Transportinfo.org.uk - today's transport news in the uk, hand picked for you each morning

Saturday, 07 December 2019

BBC News

• Seven teenagers held over Rugeley railway station disorderPolice were called after reports that a train driver had been assaulted.
• NI Railways on track for service changesAdditional commuter trains and extra Saturday night services are on the way.
• West Highland railway line reopens after floodingThe line was closed between Bridge of Orchy and Crianlarich because of flooding on the track.
• West Coast Rail: Preston-to-Scotland rail fares to be cappedThe UK's competition watchdog agrees to cap rail fares on certain routes between Scotland and Preston.

Financial Times

• West Coast rail fare cap agreed after passenger choice concernsUK watchdog accepts proposal from First Trenitalia partnership, which is taking over franchise

Times Online

• Network Rail to blame for 60% of train delays [Subscription]Delays on railways caused by bad weather, track faults and signal failures have increased by almost 12 per cent in the past year, new data shows.
• Why weary passengers are waking up to sleeper trains [Subscription]When Hercule Poirot took the Orient Express it was the fastest way to travel across Europe.

This is Money

• Britain's longest-running rail franchise ending, as Virgin Trains operates its final serviceThe firm, which began running the West Coast Main Line in March 1997, is being replaced by Avanti West Coast. Almost 500m journeys have been made with Virgin Trains.

Birmingham Mail

• West Midlands Railway chief answers complaints of overcrowding and train chaosExtra carriages, better compensation, new timetable - this is what a West Midlands Railway director pledged when we quizzed him on behalf of our readers
• Virgin Trains to make final journey in the West Midlands todayThe firm, which began serving the West Coast Main Line in March 1997, is being replaced by Avanti West Coast on trips linking Birmingham and London

Birmingham Post

• Hitachi wins £350m contract to build trains for the West Coast Main LineThe company will build the trains from its factory in County Durham
• The 'bullet train' technology trains set to run between Wales and LondonBi-mode Hitachi Rail trains will run on the West Coast Main Line reaching speeds of 125mph

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Plaid Cymru leader's North Wales train trip highlights 'crumbling 19th Century rail system'Adam Price says 'rail revolution' needed to fix our 'broken infrastructure'
• The final whistle is about to blow on Virgin Trains' 22 year relationship with North WalesEryl Crump takes a look back at the history of Virgin Train services on the North Wales coast line

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• A £5m transformation of Newcastle's Central Station won't start until June 2020Works were due to start early next year at the busy train station but have now been put back to summer

Northern Echo

• Hitachi wins £350m intercity trains deal for Newton Aycliffe HITACHI has been awarded a £350 million contract to build 23 new intercity trains at its County Durham plant.The firm yesterday announced the deal which will see Avanti West Coast trains– totalling 135 carriages– built at the factory in Newton Aycliffe, which employs about 700 people.Andrew Barr, group chief executive of Hitachi’s rail division, said: “Based on Japanese bullet train technology, our new trains have proven to be the modern intercity train of choice, increasing passenger satisfaction wherever they run.“We’re delighted to continue our excellent relationship with FirstGroup and ...

The York Press

• Furious passengers hit out over train cancellations FURIOUS passengers have hit out over the repeated cancellations of York trains while TransPennine Express teaches drivers and conductors how to operate a new fleet.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Railway boss reassures passengers ‘trains are safe’ amid disruptionUnion claims its drivers didn’t feel safe operating new trains being introduced by Greater Anglia have added to mounting pressure on the train operator where services have been severely disrupted in recent weeks as new rolling stock is introduced.

Leeds Live

• Toilets at Leeds train station to close for months as refurbishment work continuesThe existing toilet facilities on platforms will be closed for several months in the latest stage of improvements at Leeds train station

Rail Technology Magazine

• Heritage award presented to Network Rail The National Railway Heritage have presented Network Rail with an award for their refurbishment of the South Esk viaduct at Montrose. At the award ceremony in London, the National Railway Heritage award was presented to Network Rail and contractor, Taziker Industrial by HRH the Princess...
• £350m contract for Hitachi Rail to build new Avanti West Coast trains Hitachi Rail awarded a contract worth more than £350m by First Trenitalia, whose new Avanti West Coast rail service starts on the 8th of December, to maintain and prove 23 new intercity trains. The 135 new carriages will bring additional capacity to services along the West Coast Main Line...
• Virgin Trains leads the way with 5G onboard connectivity Virgin Trains has become the first train operator to trial onboard 5G Wi-Fi. The trial comes in partnership with McLauren Applied and Vodafone, as efforts to bring unrivalled broadband speeds onboard trains continue. Once rolled out, the 5G connectivity on the West Coast Mainline will offer...

Railnews

• New trains for West Coast will be built by Hitachi Hitachi is to build 23 new trains for the West Coast Partnership, with the aim of having them in service by 2022. The fleet will consist of 10 seven-car electric units and 13 five-car bi-mode units, and will be based on Hitachi™s existing Intercity Express models. The electric trains will operate between London, the West Midlands and Liverpool, while the bi-mode version will be used on the London to Holyhead route. The announcement of the investment of more than £350 million in the new trains and their maintenance has come just two days before FirstGroup and Trenitalia take over from Virgin a...

Other News Sources

• War of words over month-long rail strike expected to cause travel miserySOUTH Western Rail has hit out at the RMT trades union claiming it has 'moved the goalposts' by changing its position over the month-long strike which is due to spike travel misery for commuters in Dorset and Hampshire for a month starting next week.

EIN News Subscription

• Not exactly the 'Orient Express', but Europe's sleepers are back … shrank distances, low-budget airlines emerged and European Union regulations made night … allure. One by one, Europe’s great rail lines terminated … contract from a western European rail company in the … connection for travellers to the EU’s de-facto capital, …