Railnews Magazine Sep-18 Back Issue

TRANSPORT secretary Chris Grayling started a new storm when he suggested that if fare increases were tied to the Consumer Prices Index rather than the higher but discredited Retail Prices Index, then rail wage rises should be tied to CPI as well, although he did not rule out higher awards in some special cases. Unions have pledged to oppose a ‘cap’ on wage rises.

Meanwhile, arguments against DOO were stepped up when an official letter revealed that one government body was voicing doubts about driver-only operation of trains more than two years ago.

In other news, the first of a new fleet of bi mode Intercity Expresses carried passengers on a public service in Devon and Cornwall for the first time on 20 August, a campaign aimed at professional HGV drivers intended to reduce ‘bridge bashes’ has been launched by Network Rail with the tagline ‘Lorries can’t Limbo’, the major project to remodel Derby station and its approaches over the summer moved into the next phase on 25 August, the ScotRail Alliance has operated a full electric train service on its main Edinburgh-Glasgow Queen Street route via Falkirk for the first time, and the August bank holiday weekend saw more than 400 projects being carried out by 9,600 Network Rail workers as part of an investment of £84 million.

Industrial unrest has continued: stoppages on Northern and South Western Railway were staged in August and are set to continue into September, after talks with the RMT broke down.

A High Court ruling means that the historic but in some cases derelict buildings at Wolverton Works can be demolished. This month’s feature asks ‘How much does heritage matter?’ if preserving old structures would increase the costs of the modern railway.

Railnews for September is out now.