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

Thursday, 10 July 2025

Cogitamus

• Calling All Stations with Christian Wolmar, Episode 17, Season 3We have two great interviews in this episode.  Christian visits the Great Central Railway in Leicestershire, UK, and hears from Tom Ingall about the "Reunification" project for this leading heritage operator.  Christian then talks to Caroline Seton about London's Forest e-bike hiring and sharing company and its hopes to expand across the capital.

BBC News

• Dismay at government pause to rail electrificationEast Midlands council leaders have said they are dismayed at the government's decision to indefinitely pause the northwards electrification of the Midland Mainline.
• Frustration as rail electrification project pausedSheffield will remain Britain's largest city without electrified rail travel after the government "paused" plans to electrify more of the Midland Mainline.
• Investigation begins into derailed train incidentInvestigators are to look into an incident in which a broken-down train derailed on its way to a depot.

The Guardian

• Light at the end of the tunnels: classic rail routes through the Alps reopenAfter serious floods and landslides, some of the great trans-Alpine routes have reopened with new services added offering unforgettable train journeys from Austria to the Adriatic
• HS2 already billions over budget with work 'just over halfway done', says rail bossTotal overspend on high-speed rail could be as high as 100%, Mark Wild, who runs the project, told MPs

The Independent

• How HS2 squandered billions to become a national embarrassmentHS2 will provide more track, more trains, more seats and faster journeys to improve performance and reliability across Britain's rail network. So says the hitherto dysfunctional organisation that has squandered billions of pounds of taxpayers cash with precious little to show for it.

The Telegraph

• HS2 is 'too fast', says rail minister [subscription]Lord Hendy criticises 'zealotry' behind plans for project's 225mph trains

Times Online

• HS2 is only a third complete and 2 or 3 years late, says chiefMark Wild told MPs on the transport committee that not enough progress was made in the first two years
• Building big in Britain takes far longer than rest of developed world [subscription]Major infrastructure projects such as roads or railways take an average of 12.5 years in the UK, compared to 8.8 years in the US and 9.9 in Australia

i News

• HS2 is up to three years behind schedule, train line's boss admits to MPsHS2 is up to three years behind schedule, and the first phase of work could end up 100 per cent over budget, the project's new boss has admitted.

London Evening Standard

• HS2 high-speed train line is only a third complete, admits boss Mark Wild in bombshell update to MPsBeleaguered scheme two to three years behind schedule - but 'good progress' at Old Oak Common station

Yorkshire Post

• Labour mayor accuses Government of not giving South Yorkshire 'fair deal' with rail investmentSouth Yorkshire is not getting a 'fair deal' in terms of rail investment from the Government, the Labour mayor has said.

Other Regional Press

• It's a social thing: Visiting the Yorkshire Dales by train or busTHERE are lots of great options for a day visit to the Yorkshire Dales National Park by train and bus in 2025, especially on weekends, according to two men with mastermind-level knowledge of public transport in the Dales, writes the national park authority's media officer, Andrew Fagg.
• HS2's structures should have been 'largely completed' by nowHS2's physical structures should have been 'largely completed' by now under the project's initial timeline but only 60% of the work has been done, MPs were told.

Rail Advent

• Rail Industry to Benefit from £92.8 Billion InvestmentThe government has given the green light for over 50 road and rail upgrades, which are set to benefit millions.

Railnews

• Train naming honours railway innovator A Great Western Railway Intercity Express has been named for Cyril Bleasdale. He was the first director of InterCity in the early 1980s and then moved on after his retirement from British Rail to help found the company which bought the BR staff newspaper Railnews. His name was unveiled on platform 8 at London Paddington by his wife Katy.

Other News Sources

• Severn Estuary rail resilience project enters final phase this monthNetwork Rail is due to begin the fourth phase of its £25M programme to improve resilience on the landslide prone Newport to Gloucester railway line.