'THE GOVERNMENT'S ABSOLUTELY AWARE ... - Rail Professional

PROFESSIONAL
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR RAILWAY MANAGERS
RAIL BUSINESS AWARDS PULL-OUT
12-PAGE REVIEW OF THE AWARDS, INCLUDING ALL THE WINNERS AND NOMINEES
LAMBRIGG DERAILMENT
LATEST NEWS AND ANALYSIS
1,000 NEW CARRIAGES ANNOUNCED
BUT WHEN AND WHERE WILL THEY BE UTILISED?
ECML SHORTLIST
A CLOSER LOOK AT THE BIDDERS FOR THE EAST COAST FRANCHISE
‘THE GOVERNMENT’S
ABSOLUTELY AWARE
OF THE CAPACITY
AND ECONOMIC
BENEFITS OF
CROSSRAIL’
RAIL MINISTER TOM HARRIS
ON CROSSRAIL, LIGHT RAIL
AND BLAIR
www.railpro.co.uk
APRIL 2007 ISSUE 121 : £3.95

CONTENTS
APRIL 2007
ISSUE 121
EDITOR
PROFESSIONAL
KATIE SILVESTER
Tel: 01223 477426
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14
EDITORIAL
4 EDITORIAL COMMENT
10-11 LETTERS
NEWS
3-10 News Lambrigg derailment; Rail conference;
Crossrail developments; LUL’s mobile trials; fare
rise; rail’s green credentials; freight RUS
revealed; New Street controversy; Basingstoke
blockade; new investor for Grand Central;
Portsmouth closure over-runs
46-47 Business Dispute over electricity charges;
Eurotunnel seeks compensation; National
Express and Arriva’s profits fall;Amec leaves rail
industry; Gerald Corbett leaves Woolworths
48-51 People Emma Whitaker;Alan Bennett; Mark
Fell;Annette Davies; Shaun Furzer; Dermot
McEvoy; Matthew Knight; Nigel Astell;Alan
Tarrant;Alan Smeeth; Jag Paddam; Steve
Hawkes; Jeremy Acklam; Peter Bell; Jerome
Cheze; Mark Prout; Sarah Wakefield; Richard
Freeman; Kyle Haughton; Len Abram
NEWS ANALYSIS
12-13 The Virgin derailment has prompted questions
about whether safety lessons have really been
learnt from previous train crashes. Paul Clifton
looks at the rail industry’s safety record
RAIL PROFESSIONAL INTERVIEW
14-17 Tom Harris
Rail minister Tom Harris talks to Paul Coleman
about franchise premiums; plans for light rail,
Roscos and Crossrail; and new Labour, in his first
interview with Rail Professional
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
39-40 A regular round-up of key resources
INSTITUTION OF RAILWAY OPERATORS
42-43 Chris Dugdale explains how track access is
regulated across the EU. Plus: Dates for your diary
Contents
INSIDE
RBA
pull-out
FEATURES
18-19 Alan Whitehouse reviews the shortlist for the
East Coast Main Line and wonders whether we’ve
really seen the last of GNER
20 Conditions of carriage
The Government has announced 1,000 carriages,
but there is no official word yet as to where they
will be used. Paul Clifton looks at the possibilities
22-24 Sent to Coventry
Peter Plisner reports on Network Rail’s
leadership training centre in Coventry, which aims
to make staff development a priority for the notfor-dividend
company
37 View from across the pond
Michael R Weinman looks at a new analysis of
the cost per mile of USA’s railways
38-39 Bridge of sighs
Network Rail’s refurbishment of Leven Viaduct in
Cumbria won an engineering award, thanks to the
challenges it had to overcome. Keith Lumley
explains how the complex project was carried out
40-41 Making a stand for safety
Passengers on most forms of transport are
encouraged, and sometimes required by law, to
wear seatbelts – except on trains, where not only
are seatbelts not available, but passengers are
often forced to stand. Ian Hammond questions
the logic behind this
44 On your marks, get set…
Matthew Hanslip-Ward looks at the stages that
the period review of Network Rail’s funding for
the next quartile will go through before a final
settlement is reached
Pull-out
RAIL BUSINESS AWARDS
Twelve-page review: Highlights of the
awards evening, when the winners received
their awards at the ninth annual ceremony, at
the Grosvenor House Hotel in London
Thanks to Rail Images (www.railimages.co.uk) for photographic assistance.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
3

NEWS
Extending peak fares will drive
passengers back to their cars
With the media outrage at the New Year
fare increases not far behind us, South
West Trains have unexpectedly sold their
passengers down the river by launching a
tier of ‘just off-peak’fares – which actually
span most of the day (see page 6).
