All articles by Rail Business UK – Page 146
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Rail Business UKGWR prepares for December timetable recast
UK: More than three-quarters of all services operated by Great Western Railway are set to change with the introduction of a completely recast timetable on December 15, as the FirstGroup franchise operator moves to capitalise on the fruits of the Great Western Route Modernisation programme and increase capacity on some ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
Dutch company Sqills is to supply its S3 Passenger software as a service platform to manage all seat reservation functions for the Rail Delivery Group from next year. This will cover 21 train operators in Great Britain, who would also be able to connect their inventories with other S3 Passenger ...
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Rail Business UKHigh Speed 2 rolling stock bids submitted
UK: The deadline to submit bids for the estimated £2·75bn contract to design, manufacture and maintain the High Speed 2 train fleet passed at midday on June 5. Project promoter HS2 Ltd will now evaluate the five bids received and expects to announce the winner in early 2020, with entry ...
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Rail Business UKVirgin Trains announces plans for cheapest fare app
UK: Virgin Trains is developing a booking app which it says will guarantee that passengers obtain the cheapest walk-up fares by retrospectively looking at the trains used and recalculating the fare if a different ticket would have been cheaper than the one purchased. The system would automatically ...
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Rail Business UKFirstGroup concerned about UK franchise risk and reward
FIRSTGROUP: ‘We have concerns with the current balance of risk and reward being offered’ by UK passenger rail franchises, warned FirstGroup Chief Executive Matthew Gregory when presenting the train and bus operator’s annual results on May 30. Gregory said FirstGroup would await the government’s Williams review of the structure of ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
The Railway Industry Association published its submission to the Transport Select Committee's Trains Fit for the Future inquiry on May 28. 'The rail industry needs the right policy environment to replace diesel passenger trains with those that use electricity, hydrogen or batteries', said RIA Technical Director David Clarke. 'To do ...
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Rail Business UKOpportunities amid uncertainty in the UK rail market
UK: Railway Industry Association Chief Executive Darren Caplan sees good opportunities for UK firms in both the home and export markets, despite a period of uncertainty. Speaking to Railway Gazette at the Railtex exhibition in Birmingham on May 15, Caplan stressed that the record £48bn settlement for Network ...
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Rail Business UKVivarail units take over Marston Vale services
VIVARAIL: Class 150 and 153 diesel multiple-units have been withdrawn from West Midlands Trains services on the UK's Marston Vale Line, with all services now operated using Class 230 DMUs supplied by Vivarail. The first Class 230 unit entered service between Bletchley and Bedford last month. Vivarail has ...
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Rail Business UKStadler presses ahead with UK projects
UK: Stadler is moving forward with its four UK projects, the company told Railway Gazette at Railtex. The company expects to complete deliveries of the Greater Anglia fleet by the end of the year, having recently delivered the first of 10 EMUs for use on Stansted ...
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Rail Business UKLegal action over ‘inappropriate’ risks in new West Coast franchise
UK: The West Coast Trains Partnership joint venture of Stagecoach Group (50%), SNCF Holding (30%) and Virgin (20%) confirmed on May 24 that it had begun legal action against the Department for Transport. This follows DfT’s decision to disqualify it from bidding for the West Coast Partnership contract covering the ...
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Rail Business UKDoncaster hub prepares to maintain Azuma fleet
UK: Hitachi Rail Ltd is ramping up maintenance activity at Agility Trains East’s new Doncaster depot as the roll-out of Class 800/801 Azuma trainsets begins on the East Coast Main Line. The first Azuma entered service on May 15, and four more were being used for driver training in late ...
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Rail Business UKNetwork Rail awards haulage and seasonal services contracts
UK: Infrastructure manager Network Rail has awarded contracts worth £800m for the haulage and operation of its engineering trains and the provision of seasonal rail treatment services in Control Period 6 which runs from 2019 to 2024. ‘These contracts demonstrate the commercially creative approach Network Rail’s supply chain now ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
Greater Anglia launched its 'Norwich in 90’ service between the Norfolk city and London on May 20. Services with 90 min timings depart southbound at 09.00 and 17.00 and northbound at 11.00 and 19.00 from Monday to Saturday. The first regular services to use the Halton Curve between Runcorn ...
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Rail Business UKGrand Central DMU to be used for dual-fuel trial
UK: An Alstom Class 180 Adelante diesel-hydraulic multiple-unit is to be converted to run on a combination of diesel and liquefied natural gas in a dual-fuel technology demonstration project. One car of the DMU which Arriva-owned open access inter-city operator Grand Central leases from Angel Trains is to be equipped ...
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Rail Business UKBritish Steel Ltd placed in liquidation
UK: The High Court ordered British Steel Ltd into compulsory liquidation on May 22, with the Official Receiver appointed as liquidator. The court has appointed Hunter Kelly, Sam Woodward and Alan Hudson of EY to act as Special Managers to assist the Official Receiver. The company supplies 95% of the ...
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Rail Business UKDepot equipment demonstrations at Railtex
MECHAN: Sheffield-based lifting and handling system manufacturer Mechan offered visitors to its Railtex stand a chance to see some of its products in action. A full size demonstration jack was displayed, along with a working model of a wheel press from Mechan’s French sister company Sogema Engineering. ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
Abellio UK said on May 9 it was ’pleased and proud to be confirmed today as the new operator of the East Midlands rail franchise by the Department for Transport’, following the conclusion of the extended standstill period. Managing Director Dominic Booth said ‘we’re looking forward to working with the ...
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Rail Business UKBreeze hydrogen multiple-unit order expected soon
UK: Alstom is hopeful of confirming an order before the end of this year for its Breeze hydrogen multiple-unit trains being developed in partnership with leasing company Eversholt Rail, suggesting that the first trains could enter service ‘as early as 2022’. Unveiling a scale model of the three-car HMU ...
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Rail Business UKTransport for the South East seeks statutory status
UK: The Transport for the South East group of 16 local authorities covering the region from Hampshire and Berkshire to Kent has begun consultation on its draft case for acquiring statutory status as a subnational transport body. This would give it the right to be consulted on new franchises, a ...
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Rail Business UKLNER launches Hitachi Azuma trainsets
UK: ‘The launch of the Hitachi Azuma fleet is another step in the history of a route which has long been associated with iconic trains’, LNER Manging Director David Horne told guests on a preview train on May 14, the day before the new fleet is set to enter passenger ...