Category Archives: Rail transport

Greek train crash: effort to find bodies expected to end as anger grows

Posted on by

Operation to locate missing passengers likely to be concluded three days after crash near Larissa that killed at least 57

Rescuers are expected to wrap up efforts to find the bodies of victims of a head-on collision of two trains in central Greece, as anger grows over the deadly crash.

Three days after the Thessaloniki-bound passenger train slammed into an oncoming freight train outside the town of Tempe, killing at least 57, the operation to locate missing passengers would likely be concluded, officials said.

Continue reading...

Leaked audio reveals US rail workers were told to skip inspections as Ohio crash prompts scrutiny to industry

Posted on by

Exclusive: employee says manager told her to stop marking cars for repair, as Ohio derailment brings hard look at industry’s record of blocking safety rules

In leaked audio heard by the Guardian, a manager for one of the US’s largest rail companies can be heard explaining to a former carman that they should stop tagging railcars for broken bearings. The manager says doing so delays other cargo.

The disclosure comes as federal agencies investigate the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. A wheel-bearing failure was cited as the cause of the crash in a preliminary report released by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Continue reading...

Greek train crash: anger grows as officials admit rail network problems

Posted on by

Government says rail projects beset by ‘chronic public sector ills’, as death toll from crash rises to 57

Thousands of Greeks have taken to the streets for a second day of protests as anger mounts over the loss of life in Tuesday night’s head-on train crash.

Braving torrential rain and thunder, demonstrators marched from the office headquarters of Hellenic Train in Athens to the Greek parliament, chanting “this crime will not be forgotten”.

Continue reading...

NSW government slams brakes on high-speed rail plans after spending $100m on studies

Posted on by

Exclusive: Perrottet government backs away from building Sydney-Newcastle fast rail link by itself

The Perrottet government has quietly abandoned its vision to build its own dedicated fast rail line between Sydney and Newcastle despite four years and roughly $100m spent on feasibility studies, abruptly halting work on a final business case just as geotechnical drilling was being planned.

Confidential documents seen by Guardian Australia reveal that the New South Wales transport department now considers further planning and construction of a dedicated fast rail line to Newcastle to be a task for the commonwealth and its yet-to-be-operational High Speed Rail Authority (HSRA) – which will itself re-start feasibility studies when it is formed.

Continue reading...

‘Snail rail’: ACT chief challenges Albanese government to upgrade Canberra-Sydney train line

Posted on by

Exclusive: High-speed rail advocates support call from Andrew Barr, saying even gradually beginning track duplication could cut travel times in half within a decade

ACT chief minister, Andrew Barr, has challenged the federal government to upgrade the snail-like Canberra-Sydney train line, calling for cheaper upgrades as a “no brainer” even if a true high-speed line has to wait.

Noting that the federal government has earmarked the Newcastle-Sydney corridor as the first priority for its new High Speed Rail Authority, Barr even raised the prospect of developing part of a Canberra corridor at the same time.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

London Underground drivers to strike on 15 March

Posted on by

The 24-hour strike kicks off on budget day in dispute over pensions and working arrangements

London Underground drivers are to strike on 15 March – budget day – in a dispute over pensions and working arrangements.

The Aslef union announced on Wednesday that members would strike for 24 hours, in a row over changes to working arrangements and pensions.

Continue reading...

Ohio train derailment: EPA takes control of response and clean-up efforts

Posted on by

EPA orders Norfolk Southern to clean up site in East Palestine, Ohio, as residents demand answers about health risks

Federal environmental regulators on Tuesday took control of the clean-up from the derailment of the train carrying huge quantities of toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio, earlier this month, and ordered the railroad company Norfolk Southern to foot the bill.

Amid growing fear and frustration among residents about safety and transparency, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will now take control as the fallout from the 3 February train disaster moves from emergency response to the clean-up phase.

Continue reading...

RMT announces further national rail strikes

Posted on by

Strikes to begin on 16 March after union rejects offers from train operators and Network Rail

The RMT union has announced further national strikes and wider action on the railways after rejecting offers from both train operators and Network Rail last week.

The union’s 40,000 members across Network Rail and 14 train operators will strike on 16 March. Train staff will walk out for three further days, on 18 and 30 March and 1 April.

Continue reading...

Birmingham’s singing station clock – a platform for ‘ordinary’ voices

Posted on by

Aural clock, designed by Turner prize winner Susan Philipz for Curzon Street HS2 station, features sounds made by 1,092 city folk

“I think your voice would suit an F sharp. So that will be six o’clock,” said composer Andy Ingamells as he listened to my feeble attempts to sing Dolly Parton’s 9 to 5, my go-to karaoke song.

He is in the process of recording the voices of 1,092 ordinary people from across Birmingham and Solihull so they can be immortalised in the chimes of a singing station clock, which will be placed in the centre of the HS2 railway station being built in the city.

Continue reading...

Ohio residents demand answers two weeks after toxic chemical train derailment

Posted on by

Train operator Northern Southern failed to appear at community meeting in East Palestine, citing concern for their staff’s safety following disaster

Hundreds of residents of the Ohio village upended by a freight train derailment and the subsequent burning of some of the hazardous chemicals on board, have questioned officials over potential health hazards.