The strategy appears to be aimed at
spreading the rush that happens straight
after the peak, by retaining the old fares
as ‘super off peak’ and introducing a
higher band to bridge the gap.
But it will almost certainly drive some
passengers off trains altogether, as it will
now only be possible to get the cheapest
fares in the afternoon and evening. For
most people within driving distance of
London, it’s a toss up whether to drive to
a Tube station on the outskirts of the city
and catch the underground or get the
train straight to the centre, particularly
when it comes to leisure travel. For some
SWT passengers, the price increase will
make that decision a lot easier.
The timing of SWT’s
announcement about its
fare increases is also bad
planning.The national
PROFESSIONAL
place and that private
companies have no
business making fat
profits out of public
press has picked up on the
transport.
increased dividends which COMMENT
Stagecoach – the franchise
holder – is paying out to its shareholders,
with Brian Souter and his sister getting the
lion’s share (see page 10).
If the new fares are about spreading
out the peak and Stagecoach appears to
have money to throw around, passengers
are bound to wonder why off-peak fares
were not reduced and the new tier
brought in at the old level, which would
have had a similar effect of spreading the
rush, but without penalising passengers.
Rather like First Capital Connect’s
extending of peak fares last year, these
increases simply play into the hands of
those who believe the railway never
should have been privatised in the first
ON A lighter note,
Clive James spoke for many passengers,
and a fair few railway professionals, when
he parodied the confusion caused by the
more ill-thought-out of the franchise
names on Radio 4’s A Point of View.
He is particularly irked by the name
First Great Western, which, as he pointed
out, wrongly implies that there must be a
Second Great Western too. He relates
how he cursed the brand when he found
it difficult to locate a second-class
carriage on a train that was about to pull
off, where every carriage bears the word
‘First’.
One railway was also ripe for his jibes
and he is not alone in finding the name
perplexing. Early on in the days of the
East Anglian franchise, passengers found
it difficult to tell whether the station
announcer was talking about ‘the 10.31
train’ or the ’10.30 One train’.
It begs the question as to how much
companies think through their brand
names.While ‘First’ and ‘One’ might
sound trendy and quirky when
presented to the board of a newly
formed company, in an environment like
a train station – which can be confusing
and chaotic at the best of times –
adding further ambiguities to the mix
does little to curry favour with
passengers.
Clive James sums up:‘If the first One
train leaves at 20 to one it’s the 20 to one
One train and if the other one leaves at
10 to one it's 10 to one on that it's the
one One train one actually wanted but
one couldn't understand the
announcement.’
Train fuel emissions are
falling faster than cars’
Carbon dioxide emissions from
trains have fallen by 22 per cent per
passenger kilometre over the past
10 years, according to the
Association of Train Operators.
But average emissions from cars
have fallen just 8 per cent, while
carbon dioxide from domestic air
travel has dropped by 5 per cent.
Atoc director General George
Muir said: ‘Obviously the railway
can’t replace the car but to the
extent reasonably possible, Britain
will meet its environmental
objectives more readily if rail
carries a greater share of the
national traffic. Notwithstanding
technical advances within the car
industry, rail is likely to retain its
environmental advantage.’
Atoc has put together a Baseline
Energy Statement setting out the
diesel and electric traction energy
used by the passenger railway in
2006-6, estimating the carbon
dioxide emissions arising from it.
The figures show that, on
average, rail travel generates just
over half the emissions per
passenger kilometre of car and
approximately one quarter that of
domestic air. The EU aims to
reduce carbon emissions by 20
per cent by 2020.
