Rail jobs, staff issues and training

First new driverless Subway trains arrive in Glasgow for testing

07 May 2019The first of Glasgow’s new subway fleet has arrived in Scotland and begun an intensive testing programme in preparation for their launch as the first driverless trains in the UK. Operator Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) called t...

Stagecoach says it was disqualified because it rejected £1.6bn rail pensions risk

03 May 2019Stagecoach has said it was disqualified from three rail franchise competitions because it refused to accept a pensions risk “well in excess of £1bn.” The transport group has said projections offered by the DfT were “inadeq...

Crossrail clung to ‘unrealistic’ timeline as contract renegotiations cost an extra £2.5bn, NAO reports

03 May 2019Crossrail “clung to an unrealistic view” throughout its delivery and has damaged public value, but is now “past the point of no return” and must focus on meeting its new target, a report from the National Audit Office (NAO)...

£1.46bn railway arches sale ‘overlooked’ tenants and businesses, says NAO

02 May 2019Network Rail’s £1.46bn sale of railway arches “overlooked” small firms and businesses operating in the arches, the National Audit Office (NAO) has found. The sale saw 5,261 commercial properties sold to US firm Telereal Tr...

London Underground workers to strike over ‘safety-critical cuts’

02 May 2019London Underground maintenance and engineering workers are preparing for three-days of strike action in a row over cuts to train preparation and inspection schedules. The RMT said over a thousand of its members will walk out from 17 May to 20 May...

London Overground workers prepare for further strike action over ‘insulting’ pay freeze

01 May 2019London Overground workers are to stage another walkout over a pay freeze which “effectively means a slide into poverty pay,” the RMT has announced. Members of the union will walk out for 24 hours on 16 May, their second set of industr...

RAIB releases safety report after dog killed in train dispatch accident

01 May 2019The RAIB has made safety recommendations to a train operator and the Rail Delivery Group after a train dispatch accident resulted in the death of a dog. A passenger and her dog were exiting a train at Elstree and Borehamwood station in September...

Commission calls for £10bn transport investment in Glasgow rail schemes and city-wide metro network

30 April 2019A Glasgow City Council commission has called for a £10bn transport investment into rail schemes and a city-wide metro system. The report from the Glasgow Connectivity Commission puts forward a number of “bold, ambitious and transforma...

Ditch franchising model and put organising body in charge, says rail industry

30 April 2019The rail industry has called for an end to the current franchising model in favour of multiple operators on mass-commuter routes and for a new independent body to be put in charge of the sector. In its submission to the Williams review, the Rail...

BTP and Network Rail warn drone pilots after ‘dangerously close’ incident in Surrey

26 April 2019Network Rail and British Transport Police (BTP) have issued a warning to drone pilots to keep away from railway tracks after one incident in Surrey saw a drone fly “dangerously close” earlier this month. The pilot of the drone risks b...

Siemens submits plans to build £200m train manufacturing site in East Yorkshire

24 April 2019Planning applications for a £200m rail manufacturing site in Goole, East Yorkshire have been submitted by Siemens. The ‘train factory’, first revealed early last year, will build state-of-the-art trains for the Piccadilly Line...

TfL commissioner urged to quit after downplaying Crossrail ‘tragedy’

24 April 2019Transport for London’s (TfL) chief commissioner has been told to consider resigning after he “watered down” key messages between Crossrail and TfL over the project’s extensive delays and £3bn overspend, according to a...

Rail industry launches new interactive accessibly map for UK rail stations

17 April 2019A new interactive map which lets passengers find out about accessibility at stations has been launched by the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) to help boost their confidence in train travel. The ‘Access Map’ has information about all station...

Helium balloons causing ‘increasing number of train delays’ at cost of £1m

17 April 2019Helium-filled balloons are causing hundreds of train delays at a cost of £1m in taxpayer money every year, Network Rail has revealed. There have been 619 balloon-related incidents across England, Scotland and Wales in the past year –...

Stagecoach and MPs demand answers in dispute over ‘staggering’ pensions fund deficit and rail franchise controversy

16 April 2019MPs have asked The Pensions Regulator (TPR) to reveal the extent of the “substantial” deficit in the Railways Pensions Scheme and provide an “urgent solution” after Stagecoach threatened legal action over its three spurned...