Railnews Magazine January 2017 Back Issue

The annual rise in fares may have seemed modest to some people, at 1.9% for regulated fares in England and Wales and peak hour fares in Scotland, but the increases sparked considerable protests, as Railnews reports on its front page this month. The industrial tensions which dominated the railway industry news agenda in 2016 have continued into the New Year, with strikes this week on London Underground and Southern. There were problems of a different type for Vivarail, the company which is converting former District line trains into diesel-electric units, when its first test train was halted at Kenilworth in Warwickshire with one of its engines on fire. We have dramatic pictures of the incident, and also report that Vivarail, while mounting a thorough investigation, also remains confident about its success in the longer term. Better news includes the opening of Chiltern's through services between London and Oxford, and also of Great Northern's new depot at Hornsey where up to 20 apprentices will be employed each year. We have spoken to transport secretary Chris Grayling about his plans for greater integration between Network Rail and future franchises, and also the creation of a separate company to manage East West Rail. Meanwhile, Network Rail chief executive Mark Carne explains to Railnews what the priorities are now, in a new era when Network Rail can no longer borrow on the commercial market. A new year also marks the start of a new regular feature -- a monthly column from the Rail Accident Investigation Branch. Chief inspector Simon French has written this month's Guest Opinion to explain why he thinks such a column is needed, and why he chose Railnews. The new column itself will start in February. And speculation is growing that HS2 rolling stock could be built in Britain. We report where, and why this development is attracting considerable interest. All this and much more is in Railnews for January.