UK rail industry news – Page 30
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Rail Business UKGWR buys Vivarail battery train assets to secure Greenford trial
UK: Great Western Railway has agreed contracts to buy Vivarail’s battery train related assets, saying this will secure the future of planned trials of the technology in London. The deal announced on February 16 includes intellectual property, rolling stock and equipment relating to the development of ...
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Rail Business UKWelfare vans to improve conditions for breakdown and recovery teams
UK: DB Cargo UK has taken delivery of a fleet of Ford and Iveco welfare vans fitted with toilet, catering and cleaning facilities for use by its breakdown and recovery teams. The teams based at Didcot, Wigan and Millerhill respond to more than 100 incidents a ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
This week’s round-up of business news from the UK railway industry.
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Rail Business UKArriva calls for open access summit
UK: Arriva has called for an ‘open access summit’ to enable the rail industry to ’collectively work through the barriers and agree practical steps for unleashing more of these innovative services, including through making best use of unused capacity on the network’. In the George Bradshaw ...
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Rail Business UKRail Forum ‘adopts’ Rail Safety Week
UK: Not for profit trade association Rail Forum has ‘adopted’ the Rail Safety Week initiative, which this year will run from June 26 to July 2. RSW was established in 2016 as an industry-led initiative focused on rail safety for everyone, including people who work on ...
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Rail Business UKReliability headaches hinder Welsh train fleet renewal
UK: Transport for Wales updates Rail Business UK on progress with its rolling stock renewal programme.
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Rail Business UKScotRail to scrap Highland Explorer supplement
UK: ScotRail is to remove the £10 supplement for using its Highland Explorer diesel multiple-units from April 1, and the vehicles adapted to carry bicycles and sporting equipment will also be introduced on the Mallaig route. The Class 153 DMUs owned by leasing company Angel Trains ...
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Rail Business UKWest Coast Main Line electro-diesels on test
UK: The first two of 13 Hitachi Class 805 electro-diesel trainsets ordered for Avanti West Coast services are undergoing testing on the West Coast Main Line ahead of entry into service later this year. This follows two months of dynamic testing at Network Rail’s Rail Innovation ...
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Rail Business UKAvanti West Coast submits revised recovery plan
UK: Inter-City West Coast operator Avanti West Coast has submitted a revised timetable production recovery plan to the Office of Rail & Road. The regulator had sought changes after the operator’s initial improvements had stalled with weekend timetables being finalised just a few days in advance. ...
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Rail Business UKSouth Western Railway operating contract extended
UK: The Department for Transport has exercised an option to extend South Western Railway’s National Rail Contract for a further two years. Directly-awarded NRCs are intended as an interim step between the Emergency Recovery Measures Agreements which were put in place during the pandemic, and the ...
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Rail Business UKAlstom opens national training academy in Derby
UK: Local Member of Parliament Dame Margaret Beckett opened Alstom’s £250 000 National Training Centre at its Litchurch Lane factory in Derby on February 7. The company plans to take on 120 apprentices and graduates in the UK this year, with all spending time at the ...
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Rail Business UKMorgan Sindall awarded Surrey Quays station works contract
UK: Transport for London has appointed Morgan Sindall Infrastructure as main works contractor for the construction of a second entrance at London Overground’s Surrey Quays station. This will provide more direct access to nearby developments and the existing shopping centre, with a ‘spacious’ ticket hall and ...
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Rail Business UKRail impact of minimum service legislation to be investigated
UK: The House of Commons Transport Committee has launched an inquiry into how the government’s proposed Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill would apply in practice to the rail sector. If passed, the bill would allow the Secretary of State to make regulations setting out the minimum ...
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Rail Business UKWashwood Heath HS2 depot approved
UK: Birmingham City Council has granted Schedule 17 approval for High Speed 2’s Washwood Heath depot. The 2017 act providing legal powers for the construction of Phase One of HS2 provides deemed planning permission for the project, but Schedule 17 requires that HS2 Ltd seeks the ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
This week’s round-up of business news from the UK railway industry.
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Rail Business UKRail reform will enhance the role of the private sector, says Harper
UK: Private sector train operators will have a key role to play in the reformed rail structure, Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper told industry leaders on February 7. Presenting the annual George Bradshaw Address hosted by industry association Rail Partners, Harper sought to set ...
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Rail Business UKUrban Transport Group’s next Chair appointed
UK: Steve Warrener, Managing Director of Transport for Greater Manchester, has been named Chair of the Urban Transport Group of city region transport authorities. This follows the end of the two-year term of outgoing Chair Laura Shoaf, Chief Executive of West Midlands Combined Authority. ‘The cost ...
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Rail Business UKPortishead railway reopening contact awarded
UK: Network Rail has awarded VolkerFitzpatrick the multi-disciplinary works contract for the reinstatement of 5·5 km of disused line between Pill and Portishead to enable the reintroduction of passenger services to Bristol. There are two phases to the contract, with the £6·14m first stage covering detailed ...
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Rail Business UKResearch to improve prediction of low-adhesion rail conditions
UK: The Rail Safety & Standards Board and University of Sheffield are collaborating to investigate how more detailed information on temperature, humidity and the presence of leaf layers or other contaminants can be used to predict low-adhesion track conditions caused by leaves on the line. The ...
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Rail Business UKTransport Committee to investigate accessibility obligations, enforcement and redress
UK: The House of Commons Transport Committee has launched an inquiry into transport accessibility for disabled people and those with access needs. This will examine the effectiveness and enforcement of legislation, and any gaps in it that need to be filled. The committee will also look at ...