All articles by Rail Business UK – Page 150
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Rail Business UKCommission adopts 'no-deal' Brexit contingency measures for rail
EUROPE: The European Commission has adopted proposals designed to help avoid major disruption to cross-border rail services between the UK and the European Union in the event of a ‘no deal’ Brexit. The Commission is working with the European Parliament and Council to ensure the legislative measures can be in ...
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Rail Business UKThameslink fleet stake to be sold
UK: A consortium of Dalmore Capital and Equitix Investment Management has signed agreements to acquire 3i Infrastructure’s one-third stake in Cross London Trains Holdco 2 Ltd. This was established by 3i, Innisfree and Siemens in 2011 to finance, own and maintain the fleet of 115 Desiro City Class 700 EMUs ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
LGIM Real Assets has provided £200m in long-term debt financing on behalf its clients including Legal & General Retirement Institutional to support Equitix and SMBC in the purchase of 60 Stadler trainsets for use by the Wales & Borders operator on the Valley Lines. Translink has awarded British Steel an ...
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Rail Business UKNetwork Rail reorganisation aims to bring ‘radical change’
UK: Plans for a reorganisation designed to ‘put passengers and freight users first’ and address concerns about poor operating performance on the increasingly busy network were announced by infrastructure manager Network Rail on February 12. ‘The need for radical change is clear’, said Chief Executive Andrew Haines, reflecting on his ...
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Rail Business UKInterim East Midlands franchise awarded
UK: The Department for Transport has directly awarded incumbent Stagecoach Group subsidiary East Midlands Trains an interim contract to continue to operate the East Midlands passenger franchise. The new short-term contract announced on February 12 will start when the most recent extension of the current franchise expires on March 3 ...
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Rail Business UKScotRail gets second performance warning
UK: Citing poor customer satisfaction figures, Transport Scotland issued a Remedial Plan notice to ScotRail on February 8. This is the operator’s second warning in quick succession, following a Remedial Notice issued on December 24 because of poor operational performance, during November and December. According to Transport Scotland, ScotRail had ...
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Rail Business UKLong-life screwbolts developed for Crossrail
UK: The bespoke corrosion-resistant PLUS bolt was developed by screwbolt specialist Excalibur to meet the demanding requirements of the Crossrail project in London. Crossrail Ltd requires anchors used in the tunnel lining to demonstrate a 120-year design life instead of the standard 50-year span of a standard fixing. The twin-helix ...
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Rail Business UKConsultation on expanding pay-as-you-go ticketing in southeast England
UK: The Department for Transport has begun public consultation on the possible roll out of ‘pay-as-you-go’ smart ticketing in the region surrounding Greater London. It is envisaged that this would be more convenient for passengers, and reduce differences in fares paid by people by people with different working and travel ...
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Rail Business UKIMechE recommends electrification instead of hydrogen trains
HYDROGEN: Although investment in hydrogen-fuelled trains is a ‘vital’ part of the process to improve air quality, it must not be seen as an easy replacement for electrification, according to The Future for Hydrogen Trains in the UK published by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers on February 7. The report ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
The initial report of the Rail Industry Decarbonisation Task Force led by former Angel Trains Chief Executive Malcolm Brown was published on January 31. The report suggests it would be possible to replace diesel for passenger trains, but ‘only diesel offers the power and go anywhere flexibility for freight to ...
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Rail Business UKUK rail funding and expenditure data published
UK: The Office of Rail & Road’s annual report showing railway funding and spending between April 1 2017 and March 31 2018 was published on January 30. In 2017-18 the cost of running the railways rose 1·4% year-on-year to £20·6bn. Income was down 1·3% to £19·4bn, largely because passenger numbers ...
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Rail Business UKGrants to support low-carbon technology demonstrators
UK: The Department for Transport has awarded grants of around £350 000 to each of five projects which aim to develop technology to reduce the rail network’s carbon footprint. The projects were selected under the second round of the DfT’s First of a Kind competition, run by Innovate UK as ...
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Rail Business UKMaritime Transport to operate East Midlands freight interchange
UK: Maritime Transport has signed a 25-year lease to operate the Strategic Rail Freight Interchange which SEGRO is developing at its East Midlands Gateway logistics park in Castle Donington. The 9 ha terminal to be completed this year will be capable of handling 16 trains/day up to 775 m long, ...
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Rail Business UK3D printed components to be tested on passenger trains
3D PRINTING: Rolling stock leasing company Angel Trains, engineering consultancy ESG Rail and 3D printing technology company Stratasys have collaborated to use additive manufacturing to produce four train interior components meeting the standards required for use on UK rolling stock. The components include an arm rest, a grab handle and ...
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Rail Business UKRail at heart of £70bn northern England investment plan
UK: A transport investment programme worth up to £70bn over the next three decades was unveiled by Transport for the North on January 31. Rail spending features prominently in the multi-modal plan, which is intended to support the creation of around 850 000 jobs and deliver economic benefits worth around ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
The government should undertake consultation on the possibility of establishing a UK infrastructure bank, the House of Lords EU Financial Affairs Sub-Committee said in its Brexit: the European Investment Bank report published on January 31. ‘For the last 45 years the UK has relied on the European Investment Bank to ...
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Rail Business UKNetwork Rail announces alliance contract winners
UK: Infrastructure manager Network Rail has named the preferred bidders for two of its three rail system alliance contracts. Amongst the largest framework contracts to be awarded for Control Period 6 in 2019-24, the contracts have been designed to bring together NR, designers and construction contractors to undertake what NR ...
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Rail Business UKFive routes proposed for Bedford – Cambridge railway
UK: Oxford to Cambridge railway project promoter East West Railway Co has begun public consultation on five route options for the Bedford – Cambridge section of the future line. While the Western Section between Oxford and Bedford will use upgraded and reinstated existing railway alignments, the Central Section between Bedford ...
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Rail Business UKDB Cargo UK and Maritime Intermodal announce rail freight deal
UK: Maritime Transport’s newly-formed intermodal business division and DB Cargo UK have announced an agreement in principle which will see the road haulier award the rail company a contract to operate four dedicated services from Felixstowe and Southampton, with Maritime taking over responsibility for DB Cargo UK’s existing intermodal customers ...
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Rail Business UKJoint venture to develop Cardiff Parkway station
UK: The Welsh government is to work with private investors to develop a Cardiff Parkway park-and-ride station at St Mellons, close to the M4 and around 8 min by rail from Cardiff or Newport. The government will become a shareholder and investor in the South Wales Infrastructure Ltd joint venture ...