move over freightliner, we want to get into ... - Rail Professional

PROFESSIONAL 

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR RAILWAY MANAGERS 

FIRST AMONG EQUALS 

FIRST TRANSPENNINE EXPRESS’ MD TALKS ABOUT ITS AWARD-WINNING ACHIEVEMENTS 

BLUES GO GREEN 

CHRIS GRAYLING EXPLAINS THE CONSERVATIVES’ PLANS FOR RAIL 

HIGH SPEED 1 

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE NEW SECTION OF THE CHANNEL TUNNEL RAIL LINK 

NO SMOKE WITHOUT FIRE 

TRAIN OPERATORS PREPARE FOR THE SMOKING BAN 

‘MOVE OVER 

FREIGHTLINER, 

WE WANT TO 

GET INTO 

SOUTHAMPTON’ 

GB RAILFREIGHT’S 

MD JOHN SMITH ON 

GROWING THE BUSINESS 

AND EXPANDING 

INTO EUROPE 

www.railpro.co.uk 

MAY 2007 ISSUE 122 : £3.95

CONTENTS 

Contents 

MAY 2007 

ISSUE 122 

EDITOR 

PROFESSIONAL 

KATIE SILVESTER 

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Published by Rail Professional Ltd every month 

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24 28 

EDITORIAL 

4 EDITORIAL COMMENT 

8 LETTERS 

NEWS 

4-6 News Reading upgrade plans; FGW staff get 

help dealing with angry customers; Island Line 

trains sold off; Rail 2007 conference; Network 

Rail confirms projects for next two years; 

Thameslink extra trains are welcomed; Scottish 

elections raise rail debate; Eurostar and freight 

go green 

34-35 Business GNER does deal with Virgin over East 

Coast bid; Eurotunnel angers shareholders over 

travel perks reversal; Roscos round on ORR 

37-38 People Len Abram; Mark Prout; Sarah Wakefield; 

Richard Freeman; Peter Samuel; John Lawton; 

Christopher Garnett; Dana Roy; Shiria Khatun; 

Peter Anderson; Rachel Dawson; Frazer Smith; 

Andrew Huxley; Nick Newton;Tony Berkeley; 

Konstantin Skorik; Graham Smith;Adrian Lyons; 

Ian Mylroi;Andy Haines; Eddie Fitzsimons; 

Meagan Thompson 

NEWS ANALYSIS 

10-11 The DfT has finally decided the fate of Gatwick 

Express.The airport link is to continue – but as 

part of Southern, as Paul Clifton explains 

RAIL PROFESSIONAL INTERVIEW 

12-15 John Smith 

The managing director of GB Railfreight talks to 

Katie Silvester about getting into the port of 

Southampton, building up its coal business and 

expanding into Europe 

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES 

39 A regular round-up of key resources 

INSTITUTION OF RAILWAY OPERATORS 

32-33 A closer look at the railways. Plus: Dates for 

your diary 

Thanks to Rail Images (www.railimages.co.uk) for photographic assistance. 

FEATURES 

9 Shadow transport secretary Chris Grayling sets 

out the Conservatives’ rail policies, which put the 

railways at the heart of its green transport plans 

16-18 Alan Whitehouse meets Vernon Barker, 

managing director of First Transpennine Express, 

to find out how the company has achieved its 

growth rates and passenger satisfaction levels 

20-21 Stubbing it out 

From 1 July a smoking ban will be imposed on 

all train stations in England. Scotland and Wales 

have already gone smoke free. Peter Plisner 

reports 

22-23 Basingstoke blockade 

Paul Clifton finds out how the 10-day closure 

of Basingstoke station was managed, in order for 

track to be moved and signals upgraded 

24-26 High speed vision 

St Pancras International opens in November, 

bringing high-speed Eurostars to central London 

for the first time, and replacing the route which 

saw the trains crawling through the capital. 

Chris Randall looks at how the work is 

progressing 

27 Learning from past mistakes 

When specifications are decided on for the new 

rolling stock the Government is ordering, issues 

such as door types, suspension and carriage 

design should be carefully considered, says 

Henry Law 

28-29 View from across the pond 

Michael R Weinman discusses the lawsuits 

against SNCF, covering wartime grievances. Plus: 

A roundup of news from America’s railways 

30-31 IEP not HST 

The Government is going to be changing the 

type of bids it wants for the next order of trains. 

Naomi Horton explains the legal side of the 

new procurement process, which will entail 

manufacturers bidding jointly with financiers 

36 Seatbelts: No way 

Mike Crowhurst responds, from a passenger’s 

perspective, to two viewpoints in last month’s 

issue, suggesting new safety features on trains 

MAY 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL 

3

NEWS 

Putting rail on the political agenda 

The Conservatives have just unveiled 

their plans for the railways (see page 9) 

and, with a change in leadership 

imminent for the Labour party, it will 

soon be time for Tony Blair’s successor 

to start thinking about whether a 

change in rail policy is needed. 

The Liberal Democrats have also 

been dipping their toes into the murky 

pool of railway costings, with a survey 

of European countries, that shows ours 

to have the most expensive fares (see 

page 6). 

Other countries tend to achieve their 

low fares through government subsidy, 

of course. But no UK party is likely to 

offer increased subsidy to the railways, 

given that today’s network costs the 

taxpayer almost five times what it did 

in British Rail’s day. 

Yet exorbitant rail fares ought to be a 

consideration when it 

comes to rail policy – 

with the environment 

being such a hot topic, 

future governments need PROFESSIONAL 

On the freight side, 

upgrades are 

desperately needed in 

order for rail to keep its 

share of the container 

to provide an alternative 

market.The port of 

to the car and that COMMENT Felixstowe is likely to 

alternative needs to be affordable. 

Could franchise bidders be 

encouraged to consider how they can 

keep fares down in their submissions? 

Increasing capacity should be high 

up every party’s agenda. Extra brownie 

points go to the party which can find 

ways to persuade the private sector to 

fund its share of this, instead of letting 

precious opportunities slip away. BAA, 

for example, offered to fund an extra 

platform at Gatwick when it was 

worried about losing the Gatwick 

Express, but this was never taken up. 

fund some of the enhancements, but 

cash needs to be found for other key 

upgrades, such as gauge enhancement 

out of Southampton. 

Electrification could be another vote 

winner but, given the steep cost of 

putting up the powerlines, only the 

most heavily used routes would be 

serious contenders. 

A commitment to cleaner diesel 

engines and new less polluting fuels 

would tick the right boxes too.Work on 

this is already well underway, as each 

new generation of diesel engine is 

typically only half as polluting as the 

last. So promising support for this 

would seem obvious for any party. 

To really up the environmental 

credentials of the railway, longer faster 

trains are a must, but this would not be 

cheap. 

The other, more controversial, 

possibility is the Conservatives’ interest 

in vertical integration – a real headlinegrabber, 

but not all that practical. For a 

start, vertical integration is prohibited, 

in principle, under EU law, so it would 

take some creative thinking to find a 

way to get around Brussels. 

Plus Network Rail has undeniably 

been doing a good job for the most part, 

which is more than can be said for some 

of the Tocs, so why take the infrastructure 

away from them if your intention is to 

improve the railways? 

Scottish elections spark rail debates 

The imminent elections north of 

the border have sharpened the 

focus on railways. 

The Times ran a front-page story 

in April, claiming that Labour 

was having ‘secret talks’ with 

Network Rail about renationalising 

the network, writes 

Katie Silvester. 

Indeed Labour’s Scottish 

election manifesto states: ‘The 

case for running the Scottish 

franchise on a not-for-profit basis 

needs to be fully examined as 

part of the preparation for the 

next franchise.’ 

However, first minister Jack 

McConnell denied the rumours, 

saying: ‘There have been no 

secret talks – there are no plans 

whatsoever to re-nationalise the 

railways in Scotland.’ 

The wording of Labour’s 

manifesto, however, suggests 

that some changes might be 

afoot, if the Labour-Liberal 

alliance is maintained after the 

elections. 

Meanwhile the SNP’s 

First minister Jack McConnell denies 

having ‘secret talks’ about nationalisation. 

manifesto also indicated a change 

of heart towards Scotland’s 

railways. Where previously it had 

pledged to re-nationalise them, 

there was no mention of this in 

the latest manifesto. 

Rail union RMT accused the 

SNP of putting funding before 

principles, after Stagecoach chief 

Brian Souter donated the 

£500,000 to the party. 

RMT general secretary Bob 

Crow said: ‘It would be 

interesting to see if these 

privateers would have given 

money to the SNP if it had 

retained a commitment to a 

publicly-owned railway. 

‘In 2003, the SNP said that 

passenger train services across 

Scotland should be taken under 

public control through a not-forprofit 

trust.’ 

But the SNP’s promise to put 

‘substantial investment’ into 

infrastructure to reduce journey 

times won praise from 

environmental group 

TRANSform Scotland. 

Colin Howden, director of 

TRANSform Scotland, said: 

‘While the other major parties 

have got lost in fantasies about 

bullet trains, the SNP have set out 

some practical suggestions about 

improving journey times on our 

inter-city rail network.’ 

But he added that the party 

would need to ‘get over their illconsidered 

opposition to the 

Edinburgh tram scheme’. 

EUROSTAR WILL ‘REDUCE 

CARBON EMISSIONS’ 

International train operator Eurostar has 

pledged to reduce its carbon dioxide 

emissions by 25 per cent per traveller by 

2012. 

The operator claims that one of its rail 

journeys already generates 10 times less 

CO 2 than an equivalent flight. 

Eurostar plans to improve its 

environmental footprint by reducing the 

power consumption of its rolling stock, 

improving train capacity and sourcing 

more electricity from lower emission 

generators. 

Chief executive Richard Brown said:‘It 

is time for the transport industry to do 

more to tackle climate change.’ 

Meanwhile, freight operators are also 

trying to up their environmental 

credentials.The Rail Freight Operators 

Association has laid out 16 railway 

enhancements which would reduce the 

size of transport’s carbon footprint. 

The wish-list includes capacity 

enhancements on the rail routes from the 

South Humberside ports; capacity and 

gauge enhancement to accommodate 9- 

foot 6-inch containers in north London; 

and a chord line near Liverpool, that 

would provide a direct route to the docks. 

4 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : MAY 2007

NEWS 

£2.4bn spending plans revealed 

Network Rail is to spend £2.4bn 

on infrastructure improvements 

over the next two years, aimed at 

increasing capacity. 

The work will include 

lengthening hundreds of platforms 

and building additional ones; 

laying new tracks; raising line 

speeds and upgrading signalling to 

allow additional services. 

Network Rail’s chief executive 

John Armitt said: ‘The railway is 

thriving. Demand for rail continues 

to grow and today’s news outlines 

Network Rail’s response to those 

demands.’ 

He added: ‘For the first time on 

record, over £1bn per year will be 

spent on expanding and growing 

the railway network. This, more 

than anything, shows how the 

needs of today’s railway are 

shifting. We will never lose sight of 

the imperative to run a safe and 

reliable railway each and every day, 

but responding to the challenge of 

growth becomes a more important 

priority for the company.’ 

Anthony Smith, chief executive 

of Passenger Focus, said: ‘At last 

we’ve broken free from simply 

maintaining and replacing track 

and signals and move towards 

expanding the network to make 

space to run more and longer 

trains. In addition, this looks more 

like a shopping list rather than the 

wish lists we’ve had in the past – 

these plans are costed and look 

likely to happen.’ 

The Liberal Democrats, however, 

pointed out that many of the 

schemes had already been 

announced. Shadow transport 

secretary Alistair Carmichael MP 

said: ‘Rather than rehashing old 

announcements, Network Rail 

needs to get on with the job of 

Network Rail. 

THE PLANS 

Funding will go to 900 individual 

schemes, such as: 

•An extra platform at King’s Cross 

(£15m); 

•A new station at East Midlands 

Parkway (£24m); 

•New platforms at Manchester 

airport (£15m); 

•A Thameslink station at St 

Pancras International (£78m); 

•New platforms at Bristol Parkway 

station (£10m); and 

•New platform at Newport (£5m). 

Some funding will go to longer 

term projects such as Olympic 

developments and double tracking 

at Trent Valley. 

improving Britain’s railways.’ 

Just £1.73bn of the £2.4bn will 

be funded by Network Rail with 

the rest coming from the DfT, 

Transport Scotland, the Welsh 

Assembly, local authorities, port 

authorities and train operators. 

Warm welcome for new 

Thameslink trains 

Plans to put additional carriages 

on Thameslink trains have been 

welcomed by First – and 

cautiously welcomed by 

passenger groups. 

‘This is fantastic news for our 

customers,’ said First Capital 

Connect’s managing director 

Elaine Holt. ‘We have always said 

that crowding is our biggest 

issue, and we have worked hard 

to secure these extra trains.’ 

Brian Cooke, chairman of 

London TravelWatch, added: 

‘After a lengthy discussion period, 

we are pleased that decisions 

have finally been made by the 

Government, and welcome the 

solution that has been found so 

that carriages from Southern can 

be transferred to First Capital 

Connect, which will tackle some 

of the overcrowding problems on 

the Thameslink route. He 

expressed disappointment, 

however, that it will taken until the 

end of next year to get all the 

rolling stock in place. 

The new carriages are part of 

the 1,000 new carriages that 

transport secretary Douglas 

Alexander announced last month. 

Thameslink is to get 48 extra 

carriages, with the first arriving 

later this year and rest to be in 

place by the end of 2008. The new 

coaches are coming from 

Southern, allowing First Capital 

Connect to double the length of 

all its four-carriage services. 

Gatwick Express, which was 

tipped to be abolished, is to 

continue, but will become part of 

the Southern franchise. 

• See pages 10-11 for more on 

Gatwick Express. 

FGW STAFF TRAINED TO DEAL 

WITH ANGRY CUSTOMERS 

Front-line staff at First Great Western 

have been the fall-guys for passengers 

taking out frustrations over timetable 

cuts, trains breaking down, being packed 

into carriages like sardines, or left behind 

on the platform, writes Andrew Mourant. 

Things have reached such a pitch that 

FGW is trying to cheer up its troops. 

‘We're doing a number of things with 

the HR department to see how we can 

raise morale,’ customer services director 

Glenda Lamont told a public meeting at 

West Wiltshire Council’s offices. 

There are companies that specialise 

in steeling staff for the worst passengers 

can throw at them. Previously Rail 

Professional reported on Bristol-based 

Power Train's work with Northern 

Ireland Railways (June 2006).After role 

play exercises with professional actors 

staff who used to dread apologising for 

cancellations felt more confident about 

handling things. 

But FGW declined to give details of 

what it’s doing.A spokesman said 

revealing details could give rise to 

‘cynicism’. Lamont told her audience 

that the best way to ease the problem 

would be for FGW to improve the 

punctuality of its trains. 

However, the company says its new 

maintenance depot at St Philip's Marsh, 

Bristol, will not be ready for several 

months; though it claims this has not 

caused disrupted keeping trains running. 

FGW quit Arriva’s Cardiff 

maintenance facility in December even 

though Bristol was well behind 

schedule. Lamont described this as ‘the 

lesser of two evils’ but wouldn't be 

drawn further because of ‘legal issues 

involved’. 

Previously, FGW claimed its trains 

were given low priority by Arriva, 

contributing to delays and shortened 

trains. 


5

NEWS 

ISLE OF WIGHT’S TRAINS SOLD FOR £1 

The former tube trains on the Isle 

of Wight’s Island Line have been 

sold for a total of £1 – making each 

train worth a little under 17 pence. 

HSBC Rail, which has owned the 

trains since privatisation, has 

handed the 69-year-old former 

London Underground trains to 

Stagecoach. 

At privatisation there had been 

widespread criticism of a system 

which charged substantial sums for 

leasing worn-out trains which were 

worth little more than their scrap 

value. Island Line has often been 

labelled the most heavily 

subsidised line in the country, with 

£1 from taxpayers for every £1 paid 

by passengers. 

Island Line was previously the 

country’s smallest rail franchise, but 

is now part of Stagecoach’s 10-year 

South West Trains operation. 

Stewart Palmer, SWT’s managing 

director, said: ‘This marks another 

step in the direction of community 

rail partnership. The trains will be 

re-painted in heritage colours.’ 

It will bring the trains into line 

with the Mark 1 slam door trains 

used on the Lymington branch 

from Brockenhurst, which are 

painted in British Rail blue, using 

the ripe old age of the rolling stock 

as a tourism marketing opportunity. 

The island’s trains will probably 

be painted in London 

Underground’s red and grey, but 

South West Trains says it is 

struggling to source the correct 

paint to match the livery the trains 

had when first entering service 

before the Second World War. 

One of the Isle of Wight’s Class 

485 ex-tube trains, used on the 

Piccadilly line before the war. 

Some of the island’s stations will 

also be painted in heritage colours. 

The Class 485 tube trains, which 

were built in 1938, each cover up to 

70,000 miles a year on the island. It 

is the only part of the national rail 

network where track, signalling, 

train operation, maintenance and 

ownership are now in the hands of 

a single company. 

‘This means the train company 

can adopt a more flexible approach 

to the local needs of the 

community, working alongside the 

Isle of Wight Community Rail 

www.railimages.co.uk 

Partnership,’ said Peter Aldridge, 

head of HSBC Rail. ‘These units 

can continue to serve the Isle of 

Wight for many years to come and, 

as part of the handover of these 

trains, we have given a refund of 

rental towards the re-livery and 

corrosion protection of the 

vehicles.’ 

There have been numerous 

attempts to find alternative rolling 

stock, as well as studies aimed at 

replacing the trains with trams. 

None have succeeded, and the 

tube trains will remain for the 

foreseeable future. 

The line has around 40 staff, 

most of whom are capable of 

carrying out a wide range of duties. 

Managers, led by Andy Naylor, 

cover for drivers or ticket office staff 

when someone goes sick. 

Jack Richards, of the island’s 

Community Rail Partnership, said 

the change of ownership was a 

logical development towards 

increased local ownership of the 

line. 

