Railnews Magazine October 2019 Back Issue

THE expected cost of HS2 has risen by as much as 40 per cent, to a possible £78 billion. The government has finally admitted the new figures.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps sparked a controversy and some confusion when he suggested that operators would only receive all their fares revenue if their trains ran on time, and Hot Topic discusses the implications. A parallel development is the calculation of performance to the nearest minute.

Already troubled Caledonian Sleeper services were set to be disrupted by a strike, after talks with the RMT broke down, but the union lifted the threat of an overtime ban on CrossCountry. Meanwhile, the Rail Accident Investigation Branch has launched an inquiry into another incident of doors being opened wrongly – the third in just over a year.

There was reason to celebrate when it was announced that the future of Island Line has been secured by a rolling stock deal as well as a Network Rail commitment to renew the pier at Ryde. The investment totals £26 million.

In other news, the 14 new Network Rail routes went live on 16 September, and the launch was marked by the announcement of new appointments at each one. The new Stadler trains for Greater Anglia were formally unveiled in Norwich on 4 September. They will provide local, regional and intercity services.

The Midlands is making headlines, and this month’s feature looks at a Midlands Connect plan to see £3.5 billion invested in making journeys within the region faster and more frequent, while designs for two new stations in Birmingham have been submitted to planners.

Finally, a veteran HST built by British Rail around 40 years ago is to play a key part in research into alternative power sources. All this and much more is in Railnews for October.