West Midlands Trains news – Page 2

  • West Midlands Railway Birmingham Moor Street DMU (Photo Tony Miles)
    Rail Business UK

    West Midlands Trains appoints next Managing Director

    2022-03-09T13:32:00Z

    UK: ScotRail Chief Operating Officer Ian McConnell is to become Managing Director of West Midlands Trains in April, once ScotRail has been transferred from Abellio to public body Scottish Rail Holdings. McConnell was previously Franchise & Programmes Director at Greater Anglia, and ...

  • Avanti West Coast SuperVoyagers at Winwick (Photo Tony Miles)
    Rail Business UK

    On-train air quality standards to be reviewed following RSSB research

    2021-09-16T15:36:00Z

    UK: The Department for Transport has ordered a review of regulations governing exposure to air pollution on trains and at stations, after research commissioned from the Rail Safety & Standards Board found that air quality was ‘poorer than desired’ on some trains using diesel power. RSSB’s ...

  • West Midlands Trains Class 172 DMU at Acocks Green (Photo: Tony Miles)
    Rail Business UK

    Direct awards agreed with Greater Anglia and West Midlands Trains

    2021-09-15T15:30:00Z

    UK: The Abellio-led Greater Anglia and West Midlands Trains businesses have agreed directly-awarded National Rail Contracts with the Department for Transport, ahead of the expiry of their Emergency Recovery Measures Agreement contracts on September 19. Both business are currently run as joint ventures between Abellio and ...

  • Moseley Station Site WMCA
    Rail Business UK

    Stations to reopen on Birmingham’s Camp Hill line as funding finalised

    2021-03-22T13:27:00Z

    UK: West Midlands Combined Authority has signed off the final £20m tranche of funding to reopen the Camp Hill line south of Birmingham for local passenger services.

  • WMR Stourbridge Class 139
    Rail Business UK

    Stourbridge shuttle peoplemovers to be modified

    2021-02-02T05:00:00Z

    UK: Services on the short branch from Stourbridge Junction to Stourbridge Town will be replaced by buses for two weeks from February 8, with West Midlands Railway and Pre Metro Operations taking advantage of current low ridership to make improvements to the route’s two Parry People ...

  • West Midlands Trains has deployed an on-train real-time information and entertainment system supplied by GoMedia and its parent company Icomera.
    Rail Business UK

    West Midlands Trains deploys on-train information and entertainment

    2020-12-09T05:00:00Z

    UK: West Midlands Trains has deployed an on-train real-time information and entertainment system supplied by GoMedia and its parent company Icomera. Passengers connect their smart device to on-train wi-fi, and can then access live information about both the progress of the train and onward connections. There is ...

  • gb West Midlands Railway Class 172
    Rail Business UK

    Leasing company takes on DMU heavy maintenance

    2020-11-11T05:00:00Z

    UK: Responsibility for heavy maintenance, future maintenance optimisation and the enhancement of West Midlands Trains’ Bombardier Transportation Class 172 diesel multiple-units has been transferred from the operator to Porterbrook. The leasing company said this ‘new, more collaborative’ way of working would build on the quality and performance ...

  • gb Darlaston station impression
    Rail Business UK

    Tendering underway for new Black Country stations

    2020-10-19T05:00:00Z

    UK: Invitations to tender for the construction of stations at Darlaston and Willenhall on the freight-only Walsall to Wolverhampton line have been issued, after planning permission was granted by Walsall Council. Opening is planned for 2023, with the two stations to be served by an hourly service ...

  • gb West Midlands Trains Bombardier Class 730 EMU (1)
    Rail Business UK

    Class 730 EMU for Birmingham’s Cross-City Line revealed

    2020-09-09T10:42:00Z

    UK: One of the Bombardier Transportation Class 730 Aventra electric multiple-units which West Midlands Trains has ordered for its Cross-City Line services through Birmingham has been unveiled at the manufacturer’s Derby factory. ‘Designed and built in Derby they really are made in the ...