BRITISH TRAIN FARES ‘HIGHEST IN EUROPE’ 

Walk-on fares in Britain are higher than 

anywhere else in Europe, according to a 

report by the Liberal Democrats. 

A £10 ticket will, typically, take a 

British passenger 35 miles, while a 

Latvian can travel 663 miles in their own 

country for the same amount. In France, 

passengers can travel 102 miles for £10, 

while the same fare will take you 99 

miles in the Netherlands. 

The second most expensive 

European country in the survey was 

Ireland, where £10 will take you 44 

miles. 

Even Switzerland and Sweden, 

Virgin is to run an extra 17 trains a 

day between London and 

Birmingham when its highfrequency 

timetable starts in 

January 2009. 

Off-peak trains will leave every 20 

minutes and take, on average, an 

usually thought of expensive countries 

for visitors, offer cheaper walk-on rail 

fares than Britain – in either country 

your £10 will get your almost twice as 

far as it would on British tracks. 

Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat 

shadow transport secretary, said:‘The 

biggest rise in complaints over the last 

year has been about fares and refunds, 

which is not surprising given that rail 

fares continue to be the most expensive 

in Europe. 

‘Our railways should be reliable and 

accessible for everyone, not just those 

who can afford it.’ 

New London-Birmingham trains 

hour and 21 minutes. Some trains 

will take just and hour and 12 

minutes. 

Virgin Trains business 

development director Tim 

Shoveller said: ‘This is great news 

for Birmingham.’ 

Reading upgrade plans 

Plans to radically improve the 

biggest bottleneck on the Great 

Western line have been submitted 

to the Government. 

Backers of the Reading station 

upgrade claim it has a cost-benefit 

ratio of 1:5, making it one of the 

most effective rail schemes in the 

country. 

The revised business case puts 

the bill at £515m. The Reading 

Station Partnership, which is led by 

Reading Borough Council, hopes 

the work will be included in July’s 

High Level Output Statement. 

The document predicts a 75 per 

cent increase in platform capacity 

and a 37.4 per cent improvement in 

performance. Reading is the second 

busiest railway station in the 

country outside London, with only 

Birmingham New Street busier. 

The work includes the grade 

separation of the busy freight route 

from Southampton docks, where it 

crosses the Great Western main 

line. It would mean relocating the 

depot where all Thames Turbo 

trains are maintained. 

Reading Borough Council 

believes the replacement of Cow 

Lane bridges west of the station 

would allow major road traffic 

improvements at the same time. 

The number of trains that can 

stop at Reading is limited by the 

current platform capacity and track 

layout. The upgrade would provide 

four new platforms. 

The lengthening and widening of 

the existing platform nine, as well 

as a new island platform to the 

north, would provide two additional 

through platforms and two bay 

platforms. 

The Reading Station Partnership 

hopes preliminary work will start 

next year. 


LETTERS 

LETTERS 

New route detracts 

from green promises 

Eurostar is in the news regarding 

Complaints 

‘ignored’ 

making its trains greener.Well done, 

but what about the overall journey 

I was not in the least surprised to read 

and what about Ashford? 

NC Walker’s letter (Rail Professional, 

For example, my regular journey 

April) regarding a phone at Kyle of 

to the south of France from 

Lochalsh which has not been working 

Edenbridge should be a simple 

for months. 

journey by train from Edenbridge 

We have a clock on the footbridge 

changing at Tonbridge, Ashford and 

here at Tonbridge, supposedly 

Lille to get to Montpelier. 

receiving the radio signals form Rugby, 

However, ticket prices are 

which was running two minutes fast 

regularly £30 or so cheaper via 

for over a year. In British Rail days, 

London, so I journey out via London 

these items would have been reported 

– it took them a month to correct 

I haven’t even bothered to tell the 

Bridge and Waterloo; still relatively 

by dialling 001 from any railway 

them. 

company that the direction signs 

easy with all my luggage. 

phone and they would have been 

I have told the staff at Cannon 

erected at the bottom of the ramps at 

However, with the new high 

repaired within 48 hours. 

Street several times that neither of 

Waterloo East have been put up on 

speed link, my having to cross 

Southeastern is no better than 

the hand dryers in the gentlemen’s 

the wrong platforms as I know I will 

London to get to St Pancras will 

ScotRail. I emailed them three times to 

toilet works properly and, when you 

be wasting my time.They don’t care, 

mean that, even with the additional 

tell them that the May Day Bank 

can persuade it to blow out any air at 

so why should I? 

ticket cost, Ashford would now 

Holiday weekend dates on their 

all, one of them has been blowing cold 

John Brandon 

become my preferred Eurostar 

engineering work website were wrong 

for months. 

Kent 

station. 

But wait, the Eurostar service to 

service to Gatwick Airport and 

purchase through tickets to Europe 

letter from Antony Lain of RSP that 

that excellently rail-served Kent 

relatively cheap flights to Montpelier 

at many UK railway stations and we 

they intended to ‘issue (a licence) in 

town will be drastically cut back in 

my carbon emissions are now set to 

might start getting a rail service! 

the coming months’ so that Raileasy 

favour of Ebbsfleet! 

fly! 

Marie Brume 

could commence operations. 

So there we have it. Future 

I just wonder how may others out 

Manchester 

Well, here we are some six months 

journeys would mean being dropped 

off/collected from Ebbsfleet with 

some of the benefit from Eurostar's 

green initiatives lost by the pollution 

of two return car journeys to 

there are similarly affected? 

On the basis that not all journeys 

are to Paris/Brussels I presume 

Eurostar has considered faster 

London-Paris/Brussels non-stop 

Any progress on 

alternative online 

tickets? 

I enjoyed your article in the October 

later and I still have to buy online 

tickets through Trainline. 

How about squeezing an update 

into the next edition of Rail 

Professional about this long-overdue 

Ebbsfleet. 

services with a separate London all- 

edition about the development of 

challenge to the incumbent? 

Well, no. Actually the situation is 

stations-to-Lille service? 

Raileasy. 

Andrew Chilcott 

worse than that, as with a direct rail 

Add in the ability to be able to 

In the subsequent edition, I read a 

By email 

NEWS IN BRIEF 

GC LOOKS EAST 

Grand Central is to order three trains 

careers on the railway.The project has 

been lent a British Rail Class 50 diesel 

locomotive on a long-term basis by 

that they would drive to a station with 

a good service, rather than 

automatically go to their nearest 

TRANSLINK PUNCTUALITY AND 

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION 

ON THE UP 

from China, which will be capable of 

Steam Museum in Swindon, for its 

station. 

Punctuality on Northern Ireland’s trains 

running both on electricity and diesel. 

The trains, which will be capable of 

launch.The stretch of railway it will use 

is between North Woolwich and 

FREIGHT CHARGE MYSTERY 

was up by an average of 19 per cent in 

the last quarter of 2006, compared with 

speeds of up to 140mph, will be the 

Custom House, which closed last year. 

Norfolk Line, one of only two rail freight 

the same period in 2005.The percentage 

first Chinese-manufactured trains to be 

used in Europe since Albania imported 

HAVE CARPARK,WILL TRAVEL 

hauliers to use the Channel Tunnel, has 

been informed that its access charges 

of trains running as planned also 

improved, overtaking targets.A further 

trains from the republic in the 1950s. 

Lack of carparking spaces at stations is 

are to be increased on international 

study by Pricewaterhouse Coopers found 

RAILSCHOOL LAUNCHED 

putting passengers off taking the train, 

warns Passenger Focus.The watchdog’s 

journeys.The hike will increase the cost 

of each journey by 15 per cent, on 

that passenger satisfaction was the 

highest since records began, with 

A disused railway line in east London is 

passenger survey revealed that, while 

average. SNCF has blamed Eurotunnel 

comfort, cleanliness and staff courtesy 

to be used as a training centre. 

those within walking distance of a 

for the cost increases, but Eurotunnel 

all scoring above average. 

RailSchool is being backed by the 

station will usually walk, people coming 

says that the new charges do not 

Mal McGreevy,Translink’s manager 

London Borough of Newham, Newham 

from rural, semi-rural and edge of town 

originate from them.The Rail Freight 

for rail services, said:‘We are delighted 

College and the Learning & Skills 

locations will normally drive to a 

Group is trying to find the reason for 

that these significant improvements 

Council to train local young people for 

station. Many respondents also said 

the price rise. 

have been achieved.’ 


POLICY 

TRANSPORT MUST GO GREEN 

Chris Grayling explains how the 

Conservatives will be placing 

railways at the heart of their 

green transport strategy 

© PurestockX 

Rail is one of the most environmentally 

sustainable forms of travel. On average 

it emits less carbon dioxide per 

passenger kilometre than cars, short-haul aircraft, 

or buses. Passenger rail has cut emission levels 

per passenger km by an estimated 22 per cent 

since 1995-6. Compare that to an eight per cent 

reduction from car traffic and a five per cent 

increase from domestic air. 

Curbing the growth of emissions from 

transport will be a significant challenge to any 

government in the coming years. You cannot 

stop people from travelling. Trends show that we 

are becoming ever more mobile. So it is the 

Government’s job to provide more sustainable 

transport options, so that people can make 

better, more sustainable choices in their everyday 

lives. The Conservative Party has made it clear 

that rail needs to be put at the heart of any such 

strategy. 

But how can we expect people to leave their 

cars at home when our trains are so overcrowded, 

forcing commuters to stand, sometimes for hours, 

on their journeys to and from work? 

Last July we launched our rail review. We 

acknowledged that an important part of the 

problem with Britain’s railways lies in the 

structure of the industry that exists today; that 

with hindsight the complete separation of track 

and train into separate businesses at the time of 

privatisation was not right for our railways. It has 

helped push up the cost of running the railways 

– and hence fares – and has slowed decisions 

about capacity improvements. 

That is why the focus of our review has been 

to secure a much greater degree of integration 

between track and train. We have taken an honest 

look at the problems facing the rail industry 

today, and worked hard to try and find solutions. 

We will publish the results of our review this 

summer. But for now it is the Government that 

needs to act. 

However much work we are doing to prepare 

ourselves for government, Britain’s railways, and 

those who travel on them, simply cannot wait up 

until after the next general election to see 

improvements. We need action from the 

Government now. 

The Conservatives want to see Britain’s 

railways grow. Our challenge to the Government 

for its High Level Output Specification (HLOS) 

this summer is to take urgent action to increase 

capacity on the most overcrowded routes. 

Ministers have said already that they want to 

reduce the level of subsidy paid to the train 

operating companies, and they are charging 

them more money for their franchises. 

Coupled with the rail regulator’s assessment 

How can we expect people to 

leave their cars at home when 

our trains are so overcrowded, 

forcing commuters to stand, 

sometimes for hours, on their 

journeys to and from work? 

of efficiencies at Network Rail, there is the 

money there to make significant improvements. 

The HLOS also needs to make decisions on 

key projects such as Thameslink and 

Birmingham New Street, decisions that have 

been delayed by the Government year after year, 

resulting in services unable to keep up with 

demands on capacity. We have given our 

assurances that if, the Government does finally 

go ahead with these projects, we will see the 

projects through beyond 2009-10 if in 

government. 

Beyond the immediate improvements to 

capacity that we so desperately need, the 

Conservatives are looking to develop the kind 

Chris Grayling outside the 

Houses of Parliament. 

of transport infrastructure required to encourage 

the modal shift that will be needed to help our 

battle against global warming. That is why we 

disagree with Sir Rod Eddington’s analysis ruling 

out the extension of high-speed rail in the UK, 

and instead recommending the expansion of 

aviation links. 

Virgin has just launched a new campaign 

informing us that their Pendolino trains emit 76 

per cent less CO2 than domestic flights on the 

same journey. We have heard from Eurostar just 

this week on its plans to cut its own emissions 

by 25 per cent in the next five years. High-speed 

rail can offer a genuine, environmentallysustainable, 

alternative to air travel. That is why 

we have begun our own detailed feasibility study 

into high-speed rail in the UK. 

Monday’s announcement was not just about 

rail. It was about bringing a balanced approach 

to transport policy in this country, giving people 

real choices about how they can get from A to 

B, whether that is encouraging people to buy 

greener cars or improving school transport to 

cut down on congestion. 

It was about taking a more local and regional 

approach – recognising, for example, that 

problems such as overcrowding are not just 

issues in London and the south east, but all over 

the country, from Bristol to Newcastle. These 

problems cannot all be solved from London 

either. In developing our green transport strategy 

we hope to play an important part in achieving 

the central mission of the modern Conservative 

party – improving everyone's quality of life. 

Chris Grayling is the shadow transport secretary. 


9

FEATURE NEWS ANALYSIS 

GATWICK EXPRESS 

GETS REPRIEVE 

In a remarkable U-turn by the Department for Transport, the Gatwick 

Express has been saved. But Britain’s smallest passenger franchise will 

be taken over by Southern, which competes for passengers on the 

same route.Paul Clifton explains 

The Department for Transport had 

planned to abolish the non-stop service 

linking Gatwick Airport and central 

London to make room for more commuter 

services from Brighton, on some of the 

country’s most congested railway tracks. The 

decision, first published in 2004 in the draft 

Route Utilisation Strategy for the Brighton line, 

caused a storm of protest. It included strong 

public criticism from the airport operator, BAA. 

That took the Government by surprise. 

Eighteen months ago, the DfT said a decision 

would be made ‘before long’. Commuters 

standing in the doorways of Southern trains 

were fed up with peering out of the window at 

half-empty Gatwick Express trains speeding 

past on their way to Victoria. Some travellers 

from Brighton had taken to driving to the airport 

to get a seat on the faster trains. 

Taking a ride in a train cab up from the coast 

illustrates the scale of the problem. In the 

morning peak, the entire journey is made on 

single yellow signals. Not once does the driver 

travel on a green light, and for much of the 

journey you can actually see the train in front. 

But the airport lobby was powerful. Gatwick was 

the first airport in the world to offer a dedicated 

rail-air link: in 1936 passengers flew to Paris on 

a combined air and rail ticket from London 

Victoria. The airport will handle many of the 

passengers heading for the 2012 Olympics. 

And the lobby pointed out that no other 

capital city in the world is downgrading a public 

transport link to its airport. To do so would fly 

in the face of a host of other government policies. 

In the end, a compromise solution fell 

conveniently into the department’s lap. South 

West Trains no longer wanted its Class 442 

Wessex Electric fleet. In February Angel Trains 

put them into storage at the former Eastleigh 

rail works. With a little refurbishment, the trains 

can work on the Brighton line in ten-car 

formations, easing overcrowding. There’s no 

other use for these comfortable and popular 

trains, and at 20 years old they’re cheap enough 

to justify using them for only a handful of peak 

services each day. 

The Gatwick Express is to be retained as a 

non-stop route and keep its 15-minute 

frequency and airport branding. But in the 

morning and evening peaks the service will be 

extended to Brighton, adding 10 per cent more 

capacity in the busiest parts of the day – an 

extra 3,700 seats. The changes will start in 

December 2008. The five-car Wessex Electrics 

will run in 10-car formations, compared with the 

seven-car Gatwick Express Junipers. Some 

services will call at Brighton Preston Park, 

Hassocks and Burgess Hill. 

Tied in with that deal is a promise to buy 48 

more Electrostar carriages for Southern, 

enabling it to release its remaining Class 319 

fleet to ease the chronic congestion on First 

Capital Connect’s services from Brighton to 

Bedford. They are the only trains capable of 

running on both 25kv overhead cables and 750 

volt dc third-rail, as well as fitting through the 

narrow tunnel beneath central London. 

Southern will transfer the first 16 carriages by 

the end of this year with the rest in place a year 

later. That allows FCC to double the remaining 

four-car services to eight carriages in the peak, 

adding 8,300 peak hour seats. 

The current Gatwick Express franchise, which 

had been due to expire in 2011, will be ended 

in May 2008 and be transferred into the 

Southern franchise, which runs until 2009. It 

will then be re-let as a single franchise. Gatwick 

Express is currently owned by National Express, 

and Southern is run by GoVia, the joint venture 

between the Go-Ahead Group and Keolis. 

In a carefully-worded statement, National 

Express Group ‘noted’ rather than ‘welcomed’ 

the news. Chief executive Richard Bowker said: 

‘We will always stand by our commitments even 

when the immediate commercial advantage is 

not obvious. We will continue to maintain this 

level of professionalism for our customers on 

Gatwick Express until our obligations expire in 

May 2008.’ 

Southern, understandably, has more to say. 

‘It’s certainly a different decision from what was 

being mooted,’ Chris Burchell, managing 

director of Southern told Rail Professional. ‘The 

department has heeded the concerns, and this 

manages to increase capacity as well as keeping 

the airport express. We do not yet know how 

many Class 442s we will need. And there is work 

to be done on the interiors to make the seating 

and luggage space more suited to the needs of 

airline passengers. There are some specific 

challenges on the doors as well. 

‘What we have is a framework agreement. The 

detailed timetable planning, and what we do to 

the rolling stock, still all has to be sorted out. 

But the additional Electrostars will provide a 

real benefit to passengers. This is a good 

compromise and we can make it work.’ 

10 

RAIL PROFESSIONAL : MAY 2007

NEWS ANALYSIS FEATURE 

Justin Grainge 

Chris Burchell, manager of Southern which takes over 

Gatwick Express from May 2008. 

Brian Cooke, chairman of London 

TravelWatch, says he is pleased the lengthy 

discussions had finally come to a head. 

‘However it is a real shame that this will take to 

the end of next year to achieve,’ he adds. ‘A more 

strategic approach to allocating the rolling stock 

might have solved this problem much, much 

earlier. The precise benefits for passengers are 

still unclear – it will depend on the detail of the 

proposed timetable changes.’ 

