Railnews Magazine November 2021 Back Issue

THE Rail Accident Investigation Branch said the collision between two trains near Salisbury station was caused by slippery rails on the approach to a junction. South Western Railway has praised the driver of one train, saying that he made a valiant effort to protect his passengers by staying in the cab even when the collision was inevitable.

In other news, the Department for Transport held an ‘engagement day’ with potential contractors with Great British Railways, a survey from Network Rail says although two people out of three recognise the green credentials of rail, almost three-quarters still use cars out of choice, and work to install a canal barrier in Rotherham is underway to protect the station and town centre.

Rail travel is recovering in the wake of lockdowns, but travelling to work by train continues to be much less popular than it was before the pandemic. Even so, restored or upgraded railways have also been making the news. People on the Isle of Wight welcomed the return of the Island Line on 1 November, regular trains will start running again on the Dartmoor Line in Devon on 20 November, and plans for more electrification in Strathclyde have been approved by Transport Scotland. All-night services are returning on two London Underground lines this month and on part of London Overground in December.

One new railway is still encountering snags. A new report has warned that Crossrail is once again facing a funding gap.

New open access services were launched by FirstGroup between London and Edinburgh in October. Railnews was aboard the preview service, and ‘Lumo’ is the subject of this month’s feature. Finally, two children’s authors were guests at Transport Day during COP26 in Glasgow, to inspire the next generation of train travellers.

Railnews for November is out now.