Norfolk Southern, the rail operator, did not join Wednesday night’s meeting in East Palestine – which was billed as an open house gathering with local, state and federal officials – because of concerns for their staff’s safety.

Continue reading...

Ohio officials to release toxic chemicals from derailed train to avert explosion

Posted on by

Officials urge anyone within 1-mile radius of site in north-eastern Ohio to leave amid ‘potential of a catastrophic tanker failure’

Authorities in Ohio say they plan to release toxic chemicals from five cars of a derailed train in Ohio to reduce the threat of an explosion.

Governor Mike DeWine says a “controlled release” of vinyl chloride will take place on Monday at 3.30pm local time.

Continue reading...

Blaze from 50-car train derailment in Ohio still burning

Posted on by

Hazardous materials being carried on freight train leads to evacuation order and state of emergency

Freight train cars continued to burn on Saturday, sending up heavy smoke, following a derailment that prompted an evacuation order and a declaration of a state of emergency in an Ohio village near the Pennsylvania state line in the US.

About 50 cars derailed in East Palestine at about 9pm EST on Friday as a train was carrying products from Madison, Illinois, to Conway, Pennsylvania, rail operator Norfolk Southern said on Saturday. There was no immediate information about what caused the derailment. No injuries or damage to structures were reported.

Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak has never paid a penalty to HMRC, No 10 says, amid growing pressure over Nadhim Zahawi – as it happened

Posted on by

This blog is now closed. You can find all our politics stories here:

Rishi Sunak has welcomed Germany’s decision to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine.

There is more coverage of the German decision on our Ukraine live blog.

Continue reading...

Row growing after third historic rail bridge filled in with concrete

Posted on by

National Highways faces third intervention by a local authority over infilling, after burying Congham bridge in Norfolk in tonnes of concrete

A controversial practice by the government’s roads agency of burying historic railway bridges in concrete has been dealt a fresh blow after a third council intervened over another infilled structure.

King’s Lynn and West Norfolk council has told National Highways it must apply for retrospective planning permission if it wants to retain hundreds of tonnes of aggregate and concrete it used to submerge Congham bridge, a few miles east of King’s Lynn.

Continue reading...

‘Like knocking down the Eiffel tower’: battle to save historic Prague bridge

Posted on by

A plan from Czech railways to replace the emblematic landmark with a modern structure is facing an impassioned backlash

A historic Prague railway bridge, whose importance to the city’s landscape has been compared to the Eiffel tower in Paris, has been earmarked for demolition in a move denounced by architects and preservationists.

The much-photographed Vyšehrad bridge – instantly recognisable for its parabolic lattice steel structure – is unfit to carry an anticipated rising volume of rail traffic, claims Czech Railways, which plans to replace it with a modern structure.

Continue reading...

RMT has received new pay offer from train operators, union says

Posted on by

Companies have made a ‘final offer’ to union including pay rise of 9% over two years

The RMT has received a fresh offer from train operators, the union said, raising hopes of a breakthrough in the long-running pay dispute.

Talks have been ongoing in London this week with the RMT and the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), representing train firms, as well as separately with Network Rail.

Continue reading...

Underwater bike garage solves Amsterdam station’s storage headache

Posted on by

Central station is replacing its messy, overflowing cycle parking facilities with a low-cost area that’s tucked away out of sight

Beneath the clear waters and pleasure boats by Amsterdam central station is a remarkable feat of engineering: an underwater garage for 7,000 bicycles.

The garage, which opens on 26 January, is the result of a four-year, €60m (£53m) project to clear heaps of rusty bikes left by hasty commuters and install rows of clean, safe parking spaces underground, where bikes can be left free for 24 hours and then at a cost of €1.35 per 24 hours.

Continue reading...

Ministers to unveil anti-strike laws as disputes continue to paralyse UK

Posted on by

Business department says bill will enforce ‘basic’ level of service from different sectors during stoppages

Ministers are to unveil controversial new legislation designed to curb the effectiveness of strike action as industrial disputes continue to paralyse services across the UK.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has previously said the bill will enforce a “basic” level of service from different sectors if workers choose to strike.

Continue reading...

At least one dead and 57 injured in collision on Mexico City’s metro

Posted on by

Death of young woman follows other accidents on the network, including one in 2021 that killed 26

Two subway trains collided between stations in Mexico City on Saturday, killing at least one person and injuring 57, authorities said.

Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said on her Twitter account that the accident happened on Line 3 of the capital’s Metro system, without specifying the cause of the crash, which occurred between the Potrero and La Raza stations.

Continue reading...

Only one in five UK train services to run on second consecutive day of strikes

Posted on by

Passengers advised to travel only if necessary on Wednesday, although No 10 and Network Rail optimistic about reaching deal

• UK strike calendar: service stoppages in January

More disruption awaits commuters returning to work after the Christmas break on Wednesday, the second of five consecutive days of rail strikes.

Once again, much of Britain’s rail network will not be operating, with only about a fifth of trains expected to run, leaving only a skeleton service for commuters on some urban and intercity lines.

Continue reading...