But passengers in West Sussex are less 

pleased. Trevor Tupper of the Arun Valley Rail 

Users Association says: ‘Three years ago the 

Strategic Rail Authority put forward proposals 

that would have given Gatwick six express trains 

an hour rather than four and all of these would 

have carried on into Sussex improving journey 

times from London to places like Worthing, 

Littlehampton, Chichester and Bognor Regis. It 

would also have improved journey times and 

frequency to Gatwick from these towns as well 

as from Portsmouth, Fareham and 

Southampton. All hope of these improvements 

has now been dashed.’ 

‘We’re quite pleased,’ admits Stuart Condie 

of BAA, who led the determined behind-thescenes 

lobbying campaign to the Government. 

BAA’s planning and surface access director 

comments: ‘We have retained the service 

elements that our passengers need. It’s still four 

times an hour, it’s still non-stop and it’s still with 

airport branding. ‘We put a lot of time and effort 

into getting our views across. But there is still a 

lot of detail to be worked out. We must look at 

the likely loadings on early morning trains up 

from Brighton, to make sure there is room for 

passengers and their luggage, and sufficient 

dwell time for passengers to get everything on 

board at Gatwick. 

‘We need to look at ticketing arrangements 

in general and pricing from Gatwick in 

particular. We need an internal refurbishment 

of the trains and we must provide more luggage 

space. That’s a lot to do in 18 months. But it’s 

as good a compromise as we can manage 

without infrastructure work.’ 

BAA had consistently argued that dumping 

the Gatwick Express was a flawed concept, 

taking a sledgehammer to crack a problem that 

exists for only an hour or two each weekday. Its 

original submission to the Government had 

quoted from a Rail Professional editorial of 2004: 

‘At a time when other industrialised nations 

either have a dedicated rail link to their major 

airports, or are busy building them, Britain’s rail 

authority is planning a move in the opposite 

direction. Is that progress?’ 

But with Southern’s passenger numbers on 

the route growing by four per cent a year, the 

debate was never straightforward. Gatwick 

station has long been a bottleneck, with 

conflicting train movements. The Gatwick 

Expresses have to cross the tracks to sit at a 

platform for up to 20 minutes at a stretch. Useful 

for airline passengers arriving on ‘red-eye’ flights 

with jet lag, heavy luggage and a dodgy sense of 

direction. Boarding a through train which stops 

for 90 seconds would not be as easy, particularly 

if that train was already full of commuters whose 

briefcases and umbrellas already filled the 

limited luggage space. 

A re-working of the layout at Gatwick could 

provide space for trains to wait for airport 

passengers without messing up the precious 

paths to Brighton. Network Rail, the 

Department for Transport, the train operators 

and BAA are all talking about it. It’s possible a 

solution could emerge in time for the next 

Southern franchise in 2009, but they will be 

looking for Gatwick Airport to pick up a big 

chunk of the cost. And with the competition 

authorities currently investigating BAA’s 

continued ownership of all three main London 

airports, and the continuing debate about where 

an additional runway might be built, 

commitments on that scale will not be rapid. 

Chris Burchell calls it a ‘good compromise 

solution for the short to medium term’. It’s a 

description most parties would accept. A stepchange 

in capacity on one of the country’s 

fastest-growing and most heavily-congested 

railway routes requires more than a little 

cascaded second-hand rolling stock. It needs 

major infrastructure changes at Gatwick, and a 

flyover at East Croydon. 

Neither has yet been promised. 

Paul Clifton is the transport correspondent for 

BBC South. 


11

INTERVIEW 

THE RAIL PROFESSIONAL INTERVIEW 

JOHN SMITH 

MANAGING DIRECTOR, GB RAILFREIGHT 

Opposite: John Smith 

at GBRf’s 

Peterborough depot. 

John Smith talks to Katie Silvester about GB 

Railfreight’s ambitions in the coal and 

intermodal markets – and how hiring the 

right staff is the secret of success 

PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARCUS SIMS 

GB Railfreight may be a relatively small player in the 

rail freight market, compared to Freightliner and 

EWS, but it’s already made its mark in both the coal 

and intermodal markets since it won its first contract in 2001. 

The company is growing at quite a rate of knots. It turned 

over £28m in the financial year ending April 2006 and around 

£38m in the year just ended. ‘We’ve been growing at roughly 

30-40 per cent of our turnover each year,’ says managing 

director John Smith. He believes that the company’s success, 

or failure, rests on the quality of its staff – particularly the 

drivers – and the way the company treats them. 

‘I spend a lot of my week and weekends meeting the folk 

that work within the business, in groups of six or eight, 

explaining where the business has got to and what we’re going,’ 

says Smith. ‘The driver is a professional person doing a 

professional job, that’s what I require from them and what they 

require from us is to be treated in that fashion.’ 

Staff seem to respond well to his approach. When I went to 

GBRf’s Peterborough depot to interview him, two of his 

employees told me, unprompted and independently of each 

other, what a decent manager he is. 

The company – which was started by GB Railways and 

bought by the First Group three years ago – has just entered 

the coal market. Its first coal runs started in March, with regular 

trips from the Port of Tyne carrying coal to Drax power station 

in Yorkshire. 

‘Coal is a huge market area, it’s worth about £140m a year,’ 

says Smith. ‘We will have secured, with our new contracts, 

maybe £5m or £6m of that, the rest is split 60:40 between EWS 

and Freightliner. It’s growing in terms of tonne miles because 

coal’s being transported further and more of it is being used. 

Even if we change to nuclear at some point, the lead time on 

that is going to be something like 15 or 20 years.’ 

The other potential growth area is intermodal. Currently, 

GBRf operates out of Felixstowe and is keen to start doing 

runs out of Southampton. The problem is that Freightliner 

owns the intermodal terminals at Southampton and is not 

keen to share them, so GBRf is currently looking at ways of 

getting around this. In time, changes in EU competition law 

may force Freightliner’s hand anyway. 

GBRf takes some bulk goods into the dock area of 

Southampton at the moment, for building materials supplier 

British Gypsum, but Smith admits the company cannot build 

up its intermodal business there without access to proper 

intermodal facilities. ‘We’re trying to get capacity within the 

existing intermodal terminals,’ he explains. 

Is there a danger of driving prices down, though, if EWS, 

Freightliner and GBRf are all going head to head for new 

contracts? 

‘Yes, there is, but we’ve all got to make a living,’ says Smith. 

‘We won’t do things that won’t make us money and we believe 

passionately that we understand what does and what doesn’t. 

In our contract portfolio, we’ve got one pig and we’ve learnt a 

lot from when we contracted that workload. We won’t make 

that mistake again. That’s not in the intermodal market, that’s 

in other areas. 

‘Our growth proves that we’re still making profitable 

contracts. If all the others decide to undercut us and become 

loss-leaders, then our growth will stagnate because we won’t 

win. Unless quality comes into play. Our biggest success story 

is British Gypsum, where we’ve taken average tonnage on 

trains up quite considerably.’ 

Like its rivals EWS and Freightliner, GBRf is hoping for 

infrastructure improvements out of both ports, particularly 


INTERVIEW 

‘We are key to UK plc, whether it be containers 

coming through big ports or whether it be coal 

traffic. A better appreciation amongst politicians of 

the importance of freight in the DfT is really needed’ 

Felixstowe, in order for rail to keep up with market growth in 

container shipments. Britain is importing more and more 

goods each year as manufacturing is increasingly outsourced 

to Asia, but the railways won’t be able to keep up without some 

infrastructure changes. At the moment, Felixstowe has very 

little capacity for any extra rail services, mainly because the 

line out of it is just a single track. 

‘What we’re trying to assure at the moment is that the 

infrastructure’s going to be there, such as twin tracking from 

the port of Felixstowe. The Port of Felixstowe is going through 

the planning process, but once that goes ahead, there’ll 

probably be an increase of 50-75 per cent freight traffic out of 

there. The difficulty, of course, is a lot of it goes round where 

the Olympics is, where Crossrail is.’ 

Smith is hoping the Freight Utilisation Strategy will bring 

about some much-needed changes. ‘An integrated freight 

strategy would be good from the Government. You sometimes 

wonder whether there is any joined-up thinking. We are key 

to UK plc, whether it be containers coming through big ports 

or whether it be coal traffic. Coal is still 50 per cent of the 

generation of electricity in the UK. Maybe it’s our own fault, 

but a better appreciation amongst politicians of the importance 

of freight in the DfT is really needed.’ 

The remainder of GBRf’s work is in infrastructure services 

and hiring out train crew for haulage work. The company has 

just extended its contract with Serco, to drive its rail grinding 

and infrastructure monitoring services for Network Rail. 

One of GBRf’s most prestigious contracts is driving trains 

for Royal Mail. EWS took this on after privatisation, but after 

a few years Royal Mail decided to carry all its mail by road. 

Three years ago, GBRf managed to convince them that it was 

a waste to have unused mail trains sitting about, so it has begun 

running some of them again. The contract was worth around 

£50m in EWS’s time, but it’s just a small job now, bringing in 

£3 or £4m for GBRf. The contract is currently up for renewal 

and GBRf is hoping to extend it, perhaps for a longer period 

this time. 

‘We provide the drivers and we manage the trains for them, 

and we interface with their logistics teams to operate the 

services,’ says Smith. ‘They buy one train to Glasgow and one 

train from Glasgow to London a day and we operate those. 

We’re very flexible in being able to adapt. We’ve done things 

like re-routing after Grayrigg and increasing capacity when 

roads were closed after the Hemel Hempstead fire.’ 

Smith, 45, started out as an engineer on the railways, having 

begun as a toolmaker. He joined British Rail almost 30 years 

ago and ended up running maintenance depots. At 

privatisation he worked in Norwich for Anglia Railways, part 

of GB Railways, and rose to deputy managing director. He was 

then offered the chance to head up a new freight division, and 

the rest is history. He’s now based in Kettering, near 

Peterborough, dividing his time between the London office 

and various depots around the country. 

So, what next for GBRf? Will it be entering into the 

supermarket market, like DRS has done with Eddie Stobart? 

Or perhaps expanding into Europe, like Freightliner has? 

The answer to both is ‘quite possibly’. 

‘I think as green politics come into play, it begins to swing 

it,’ he says of the supermarket market. ‘It’s difficult to make 

these trains pay if we’re carrying the risk of filling the trains. 

And I don’t know how the deals work that exist between DRS 

and Stobart. You can make money out of freight over short 

distances if you can get the utilisation of the assets.’ 

And this is one of the key things for a small company like 

GBRf, which pays a lot for its locos – and pays good wages to 

its drivers. The company pays a high rate for leasing them 

because it gets them in smaller batches than its larger rivals 

would, plus it didn’t inherit any at privatisation. So GBRf can’t 

afford to have locomotives sitting around unused for long, 

making infrequent runs to obscure destinations unworkable, 

unless the loco can be put to work doing something else in 

between. 

‘You tend to end up with the train in the wrong place and 

then sending a driver up to fetch it. Unless you can get a fivetrains-a-week 

type of service, you have to find other ways to 

get value for money out of your assets. The key to it is flexible 

workforce and utilisation of your assets. It’s like planes, if 

they’re sat on the ground, they’re not earning money.’ 

GBRf currently leases 27 Class 66s and five Class 73, plus 

a few old electro-diesels used in the south of England and a 

handful of others for shunting. 


INTERVIEW 


One of GBRf’s class 66 locos, 

with the new First livery. 

‘I’d rather steer clear of the Channel 

Tunnel.There’s too much risk involved, 

they don’t seem to be very interested in 

freight. EWS have taken quite a risky 

stance over France, I think Freightliner 

have gone the right way’ 

The company is definitely interested in continental Europe 

– a prospect made easier by its being part of First Group, which 

already has operations over there. Acquisitions are the route 

that Smith favours. ‘I’d rather steer clear of the Channel Tunnel. 

There’s too much risk involved, they don’t seem to be very 

interested in freight. EWS have taken quite a risky stance over 

France, I think Freightliner have gone the right way.’ 

GBRf would probably look to Eastern Europe, as 

Freightliner has with its new operation in Poland. But Smith 

says he would also look at intermodal routes from Rotterdam 

to Germany and Austria. 

Back on UK soil, he echoes EWS’s call for doubling the 

length of freight trains, but he adds that it would only work 

for a few destinations, such as the power stations on the east 

coast. In other areas, the length of trains would be limited by 

sidings that could not accommodate longer trains, or single 

tracks only being able to take trains that are shorter than the 

passing loops. 

It seems that there is very little that GBRf will not consider 

in its quest to keep up its growth rate of 30-40 per cent a year. 


15

TRANSPENNINE EXPRESS 

FIRST PAST 

THE POST 

First Transpennine Express has just won four rail awards,reflecting its 

growth rates and passenger satisfaction levels.It is also in talks with 

the DfT to lengthen its trains.Alan Whitehouse meets MD Vernon Barker 

Winning almost half the Rail 

Business Awards at a single sitting 

is remarkable enough. What 

turned it into a truly memorable moment was 

when Trans-Pennine Express’s MD, Vernon 

Barker, revealed that was all part of his original 

plan for the company. 

When the fledgling franchise’s future plans 

were being brainstormed, executives asked the 

question: Where do we want to be in three 

years’ time? The answer? An award-winning 

company. Well, you can’t argue with that. Four 

awards, including the two top ones and a third 

for the fleet of 51 new trains brought in on time 

and to budget, is a hard act to follow. 

Three years ago, when Barker and his team 

were dreaming their dreams, it would have 

been easy to scoff. Here was a franchise 

created out of nothing by the Strategic Rail 

Authority against the advice of many and the 

warnings of a few that it would turn into 

neither fish nor fowl: neither a true inter-city 

franchise – that dream was buried long ago – 

nor a regional franchise either. So what has it 

become? 

There are three key tests that TPEx is 

passing with flying colours: it is vastly more 

punctual and reliable than before the franchise 

was created; it is carrying vastly more people; 

and many of those people are giving strong 

feedback that they like what they see. 

Vernon Barker loves spraying statistics at his 

visitors like a machine gun. He starts with 

PPM. TPEx is divided into three performance 

segments – North West, North Trans-Pennine 

and South Trans-Pennine. The latest figures for 

Period 13 show the following scores: NW: 96.2 

per cent; NTP: 92 per cent and STP: 94.7 per 

cent. The annual figures show an overall 

measure of 90 per cent. 

‘When we took over, that figure was 73 per 

cent,’ says Barker. ‘The North West was a 

basket case. It’s partly about the rolling stock 

– we now have Class 185s rather than 175s – 

and partly about better train regulation. When 

we started three years ago, we looked very hard 

at what sort of company we wanted to be. We 

also looked very hard at how other companies 

did the same job. We promised new trains and 

station improvements but we knew they 

couldn’t be delivered for two years, so we set 

about the things we could change quickly, 

things like staff morale and how the staff 

interacted with customers. 

‘We benchmarked the best in the industry. 

We looked at companies like Virgin, GNER, 

SWT and Chiltern and used them as role 

models. There was a cultural shift from day one 

and that started from the top with the 

management team not being afraid to stand up 

when things were going wrong, which, in the 

early days, they did.’ 

The step change came with the rollout of the 

Pennine Class 185 fleet. The Siemens-built 

DMUs were designed with hill climbing in 

mind. Each vehicle is powered and the loss of 

one engine leaves performance unaffected. 

Losing two out of three engines still enables 

the set to offer a ‘get you home’ service, instead 

of leaving passengers stranded. For the 51 sets 

First Transpennine Express’s MD Vernon Barker was awarded Rail Manager of the Year at March’s Rail Business Awards. 



TPEx is talking to Network Rail about infrastructure 

upgrades to help get the most out of the Siemens-built 

Class 185s, which were designed for hill climbing. 

there are 43 diagrams, in other words 43 jobs 

each day. That target is still not always hit and 

a couple of the displaced Class 158 sets are 

still in occasional emergency use. The day of 

my visit was a bad one: 11 sets out of use 

through a combination of planned exams and 

vandalism damage. 

‘Three years ago that would have been 

completely unremarkable. We regularly fielded 

short formation trains and had to cancel 

services because there weren’t enough sets 

available. When it happens now, you get a 

flood of phone calls and emails from people 

wanting to know exactly what the problem is 

because it has become such an uncommon 

thing,’ says Barker. 

The fleet is soon to be stretched further, 

running from Manchester Airport to Scotland 

from November. The 43 diagrams can’t be 

stretched, so a small fleet of Class 170 two-car 

units will take over the self-contained 

Manchester Piccadilly-Hull service. Trans- 

Pennine Express was a classic SRA seven- 


17


Vernon Barker (right) is lobbying the Government to add a fourth vehicle to the Class 185s (above) as passenger numbers increased by up to 29 per cent over the last year. 

years-or-thereabouts franchise, so the half-way 

point is fast approaching. What’s left to 

achieve? 

Barker identifies two key areas: capacity and 

infrastructure improvements. Capacity is the 

big one. TPEx is growing at a phenomenal rate 

with no obvious end in sight. It is helped by 

the fact that there is basically one decent road 

over the Pennines – the M62 motorway. That 

now regularly features on the ‘most congested’ 

lists while the other routes are slow and, in 

some cases, even more badly congested than 

the motorway. 

It means many commuters who might 

otherwise see themselves as road users to the 

death are looking hard at the alternatives. 

When TPEx launched its ‘Car Keys’ challenge 

– offering 10,000 free tickets to anyone who 

would use the trains instead of their cars – they 

were snapped up within hours. 

TPEx nominal growth rate is around 10 per 

cent annually, but here’s another spray of 

Barker’s machine-gun fire: Leeds-Manchester 

up by 21 per cent last year; Newcastle- 

Manchester up by 18 per cent; Sheffield- 

Manchester 29 per cent and Doncaster- 

Manchester 29 per cent. Manchester Airport 

traffic is growing at 12 per cent per year. 

Even by the standards of today’s booming 

railway this is heady stuff. The Class 185 fleet 

added 33 per cent capacity but that is clearly 

not going to last long. Barker is strongly 

lobbying – positively pestering according to 

his critics – anyone who will listen at the DfT 

for a fourth vehicle for at least part of the fleet. 

