Railnews Magazine

East Midlands Railway intercity services were being cut from 20 July because of problems with the operator’s new Hitachi Class 810 Aurora trains, and the RMT has called industrial action in protest. The union has also called its 70 members at Manchester Piccadilly who work for Avanti West Coast out on strike again, in a dispute over the allegedly unfair dismissal of one of their colleagues.

HS2 has renegotiated two major contracts in a bid to reduce the costs of the project. In a related development, transport secretary Heidi Alexander says HS2 should be the match of Japan’s Shinkansen network.

Network Rail has imposed speed restrictions in the south and east of England, after prolonged dry weather caused the soil under the railways to shrink, while a fire left the Devon holiday resort of Paignton without trains during the start of this year’s summer season. Three teenage boys have been questioned by police. Meanwhile, the two men who staged cyber attacks on Transport for London’s systems in 2024 have been jailed.

The first trains to carry the Great British Railways identity for Anglia were unveiled at London Liverpool Street on 16 July, and a new business unit has been created in a further step towards Great British Railways. GBR West Midlands is the fourth organisation of its kind to be set up. The ORR has revealed details of how it will cope with railway reforms, and is inviting views before a formal consultation.

New artist’s impressions of Portishead and Pill stations have been unveiled, as work continues on restoring the £200 million line.

A new attempt is being made to revive cross-Channel rail freight, by investing £15 million in the Barking Eurohub.

King Charles opened British Transport Police’s new London headquarters on 8 July.

Railnews for August is out now.