Coronavirus news
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Metro Report InternationalEnglish light rail networks get final tranche of Covid-19 funding
UK: The government has announced £56m of funding to support the operation of Manchester Metrolink, Tyne Wear Metro, Sheffield Supertram, Nottingham Express Transit, West Midlands Metro and Blackpool Tramway services from July 20 to April 2022. The funding announced on July 16 is ...
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News
Covid Impact Tracker shows continued losses for rail in 2021
EUROPE: The economic situation for EU railways shows very little sign of improvement, according to the Community of European Railway Infrastructure Companies’ Covid Impact Tracker. Revenues from January to May 2021 were lower across the board than in the second half of 2020, the association reported. ...
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Metro Report International
Wi-fi used to estimate station usage
UK: Transport for London is using aggregated and depersonalised data from its wi-fi network to provide real-time information on how busy London Underground stations are at any particular time of the day. TfL has previously used ticketing data to understand travel patterns, with its estimates ...
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Metro Report International
Street theatre to raise vaccine awareness at metro construction sites
INDIA: Delhi Metro Rail Corp has organised street theatre performances at construction sites to raise awareness of the benefits of Covid-19 vaccination. The shows performed by film, television and web actors use the rural dialects and folk songs of many of the construction workers. ...
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Rail Business UK
Industry and unions agree principles for making the rail industry more financially sustainable
UK: The Rail Industry Recovery Group, which was formed to bring together industry and trade union representatives to identify ways to make the industry more financially sustainable in the light of the coronavirus pandemic, has agreed common principles and focus areas for ‘meaningful discussions’ to address ...
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Rail Business UK
Welsh rolling stock strategy evolves as three-phase post-pandemic recovery envisaged
UK: TfW Rail has again revised its fleet strategy as it seeks to ensure passenger services can be improved despite the financial constraints caused by Covid-19, Managing Director Jan Chaudhry-van der Velde tells Rail Business UK.
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Rail Business UK
Government plans new rail pass to boost domestic tourism
UK: Plans for a new rail pass designed to help the tourism sector recover following the coronavirus pandemic and encourage sustainable domestic holidays have been announced by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media Sport. The rail pass is one of the measures in ...
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Rail Business UK
Rail journeys in Great Britain lowest since at least 1872
UK: Rail passenger journeys in Great Britain in 2020-21 were the lowest since records began in 1872, according to the latest statistics from the Office of Rail Road. The regulator said the ‘unprecedented’ fall in usage could be attributed entirely to the coronavirus pandemic, ...
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Metro Report International
Driverless train study required under latest Transport for London support deal
UK: The Department for Transport has agreed a further funding package for Transport for London, with government conditions including studies for the possible conversion of two Underground lines to driverless operation. The deal reached on June 1 covers the period from May 29 to December ...
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Rail Business UK
Rail needs to be ‘relevant and wanted’ in an era of changed travel demand
UK: ‘How we go about our daily lives and conduct our businesses has changed for a lot of people’, said Steve Montgomery, Managing Director of FirstGroup’s First Rail business at the TransPennine Express RE-Connect 2021 conference. Before the coronavirus ‘we were seeing customer numbers at ...
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Rail Business UK
ScotRail tests on-train Covid-19 check-in system
UK: As part of Scotland’s coronavirus measures, ScotRail is undertaking an eight-week trial of the NHS Test Protect Check In Scotland QR code system on one of its Inter7City trainsets, at the request of the Scottish government and Transport Scotland. From May 24, ...
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Rail Business UK
‘Post-Covid’ flexible train interior concepts proposed
UK: Concepts for train interior designs which could accommodate changed passenger requirements following the pandemic and with the ability to switch between ‘commuter’ and ‘leisure’ arrangements have been unveiled by operator Go-Ahead, leasing company Angel Trains and design agency Seymourpowell. Sliding armrests could allow seats ...
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Metro Report International
Transport for London funding package extended by 10 days
UK: The government and the Mayor of London have agreed a 10-day extension of Transport for London’s current funding deal, which was due to expire on May 18. The latest extension on the same terms comprises a payment of £65m with a top-up grant available based ...
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News
Eurostar to increase services and complete Thalys merger as £250m refinancing agreement secured
EUROPE: Cross-Channel high speed train operator Eurostar has announced a £250m refinancing agreement with its shareholders and banks, which it said would enable it to continue to operate services and meet its short to mid-term financial obligations. The refinancing package announced on May 18 comprises ...
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News
Pandemic brings ‘bleak’ first quarter for European railways
EUROPE: The coronavirus pandemic continues to have a heavy impact across the rail sector, according to the Community of European Railway & Infrastructure Companies’ Covid Impact Tracker.
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Rail Business UK
Real-time passenger counting using on-train CCTV
UK: South Western Railway is testing the use of CCTV cameras, AI technology from PoS Insights and onboard wi-fi from Icomera to produce continuous estimates of passenger numbers on its Siemens Desiro EMU cars. The operator has plans for the data to be made available ...
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Rail Business UK
Caledonian Sleeper services return to full timetable
UK: Caledonian Sleeper has confirmed that it will be restoring its full timetable from April 29, after a lengthy period of running a single daily train between London and Inverness via Edinburgh. Both the Lowlander and Highlander services will re-start, albeit with slightly shorter formations ...
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News
Access charge reductions fairer than direct support, says ERFA
Duisburg (Photo: DB). EUROPE: The European Rail Freight Association has reiterated its belief that reducing track access charges would be the best way of supporting the rail freight sector through the pandemic in a transparent and non-discriminatory manner, rather than providing direct support for individual ...
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Rail Business UK
Real-time loading information provided as Hull Trains restarts
UK: Hull Trains emerged from its three-month ‘hibernation’ as English coronavirus restrictions were eased on April 12, and has begun publishing real-time information on how busy its services are. The technology developed in-house by First Rail uses data supplied by onboard staff to show how ...
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Metro Report International
Manchester tram airflow helps to limit coronavirus risk, study finds
Photo: Tony Miles UK: The constant circulation of air by the ventilation system on Greater Manchester’s light rail vehicles helps to limit the risk of aerosol transmission of viruses, an independent study has found. Transport for Greater Manchester commissioned Arup to undertake computational fluid dynamics ...