‘We benchmarked the best in 

the industry.We looked at 

companies like Virgin, GNER, 

SWT and Chiltern and used 

them as role models’ 

Vernon Barker 

Life is never simple, and each extra vehicle 

will mean an extra set of leasing charges. TPEx 

is a subsidised franchise so that means extra 

subsidy. Worse, the low fare levels, a historical 

anomaly in the north of England, means that 

each vehicle needs a revenue subsidy too. 

TPEx’s average fare is just £5, a reflection of 

highly subsidised fares in the five PTE areas 

its services pass through. Barker and his team 

have been talking to the DfT for several 

months now. He says they are ‘receptive’ – a 

word he stresses that I should use – to the 

argument that TPEx is a success in terms of 

stimulating regional and city economies across 

the north and is actively helping to cut traffic 

levels on some of the busiest road corridors. 

‘The DfT understands the growth that is 

being stimulated. It is now for us to 

demonstrate the cost benefits of adding a 

fourth vehicle and we believe that is something 

we can do.’ So it may be that some of the 1,000 

additional vehicles promised by the 

Government will have TPEx’s name on them. 

He is also talking hard to Network Rail about 

infrastructure improvements to capitalise on 

the abilities of the Class 185s. These trains 

stand accused of being overweight gasguzzlers, 

but that appetite means they climb 

hills quickly, accelerate quickly and have a 

100mph capability. ‘We want to make sure we 

take advantage of what these trains can do,’ 

explains Barker. ‘So we are looking at a range 

of things from linespeeds and signal sightings 

to see what quick wins there might be. We are 

asking about permanent speed restrictions 

where the reason for the restriction is long 

forgotten and where the linespeed itself is 

lower than it might be.’ 

An example is Guide Bridge, on the Eastern 

fringes of Manchester. Network Rail had 

planned to replace the junction with the 

Glossop and Stalybridge routes like-for-like, 

perpetuating a 15mph speed restriction. A 

review promises a 30mph junction instead. 

Barker himself is Rail Manager of the Year. 

Yet the 47-year-old is far from a career 

railwayman. He came into the industry by 

accident seven years ago, agreeing to ‘hold the 

reins for three months’ at First North-Western, 

the regional franchise now swallowed up by 

Northern. ‘I became fascinated by the industry 

and the challenges it presents. It forced me to 

really understand the business. And I’m still 

learning.’ 

So will he be moving on? ‘I see myself as 

having moved in rather than having moved on.’ 

You can’t argue with that, either. 

Alan Whitehouse is transport correspondent for 

BBC North. 


SMOKING BAN 

Midland Mainline staff are joined by health professionals for a Well Being Day aimed at helping staff who want to give up smoking in advance of July’s ban. 

STUBBING IT OUT 

It’s probably the biggest change to happen on the railways since 

privatisation.The ban on smoking in public places will affect virtually 

everyone who travels by rail or works on the railway itself.As Peter 

Plisner has discovered,preparations are well advanced – some companies 

have already introduced the ban 

It was big news when MP’s approved the 

controversial smoking ban, but since then 

it’s all gone quiet. Ask most people and they 

probably won’t know what the new law actually 

says or when it comes into force. But for smokers 

life is going to get a whole lot more difficult, while 

those who don’t light up should benefit from a 

more pleasant environment. The smoking ban 

in England comes into force on Sunday 1 July 

2007. From that day virtually all ‘enclosed’ and 

‘substantially enclosed’ public places and 

workplaces will be smoke-free. 

For most employers the new legislation will 

affect just those areas used by their workforce. 

However, for management on the railways, much 

more work has been required to deliver the 

smoke-free environment for passengers too. 

According to the new law, employers, managers 

and those in charge of smoke-free places must 

display ‘no smoking’ signs in premises and take 

reasonable steps to ensure that staff, customers 

and visitors are aware that premises are smokefree. 

Any indoor smoking rooms have to be 

removed and employers also have a legal duty to 

ensure that the new rules are adhered to. 

The Government has also suggested other 

measures which organisations might want to 

carry out. These include removing ashtrays, 

developing a smoke-free policy in consultation 

with staff and perhaps offering employees help 

and support in quitting the habit. 

While smoking on trains has been banned on 

most services for several years, smoking at 

stations has remained widespread. Fire and safety 

regulations have meant restrictions on some 

platforms, but until now most of the 2,500 

stations on the UK rail network have continued 

to allow passengers and staff to smoke. But the 

new regulations will change all that. Most 

companies, including train operators, are well 

advanced in their planning for the new 

legislation. 

The Association of Train Operating 

Companies has been co-ordinating efforts to 

abide by the new rules. Spokesman John Dennis 

says: ‘A lot of discussion has gone on over quite 

some time. This isn’t new; it’s already happened 

in Scotland and Wales, so England is just the 

third part of the equation.’ The new legislation 


SMOKING BAN 

Bob Crowley, head of employee relations at Midland Mainline, encourages staff to take 

advantage of healthcare opportunities that help to promote the smoking ban. 

only requires that enclosed areas are smoke-free, 

meaning that open-air platforms technically aren’t 

covered. 

But according to Network Rail, the problem 

has been solved by using certain railway byelaws. 

The company’s commercial manager, Andrew 

Hutton, says: ‘As I understand it, any company 

can set its own rules, but we clearly have the 

benefit of having railway byelaws in place and 

we’re able to adjust them as we wish to within 

reason.’ It’s enabled Network Rail and the train 

operators to declare that all ‘station premises’ will 

be smoke-free. Smoking will still be allowed in 

station forecourts and car parks that don’t have 

a roof. 

Special posters will be going up soon to inform 

passengers about the changes and no-smoking 

signage will also be used when the law actually 

comes in. According to Hutton, working out the 

wording of the signs hasn’t been easy, because of 

the fact that the smoking ban on the railways will 

be governed by the two different sets of rules. 

He says: ‘We have an issue in making sure that 

the wording that is relative to the railway byelaws 

is correct where it needs to be. And where the 

wording relates to the legal part, it needs to be 

correct to reflect that.’ Both Network Rail and the 

Tocs are promising a comprehensive signage on 

all stations. Atoc’s John Dennis says: ‘There will 

be notices put up because that’s part of the 

legislative requirement. They will gradually appear 

throughout June. All Tocs will be responsible for 

ensuring that it happens.’ 

One company, Midland Mainline, decided not 

to wait until July. It took the lead 

and imposed a ban on all its 

managed properties, including 

stations, in January. Managing 

director, Garry Raven says: ‘We’ve 

gone early to allow staff and passengers a period 

of time to get used to it. We’d already banned 

smoking on trains several years ago and it was 

generally well received.’ 

Midland Mainline has also had to consider its 

workforce. The changes have meant kitchens and 

redundant rooms, where previously smoking was 

tolerated, are all out of bounds to smokers. Signs 

outlining the changes have gone up in all 

company offices. Raven says: ‘We have tried to be 

sympathetic in the way we do it. We’ve tried to give 

everyone some sort of fair weather shelter if they 

wish to carry on smoking. But we’ve also done 

Well Being days.’ The special sessions arranged 

by the company have been well attended. Midland 

Mainline has also agreed to provide free nicotine 

patches for those who want to give up. Around 30 

members of staff have signed up, including MD 

himself. ‘I was just taking advantage of a window 

of opportunity I suppose. I have been smoking 

for 40 years and have given up a couple times in 

the past and have failed miserably. I just thought 

that this would be an opportunity for me.’ 

Enforcement of the new laws appears to be 

something of a grey area. Ultimately the British 

Transport Police will be responsible. However, with 

large parts of the rail system already non-smoking, 

a force spokesman pointed out that it’s largely 

enforced through self-policing and by rail staff, 

adding: ‘If a police officer comes across someone 

smoking where they shouldn’t, they would enforce 

it as well.’ The BTP maintains that the extension 

of no-smoking areas that the new legislation is 

bringing in isn't expected to cause any major 

problems. The spokesman says the ban in 

Scotland has not caused any problems and, so far, 

the Welsh experience has been the same. 

According to Network Rail, peer pressure and 

disapproval from other non-smoking passengers 

are probably all that is needed to deal with most 

of those who flout the law. Nevertheless, staff 

working on the railways are being given definitive 

advice and guidance about how to deal with such 

incidents. Network Rail’s Andrew Hutton says: 

“At what point, and how do you 

professionally, but firmly, make 

sure that the new rules are taken 

note of? We don’t want the police 

getting involved every time 

somebody lights up a cigarette, but 

on the other hand we can’t allow it 

to be flouted.’ 

For railway managers there are 

other issues that need to be dealt 

with ahead of July. The ban on 

smoking in the workplace will also 

cover company vehicles. Network 

Rail has thousands of them. Hutton 

says: ‘The issue of company vehicles 

is quite a big one. Basically as soon as 

you’re in a company vehicle that could be shared, 

then it’s no smoking area.’ 

While the smoking ban may be something of 

a minefield for railway managers to interpret and 

enforce, it will obviously provide a much more 

pleasant environment for both passengers and 

staff who don’t smoke. The Government’s hoping 

that those who do might decide that the changes 

provide an ideal opportunity to give up smoking. 

Many companies have, quite rightly, been drawing 

on experience from Scotland where a smoking 

ban appears to have been accepted and more 

importunately hasn’t been widely abused. But 

ultimately railway managers in England are 

responsible for ensuring that the new laws are 

observed. 

Those in charge of the premises could face a 

£2,500 fine if they fail to stop people flouting the 

law. They could also be charged on-the-spot fines 

of £200 if they fail to display adequate nosmoking 

signs, with the penalty increasing to 

£1,000 if the issue goes to court. 

There has been much debate about whether a 

ban should be imposed, but so far where it has 

happen the signs are very positive. Let’s hope the 

same happens here in July. 

Peter Plisner is the BBC’s Midlands transport 

correspondent. 


21

INFRASTRUCTURE 

BASINGSTOKE 

BLOCKADE 

Lines through Basingstoke have just re-opened after closing to move 

tracks and update signalling.Paul Clifton reports on the challenges of 

getting the work done on time – despite a major theft of materials – and 

organising alternative transport 

Paul Clifton 

Network Rail has completed a 10-day 

blockade of the railway lines through 

Basingstoke. The track and signalling 

project has taken more than three years of 

planning, but caused unprecedented disruption 

to tens of thousands of commuters each day. 

South West Trains provided more than 90 buses 

to get passengers around the blockade. 

It had advertised the problems for six months 

in advance – and many travellers heeded the 

warnings. Up to one in three commuters opted 

to avoid heading to London. Some took a week’s 

extra leave after Easter, others worked from 

home rather than face interrupted journeys of 

up to an hour longer than usual each way. 

‘We had up to 800 people working on the 

track each day,’ says Mark Somers, senior project 

manager for Network Rail. He’d been preparing 

for the shutdown since being appointed in 2004. 

‘It’s the biggest blockade we’ve had in 40 years, 

Senior project manager Mark Somers had been preparing 

for the shutdown since he was first appointed in 2004. 

and we are replacing worn-out equipment that’s 

40 years old. It’s a once-in-a-generation scheme, 

so hopefully we won’t be back here for another 

40 years!’ 

Closing the lines at Basingstoke affected 

passengers across a swathe of southern England. 

It’s where the route from Waterloo to Exeter 

diverges at Worting Junction from the main line 

to Winchester, Southampton and Bournemouth. 

It also closed Great Western Junction and the 

line to Reading used by Virgin, First Great 

Western, South West Trains and the many freight 

services from Southampton docks. Freight was 

diverted via Salisbury and Westbury, while some 

passenger trains from Southampton were routed 

via Havant. 

The tracks at Great Western Junction just 

north of Basingstoke station were moved one 

metre to the west. 

‘That will allow the line speed across the 

junction to be increased from 15 mph to 25mph,’ 

Somers explained. ‘It might not sound much. 

But the freight trains through here are more than 

a quarter of a mile long. And they often have to 

cross over the fast lines to reach the down slow 

to Southampton, holding up every other train in 

Basingstoke. We’re also installing new diamond 

crossings north and south of the station, which 

will give signallers more flexibility. And we’re 

signalling all four through platforms for bidirectional 

working.’ 

Line speeds on the fast lines through the 

station are also being increased from 65 to 

90mph. The closure, which started on Good 

Friday, is part of a £130m project. 

‘It is extremely challenging,’ admits Somers. ‘I 

put a programme in place in October 2004. We 

started work here in January 2006. We’ve built a 

complete new signalling control centre, we’ve 

renewed more than 30 sets of points and we’ve 

installed new track, gantries, and signals in the 

last 14 months. We’ve seen probably about 

750,000 man-hours on site so far and that doesn’t 

include the p-way works. 

David Pape, Network Rail’s route director 

adds: ‘We’ve done a lot of the points over the last 

nine months. We had short closures over the 

Easter and May Bank Holidays last year and 

again in October and November. This time we’re 

completing the track work east and west of 

Basingstoke station. We’re renewing the switches 

and crossings at Worting Junction, where the 

Salisbury line splits from the Southampton line. 

It’s the largest single project on Network Rail in 

this season. 

‘We’re taking advantage of the closure to do a 

lot of other work as well. We’ve got jobs on the 

Exeter line, on the main lines, and all the Reading 

line is being re-signalling while we’re at it. 

‘It involves the relaying of 100 km of track, the 



Main picture: wwwlrailimages.co.uk 

The work done at Basingstoke was the biggest Network Rail project this season, affecting South West Trains, First Great Western,Virgin and freight services from Southampton. 

installation of 270 new signals, 81 points, 250km 

of new cabling. The vastness of this project 

means it could only be done with a big blockade.’ 

During the 10-day closure, extra security had 

to be hired to protect new copper cables. Even 

so, an organised gang of thieves using quad 

bikes stole £50,000 of copper. 

Outside Basingstoke station, a queue of buses 

lined up outside marquees where South West 

Trains staff served tea and coffee. A man with a 

megaphone shouted to passengers to tell them 

where each bus was heading. From outside the 

town, road signs directed motorists towards parkand-ride 

sites to replace station car parks, which 

had been turned into Network Rail and Balfour 

Beatty service yards. Passengers were also being 

bussed from Andover, Winchester, Micheldever, 

Reading and Winchfield. 

‘It’s uncharted territory for us,’ admitted 

Basingstoke’s station manager, Tim Keen. ‘We’ve 

not had to deal with a closure as big as this 

before.’ It looked not unlike Heathrow last year, 

when passengers were shepherded into 

temporary holding areas as staff struggled to deal 

with additional security measures. SWT’s 

operation looked more efficient and betterplanned 

than the one by BAA, yet involved 

similar numbers of passengers. 

‘We’ve had over 90 buses out, and more than 

100 extra customer service staff to help 

passengers. We’ve been doing everything 

possible to help our passengers make the 

journeys as bearable as possible for passengers,’ 

said SWT’s operations director, James Burt. 

Network Rail handed control back at 04:00 on 

Monday 16 April, on-time and with the new 

signalling centre commissioned. ‘We’re quite 

relieved,’ admits Mark Dunn, South West Trains’ 

area manager for Portsmouth. ‘There was no Plan 

B. But it seemed to go well.’ 

Dunn had managed the fleet of buses and 

other customer service arrangements during the 

unexpectedly long Portsmouth re-signalling 

closure, and was moved across to repeat the 

project on a bigger scale at Basingstoke. 

There will be a series of further 54-hour 

closures to complete the work at Worting 

Junction. 


23


HIGH SPEED 

VISION 

The 68 mile Channel Tunnel Rail Link – or High Speed 1 as it is now 

known – is nearing completion, on time and within budget.Chris 

Randall talked to Dave Bennett from Union Railways (North) about 

the challenges of building Britain’s first high-speed line 

On 6 March this year the cavernous and 

grandiose Barlow train shed, which 

houses the nearly completed St 

Pancras International station, echoed to the 

sound of cheering and enthusiastic applause. 

Fluorescent jacketed workers in hard hats 

stopped what they were doing as a Eurostar train 

with its distinctive yellow nose cone edged slowly 

into the station for the very first time. 

‘It was an absolutely fantastic experience and 

a huge morale boost for the people working on 

the project,’ enthuses Dave Bennett, 

implementation director at Union Railways 

(North), the company that for the last four years 

has been building the 24-mile second stage of 

High Speed 1, the rail link from the Channel 

Tunnel to St Pancras. 

Bennett was on board the train that day as 

High Speed 1 passed another critical milestone. 

‘A lot of people worked very hard to get to that 

point,’ he says. ‘There were plenty of times, 

particularly in the last couple of years, when we 

wondered how we were going to get through. We 

were working with some very complex systems, 

which made it difficult to stay focused on the 

bigger picture. But when the train pulled into St 

Pancras for the first time, everyone had a timely 

reminder of what this project is all about.’ 

Eurostar officially moves to St Pancras on 14 

November this year, exactly 13 years after it 

started running train services to Paris and 

Brussels from its current home at Waterloo 

station. For most of that time, the sleek 18-coach 

trains that cruise at 186mph on French and 

Belgian lines have crawled through south-east 

London and Kent at no more than half that 

speed. 

The long-awaited completion of High Speed 

1 – a decade after Belgium completed its high 

speed route and 13 years behind the French – 

will see London-Paris journey times cut to two 

hours 15minutes and London-Brussels achieved 

in one hour 51minutes. 

But that is still six months away. No one 

involved with this prestigious project is counting 

any chickens just yet. ‘Yes, there is still a lot to be 

done,’ cautions Bennett. ‘But construction of the 

railway was more or less finished at the end of 

last year. Since then we have been 

commissioning systems in preparation for 

handing it over to Eurostar in the summer.’ 

The 25k volt power supply was switched on 

in January, bringing the railway to life and 

clearing the way for months of exhaustive train 

testing. Bennett adds: ‘We are at a stage where 

we can run trains at our discretion. There is still 

a lot of testing to be completed, but the fact is 

we have got a working railway.’ 

