Railnews Magazine April 2017 Back Issue

CLAIMS of a conflict of interest have led a major contractor to withdraw from a £170 million HS2 deal, while further DOO strikes are set to affect three operators on 8 April and the South Western franchise has been awarded to a consortium of FirstGroup and MTR, ending 21 years of control by Stagecoach Group.

These are just some of the stories in April’s Railnews, a busy edition which also celebrates the reopening of the Settle and Carlisle line after a landslip had blocked the route for more than a year, and marks two milestones on Great Western: the first Intercity Express has reached South Wales under test and the overhead wires have been energised as far as Maidenhead, which will allow more electric services to start running in May.

The railway is continuing to get busier: train operators have forecast that nearly 1,300 more passenger trains will be running each weekday by 2021, an increase of six per cent, and Network Rail has published a rail strategy setting out the next thirty years in Kent and south east London, in which it warns that some London stations are already effectively full.

In Metro news, the Midland Metro concession will not be awarded again when the present contract with National Express Group ends next year, and Tyne & Wear Metro is also returning to public ownership, at least for now, while our feature celebrates 25 years of Manchester Metrolink.

We also report how one footplate inspector has finally retired after completing a railway career of 63 years.

All this, and much more, is in Railnews for April.