Regulator approves bid by open-access operator Go-op to run trains in south-west England from late next year
The UK’s first co-operatively owned railway service could begin running trains in the south-west of England late next year.
The Office of Road and Rail (ORR) has approved a bid from open-access operator Go-op to run several new services between Swindon, Taunton and Weston-super-Mare, and compete with Great Western Railway on the line.
Continue reading...Carriages for controversial high-speed line focus on passenger comfort, innovations and headroom, mock-ups reveal
For now, it remains unclear quite how far any passenger will travel on future HS2 services – whether reaching Euston or on high-speed tracks all the way to Crewe. But however short the journey, an exclusive peek at HS2’s embryonic carriages reveals travellers will be enthroned in “the best seats of any UK trains” – even, arguably, in the toilets.
Conscious of discontent with the “ironing board” seats in some of the newest trains introduced to Britain’s railways, HS2 are putting passengers’ backs and bottoms centre stage.
Continue reading...Collision of two trains in west London killed 31 people and was one of worst rail disasters in recent UK history
Families bereaved by the Ladbroke Grove rail disaster have laid flowers to remember those killed, and to recognise those who came to their aid, 25 years since the crash that killed 31 people.
The disaster, one of the most catastrophic rail incidents in recent UK history, also left more than 220 injured. A rush-hour train collided almost head-on with a high-speed train about 2 miles from Paddington station in west London, shortly after 8am on 5 October 1999.
Continue reading...Planned 22 days of disrupted weekend services suspended with Aslef stating it has resolved a longstanding dispute
A series of weekend strikes by train drivers on LNER from Saturday has been called off, their trade union Aslef has announced.
Passengers travelling between London and Edinburgh had faced the prospect of months of disruption after LNER drivers earlier this month announced 22 days of industrial action from the start of September until early November.
Continue reading...Staff to return to work and trains expected to start running in days after ministers intervene
Canada’s federal government has moved to end a nationwide rail strike that threatened to grind supply chains to a halt, less than a day after it began.
With the government saying it would force the union and rail companies into binding arbitration, picket lines came down and workers at Canadian National Railway (CN) were ordered to return to work on Friday, the Teamsters union said.
Continue reading...Huw Merriman called for end to ‘demonisation’ of train drivers and apologised for failing to bring reforms
A former Conservative minister has called for an end to the demonisation of train drivers and said he understood why the new Labour government had “decided to cut a deal” with unions.
Huw Merriman, who served as the rail minister for the entirety of Rishi Sunak’s premiership, apologised for failing to bring in workplace reforms and his inability to reach an agreement to end the strikes.
Continue reading...The rail operator has pulled four of 15 trains from its Saturday schedule, affecting more than 3,000 people
Eurostar passengers hoping to catch the start of the Paris Olympics have continued to face difficulties after an arson attack in France caused train cancellations.
People travelling by Eurostar from London to Paris on Friday were asked to postpone trips if possible after the rail operator cancelled one in four trains over the weekend as a result of arson attacks that lead to widespread disruption to France’s high-speed rail network hours before the start of the Olympics.
Continue reading...‘Massive’ coordinated attacks on TGV bring severe disruption to France’s busiest rail lines
France’s high-speed rail network has been hit by coordinated “malicious acts” including arson attacks that have brought major disruption to many of the country’s busiest rail lines hours before the Paris Olympics opening ceremony.
The state-owned railway operator, SNCF, said arsonists had targeted installations along the lines connecting Paris with the country’s west, north and east and that traffic would be severely disrupted across the country during the weekend.
Continue reading...Network Rail route directors will also attend next week as UK government aims to reform railways quickly
Labour has summoned the bosses of some of the worst-performing train operators, including Avanti West Coast and TransPennine, for meetings next week as it seeks to rapidly reform the railways and reset industrial relations.
The transport secretary, Louise Haigh, will bring in Network Rail route directors to attend all talks with the train companies, signalling the move towards an integrated railway.
Continue reading...Settlement for disaster that resulted in plumes of toxic chemicals in Ohio town includes funds for cleanup costs
The freight train company involved in a disastrous, pollution-spewing derailment in Ohio last year has agreed to a $310m settlement with the US government over the incident.
Norfolk Southern will pay a $15m civil penalty for violating clean water laws and pay hundreds of millions more in cleanup costs in the wake of the derailment, which occurred near the town of East Palestine in February last year.