Work on the £5.8bn High Speed 1has been 

remarkably trouble free, particularly when 

compared to the traumatic modernisation of the 

West Coast Main Line, which has yet to be 

completed and, at a cost in excess of £8bn, is 

nearly eight times over the original budget. Of 

The long-awaited completion 

of High Speed 1 – a decade 

after Belgium completed its 

high speed route and 13 years 

behind the French – will see 

London-Paris journey times 

cut to two hours 15 minutes 

course, building a railway from scratch, without 

the need to shoehorn work into costly night time 

and weekend possessions has helped 

enormously. But constructing a high-tech, 25k 

volt network next to ageing infrastructure has 

presented some tricky technical problems, as 

Bennett explains. 

‘We have some complex interfaces, 

particularly at St Pancras, but also at Dagenham 

and Ebbsfleet. We have had to work very hard 

to prove to Network Rail that we won’t be doing 

anything that will disrupt its railway. Our 

contractors have been busy replacing copper 

telecoms cables with fibre optic cables and have 

changed track circuits to prevent interference 

from stray currents. Although the work with 

Network Rail only represents a very small 

proportion of our overall capital costs, in terms 

of management time and technical expertise, at 

certain stages of the project it has probably 

represented 50 per cent of our effort.' 

The first stage of High Speed 1 from the 

Channel Tunnel to Fawkham Junction in north 

Kent was opened in September 2003 by prime 

minister Tony Blair amid much Union Jack- 



At 8.1 metres in diameter, the tunnels beneath London that 

High Speed 1 will be using are the largest ever under a UK city. 

waving razzmatazz. The second phase, which 

includes 11.5 miles of tunnelling under the 

approaches to London, was always seen as 

carrying more risk. 

‘Obviously, coming into south-east London 

there are hundreds of thousands of homes that 

potentially could have been affected,’ explains 

Bennett. ‘But the construction of the tunnels 

went exceptionally well with very little 

disruption.’ 

Not that everything went entirely to plan. 

Bennett recalls one well-publicised incident at 

Stratford when a tunnelling machine hit an 

uncharted well. ‘Sometime after the tunnelling 

machine passed through, part of a back garden 

disappeared. It was behind a row of very pleasant 

but fairly modest terraced houses. But it was 

reported that the insurance claim included a 

Harley Davidson and several crates of 

Champagne that had disappeared down the 

hole!’ 

That’s the sort of thing that can happen when 

you are digging nearly 12 miles of tunnels, which 

also leaves you with a mountain of spoil to 

dispose of. ‘Potentially we were looking at 

Tunnel vision 

Constructing a railway line in nearly 12 miles of 

tunnels isn’t easy – particularly when the track 

has to be fixed onto concrete slab. 

‘You are limited to how you can get the 

materials in,’ says Dave Bennett, highlighting 

one of the main difficulties.‘There’s the tunnel 

entrance and a small number of major shafts – 

and that’s it!’ 

Undeterred, contractors working on the highprofile 

project came up with an innovative 

hundreds of thousands of lorry loads of material 

that would have had to have been transported 

through London, with a hefty bill to be paid for 

disposing of it all,’ says Bennett. 

The development site at Stratford, which will 

be home to the 2012 London Olympics, came 

to the rescue, as Bennett explains: ‘It is a lowlying 

area prone to flooding. So we used almost 

all of the tunnelling material to raise the entire 

40-hectare sight by up by eight metres. It had the 

dual benefit of making the land significantly 

more developable and cutting out the need for 

solution. Rather than take the concrete into the 

tunnels, they decided to make it on a specially 

adapted train. 

Bennett elaborates:‘In practice we created a 

complete concrete factory on a train that was 

several hundred metres long. 

‘The raw materials were carried on the train 

and the concrete mix was pumped out of a pipe 

at the front to exactly where it was needed in 

the tunnel.’ 

all those environmentally damaging lorry 

journeys. It’s a very good example of how High 

Speed 1 has worked to minimise its impact on 

the environment.’ 

With attention switching inevitably to 

November’s grand opening, all eyes are now on 

St Pancras and the new International station 

taking shape behind the familiar Victorian 

edifice on London’s busy Euston road. Bennett 

says: ‘People talk about the station in the same 

way as they would St Paul’s cathedral. And we 

have the job of putting four railways into it: high 


25


speed domestic services, Eurostar, Midland 

Mainline and Thameslink. Oh, and we are 

joining it to the Underground network. It is a 

major task.’ 

The developers hope the station will quickly 

be seen as more than a place to catch a train. 

With high quality shops, and Europe’s longest 

champagne bar, the plan is to turn it into a 

destination in its own right. A few years ago that 

would have been an improbable notion in the 

rundown area around King’s Cross and St 

Pancras. But HS1 is not just a railway – it’s a 

catalyst for change. ‘It’s an extremely important 

part of redeveloping the entire area,’ says 

Bennett. ‘And it is going to transform this entire 

area of London.’ 

High Speed 1 numbers 

£5.8bn – cost of construction 

8,000 – jobs created during construction 

50m – estimated hours of work to build HS1 

11.5 miles – overall length of London tunnels 

8.1 metres – diameter of the London tunnels (the 

biggest-ever under a UK city) 

St Pancras International sees its first Eurostar; testing is 

now underway before the November opening. 


COMMENT 

LEARNING 

FROM PAST 

MISTAKES 

The Government is ordering new 

trains and carriages in a muchpublicised 

move. But let’s get the 

right rolling stock, says Henry 

Law, and learn from the mistakes 

of the past when it comes to 

seating, doors and suspension 

It goes without saying that the specification 

for the new stock announced by the 

Government will require operational 

compatibility with existing fleets. One would 

also hope that it will build directly on the 

experience with the Electostar and Desiro fleets. 

After a sometimes painful learning curve, both 

types of train are now well-established and 

reliable. 

Their systems and components are proven. 

Staff are familiar with them. Given the correct 

interior configuration, the Electrostar – in 

particular in the class 376 version with sliding 

doors – has proved excellent for inner suburban 

services. This has been recognised by Transport 

for London in its choice of Elecrostars for the 

East London and North London line services. 

On the other hand, to perpetuate the present 

designs in their entirety would be to miss an 

opportunity for improvement. To reduce energy 

consumption and improve performance, the 

weight should be brought down, possibly 

through the use of alternative forms of bodyshell 

construction and also by improved design of 

interior components, such as seats. 

And while they are well suited for inner 

suburban routes, the Electrostars, and to some 

extent, the class 450 Desiros, are less than ideal 

for the longer distance services where they 

replaced the class 421 slam doors, which were 

used up to 1972. 

Electrostars are narrower inside than the 20- 

metre mark 3 stock, especially at floor and 

cantrail levels. This results in cramped seating 

and luggage racks barely wide enough to hold 

an overcoat. And the problem is compounded 

by the skirting ducts, which leave passengers in 

A Class 450 Desiro. 

window seats in the 2+3 versions with 

insufficient space to sit straight with both feet 

on the floor. 

There are considerations when it comes to 

suspension, too. Electrostars are distinctly 

bouncy, possibly due to insufficient intervehicular 

damping – they certainly run less 

steadily than the buckeye-coupled mark 1 stock 

that had the benefit of the effective damping 

provided by the gangway rubbing plates. 

Steadier riding would allow extra width. 

Articulation would be one way to solve this 

problem and perhaps ought to be explored for 

the other benefits it would bring, such as weight 

saving, with five-car articulated sets instead of 

conventional four-car units. 

The design and position of doors should also 

be reviewed. Plug doors – those which are flush 

with the side of the vehicle when shut, but pop 

forward before opening – need to be carefully 

considered if they are to be used, as they are 

more complex than sliding doors and require a 


A Danish Øresundtåg, which has a 

single doorway, but more space 

for passengers to step into. 

half-step at the entrance. The step is both a 

hazard and a delaying feature, as passengers 

need to tread carefully. As for the location of 

doorways, the accepted industry view is that the 

1/3:2/3 configuration – where vehicles have 

doorways about 1.5 metres wide, a third of the 

way from the end of each carriage – is best for 

station dwell-times. The comparison is always 

made with stock such as classes 158 and 442, 

which have a pinch-point between the vestibule 

and the seating area. 

Given adequate circulation space adjacent to 

the entrance vestibule, there is no reason why enddoor 

stock should be significantly worse. Indeed, 

the 26-metre Øresundtåg vehicles, built by 

Adtranz about 10 years ago, running northwards 

from the Copenhagen conurbation on similar 

services to those south of London, have only a 

single doorway on each side, but there is a large 

area of clear floor space immediately inside so 

that passengers can quickly move away from the 

entrance when they board the train. 

There are advantages in locating the 

doorways at the vehicle ends. Weight reductions 

might be made as, from a structural point of 

view, the 1/3:2/3 configuration is not an ideal 

place for large door apertures. There is more 

freedom in arranging the seating layout, as the 

passenger accommodation forms a single large 

area instead of three compartments. And 

environmental control is easier, reducing the 

load on the heating and ventilation system, 

especially as it is simple to fit internal doors 

between the vestibules and the passenger 

saloons. 

Now that we once again have established 

designs, the opportunity for revision should be 

taken to evolve what are quite good designs into 

something very much better. 


27

VIEW FROM ACROSS THE POND 

THE PRICE OF 

PROGRESS 

Michael R Weinman sums up the 

news to have come out of 

America’s railways over the last 

month, including a downturn in 

freight’s rising fortunes and railrelated 

lawsuits 

© Scott Frangos – FOTOLIA 

The multiplicity of newsworthy 

occurrences on the west side of the 

pond renders this month’s column a 

series of ‘sound bites’. First, think back to the 

January column’s anguish over the potential 

lifting of a line east of Seattle WA which sees 

little traffic today, but bisects a densely 

populated suburban corridor – and clearly will 

be needed in the future, both for passenger 

service and as a relief line for freight. 

The owner, Burlington Northern Santa Fe 

Railroad, has reached agreement to transfer 

the line to public agencies, which will indeed 

abandon it, but with the caveat that it would 

be available in the future for transport use. 

Which brings to mind the old music hall line 

‘I’d give my right arm to be ambidextrous’! 

Conundrum! Outrageous! These were 

some of the exclamations used by 

commentators to describe the situation in 

which crowding, insufficient car park capacity 

and a lack of auto disincentives – tolls and 

other road pricing factors – combined with 

necessary fare increases, actually encourage 

substantial auto use at the same time that 

public transportation use is being preached 

as gospel. 

Petrol prices are again on the rise, 

approaching US$3 per gallon (about 34p per 

litre, which would, of course, be considered 

modest in the UK). This time, however, 

reports are that consumption is rising, as the 

American public becomes enured to the 

situation. An elasticity study reported that in 

2001, a 20 per cent rise in prices would see a 

six per cent drop in fuel use, whilst a 2006 

measure showed but a one per cent drop for 

an equivalent rise. Currently, although smaller 

vehicles are being purchased, per capita petrol 

consumption continues to escalate. A related 

recent New York Times article implied that, 

while public transport use is also rising, 

success breeds new demands for spending, 

ergo the necessity for fare increases. 

Moving on to legal matters, rail-related 

court actions have been grabbing headlines 

on both sides of the Atlantic. Whilst the 

potential for criminal prosecution was raised 

following Hatfield and, appropriately, put the 

fear of God into many industry managers, an 

ongoing story in the US press combines 

legitimate offence at historical wrongs with 

the growing tendency toward the litigious. 

Several hundred legal complaints are being 

made, about half emanating from the US, 

against SNCF, for its alleged role in the 

Holocaust by transporting people to Nazi 

camps. 

Perhaps the well-documented Nazi 

offences against humanity were of such 

magnitude as to cause children and 

grandchildren to flail at ghosts. But unless 

SNCF has discovered the fountain of youth, 

all the people who made any decisions 

whatsoever in regard to transport of 

prisoners to detention camps are long since 

dead, or at best retired and departed from the 

railway by decades – so punishing the railway 

of today is fruitless. Isn’t it about time we 

accepted this? 

Unsurprisingly, Guillaume Pepy, chief 

executive of SNCF, found more recent events 

of note to discuss during his recent 2007 

CILT Sir Robert Reid Lecture – perhaps he 

thought that SNCF high speed progress 

would be a more relevant topic for today’s 

audience. 

I’m a hi-tech-Luddite and proud of it. Now, 

if I may quote from my technically-savvy 

colleague Roger Ford, in March’s Modern 

Railways, ‘Cutting extra cars into a modern 

computer-controlled multiple-unit is a 

complex process. Doing it when the trains 

are already scheduled to be in [the depot] for 

several days makes a lot of sense.’ Luddite 

says: Does this complexity really buy 

sufficient value? 


Compare, for instance, the thousands of 

old-fashioned vehicles in the US in which 

lifting a cutting lever, unplugging four head 

end power cables and two control cables, and 

two minutes time, is all it takes to remove 

cars, and the same process in reverse, plus 

connecting two air hoses – which uncouple 

without intervention – takes about four 

minutes? 

And these trains, I’m thinking mostly of 

push-pull stock, almost never fail. Our Acela 

Express high speed trainsets, the US 

Pendolino if you will, are modern computercontrolled, 

and thus must be ‘surgically’ 

uncoupled and recoupled, in a depot. To 

paraphrase retired Amtrak/New York 

Transit/SEPTA executive John F Tucker, if a 

toaster or coffee maker in the Acela buffet 

fails, US$30m of train is tied up, with 

consequent revenue loss! Luddite questions: 

is this really progress? 

Freight news is next, last and, likely, best! 

Signs of a slowing economy are in sight. 

Cargo haulage gains dipped through the first 

months of 2007, with intermodal essentially 

flat or showing small gains, and some losses 

in carload traffic. 

Most noticeable were automobiles and 

Unless SNCF has discovered 

the fountain of youth, all the 

people who made any 

decisions whatsoever in regard 

to transport of prisoners to 

detention camps are long 

since dead, or at best retired 

and departed from the railway 

manufacturing components, forestry and food 

products. This impacted on short lines and 

regional railways most as they have little 

intermodal traffic, drawing a warning from 

Michael Smith, president of the Finger Lakes 

Railway, an assemblage of short routes 

through upstate New York, in and near wine 

country. 

Smith addressed the recent New England 

Railroad Club Annual Rail Forum and Expo, 

with his thesis being that the efficiencies 

fostered by new technology were a necessity 

for the survival of such railways in uncertain 

economic times. His cautionary note was not 

echoed by noted railway financial analyst 

Anthony Hatch, whose keynote address was 

decidedly upbeat, as was Rail Stockwatch 

editor Tom Murray in the recent 6 March 

edition of his fine newsletter. 

Both reflected that the increase in pricing 

power, gains in operating efficiency, 

increasing challenges to the trucking industry 

and the reaping of benefits from huge railway 

capital investments, often in capacity, will 

permit the industry to grow the top line, as 

well as stabilise and grow the bottom line, 

despite economic fluctuations. Review the 

presentation cited in my April column, and it 

can be seen that confidence and optimism 

may indeed be a trend. 

Post Script: I’m pleased to report that the 

impressive talents of Richard Phelps, 

mentioned in this column, passim, as longtime 

general superintendent of Amtrak’s 

Southwest Division, have finally been 

recognised with his recent appointment by 

Amtrak as vice president – transportation. 

Expect better times ahead! 

Michael R Weinman is head of PTSI 

Transportation USA, a railway management 

consultancy. He is a former officer of New York 

Central, Penn Central and Amtrak. 


29

LEGAL OPINION 

IEP NOT HST 

Procurement procedures are going to be changing for 

the Government’s next train order – companies 

bidding to supply new trains will have to bid jointly 

with financiers.Naomi Horton explains 

© Bombardier 

In case you hadn’t heard, the DfT is to procure some new trains – and 

1,000 extra carriages for the existing ones too. Having issued an OJEU 

– the start of the procurement process under EU law – for the former 

on 8 March this year, the secretary of state for transport announced the 

latter barely a week later. With a 40 per cent increase in passenger numbers 

since privatisation, the ‘green challenge’ high up on the political agenda, 

capacity on our rail network full to bursting and the ink only just dry on the 

Eddington Report, these high speed announcements are timely. 

INTERCITY EXPRESS PROGRAMME 

The long-awaited DfT pre-qualification documents and OJEU notice, for 

what we are no longer allowed to call the HST2 replacement project, have 

now been issued. Those interested in pre-qualifying for the Intercity Express 

Programme (IEP) are to return their expressions of interest by the middle 

of June, with the lucky selected candidates receiving the invitation to tender 

in the autumn. This is the second post-privatisation rolling stock renewal 

project to be led by the Government, following the SRA's successful 

procurement of the Hitachi 395 Javelin fleet in mid-2005. As expected, the 

DfT wishes to procure an availability and reliability service agreement. 

A JOINT EFFORT 

What is perhaps unusual is the requirement for bidders to provide both 

trains and financing, alone or in a consortium. This means that, as this 

article is being written, financiers will be talking to manufacturers and vice 

versa, to team up to bid together. The DfT will not be able to cherry pick 

the best train and the best offer of finance and put them together but will 

be stuck with those partnerships that are being forged right now. 

What is also rather surprising is the stated possible top figure of 2,000 

vehicles that may be procured – which seems rather high. However, this 

may simply be the result of the DfT listening to its procurement team and 

giving itself maximum flexibility at this early stage in the proceedings. 

Manufacturers and financiers alike have been gearing up for the IEP for 

years, literally. Money would need to be spent on expensive refurbishments 

of what are now 30-plus-year-old fleets to make them compliant with current 

legislation and requirements – crashworthiness and the like. This – 

combined with the generally accepted and DfT-endorsed requirement for 

greener, lighter trains with lower emissions – means that it makes sense for 

the high speed train fleets currently operated largely on the East Coast, the 

Great Western and East Midlands mainlines to be retired in around 2016. 

