Stations could be 'gateways to opportunity'
A report from the Railway Industry Association published today is calling for a new model for investment in railway stations to boost transport, housing and growth. It identifies the 2,600 stations in Britain as an untapped resource which ‘could and should be harnessed’ for the regeneration of local communities as well as increasing the supply of housing.
Sir Andrew Haines has retired as chief executive of Network Rail after seven years in charge of the national railway infrastructure owner. He has left at a time when Network Rail itself is heading for retirement, as Great British Railways approaches. Andrew Haines has now spoken for the first time about the realities of today’s railway to Railnews reporter Phil Marsh.
The RMT has declared a dispute with Network Rail over pay, and is calling for talks. Network Rail, whose chief executive Andrew Haines retires from the company today, said it is ‘disappointed’.
A new design of station clock which includes the railway’s double arrows and the time in digital format has been unveiled at London Bridge station. The London timepiece by WPP brand design agency Design Bridge and Partners was the winning entry in an international design competition run in a partnership between Network Rail, the Royal Institute of British Architects and the Design Museum.
An electric train has run under test on the East Kilbride line for the first time. The Class 380 train travelled along the newly electrified line over the night of 13 October, with engineers on board to check the overhead line equipment.
Great Western Railway services between Bristol and Weston-super-Mare will be affected by engineering work this weekend. The disruptive effect of an engineering possession will be made worse by more industrial action on CrossCountry on Saturday, as the RMT dispute over pay for overtime and rest day working continues.
The RMT is to hold a strike ballot at Eurostar in a dispute over safety and and working conditions. The union claims that staff ‘face worsening working conditions with unreliable trains, poor service recovery and operational safety concerns, piling pressure on the workforce’.