Continue reading...Passengers were left abandoned and humiliated after operator banned staff from providing assistance
Eurostar has reversed a new accessibility policy that left a wheelchair user stranded and has retrained its London staff following pressure from the Observer.
Travellers with disabilities claimed that they would be barred from Eurostar services after the company banned its London staff from pushing passenger wheelchairs. Those who require assistance were told they must travel with a companion or cancel their ticket if they were unable to access services unaided, according to passengers who contacted the Observer.
Continue reading...Union to roll out 24-hour strikes across England’s train operators for three days this week and six-day overtime ban from Monday
Rail passengers face a week of disruption as train drivers embark on another round of industrial action on Monday, despite tentative attempts by the industry to restart talks.
Drivers in the Aslef union will strike for 24 hours at each of England’s national train operators over the course of three days from Tuesday until Thursday, while an overtime ban will apply nationwide from Monday until Saturday.
Continue reading...Avanti West Coast services among those affected by Aslef industrial action, which continues on Saturday and Monday
Rail passengers across England will face significant disruption on Friday as train drivers at five operating companies carry out industrial action.
The 24-hour strike will be the first of three days of rolling strike action being taken by the train drivers’ union Aslef, with services on Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway all affected.
Continue reading...Funding for drains, embankments and other measures is part £45.4bn five-year investment plan
Network Rail is to spend nearly £3bn to protect the railway from the effects of the climate crisis and extreme weather, as it warned that the country’s network was having to contend with hotter summers and increased winter floods.
As part of its new £45.4bn five-year investment plan, the body in charge of Great Britain’s rail network will spend £2.8bn over the next five years on activities and technology to help it cope with the impact of climate change.
Continue reading...Around 9,500 tonnes of track will be provided for north African country’s first fully electrified mainline
British Steel has won a multimillion-pound contract to supply rail for a new route in north Africa, the company has announced.
Approximately 9,500 tonnes of track, produced in Scunthorpe, will be provided for Egypt’s first fully electrified mainline and freight network which stretches from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean.
Continue reading...Train maker Alstom plans fast service skirting Birmingham as Ryan Reynolds’ football club takeover reaps in ever more benefits
Direct trains could next year connect Wrexham to London, with a new service capitalising on the town’s Hollywood-meets-football mini-boom.
The train manufacturer Alstom is bidding to set up the Wrexham, Shropshire and Midlands Railway with a promise of cheaper, more comfortable trains straight to London.
Continue reading...Mayor Sadiq Khan thinks his new line names for the capital’s ever-expanding rail network bring clarity, but not everyone agrees
The ancient Egyptians saw names as magical. It was said that Isis tricked Ra, the sun god, into telling her his true name, to give her power over him and put her son Horus on the throne.
Londoners have a different take. The Northern line was nearly named TootanCamden in the 1920s, the historian Robert Graves wrote – a pun on the Tutankhamun craze of the time and the line’s route through Tooting and Camden.
Continue reading...President pledged to get cleanup job done and pushed for protective measures as protesters held ‘anti-Biden’ rally
Joe Biden on Friday surveyed the federal cleanup in East Palestine, Ohio, more than a year after an explosive fire from a derailed train carrying hazardous chemicals – and the president saw up close the lingering hostility from victims still angry that he waited so long to visit.
The White House has said Biden was waiting for the right moment to visit. The mayor invited him.
Continue reading...Web of orange on tube map revamped to celebrate city’s unique local history and culture, says mayor
The London Overground is to be rebranded into six lines with names inspired by the capital’s and the country’s diverse modern history, from Windrush to the Lionesses.
The web of orange on the tube map will be replaced by six colours and routes in August to help make the capital’s public transport network easier to navigate.
Continue reading...Dismay at St Pancras International in London as services cancelled due to flooding of Thames tunnel
When Ilse Deurloo arrived at St Pancras station after a festive holiday with her boyfriend in London, she was shocked by the scenes of chaos and disruption as thousands of travellers were left stranded.
“This is not what I had in mind,” said Deurloo, 20, who was planning to return home to Amsterdam on Saturday. Her train, like all expected high-speed services between Ebbsfleet International and London St Pancras International, was cancelled due to flooding in a tunnel under the Thames. Thames Water said it believed the incident was caused by a fire control system malfunction.
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