Hence the largest train procurement project ever commissioned in the 

UK, certainly post privatisation, has got underway. With the capital cost of 

a 10 vehicle train at around £14m, and annual running costs of 

approximately £2m, it is easy to see why it is more than just the engineers 

who are getting excited. But how will the new trains actually be procured 

The new generation of high speed trains are being ordered directly by the Government. 

and how are the risks and obligations relating to the supply likely to be 

carved up? 

STRUCTURE OF THE NEW CONTRACTS 

Traditionally, new train procurement contracts in the UK post privatisation 

have involved three or four parties: an operator (who wants to operate new 

trains), a manufacturer (chosen to supply the trains), a maintainer (who is likely 

to have the same identity as the manufacturer) and a financier (who buys the 

trains from the manufacturer and leases them to the operator). The process 

usually starts with the operator having the requirement for the new trains – 

either because of a franchise agreement commitment or a plan to enhance 

operations that has received the blessing of the DfT. 

The operator may hold individual competitions to choose the financier and 

the manufacturer separately or one competition to choose them both together, 

and has generally carried out competitions following the OJEU process – 


LEGAL OPINION 

although the new (2006) Utilities Regulations may not in fact apply to train 

operators at all (Rail Professional, December 2006). 

The operator will then negotiate a manufacture and supply, and possible 

service, arrangement with the manufacturer and maintainer of the trains and 

an operating lease with the financier (or rolling stock leasing company) which 

may also be in a position to claim any remaining capital allowances on the 

trains. 

The DfT is not going about this procurement in the ‘normal’ way. First of 

all, it is procuring the provision of the trains on behalf of the train operators 

– whose identity is likely to have changed during the course of entering into 

these contracts/delivery of the trains – and will presumably expect the train 

operators to enter into the supply contracts at the end of the day. The DfT is 

also going out to the market for joint bids from manufacturers and financiers. 

As already explained, while this means that the DfT should avoid being 

caught in between the manufacturer on the one hand and the financier on 

the other in terms of risk allocation, it also means that the DfT does not have 

the ability to ‘mix and match’ between finance and manufacture to create its 

very own dream team. 

RISK ALLOCATION 

These three parties look to negotiate the carve up between them of key and 

substantial risks such as infrastructure/train interface risk, vehicle and route 

acceptance risk, risk of delay to the train delivery generally and ongoing 

liability for performance, defects and service provision. The lessor will generally 

take no risk other than the perceived residual value risk in the trains 

themselves. In some cases, even that may be mitigated by a residual value 

guarantee given by the manufacturer or a government undertaking to ensure 

continued use of the trains in any new circumstances under section 54 of 

the Railways Act 1993. Other risks, of course, should be allocated to the party 

best placed to manage them – although this is not always easy to agree. 

ostensibly to ensure compatibility between the new fleets and to reduce the 

plethora of vehicle types on the network – and it appears that Network Rail 

has supported this approach. It seems unlikely that the DfT will itself enter 

into the train availability contract with the chosen bidder. 

However, since the DfT has said that it would like the reliability and 

availability contract to last for 30 years, presumably it will be providing 

assurance that operators will use these new trains for at least 30 years. This 

is likely to be provided by way of an undertaking by the secretary of state 

under section 54 of the Railways Act 1993 – although for such a long stated 

period, on/off balance sheet issues will need to be considered carefully. Since 

the train procurement contracts with the train operators will be deemed to 

be key contracts under the train operators’ franchise agreements, then there 

will also be a requirement for the chosen consortium to sign a direct agreement 

with the DfT giving the DfT an option to take a new contract if there is a 

problem with the existing one or the existing franchise is terminated. 

When the DfT comes up for air from amongst the bid submissions for East 

Midlands, West Midlands and the new Cross Country franchises, it will no 

doubt be interested to see what the worldwide rail industry has to offer in 

response to the IEP accreditation questionnaires. European train manufacturers 

have been gearing up for this for a long while and will no doubt be keen for 

the deal – whether the UK Roscos’ appetite is still waning in the face of the 

possible Competition Commission investigation of the UK rolling stock 

leasing market remains to be seen. 

Whatever their views, bearing in mind the amount of interest that has been 

shown to date, and the high stakes, picking a short list is unlikely to be an 

easy task. 

Naomi Horton is part of the rail team at Denton Wilde Sapte LLP. 

TRAIN AVAILABILITY CONCEPTS 

Increasingly since privatisation, trains have been procured on the basis of 

not just a design, manufacture and supply contract, but with inclusion of a 

maintenance contract, usually running for at least the remaining life of the 

current train operator’s franchise. 

The supply and maintenance contracts are then bundled together such 

that the real obligation of the manufacturer/maintainer is an output-based 

obligation to supply trains that meet availability and reliability requirements 

set out in a performance regime on a daily basis. It then pays liquidated 

damages to the operator if the required standards are not met. For the operator 

it has the advantage that if the operator's trains do not run, are late or break 

down – or are dirty, if cleaning is also covered by the arrangements – then 

there is a quick and simple mechanism, in theory at least, to decide whether 

the supplier pays damages. This saves the operator having to work out whether 

the problem was caused by maintenance or manufacture defect and the 

consequent losses suffered. 

The manufacturer/maintainer will be relieved from paying damages for 

matters deemed to be down to the operator, such as vandalism in service or 

improper use, and perhaps damage caused by the infrastructure. In the IEP, 

the DfT has taken this one step further by requiring the manufacturer and 

financier to join up before submitting a bid – all risks in relation to the supply 

of the train can then be parcelled up within the joint venture/consortium. 

Whilst this will no doubt make life easier for the operator and the DfT, bidders 

will have to think carefully about how they package up these risks between 

themselves before they bid – and will need to choose their partners carefully. 

DEPARTMENT FOR TRANSPORT 

So what role is the DfT playing in engineering this programme? From the 

start, the DfT has wanted to have control of this train replacement project – 


31

IRO NEWS 

P O Box 128, Burgess Hill RH15 0UZ • Tel: 01444 248931 

Fax: 01444 246392 email: info@railwayoperators.org 

Website: www.railwayoperators.org 

Running rail – Japanese style 

John Glover, with Mark 

Phillips, Ian Rawlings and 

John Barlass, takes a 

closer look at Japan’s 

railway system 

In Britain, Japanese railways are 

perhaps best known for their 

high-speed Shinkansen 

passenger services on dedicated 

standard gauge lines, but there is 

also a large scale 1,067mm gauge 

conventional network and many 

urban railways. 

This article concerns service 

provision and is based on the 

experiences of a team of rail 

managers from Britain, who visited 

Japan to view its operations first 

hand. 

SHINKANSEN SERVICES 

The first Shinkansen opened 

between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka in 

1964. The routes are specially 

constructed and dedicated solely to 

the operation of such services. 

JR Central operates two types of 

rolling stock for Shinkansen 

services, both are relatively new 

fleets of 16-car formation. The 61 

Series 300 trains were introduced 

from 1992 and the 60 Series 700 

from 1998. Trains operate at a 

maximum speed of 268kph 

(167mph). 

Three types of service are 

operated by JRC on the Tokaido 

Shinkansen: Nozomi (Hope), Hikari 

(Flash of Light) and Kodama (Echo). 

These have different stopping 

patterns, with Nozomi being the 

fastest, linking the three main cities 

on the line with the Tokyo 

Metropolitan area. Hikari and 

Kodama provide limited-stop and allstations 

services respectively. Three 

hundred trains a day are scheduled, 

with no significant difference in the 

service pattern between weekdays 

and weekends. 

On average, a train leaves Tokyo 

for Shin-Osaka, or beyond, every six 

minutes. Trains operated on the 

Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen are 

provided by both JR Central and JR 

West, with crews changing at the 

boundary. There are no charging 

regimes between the two 

organisations for this method of 

operation. 

LOCAL TRAIN SERVICES, 

NAGOYA 

Conventional services around 

Nagoya are similar to the urban and 

suburban services around many 

British cities. A mixture of DMUs 

and EMUs are used. 

The maximum operating speed 

on the conventional network is 

130kph. This limit, approximately 

81mph, has been imposed as trains 

are required to be able to stop, from 

line speed, in no more than 600 

metres. This is a response to the 

significant proliferation of level 

crossings on these routes. The two 

exceptions are both on routes with 

A 300 Series Shinkansen train at Tokyo. 

no level crossings and include the 

Honshu-Hokkaido tunnel. 

Standards of passenger comfort 

are generally good and are excellent 

on rolling stock, such as the series 

85 DMU, used for longer distance 

interurban services. The on-board 

environment and quality of ride are 

exceptional for a mid-life vehicle. 

On the more rural parts of the 

network, diesel units are operated 

as single cars at off-peak, but in 

multiple during the busier times of 

the day. 

Sitting immediately behind the 

driver, it was possible to witness the 

application of ‘Shisa Shoko’, 

whereby the driver would point to 

emphasise his understanding of 

every trackside or in-cab indication. 

This included pointing at 

trackside workers to demonstrate 

that he had seen them. 

Of particular note was the private 

railway, which also operates between 

the towns of Minu Ota and Tajimi. 

This was electrified double track 

and the operator has the potential 

to offer a faster and more reliable 

service. In the run-up to JNR 

privatisation, such operators were 

able to undercut fares, thereby 

further undermining ridership. 

Since privatisation, the former 

national railway companies have 

won back a portion of lost business. 

TRAIN CLEANLINESS 

Train interiors are relatively simple, 

with no signs of wear and tear. 

Levels of cleanliness are 

outstanding, but there are significant 

reasons. 

Firstly the Japanese are a very 

clean and tidy nation; there is very 

little litter anywhere and no graffiti. 

There are also armies of cleaning 

staff at each terminus. 

For the Shinkansen, two cleaners 

board each carriage at Tokyo – 32 

for a whole train – following 

passenger disembarkation. 

PASSENGER INFORMATION 

The quality and provision of 

passenger information varies 

widely. The Shinkansen has one of 

the best, but some of the others are 

IRO ANNOUNCES THE FIFTH SERIES OF EDUCATIONAL COURSES 

The Institution of Railway Operators is now taking applications for its fifth series of 

educational courses, which start on 13 October.The deadline for completed 

applications and the course fee for the diploma and degree courses is 27 July.Tony 

Cousins, the institution’s education manager said: ‘Demand for the courses is high and 

you are advised to start the application process now.You must be a member of the 

institution and need a membership number for your application to be progressed. If 

you are not a member you need to apply now.’ Full details of how to become a 

member of the IRO and details of courses can be found on www.railwayoperators.org. 


IRO NEWS 

DIARY OF EVENTS 

SCOTTISH AND IRISH AREA 

Tuesday 11 September: Talk by 

Duncan Sooman, territory 

engineer (civils) Network Rail 

Scotland – The 2030 Railway: A 

Scotland Perspective. Network 

Rail Boardroom, Buchanan 

House, Glasgow, 17:15 for 17:30 

start. 

This is the event originally 

scheduled for 20 March. For 

information on Scottish Area 

events please contact Chris 

Owen on 01506 854537or email 

scottish@railwayoperators.org 

SOUTH EAST AREA 

Monday 21 May:Len Porter, chief 

executive of Rail Safety and 

Standards Board will be speaking 

Monday 9 July: TBA 

Monday 10 September: Andy 

Barr, London Underground, will 

be speaking about major asset 

recovery following a serious 

incident. 

Monday 12 November: High 

Speed 1 – speakers TBA 

All South East Area meetings 

take place at the Union Jack Club, 

Sandell Street, opposite Waterloo 

East Station. 

Doors open at 18:00 for an 18:30 

start. For information on South 

East Area events please contact 

southeast@railwayoperators.org 

SOUTH WEST AREA 

For information on all South 

West events and matters, contact 

Lawrie Hall on 01453 822150 or 

emailsouthwest@ 

railwayoperators.org 

NORTH EAST AREA 

Wednesday 9 May: Visit to the 

Network Rail Training Centre in 

Leeds. The subject of the talk will 

be the Selection and Training of 

Signallers. This will be followed by 

an opportunity to have some 

‘hands-on’ experience on the 

simulators used to train 

signallers, including the lever 

frame and NX panel. 

The event will commence at 17:00 

for 17:15 at the Network Rail 

Training Centre, City Exchange, 

5th Floor, 11 Albion Street, Leeds, 

LS1 5ES. 

Refreshments will be provided. 

For further news on the IRO in 

the North East please contact: 

northeast@railwayoperators.org 

NORTH WEST AREA 

Saturday 2 June: Annual North 

West Area Family Day visit to the 

East Lancashire Railway. All 

members, their partners and 

children are welcome. 

Precise details of the day’s 

timetable, refreshment 

arrangements and costs will be 

advised nearer the time, but in the 

meantime would members who 

are interested please reply to Clive 

Evans by Monday 2 April, 

detailing numbers in their family 

party. 

Please contact northwest@ 

railwayoperators.org. 

MIDLANDS AREA 

Monday 21 May: Kings 

Heath depot visit in 

Northampton. 

To contact the Midlands Area, 

please call Julia Stanyard on 

0121 345 5030 or email 

midlands@railwayoperators.org 

YOUNG PROFESSIONALS 

Thursday 3 May: Informal 

networking at Euston Flyer, 

between St Pancras and Euston 

(see map on website for 

location). Starting from 17:30 

onwards. 

Monday 21 May: Len Porter, 

chief executive of the Rail Safety 

and Standards Board will be 

giving a talk on how safety 

legislation impacts on our 

industry, evolving group 

standards and their effect on the 

operational railway. 

Union Jack Club, London, 

opposite Waterloo East Station. 

18:00 for 18:30. 

Please go to www.iroyoung 

professionals.org.uk/events to 

register for this event. 

Thursday 7-Saturday 9 June: 

There will be a visit to Siemens 

train building factory in 

Germany. 

Numbers are limited – please 

book early for this. 

Contact www.iroyoung 

professionals.org.uk/events 

Please register for all events at 

www.iroyoungprofessionals.org. 

uk/events. We welcome any 

feedback or enquiries. 

Contact us at comms@iroyoung 

professionals.org.uk or check our 

website at www.iroyoung 

professionals.org.uk 

also excellent. Active in-car maps on 

the Yamanote Line around Tokyo 

are truly world class. LCD screens 

show the line map with the train’s 

current location and journey time to 

stations en-route, both in Japanese 

and English. 

Also shown are details of 

interchanges at the next station and 

the location of platform facilities. 

This equipment can also be 

dynamically updated with details of 

any service disruptions. 

The existing passenger 

information displays in the saloons 

have been upgraded to provide 

news headlines for travellers. 

BUSINESS RESULTS 

JRC is an extremely successful 

business that has benefited from a 

substantial growth in patronage on 

the Shinkansen lines post 

privatisation. This has enabled it to 

hold fare increases for the last 18 

years, though this is in an economy 

in which inflation is currently zero 

per cent. 

This has made the railway very 

competitive with other modes, 

particularly air. Profit for the fiscal 

year ending 31 March 2006 totalled 

¥1bn (£4.5m). Positive relationships 

with staff have dramatically 

improved profitability. Front-line 

employees have reduced by 5,000 

since 1988, and passenger 

kilometres per employee grew from 

2,131 in 1988 to 3,774 in 2006. 

Mark Phillips is the operations and 

planning director at One; Ian 

Rawlings is operations engineer SSR 

at London Underground; and John 

Barlass is fleet and engineering 

director at Central Trains. 

MEMBERS’ NEWS 

The following employers operate a corporate membership scheme, by 

paying a one-off annual fee that covers all their employees’ affiliate or 

associate membership subscriptions: 

Network Rail ● Eurostar UK Ltd ● First ScotRail ● First Great Western 

● One ● Railnews ● Iarnród Éireann (Irish Rail) ● EWS Railway ● 

Northern Ireland Railways ● Central Trains ● Virgin West Coast ● 

Virgin Cross Country ● First Transpennine Express ● Southern ● Corus 

Rail Consultancy ● London Underground Ltd ● Docklands Light 

Railway ● Transport for London ● Stagecoach Rail ● South West Trains 

● Sheffield Supertram ● Arriva Trains Wales ● Southeastern Railway ● 

Island Line ● London Lines ● Silverlink Trains ● c2c Rail ● Gatwick 

Express ● RWA Rail ● Midland Mainline. 

Those with full membership will continue to pay their subscription 

personally, irrespective of whether they can subsequently claim it back. 

Please note that, as the IRO’s subscriptions are tax-deductible, a receipt 

will be issued for all payments – whether by cheque, standing order or 

internet payment. 

If your company would like to explore the benefits of corporate 

membership of the institution, please contact us.We welcome 

applications from all industry companies, suppliers and associations – 

please contact Chris Daughton: on 01444 248931 or 

admin@railwayoperators.org 


33

BUSINESS NEWS 

By business editor Chris Randall 

Virgin offers old rival GNER a 

second chance on East Coast 

A deal that could see GNER 

retain a stake in the East Coast 

Main Line will boost the 

chances of its long-term rival, 

Virgin, winning the prestigious 

franchise, a leading figure at Sir 

Richard Branson’s company is 

claiming. 

Branson announced last 

December that Virgin had 

teamed up with the transport 

group Stagecoach to launch a 

joint bid to run train services 

on the East Coast network from 

London to north-east England 

and Scotland, after GNER was 

forced to hand the franchise 

back when it ran into serious 

financial problems. 

Now Virgin-Stagecoach has 

unveiled plans for GNER to 

take a 10 per cent stake in the 

franchise if the joint bid is 

successful. 

Will Whitehorn, a senior 

director at Virgin and a driving 

force behind the company’s 

entry into the passenger rail 

business in the mid 1990s, told 

Rail Professional that GNER’s 

knowledge of running the East 

Coast franchise had prompted 

the deal. 

‘When you’ve been running a 

railway for 11 years it would be 

a shame not to make use of that 

expertise,’ he said. 

