UK rail employers make an offer but union rejects end to national dispute
Train operating companies have offered the RMT an outline framework agreement that would deliver reforms that will support funding pay increases of up to eight per cent. The agreement would cover the 2022 and 2023...Read more
Green light for new operator to provide services from South Wales to London
Grand Union has been given a green light for their red dragon services. The UK authorities have granted permission for a new operator to provide services from South Wales to London. Trains will begin running...Read more
Greater Manchester’s Salford Central to close for six months of improvement works
Salford Central, the forgotten hub of Greater Manchester, is to be given a facelift and overhaul by Network Rail, but will close for up to six months in 2023. The work will restore some of...Read more
UK Portishead line greenlit, but fears for rest of Bristol Metro project
A railway line connecting the west of England city of Bristol with the fast growing community of Portishead has received approval from the UK government. The railway, currently open for freight traffic only, will see...Read more
UK Rail strikes: reform before reward says new transport minister
Mark Harper, the new transport secretary in the UK government, has said that to break the deadlock with the unions, and solve the long-running industrial dispute, it will require an acceptance of revised working practices....Read more
UK East Coast Digital signalling upgrade means January diversions
Enabling work at weekends in early January and mid-February will mean diverted services on the East Coast Main Line. The work will hasten the introduction of digital signalling ETCS to the route famous for the...Read more
UK strikes to run up to Christmas and after New Year
Britain is braced for a series of damaging rail strikes, disrupting the run up to Christmas and the return to work in the new year. The largest trades union in the rail industry, the RMT...Read more
Scotland’s hydrogen train project looks back to the future
A project aiming to transform the future of the rail industry is underway at the home of Scotland’s railway heritage. A retired ScotRail Class 314 electric multiple is based at the Bo’ness & Kinneil Railway...Read more
Bid to extend England’s Tyne and Wear Metro to Washington
The metro rail network that serves the neighbouring cities of Newcastle, Gateshead and Sunderland, in the north east of England, is currently undergoing a much needed modernisation. Future plans are also being made for a...Read more
Hydrogen: clean, green, pure, and a safety issue?
Hydrogen has all the impetus behind it, and it is even compatible with existing technology. But what could be (safety) issues in the rollout of hydrogen in rail or gaps in existing standards? Those are...Read more
UK strikes see light at the end of the tunnel
Friday’s eleventh hour call-off came too late to save the weekend, but commuters exhaled a collective sigh of relief for the week ahead. The cancellation of strike action on Monday and Wednesday avoided a week...Read more
Merriman appointed Minister of State for Rail & HS2
The young face of Huw Merriman is an old face around the transport portfolio. Now, the political Peter Pan is the new Minister of State for Rail & HS2. He takes on what is generally...Read more
Enough delay, where is the UK Rail Network Enhancement Programme?
Tired of waiting, the Railway Industry Association (RIA) has published its own Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline (RNEP) update. The document, which the UK government claimed it would publish every year, is somewhat behind schedule. In...Read more