UK passenger train operator news – Page 27
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Rail Business UKDisqualification of non-compliant franchise bids was lawful, High Court finds
UK: The Department for Transport’s disqualification of non-compliant bids for the East Midlands, South Eastern and West Coast Partnership franchises was lawful, Mr Justice Stuart-Smith said when handing down judgment in the High Court on June 17. In April 2019 the then Secretary of State for Transport, ...
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Rail Business UKEast Coast Trains Class 803 production begins
UK: Production of the five Class 803 trainsets which FirstGroup subsidiary East Coast Trains has ordered for its future London to Edinburgh open access service is underway at Hitachi Rail’s Newton Aycliffe factory.
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Rail Business UKContractor appointed for Aberdeen station modernisation
UK: Morrison Construction has been appointed to undertake a £8m modernisation of Aberdeen station. The year-long project will include relocating the ticket office and first class lounge to provide an improved environment and create additional ‘high value’ retail areas, enhancement of existing ...
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Rail Business UKSouth Western Railway’s first Class 701 delivered
Source: Christopher Addoo UK: The first of 90 Bombardier Transportation Class 701 Aventra electric multiple-units ordered for operation on South Western Railway’s commuter routes into London Waterloo has been delivered to Eastleigh ready for the start of certification testing next month. The 10-car EMU was hauled ...
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Rail Business UKKidderminster station building opens
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 ...
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Rail Business UKNorthern review looks beyond Covid-19 recovery
UK: ‘Covid-19 has not changed our commitment to deliver a “new Northern” that will deliver real and tangible improvements for passengers’, said Managing Director Nick Donovan on June 8, as the operator published the results of the ‘100-day review’ commissioned when control of the franchise was transferred to the Department for Transport’s Operator of Last Resort on March 1.
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Rail Business UKWelsh Government announces £65m Emergency Measures Agreement
UK: The Welsh Government is to provide up to £65m over the next six months through an Emergency Measures Agreement to ensure that Wales & Borders passenger services can continue to operate. This will also ensure key infrastructure projects can be delivered, and fund free travel for ...
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Rail Business UKUnion calls for government support for open access operators
UK: The RMT trade union has written to the Secretary of State for Transport calling on the government to intervene to support open access operators Hull Trains and Grand Central. Unlike franchised operators, the open access companies which are owned by FirstGroup and Arriva have not received ...
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NewsStadler orders ABB traction and energy storage technology
EUROPE: So far this year Stadler has awarded ABB orders worth more than US$180m to provide traction systems and battery energy storage for locomotives and trainsets to be supplied to operators in Europe and North America. This total includes customised electrical equipment for the 71 multiple-units that ...
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Rail Business UKStart-ups selected for LNER FutureLabs innovation programme
UK: London North Eastern Railway has selected five start-ups to participate in its FutureLabs innovation accelerator programme. Pitches via Microsoft Teams video conferencing were invited in three areas: More Journeys More Often; Personalised Customer Experience and Responsible Business. The winners were: QikServe, which will use its ...
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Rail Business UKGovia Thameslink Railway uses 30-day ‘coronavirus killer’
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway’s entire train fleet as well as stations and staff areas have been treated with Zoono, a viruscide which is designed to stick to surfaces and inactivate the coronavirus for up to 30 days. The product is applied on a 21-day cycle, and a ...
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Rail Business UKAccessibility features of Greater Anglia Aventra EMUs highlighted
UK: Greater Anglia has unveiled the accessibility features of the Class 720 Aventra electric multiple-units which Bombardier Transportation is supplying to operate outer-suburban commuter services into London Liverpool Street. ‘Our new trains will be much better for our disabled customers’, said Rebecca Richardson, ...
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Rail Business UKWest Midlands Trains leads on social distancing approach as rail services ramp up
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. ...
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NewsConcern grows over future of open access operators
UK: The future of open access services remains uncertain as both Hull Trains and Grand Central face up to the implications of tighter Department for Transport requirements on passenger safety when rail services are stepped up from May 18. Talking to Rail Business UK, one senior ...
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Rail Business UKCrossrail EMUs approved for ETCS operation
UK: The Office of Rail & Road announced on May 11 that it had approved the use of ETCS onboard equipment on the Bombardier-built Class 345 EMUs, paving the way for the trains to be introduced on TfL Rail services to Heathrow Airport.
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Rail Business UKColne – Skipton reopening moves closer
UK: Rail minister Chris Heaton-Harris has confirmed that investigations have been commissioned into the proposed reinstatement of the 19·3 km Colne – Skipton ‘missing link’ connecting east Lancashire and west Yorkshire.
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Rail Business UKGrand Central surveys passenger attitudes to support restart planning
UK: Grand Central has launched what it calls an ‘ambitious open-ended survey’ to gauge current public attitudes to rail travel. The Arriva-owned open access operator intends to use the findings to plan the restart of its passenger services following a ‘hibernation’ which was implemented when Covid-19 travel ...
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Rail Business UKLNER FutureLabs innovation programme launched
UK: The LNER FutureLabs programme has been launched to provide an opportunity for technology start-ups to test their ideas in the railway environment. The programme has three ‘challenges’: More Journeys, More Often: digital services that encourage more people to travel by train; Personalised Customer Experience: simplifying, ...
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NewsCAF Rail UK awarded DMU maintenance contract
UK: Translink has awarded CAF Rail UK a contract to continue to maintain NI Railways’ fleet of 23 Class 3000 diesel multiple-units which entered service from 2004. The new contract runs for 15 years from April, and is worth more than €60m. The work will be performed ...