Whitehorn said GNER’s 

management team led by 

Jonathan Metcalfe had the 

‘know-how of running the 

railway.’ Describing the East 

Coast network as ‘one of the 

most important railways in 

Europe’, he added: ‘Our own 

experience of running the West 

Coast Main Line during the 

period of its modernisation will 

be vital on a route that will also 

need upgrading to cope with 

anticipated growth. 

‘We believe we now have the 


If Virgin wins the Franchise, it will have to decide whether to keep the East Coast 

trains a familiar blue, or paint them red… 

right mix of talent to put in 

another very strong bid.’ 

Virgin made an unsuccessful 

bid for the East Coast in 2005, 

losing out to GNER, which 

secured a 10-year deal in return 

for agreeing to pay the 

Government £1.3bn in 

premium payments. 

Insiders said GNER’s bid was 

at least £300m more than its 

nearest rival. 

However, the operator’s 

revenue projections proved 

wildly optimistic after it was hit 

by a decline in travel in the 

wake of the London bombings 

in July 2005, and a big rise in 

the cost of electricity to power 

its train fleet. 

It was further undermined by a 

financial crisis at its parent 

company Sea Containers. 

Attempts to renegotiate the 

franchise with the Department for 

Transport failed and the company 

Timeline 

GNER’s potential 10 per cent stake in 

a Virgin-Stagecoach East Coast 

franchise heralds a turnaround in the 

previously hostile relationship 

between Sir Richard Branson’s 

company and the Sea Containersowned 

train operator. 

In 2001 Virgin looked to be on the 

brink of snatching the East Coast 

network from GNER, with a proposal 

to bring in 220mph trains on an 

upgraded route with 120 miles of 

new track. 

‘I think we have come up with a 

radical approach, and the enormous 

investment, that is needed for the 

East Coast, because capacity is 

almost at an end,’ Branson said at 

the time. However, plans to re-let the 

flagship franchise were dropped after 

a furious row between the Strategic 

Rail Authority and Railtrack over 

funding. 

has been running the network on 

a management contract since the 

end of last year. 

The tie-up with Virgin- 

Stagecoach could see a 

continuation of the GNER 

brand. A spokesman for Yorkbased 

GNER said: ‘We have 

spent 11 years building a very 

good railway. The GNER brand 

is well known and well 

regarded. 

He added that, since handing 

back the franchise, GNER has 

carried record numbers of 

passengers and has seen an 

increase in revenues. 

The other shortlisted bidders 

for the franchise are National 

Express, Arriva and FirstGroup. 

The deadline for bids is 6 

June, with a winner expected to 

be named in the autumn. The 

new franchise could be 

operating by the end of the 

year. 


BUSINESS NEWS 

TRAVEL PERKS ROW THREATENS 

EUROTUNNEL RESTRUCTURING 

A group of angry shareholders in 

Eurotunnel are threatening to 

torpedo the debt-ridden 

company’s planned restructuring 

programme in a bitter row over 

travel perks. 

The Anglo-French tunnel 

operator must win approval later 

this month from at least 60 per 

cent of its 650,000 shareholders 

for a deal that will see its £6.2bn 

debt mountain cut to £2.8bn. 

But 4,000 foundation 

shareholders are threatening court 

action to prevent the restructuring 

taking place, after learning that a 

concession allowing them 

unlimited travel on Eurotunnel 

trains for just £1 a journey has 

been scrapped. 

Eurotunnel says it has been 

forced to withdraw the concession 

because of a ruling by the AMF, 

France’s equivalent of the UK’s 

Financial Services Authority, that 

all shareholders must enjoy the 

Network Rail has selected the 

London-based property developer 

British Land as its preferred 

partner to develop Euston station. 

The deal, thought to be worth 

about £1bn, is part of Network 

Rail’s 10-year, £4bn investment 

programme to modernise 

hundreds of stations across the 

country. 

Network Rail deputy chief 

executive Iain Coucher described 

the partnership with British Land 

as a ‘once-in-a-generation 

opportunity to transform a 

landmark station’. 

Euston, which occupies a 15 

acre site, has remained largely 

untouched since the late 1960s. 

Over 55m passengers a year use 

the station and the number is 

predicted to rise significantly in 

the next decade. 

‘The proposals we are drawing 

same rights. In future, all 

Eurotunnel shareholders will get a 

30 per cent discount on just three 

return crossings. 

The disgruntled group of 

original shareholders have set up 

an action group, Etag, to fight the 

ruling. A statement on the group’s 

website said: ‘At the 11th hour, 

Eurotunnel has disclosed, in an 

underhand way, that it intends 

abolishing the foundation 

shareholders’ travel rights. These 

rights are contractual 

arrangements that are legally 

protected. 

‘All attempts to persuade 

Eurotunnel that it cannot ignore 

UK law, and that it needs to take 

this mainly British group seriously, 

have failed. The gloves are now off.’ 

Etag said it was confident of 

obtaining a high court injunction 

preventing the creation of a new 

French-registered holding 

company set up to absorb 

up with British Land will increase 

capacity on the concourse and 

reduce congestion,’ a Network Rail 

spokesman told Rail Professional. 

British Land’s role will be to 

develop retail, office and 

residential sites, with Network Rail 

taking a share of the income. ‘We 

are not attempting to be a 

property developer in the way that 

Railtrack did,’ added the 

spokesman. ‘Our expertise is in 

railway engineering.’ 

Network Rail said revenue from 

the development of the site could 

be used to fund future expansion, 

including new platforms. 

Eurotunnel. A Eurotunnel 

spokesman denied the company 

had broken a promise to protect 

the concession. 

‘The important thing is that the 

restructuring plan will secure the 

future of the company and offers 

shareholders a fantastic deal,’ he 

said. Asked whether the legal 

action planned by the rebel 

shareholders could force 

Eurotunnel into bankruptcy, he 

added: ‘These are 4,000 

shareholders out of a total of 

650,000.’ 

•Eurotunnel posted a nine per 

cent drop in first-quarter revenues 

last month, but said revenues from 

its shuttle business rose 10 per 

cent. 

Total revenues were £118.5m 

compared to £129m for the same 

period the previous year, reflecting 

the dropping of the minimum 

usage charge imposed on rail 

companies using the tunnel. 

Euston development partner is named 

Timeline 

The last major redevelopment of 

Euston station in the 1960s caused a 

public outcry, when the famous Euston 

Arch was demolished. 

A new station building – considered 

by many to be the ugliest station in 

London – opened in 1968 to coincide 

with the electrification of the West 

Coast Main Line.Today’s Euston 

includes Network Rail’s headquarters 

building, in Melton Street.The only 

reminders of the old station building 

are two Portland stone entrance lodges 

and a war memorial on Euston Road. 

The redevelopment of Euston 

and a similar project at London 

Victoria is not expected to begin 

before 2012. ‘There will be plenty 

of building work taking place in 

the run-up to the Olympics 

without us adding to it,’ the 

Network Rail spokesman said. 

Roscos anger at 

ORR over train 

leasing row 

Britain’s three main rolling stock 

leasing companies (Roscos) have hit 

out at the Office of Rail Regulation 

ahead of the likely decision to refer 

them to the Competition 

Commission. 

An investigation into the charges 

made for leasing old carriages was 

carried out last year by the ORR, 

after the Government complained 

that the Roscos were making 

excessive profits.The ORR concluded 

last November that there was a case 

to answer but launched a three 

month consultation before making a 

final decision. 

Responses published on the ORR 

website last month show just how 

divided the rail industry is about 

train leasing, with the Roscos – 

Angel Trains, Porterbrook and HSBC 

Rail – scathing in their criticism of 

the ORR. 

In a biting response,Angel Trains 

questioned the need for the 

involvement of the Competition 

Commission and added:‘If… ORR 

decides to proceed to a reference 

Angel Trains will expect to see ORR’s 

full reasons for its decision.A 

decision with consequences of this 

magnitude requires the fullest 

possible written explanation.’ 

In its response, Porterbrook 

accused the ORR of having no 

credible evidence to prove that the 

Roscos were making excess profits. 

‘Profitability calculations carried 

out by the Department for 

Transport, which have been 

accepted without detailed scrutiny 

by the ORR, are so seriously flawed 

as to have no evidentiary value,’ it 

said. 

However, the largest rail union, 

the RMT, said it would welcome an 

investigation by the Competition 

Commission. 

The ORR was due to announce its 

decision as Rail Professional went to 

press. 

June’s Rail Professional will contain 

full coverage of the outcome. 


35

COMMENT 

SEAT BELTS: NO WAY 

Mike Crowhurst responds to two viewpoints 

expressed in April’s Rail Professional, concerning 

safety in the wake of Lambrigg – one of which 

suggested seat belts for passengers and the other 

airline-style overhead lockers for luggage 

Ian Hammond’s article and Ian 

Turnbull’s letter in April’s 

issue call for a response from 

the passenger viewpoint. 

Both focus on the issue of safe 

stowage of luggage, especially in 

overhead racks. Turnbull’s 

suggestion of latched, not locked, 

lockers seems an eminently 

sensible one. Do remember, 

however, that aircraft have 

stewards who are specifically 

tasked with ensuring that all 

luggage is safely stowed before 

take off. 

Trains do not have anything like 

the same level of staff. Having said 

that, the stupidity of a minority of 

rail passengers when it comes to 

stowing luggage is quite mindboggling 

at times. 

Some rolling stock design also 

contributes to the problem. 

Luggage space on Virgin Voyagers 

is notoriously inadequate, and 

they’re used on a route that carries 

more than its share of leisure 

business – with baggage 

requirements to match. 

The overhead racks on these 

trains are barely adequate for 

handbags, let alone my soft sports 

bag which fits easily into the 

overhead space of every other 

train – or plane – I have ever used. 

But when it comes to seat belts, 

I’m afraid I have to disagree. 

Firstly, remember that air 

passengers are only required to 

use their seat belt during take off 

and landing, or when the captain 

anticipates turbulence. What is the 

equivalent on a train? Yes, belts 

could be provided, but how many 

would bother to use then? Would 

the driver in a situation like 

Lambrigg or Ufton Nervet have 

had time to turn on a ‘seatbelts ‘ 

sign or make an announcement? 

Hardly. And if compulsion is 

proposed, who is going to enforce 

it? 

The prospect of the crew of an 

intercity train patrolling eight or 10 

coaches trying to suppress the 

steady stream of buffet and toilet 

traffic, not to mention restless 

children, hardly bears thinking 

about. It would require at least one 

crew member per coach for a start. 

Cars and aircraft are required to 

use seat belts because they are 

inherently less safe modes of 

transport. Oddly, coaches, but not 

buses – except on school runs – 

are also required to use them. But 

on none of these modes are 

standing passengers carried, 

except buses – and then only 

rarely. 

If seat belts were to be 

obligatory on rail, standing 

passengers could never be carried 

and pre-booking for all rail 

journeys – as for Eurostar or TGVs 

– would be inevitable. Has 

Hammond thought through the 

implications? 

Can you imagine the fisticuffs 

for the last seats on the 8.15 to 

Waterloo, or the delays while 

unseated passengers are 

‘persuaded’ to alight? A huge 

increase in British Transport Police 

strength is indicated. 

No, the solution to unsafe 

overcrowding is not seatbelts and 

strong arm tactics, it is more trains! 

Passengers do not choose to stand 

in cattle-truck conditions – they 

are given no option. The widely 

publicised overcrowding on First 

Great Western services recently 

was caused by a combination of 

government mishandling of the 

franchise and operator’s cost 

saving to meet DfT diktat. 

My own experience on Virgin 

Cross Country, between Leeds 

and Birmingham during restricted 

service last autumn, is another 

example. The normal two trains 

per hour on the York and northeast 

corridor were replaced by a 

single train per hour, due to a 

shortage of paths on the diversion 

route via Leicester. 

Fine, but this resulted in two 

trainloads packing into each train 

with totally predictable chronic 

overcrowding, entirely due to 

Virgin’s failure to use the stock 

available to double the capacity. 

Despite complaints, no 

explanation for this failure was 

ever forthcoming. After having 

twice endured standing for over 

two hours, I took to travelling via 

Manchester for the duration. 

Heaven help anyone trying to 

enforce a ‘no-standing’ rule in this 

situation without riot police to 

hand. 

If demand for flights increases, 

more aircraft are put on – and the 

industry demands, and usually 

gets, more airport capacity. If 

demand for road space increases, 

the vociferous road lobby 

demands more motorway 

widening – and usually gets it. 

But for some reason predictand-provide 

never applies to rail. 

The present shambolic structure 

of the industry seems incapable of 

responding to increased demand 

and resorts to trying to price-off 

the problem, while passengers are 

left to put up with intolerable 

conditions as highlighted by 

Transport 2000’s Sardine Man 

campaign – and Hammond 

complains that trains are unsafe. 

Forcing people off rail onto 

road or air, by pricing or 

otherwise, is not going to make us 

safer. Meanwhile, the 

Government drags its feet on rail 

infrastructure projects like 

Crossrail, demands ever more 

studies and pulls the plug 

altogether on essential light rail 

schemes in cities. This is no way 

to run the country’s transport 

system. 

But there is a more insidious 

aspect to this. We have already 

learnt that there are those in the 

DfT who would like to see an allpre-book 

railway system on the 

airline model. This would, of 

course, suit operators and the 

Government just fine, as the size 

of demand – and subsidy – would 

become predictable and 

controllable. 

But it would be the end of the 

railway as a walk-on transport 

system. In short, it would suit 

everyone except passengers. And 

any prospect of rail taking more 

of the pressure off road and air 

would vanish. Banning standing 

and requiring seat belts in the 

name of safety would play into 

the hands of these people. 

As so often with the insurance 

industry and safety lobby, a 

myopic concentration on risk 

reduction in one area in isolation 

produces mistaken priorities and 

increased risk elsewhere. 

Obviously, no passengers want an 

unsafe railway, but a realistic 

overview is needed of all forms of 

transport. 

No, Hammond, if you are 

worried about standing 

passengers and overcrowding, 

persuade the Government and 

the City to fund more trains and 

more rail infrastructure, and 

concentrate on making less safe 

modes, such as roads, safer 

instead. 

Mike Crowhurst is the chairman of 

Railfuture. 


PEOPLE 

PEOPLE ROUND-UP 

CARILLION DIRECTOR IS TO 

CHAIR ENGINEERING BODY 

Peter Samuel, 56, has been elected 

chairman of the Civil Engineering 

Contractors Association (CECA) 

North East region. 

Samuel, regional director for 

Carillion Regional Civil Engineering 

in the North, has over 30 years’ 

experience of management and 

technical roles. He was vice 

chairman of CECA for two years. 

Samuel said:‘These are exciting 

times for CECA and it’s an honour 

to be a part of an organisation that 

aims to highlight and promote the 

positive contribution of civil 

engineering contractors.’ 

HUXLEY JOINS THE CLUB 

TT Club, the specialist transport 

insurance provider, appointed 

Andrew Huxley as regional sales 

director – a new position – which 

sees him taking responsibility for 

developing business within Europe, 

the Middle East and Africa. 

Huxley has 24 years experience 

with major broking houses in 

London and abroad. 

FTA ANNOUNCES NEW 

PRESIDENT 

Following a year as vice president, 

Andy Haines, head of logistics at 

Tate & Lyle Sugars Europe, is the 

new president of the Freight 

Transport Association. 

Haines, who joined Tate & Lyle in 

1979, has always worked on supply 

chains. His association with FTA 

began in the early 1990s in northwest 

England. He is 49 years old. 

Five new members have also 

joined the board, including Eddie 

Fitzsimons from Freightliner. 

THOMPSON REPRESENTS 

RAIL ON PENSIONS FORUM 

Meagan Thompson, the corporate 

governance counsel at Railpen 

Investments, has been appointed to 

the board of directors of the UK 

Social Investment Forum, a network 

for socially responsible investment. 

Railpen manages the Railways 

Pension Scheme. 

GARNETT JOINS TFL BOARD 

Ex-GNER chief executive 

Christopher Garnett is to join the 

board at Transport for London. 

Garnett, who lives in Putney, 

stepped down from the East Coast 

franchise-holder last August, 

following an unsuccessful legal 

challenge to open access operators 

on its routes. 

He is also a member of the 

Board of the Olympic Delivery 

Authority and so brings a wealth of 

experience of managing large and 

complex organisations in the 

transport field to his TfL position. 

Joining him on the board is Dr 

Rana Roy FCILT, an international 

consulting economist based in 

central London. He has researched, 

published and advised extensively 

The National Express Group 

has taken on Frazer Smith as its 

group sales and marketing 

director. 

Smith joins the company 

from Capital One, the financial 

services company, where he was 

senior vice president of 

diversified businesses. 

He career has been varied, 

with companies such as Royal 

Bank of Scotland, United 

Biscuits, Reckitt & Colman, 

Lawton to power 

European sales 

John Lawton, 

48, has been 

appointed 

European 

marketing 

director of industrial battery 

manufacturer Enersys Motive 

Power. 

Lawton, who has been with the 

company for 18 years, said: ‘It’s a 

very exciting time for the 

industry. We’re moving towards 

ever quicker and smarter 

solutions which will assist 

industry to make significant 

energy cost savings and reduce 

power consumption.’ 

on the reform of transport taxation, 

pricing and investment and is 

currently acting as chief technical 

adviser in economics to the Rail 

Safety and Standards Board 

research programme on 

sustainable development. 

Two advisors to the board have 

also been appointed. Peter 

Anderson is the managing director 

of finance at Canary Wharf Group, 

while Shiria Khatun is a councillor 

in the East India and Lansbury 

ward of Tower Hamlets. 

Mayor of London Ken 

Livingstone said: ‘It is vital that the 

board and its advisors reflect a 

wide range of knowledge and 

experience and I am delighted in 

these appointments.’ 

Frazer Smith 

BRITS JOIN EUROPEAN 

FREIGHT LOBBY 

The European Association for the 

liberalisation of rail freight (ERFA) has 

elected a new board. Luca Ronzoni, of 

Nord Cargo, remains president, with 

Martin Henke, of VDV, becoming VP. 

