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Wednesday, 29 July 2015

BBC News

• New city rail station plans unveiledFresh plans are drawn up for the biggest transformation of Cardiff Central railway station since it was built in the 1850s.
• VIDEO: Police to probe Tube killer claimAn ex-detective's claims 12 people were murdered by the same man on the London Underground between 1953 and 1983 are described by the Met chief as

Department for Transport

• Smart ticketing to transform travel for Southeastern passengersJourneys between London, Kent and parts of East Sussex will be simplified as Southeastern signs up for smart cards.

The Guardian

• Theresa May to chair Cobra meeting as Cameron pushes for end to Calais crisisHome secretary will hold emergency meeting on Wednesday morning, after prime minister says government is doing ‘everything we can’ to stop migrantsHome secretary Theresa May will chair an emergency Cobra ministerial meeting on Wednesday morning on the growing Calais migrant crisis, David Cameron has announced. Related: Fleeting fixtures and precarious lives in the migrant camp of Fortress Calais Continue reading...

The Scotsman

• Row over new cheap ScotRail fares for over-50sSCOTRAIL was today accused of making new discount fares for older rail passengers less generous and more complicated than the ones they will replace as it launched its Club 50 scheme.

London Evening Standard

• District Line delays: Seven drivers 'sent home for refusing to take trains into service on safety grounds' The Tube dispute, with another 24-hour strike scheduled for next week, today took a dramatic turn for the worst after seven drivers were sent home for refusing to take trains into service on safety grounds.
• Eurotunnel delays: 2,000 migrants believed to have stormed Calais terminal Thousands of migrants hoping to make their way into Britain stormed the Eurotunnel terminal in Calais last night.

Yorkshire Post

• Revamp of station needed to cope with HS2 planBusinesses across Yorkshire have called for a full-scale revamp of Leeds City Station to help cope with the expected increase in passenger numbers and the HS2 scheme.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Denmark-Germany undersea Fehmarn tunnel gets go-aheadDenmark has got EU approval for a 19km (12-mile) undersea road-rail tunnel that will cut journey times to Germany. The €8.7bn (£6bn; $9.6bn) Fehmarn Belt project will get €589m of EU funding. The EU Commission said it complied with EU state aid rules and would boost transport links between central Europe and Scandinavia. The tunnel will connect the Danish island of Lolland with Germany's Fehmarn island. Construction will start in January, and it should open in 2024. There will be a four-lane motorway alongside a double-track railway. The link will provide a fast corridor betwee...
• Smart ticketing to transform travel for Southeastern passengersRail passengers in Kent and parts of East Sussex will soon benefit from more convenient and smoother journeys thanks to a £5.5 million plan to roll out smart cards across Southeastern’s network. Southeastern will bring in smart cards, initially for season tickets only, as an alternative to paper tickets from December 2016. This follows a deal with the Department for Transport as part of the government-funded South East Flexible Ticketing (SEFT) programme. Work will now begin to upgrade Southeastern’s ticketing systems and equipment to allow passengers to use smart cards to t...
• New Board appointments for Unipart RailUnipart Rail have recently announced the appointment of three new Board members for the Traction and Rolling Stock (T&RS) sector of their business. The appointments are Kevin Orton who assumes the role of Sales Director, UK and Ireland, Balazs Berki is promoted to International Business Development Director and Karen Beardsley who becomes Supply Chain Director. All three appointments are focused on supporting the business plans for growth both in the UK and internationally. George Tillier, Managing Director of Unipart Rail T&RS commented 'we are now providing a broader range of service...

Rail Magazine

• c2c to increase peak-time capacityc2c to increase capacity on 17 of its 74 Class 357 Electrostars

Railnews

• Calais crisis: government's emergency committee meets The government's emergency COBRA committee is meeting today to discuss the growing crisis at Calais, while reports from France say a body has been found near the Channel Tunnel. If true, it will be the latest of several fatalities. The Tunnel was closed again yesterday, and last night an estimated 1,500 migrants attempted to breach the security zone boundaries and invade lorries and Eurotunnel services bound for Britain. The Freight Transport Association wants the army to be brought in, while the French authorities are calling for the border to be moved from Calais to the English side. The pr...

Other News Sources

• Hitachi Rail Europe Wins First Traffic Management Contract in UKThe FINANCIAL -- Hitachi Rail Europe (HRE) today held a ceremonial event at its Global Headquarters in London to mark the awarding and signing of the Thameslink contract for Traffic Management (TM) in partnership with Network Rail Infrastructure Limited (“Network Rail”).