000 in capital if single or £5 000 if a couple.
Jemma Smalls has joined Rail Forum as Communications, Policy & Public Affairs Manager. She began her career in rail as an undergraduate intern with the Rail Forum in 2018, and then worked at Porterbrook and Ford & Stanley Group, with a focus on engagement with stakeholders, customers and suppliers.
Network Rail has awarded possession management contracts to TES 2000 (Lot 1 Anglia, £15m; Lot 3 North & East & East Coast North, £14m) and Bridgeway Consulting (Lot 2 East Midlands & East Coast South, £21m).
Greater Anglia and its car park manager NCP have obtained People’s Parking accreditation at 12 stations, after demonstrating good signage and pedestrian routes and that the car parks are well lit, clean and well managed, well located and have a range of payment options. Some accessibility improvements have been made as part of the accreditation process.
The Institute for Apprenticeships & Technical Education has launched a review of transport and logistics skills training, seeking feedback from employers and stakeholders on what is working and what needs to change to meet the current and future needs of business, support sustainability and attract new and diverse talent.