Tony Berkeley, of Britain’s Rail 

Freight Group, has become a director, 

as has Freightliner’s Konstantin Skorik 

and EWS’s Graham Smith. 

The other directors are Bernhard 

Kunz , Jeroen Le Jeune, Denis Paillat, 

Markus Vaerst Martin Vosta. 

Monika Heiming, secretary general 

of ERFA said:‘The great interest from 

many other market players in joining 

ERFA is a strong sign that they believe 

in the future of the independent and 

private rail freight operators.’ 

NEW NEG MARKETING DIRECTOR ANNOUNCED 

Dawson takes 

over sales at 

Midland Mainline 

Midland Mainline has appointed 

Rachel Dawson as sales and 

marketing director. 

Dawson, 39, was previously 

working at Travelodge, the the 

budget hotel chain, where she 

was head of marketing. Before 

that she spent six years at 

EasyJet. 

She will be responsible for sales, 

marketing, communications and 

revenue management, heading up a 

team of 16 staff at the company’s 

HQ in Derby. 

‘As current holder of the 

Passenger Operator of the Year 

McKinsey and Sony on his CV. 

Group chief executive 

Richard Bowker said: ‘I’m 

delighted we have attracted such 

a high calibre individual to join 

the senior team at National 

Express Group. 

‘Frazer brings skills and 

experience that will be 

invaluable in transforming 

National Express Group into a 

leading retailer of travel and 

transport services.’ 

Rachel 

Dawson 

Award, we certainly have a lot to 

shout about,’ said Dawson. ‘And a 

continued focus on promoting 

Midland Mainline will put us in a 

great position to support our 

parent company, National Express 

Group, in its bid to win the new 

East Midlands franchise.’ 


37

PEOPLE 

RAILWAYMAN SAYS 

GOODBYE AFTER 

49 YEARS ON JOB 

GNER has said a 

fond farewell to 

one of its longestserving 

members 

of staff. 

Len Abram, 

64, is retiring 

Abram sees 

after 49 years’ off his last train. 

service on the 

railway in north-east England – 

much of it at Darlington station. 

Friends, colleagues and passengers 

burst into a spontaneous round of 

applause as Abram waved off his final 

train departure at Darlington station. 

‘I’m touched by the reaction of 

staff and passengers to my own 

departure,’ said the railwayman.‘I’ve 

made many friends here over the 

years and I’ll miss them all.’ 

He started his railway career as a 

message lad on Darlington station in 

1957 – in the days of steam. 

LYONS JOINS INTERFLEET 

Rail technology consultancy 

Interfleet has appointed Adrian 

Lyons CBE, the former director 

general of The Railway Forum, as 

strategic advisor. Prior to heading 

up the Railway Forum, Lyons held 

several high profile logistics roles in 

the MOD. 

Managing director David Rollin 

said: ‘Interfleet is delighted that 

Adrian has come onboard as 

strategic advisor. His remit is to 

help develop our business 

consulting offering, while auditing 

where we are now.’ 

Adrian Lyons 

Ian Mylroi 

Meanwhile, Ian Mylroi has 

returned to Interfleet as a member 

of the Business Consulting team at 

its Derby office. Mylroi worked for 

Interfleet in London, but left to take 

on the role of engineering director 

at ScotRail. 

FORMER SRA CHIEF EXECUTIVE GOES TO MVA 

MVA Consultancy is to take on ex- 

Strategic Rail Authority chief 

executive Nick Newton as director 

of rail strategy and development. 

Newton has a history of leading 

policy development and 

implementation in complex 

commercial fields. 

Chief executive Nigel Ash said: 

‘Nick has a fine commercial mind 

and will be invaluable to us, given 

his previous positions at the 

Strategic Rail Authority, 

Southeastern Trains, the Office of 

Passenger Rail Franchising and 

London Transport.’ 

NEW STAFF WILL WEED 

OUT VEGETATION 

PROBLEMS IN SOUTH OF 

ENGLAND 

Thurlow Countryside 

Management, which manages 

invasive weeds, has taken on 

three new members of staff. 

Mark Prout, 32, is to be 

south-west business manager, 

having previously worked as 

projects manager for the West 

Country Rivers Trust. 

Sarah Wakefield, 26, is the 

new south-east business 

manager. A geography and 

environmental science graduate, 

she previously worked in the 

contaminated-land department 

of the Scott Wilson office in 

Kent. 

Since joining TCM,Wakefield 

has set up a new Kent office. 

New financial director 

Richard Freeman, 41, is a 

chartered accountant. 


APERIO 

ATKINS 

SCHEIDT & BACHMANN 

Much of the railway 

network is linked 

with the beauty of 

the countryside, 

rubbing shoulders 

with nature for 

hundreds of miles. 

Maintenance of 

the railway in rural 

areas, therefore, requires care to safeguard the welfare of local 

wildlife. Badgers, for instance, are sometimes attracted to 

railway embankments to make their setts, which usually 

consist of a network of tunnels with multiple entrance holes. In 

some cases, they may require infilling to maintain the 

embankment, after careful environmental management to 

relocate any badgers still using the sett. Of course, wherever 

there are hidden problems underground, Ground Penetrating 

Radar (GPR) can usually help out. Survey specialist Aperio has 

been contracted to provide GPR for a Network Rail project in 

the West Country to stabilise embankments affected by badger 

excavations. 

Pinhoe, on the London Waterloo-to-Exeter line, was one of 

the first sites to be tackled, as well as sites at Cowley Bridge, 

Cutnall Green and Munsley.The contracts were scheduled to 

take place between July and November, when the badgers are 

not breeding and it is still warm enough for younger and older 

badgers to move on. 

Badgers were present at Pinhoe, so the first task was to 

resite them.Vegetation was taken down to ground level and 

the area was netted by the project contractor, Dean & Dyball. 

A one-way gate was then installed by the environmental 

consultant,ADAS, at the entrance to the sett allowing badgers 

to leave but not return. Engineering work could then begin. 

● www.aperio.co.uk 

Atkins officially 

opened its Vauxhall 

Training Centre on 

23 March, when it 

held an open day at 

the new facility. 

Music producer 

and rail enthusiast 

Pete Waterman 

was accompanied 

by Atkins CEO Keith Clarke in opening the new centre, which 

has four large purpose designed classrooms, all fitted with 

ceiling-mounted projectors. 

Those who attended the open day were able to learn more 

about Atkins’ wide range of course options, discuss training needs 

and bespoke programmes, have a guided tour of the site and take 

part in a Q&A session with a panel of experienced trainers. 

Julie Hirons, training manager, said: ‘The open day was a 

great chance to listen to our customers’ needs and priorities, 

and to make sure all our clients knew about our wide course 

range. Our feedback from the day shows quality, location and 

course range are top priorities when choosing a training 

provider, all of which we count as our best strengths.’ 

The company’s Network Rail training at Vauxhall is 

extensive and includes all core competencies, specialist 

courses and now track induction and core planner courses. 

London Underground training is also offered, as well as tailor 

made courses within the health and safety sector, including 

the Safety Passport programme. 

Atkins CEO Keith Clarke says:‘Good training and sound 

technical skills are vital to safe working, but no less than 

empowering everybody to act responsibly and stop when in 

doubt.A safe culture is one when all are respected.’ 

● www.atkinsglobal.com 

Scheidt & Bachmann GmbH has recently installed its 1,000th 

ticket vending machine (TVM) on the national rail network – 

at Bridge of Allan station, for First ScotRail.To commemorate 

this landmark achievement, Scheidt & Bachmann and First 

ScotRail jointly organised a 1,000th TVM event at Bridge of 

Allan station, on 26 March 2007. Representatives from both 

companies were present to celebrate the occasion. 

First ScotRail was Scheidt & Bachmann’s first customer in 

the UK, purchasing 25 TVMs in 2003. Subsequently, the fleet 

size has grown to over 75 TVMs through funding from both 

First ScotRail and Transport Scotland.The installed fleet has 

been modified, as additional functionalities, such as chip and 

pin, have become available. By April 2007 First ScotRail will 

have 115 Scheidt & Bachmann TVMs across Scotland. 

On 1 March 2007 Scheidt & Bachmann opened a northern 

service centre, employing three local engineers, to help provide 

the service requirements for the First ScotRail region. 

Steve Montgomery, of First ScotRail, said:‘The provision of 

ticket vending machines at stations is proving very popular 

with customers who are able to make quick and convenient 

ticket purchases prior to travelling.We are committed to 

enhancing facilities at stations across Scotland and will 

continue to invest in raising the quality of service we are 

providing for the benefit of our customers.’ 

● www.scheidt-bachmann.com 



SIEMENS 

Leading supplier of control and asset management solutions 

Transmitton, now part of Siemens Transportation Systems 

(STS) Infrastructure Rail Communications group, has won a 

contract alongside STS’s Infrastructure Electrification group to 

provide new equipment for Network Rail’s infrastructure, 

which allows a fully integrated SCADA approach into the 

switchgear. 

The 25kV National Oil switchgear replacement project will 

end in 2008. 

As a result of various electrification equipment renewals 

across the network, SCADA systems must be modified to 

accept newer variants of switchgear. 

There are two types of oil switchgear to be renewed under 

this scheme – Switchgear & Cowan type K11, and ASEA.While 

the overall renewal programme consists of around 290 circuit 

breakers, this scheme addresses 24 sites, which are due for 

replacement. 

Out of 24 sites,Transmitton will undertake work associated 

with 21. Nineteen sites are connected to the Romford 

electrical control room and two are connected to the existing 

Transmitton control system at Cathcart. 

Fastflex provides a common approach for future 

switchgear renewal schemes (with respect to the SCADA 

design) by using a single fibre cable loop that connects key 

items of substation SCADA equipment in a distributed 

arrangement. Using fastflex’s distributed capacity, modules 

can be installed within each piece of switchgear, so reducing 

cabling and providing cost benefits to the overall SCADA 

solution. 

Transmitton account manager John Weston said:‘For 

SCADA control and monitoring, using fastflex is not only 

forward-looking but also provides a fully integrated switchgear 

solution that is more cost effective to install.’ 

● Call 01784 461616 

HOLDFAST 

HoldFast, Europe’s leader in level crossing systems, has 

launched a new identity.After 20 years, it has dropped the 

familiar red triangle and opted for a sweeping red and green 

rail abstract, and a new strap line:‘Working For a Better Rail, 

Road and Urban Environment.’ 

All products are now being offered in two distinct ranges: 

Rail Crossing Solutions and Urban Transport Solutions.A new 

website is also under construction at 

www.holdfastsolutions.com 

Sales and marketing director Mark Coates Smith is behind 

the project.‘My father Peter has developed a brand known for 

being friendly, innovative and producing products that are 

durable and simple to install and maintain. 

‘I now want HoldFast to build on this reputation and reflect 

our willingness to innovate and our very strong green 

credentials, turning waste rubber into transport infrastructure. 

‘We are applying these credentials in rising to the challenge 

of urban congestion with products such as Carpet Track, 

HoldFast Rubber Highways, HoldFast Bus Lanes and HoldFast 

Paving.’ 

● Visit www.railcrossings.co.uk 

www.holdfastsolutions.com 

WILKINSON STAR 

Wilkinson Star Limited, the Worsley, Manchester based 

industrial equipment supplier and sole UK representative for 

MOSA petrol driven welding and generating sets, has launched 

the MOSA TS200-RW (PADS No. 094/007031). 

This generator, which has been specifically modified to 

meet the requirements of Carillion Rail with Network Rail 

Approval (certificate number PA05/02502), is a portable wraparound 

protective frame design, air-cooled, petrol driven 

welder generator rated 190A @ 60 per cent duty cycle with a 

safety critical 110V CTE 4kVA AC auxiliary output for running 

power tools and other ancillary equipment. 

Features of this generator include use with a separate 300A 

wire feed unit for MIG/MAG welding; a 20m TC2-RW 

umbilical remote control and emergency stop button; 

infinitely adjustable electronic stepless welding current 

control; a Honda GX390 OHV four-stroke petrol engine 

operating at 3,000 rpm; and re-coil starting.The 6.5 litres fuel 

tank capacity produces an engine running time of 3.5 hours at 

60 per cent load.This generator meets EC engine noise 

compliance regulations and the DC output produces smooth 

high-quality welding characteristics. 

Options include heavy duty 10m x 50mm 2 welding cables, 

an inline digital welding amp and volt meter, whilst the 

PAR600-RW parallel welding control box allows two welder 

generators to be connected together for heavier duty welding. 

● Call 0161 793 8127 

IF YOU WOULD LIKE YOUR PRODUCT FEATURED HERE CALL ROB TIDSWELL ON 01223 477427 

RECRUITMENT

RECRUITMENT 

Rail Professional Recruitment – 

June 2007 

Achieve maximum impact with your 

recruitment advertising spend: 

Contact: Rob Tidswell – 

Recruitment Sales Manager 

Tel: 01223 477427 

rob@railpro.co.uk 

June Rail Professional 

recruitment advertising: 

Booking deadline: Thur 17th May 

Copy deadline: Fri 18th May 

Copies on desks: Wed 23rd May 

The business magazine for Railway Managers 

Improve our service? 

Of course you can. 

Head of Performance - £50 - £55K + attractive benefits. 

Based in London 

Our new Head of Performance will keenly subscribe to this view in driving the 

development and implementation of First Capital Connect’s continual 

improvement process. Acting as the focal point for day-to-day performance 

management issues with industry partners and business units within the 

organisation such as train planning, engineering and operations teams the 

post-holder will drive forward practical service solutions and enhancements. 

With knowledge of railway operations, the delay attribution, performance 

analysis and improvement schedule 8 performance regime, you will also 

recognise the following behaviours in your leadership style: 

• A leadership style which is compelling, 

influential and drives success through 

the team and business partners. 

• Drive and energy for continuous 

improvement, including a sound 

commercial and customer focus. 

• Robust decision making grounded 

in gathering and analysing information, 

innovation and strategic concepts. 

For an informal discussion, please contact 

Charlotte Dancey on 0207 427 2006. 

To apply, please submit your CV with covering 

detail of how you have demonstrated your 

performance in the areas shown above to: 

Recruitment Team, First Capital Connect, 

Hertford House, 1 Cranwood Street, 

London, EC1V 9QS. 

The closing date for receipt of applications 

is 9th May 2007.

TO LIST YOUR APPOINTMENTS CALL 

Rob Tidswell on 01223 477427

RECRUITMENT 

RGS Rail 

Interior Systems Engineer 

Midlands £negotiable plus travel and other benefits 

An excellent rolling stock engineering opportunity in a TOC environment 

Our client is a multi-franchise train operating company with a 

strong internal fleet engineering and development function. 

A vacancy exists for an Interior Systems Engineer to join a team of 

rolling stock professionals dedicated to maintaining high 

standards of operational performance, safety, reliability and 

development on a fleet of tilting trains. 

Key activities will include: 

• Design review of proposed modifications and investigation into 

design issues during the life of vehicle fleets. 

• Proposing improvements to vehicle fleets in response to service 

problems, marketing and other opportunities. 

• Reviewing maintenance regimes for the interiors aspects of 

rolling stock including documentation. 

• Consideration and application of new technologies, innovations 

and materials with regard to design, maintenance and reliability 

improvement. 

• Liaise with all parties in the development, trial and testing of 

modifications to improve the customer service environment. 

Candidates should be rolling stock engineers with a good 

knowledge of the design, operation, maintenance and 

development of interiors gained, ideally, on modern fleets. 

Relevant experience is more important than formal qualifications 

but candidates are likely to be HNC/HND/graduate level engineers 

and will be required to liaise with engineers across a range 

of organisations. 

To discuss this opportunity further or to submit a cv: please 

contact Rod Shaw at RGS Rail, 0115 924 7155, 

mail@rgsrail.co.uk or write to RGS Rail, Broadway 

Business Centre, 32a Stoney Street, Nottingham NG1 1LL. 

www.rgsrail.co.uk 

RGS Rail 

“Ideal opportunities for rail engineers to be involved in 

the development of UK and European railways…” 

Standards Engineers - Rolling Stock and Rail Systems 

London 

£negotiable, plus good benefits package 

ATOC plays a leading role in the development and implementation of 

standards that impact railway engineering and operations across the 

UK as well as in Europe. 

Vacancies exist for two Standards Engineers within ATOC; one to 

focus on rolling stock and another to work on a broader range of the 

interfacing rail sub-systems. The key elements of both roles are to: 

• Develop a clear understanding and to represent the interests of 

TOCs in standards development and application, working closely 

with their technical functions. 

• Work closely with a range of industry partners on the technical 

content of standards; assessing and communicating their 

implications to relevant parties and managing response. 

• Identify the standards (published, proposed or under revision) 

relevant to TOCs and use engineering knowledge to assess, 

develop a response and communicate their impact within UK. 

• Support the development of Technical Specifications for 

Interoperability and Euro Norms and to support the Systems, 

Standards and Engineering teams in the field in general. 

There will be close working with a range of key functions within 

ATOC, including the Engineering Council, and contact with bodies 

such as RSSB, BSI and Network Rail together with several key 

European organisations. 

There will be opportunities for wide ranging European travel. 

Key European language skills would be advantageous, but their 

absence is not a barrier. 

Candidates may be graduate, chartered, incorporated or equivalent 

engineers with railway systems/rolling stock backgrounds and 

an understanding of the issues relating to standards. Sensitivity to 

the views of others together with skills in communication, 

organisation, analysis and problem solving in an engineering 

context are also required. 

To discuss these opportunities further or to submit a cv: 

please contact Rod Shaw at RGS Rail, 0115 924 7155, 

mail@rgsrail.co.uk or write to RGS Rail, Broadway 

Business Centre, 32a Stoney Street, Nottingham NG1 1LL 

www.rgsrail.co.uk

TO LIST YOUR APPOINTMENTS CALL 

Rob Tidswell on 01223 477427

move over freightliner, we want to get into ... - Rail Professional

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