  • gb Artist impression of Birmingham University Station
    Rail Business UK

    Birmingham University station upgrade funding confirmed

    2020-07-22T08:08:00Z

    UK: The Department of Transport announced £12m of funding for the £56m project to rebuild University station in Birmingham on July 22. It is the seventh busiest station on the West Midlands Trains network, serving the fourth largest university in the UK, nearby schools and the Queen ...

  • gb Kidderminster station (3)
    Rail Business UK

    Kidderminster station building opens

    2020-06-10T14:45:00Z

    UK: A new main building at Kidderminster station was opened without ceremony on June 7. The glass-fronted structure built by Buckingham Group Contracting is double the size of the previous building. ‘The customer experience at the station will be vastly improved and ...

  • West Midlands Trains EMUs at Five Ways
    Rail Business UK

    West Midlands Trains leads on social distancing approach as rail services ramp up

    2020-05-21T07:07:00Z

    UK: Practices adopted by West Midlands Trains to maintain social distancing rules amid the Covid-19 pandemic are set to form the basis for a wider approach among franchised operators. Photo: Tony Miles WMT operates medium-distance trains over the West Coast Main Line under the London Northwestern brand. ...

  • West Midlands Trains EMUs at Five Ways
    Rail Business UK

    West Midlands Trains required to spend £20m on improvements

    2020-02-14T10:47:00Z

    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 ...

  • West Midlands Trains EMUs at Five Ways
    Rail Business UK

    West Midlands Mayor holds off calling for West Midlands franchise termination

    2020-02-06T14:30:00Z

    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.

  • gb-northern-pacer-retirement
    Rail Business UK

    Non-PRM compliant trains get last-minute derogation

    2019-12-24T12:18:00Z

    UK: A few days ahead of the January 1 2020 deadline for ensuring compliance with tighter accessibility standards, the Department for Transport has granted limited dispensations for operators to keep in service for up to one year trains which do not meet the TSI-PRM requirements.

  • gb West Midlands Trains Class 196 CAF DMU
    Rail Business UK

    West Midlands Trains reveals first Class 196 DMU

    2019-12-18T09:37:00Z

    UK: West Midlands Trains has revealed the first of its CAF Civity Class 196 diesel multiple-units, which is now on test at the Velim circuit in the Czech Republic. The 12 two-car and 14 four-car DMUs were ordered in October 2017 at cost of around €200m, with ...

  • West Midlands Railway EMUs at at Five Ways (Tony Miles)
    Rail Business UK

    West Midlands Trains looks to roll back service changes

    2019-12-16T06:00:00Z

    UK: West Midlands Trains has conceded that its May 2019 timetable change did not work well, particularly for its London Northwestern division which implemented a radical change involving joining up into through trains services which previously terminated at Birmingham New Street. Accepting that ‘day to day ...

  • CAF is to supply 12 two-car and 14 four-car diesel multiple-units for regional and rural services around Birmingham from 2020.
    News

    Bombardier and CAF win West Midlands train contracts

    2017-10-16T23:01:00Z

    UK: Bombardier Transportation and CAF have been selected to supply rolling stock for the next West Midlands franchise, the West Midlands Trains Ltd consortium of Abellio, East Japan Railway and Mitsui & Co announced on October 17. Totalling 413 vehicles, the orders are worth £680m, with financing being led by ...

  • The West Midlands Trains Ltd consortium of Abellio, East Japan Railway and Mitsui & Co has been named preferred bidder for the West Midlands franchise.
    News

    East Japan Railway enters UK market with West Midlands franchise win

    2017-08-10T09:34:00Z

    UK: The West Midlands Trains Ltd consortium led by the Abellio subsidiary of Dutch national operator NS (70·1%) and the JREM Train 50:50 joint venture of East Japan Railway and Mitsui & Co (29·9%) was named preferred bidder for the West Midlands franchise by the Department for Transport on August ...