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Friday, 10 January 2020

BBC News

• Newton Aycliffe Hitachi rail plant to axe 250 jobsUp to 250 jobs are set to be axed at a factory making trains in County Durham. The Hitachi plant in Newton Aycliffe opened in 2015 and employs about 900 people, according to the union Unite.
• Wednesbury freight firm fined £1.2m over boy's electrocutionThe boy was badly burned after he and two friends climbed on top of a freight train in a depot.
• Transport for Wales: KeolisAmey fined £2.3m for poor performanceThe train company contracted to run Transport for Wales services, KeolisAmey, has been fined £2.3m by the Welsh Government for poor performance.Economy minister Ken Skates said the penalty notices were "vital", saying the company had not lived up to what was agreed.
• Northern rail can continue only 'for months', transport secretary saysA decision is due on the future of the troubled rail firm, which could be stripped of its franchise.

Financial Times

• Northern rail financial woes force minister to step inGovernment considers taking over franchise as owner Arriva runs out of funds
• Clamour for rail revamp as Northern nears end of lineThird operator failure underlines problems of system not fit for purpose

The Guardian

• HS2 destroyed trees in way of train line without permissionContractors removed potential habitats for bats and butterflies in Buckingham nature reserve to prepare for rail line
• Rail operators pay 16% more compensation claims for latenessRail operators paid out more than 1.2m compensation claims over late trains last summer, a 16% increase compared to the previous year, as networks began paying for delays of 15 minutes or more.
• Northern nightmare on poor rail ‘service’ [Letter]Nils Pratley is right about Grant Shapps’ weasel words concerning Northern rail (Shapps sounds the whistle over Northern rail – but a plan for real action is long overdue, 3 January)

Times Online

• Northern Rail could be nationalised in weeks [subscription]Northern Rail is months away from financial collapse amid growing anger over poor performance on the busy commuter network.

City AM

• Hitachi Rail to slash 250 jobs at County Durham factoryHitachi Rail has announced that it will cut 250 jobs from its train factory in County Durham.

London Evening Standard

• Zone 1 area getting total overhaul after campaigners lose court battleA new identity is being carved out for this Zone 1 spot, with jumbo new homes schemes, shops, a new park, entertainment and funky street food venues.

Northern Echo

• 'This is the real-life cost of making stupid decisions' claims Tees Valley mayor as Hitachi announces 250 redundanciesA NORTH-East transport operator has refuted claims that the decision to make up to 250 redundancies at a County Durham factory is related to its bid to build trains for metro services in Tyne and Wear.

Wales Online

• Train operator Keolis Amey fined £2.3m for poor performanceTrain operator Keolis Amey, which is responsible for running train services in Wales, has been fined £2.3m for poor performance. It has been running the £5bn Wales and Borders franchise since October 2018

Yorkshire Evening Post

• "There is light at the end of the tunnel": Transport Secretary will have final Northern Rail decision this monthA decision on whether troubled rail operator Northern will be taken into public ownership will be made before the end of the month, the Transport Secretary told the Yorkshire Evening Post.

Yorkshire Post

• Northern rail action by Grant Shapps and Jake Berry is encouraging – The Yorkshire Post saysTHE MESSAGE from Cabinet ministers Grant Shapps and Jake Berry was clear following their joint visit to The Yorkshire Post – no rail operator will ever again get away with the poor performance that has blighted the North’s network for so long.

Hull Daily Mail

• Siemens' exciting £6m 'rail village' plans for East Yorkshire townThe centre would support the company's upcoming £200m rail manufacturing facility in Goole

Leeds Live

• Transport boss admits Northern passengers could wait years for 'full improvement'During a visit to Leeds, the transport secretary also said passengers "deserve a lot better" and there is "light at the end of the tunnel"

Other Regional Press

• Stewart Paterson: Glasgow Airport Rail Link rows must not derail Metro plansGlasgow has had many false dawns with big ticket transport projects, promised but not delivered. For example, how many times have we heard talk of extending the Subway to the east or north? Sounds great but not likely to happen given the cost.
• Slough's forgotten London Underground line which went all the way to Windsor19th-Century commuters had an easy time of it when travelling into London from Slough. Once upon a time London’s District Line extended all the way to Windsor and could take you directly to Mansion House - smack bang in the centre of London.

Train Operators

• 19 month-high for trains running on timeThe number of trains running on time across Scotland’s Railway has reached its highest level since June 2018, as customers reap the rewards of investment in infrastructure and £475 million on new and upgraded trains.

The Economist

• Not just HS2, but HS3HS2 may be wildly over-budget, but it is safe, and its successor may get funded too

New Civil Engineer

• Winners named on £640M Network Rail design contractsNetwork Rail has announced the award of 82 framework contracts to deliver design services across the country. Aecom, Mott MacDonald, WSP and Jacobs are among the big winners, with Amey, Arcadis and Balfour Beatty also among the firms to pick up contracts (see full breakdown below).
• Network Rail to explore means of powering networkNetwork Rail has teamed up with the Energy Innovation Centre to ensure that the train network receives the power it needs to operate.
• Ex-HS2 technical director hits out at ‘factually wrong’ Berkeley reportFormer High Speed 2 (HS2) technical director Andrew McNaughton has hit out at Lord Tony Berkeley’s “dissenting report”, claiming that it is “completely and factually wrong”.
• Transport for Wales opens metro infrastructure hubTransport for Wales has announced the opening of the South Wales Metro Infrastructure Hub. It is the latest stage in a 170km long metro line development in Wales, worth £738M. The facility, based in Treforest, Pontypridd, will operate as the key material distribution centre for the next five years as the metro project goes underway.