A spokesman for Friends of the
Earth said: ‘These figures
demonstrate again that rail has
significantly lower carbon
emissions compared to both air
and car travel. But the rail industry
mustn’t rest on its laurels. We need
technology improvements on all
fronts if we are to prevent the
worst impacts of climate change,
and that includes the development
of more efficient rail vehicles.’
London Underground to trial
mobile phone coverage
The tube may not be a sanctuary
from other people’s mobile phones
for much longer. London
Underground is to begin a sixmonth
trial of mobile phone and
new technology services on the
Waterloo & City line.
If the trials are successful, they
could pave the way for DAB and
wi-fi access even in the deepest
parts of the tube network.
During the trial, passengers will
be able to make calls on platforms
at Bank and Waterloo stations and
in tunnels between the two
stations. It is hoped the experiment
will begin in April 2008 – contractors
are currently being sought.
Richard Parry, LU strategy and
service development director, said:
‘The below-ground sections of the
Underground are one of the few
places in London where you are
unable to use a mobile phone. We
recognise there is a growing demand
for coverage to be extended
to deep-level sections of the Tube.
He added: ‘If the trial is not a
success then London
Underground will not proceed with
plans to extend mobile phone
coverage to the Tube.’
A passenger survey found 56 per
cent of people would support the
idea of being able to use mobile
phones at stations and on Tubes.
Aside from making personal calls,
passengers could potentially
receive up-to-the-minute travel
information via a mobile phone or
other device while on the Tube.
Passengers can and do use
mobile phones on the sections of
the tube network that are above
ground, which represents 55 per
cent of the Tube network.
4 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

NEWS
Freight RUS is
‘positive step’
Network Rail has published its
Freight Route Utilisation
Strategy (RUS), which forecasts
growth of 30 per cent in freight
traffic over the next 10 years.
The RUS sets out options for
the Government, and other
stakeholders, as to where
investment could be made.
The main recommendations
are:
•Developing the east coast ports
coal route to the Aire and Trent
Valley power stations, plus
enhancements on the Anglo-
Scottish coal route;
•Gauge enhancement; and
•Capacity enhancements on
parts of the West Coast Main
Line, plus Haven ports and
Southampton.
Paul Plummer, director of
Planning and Regulation at
Network Rail, said:
‘Rail freight has grown rapidly
over the last 10 years, and the
forecasts are for further growth
of up to 30 per cent – an extra
240 freight trains a day, over the
next 10 years.
The RUS will help inform the
High Level Output
Specifications produced by the
Department for Transport (DfT)
and Transport Scotland, which
sets out the rail projects likely to
get funding in the next quartile.
The document has been
welcomed by rail freight groups.
The Freight Transport
Association’s rail freight
manager Chris MacRae called
the strategy ‘a positive step’.'
Rail Freight Group chairman,
Tony Berkeley said: ‘The Freight
RUS is a great example of
industry co-operation and
provides a clear strategy for the
growth of rail freight. The
detailed analysis of the rail
freight market is to be
commended.’
Freight carrier EWS0 said it
‘strongly’ supported the RUS,
calling it a ‘robust and well
developed strategy’.
10-day closure will stop all
trains into Basingstoke
Network Rail is preparing for a 10-
day closure of all lines through
Basingstoke.
The blockade will affect tens of
thousands of passengers a day
from 6 April (Good Friday). It is
the key element of a £130m resignalling
project to replace
equipment fitted in the 1960s.
‘There are 270 new signals, 100
km of new track and 81 sets of
points,’ says David Pape, route
director for Network Rail. A new
signalling centre at Basingstoke is
already nearing completion.
South West Trains is hiring
more than 90 buses to get
travellers around the blockade.
Some passengers face 40-mile bus
journeys each day, adding at least
an hour to their commuting time
into London, with the same again
on the way home.
The train operator expects one
in three passengers to stay at
home and not attempt to get to
work. Passengers will be taken by
road from Andover to Woking,
and from Winchester to Reading
or Farnborough.
Virgin Cross Country, First
Great Western and freight
services from Southampton
docks will also be affected.
Network Rail hopes the project
will go more smoothly than the
neighbouring re-signalling
scheme in Portsmouth, which is
also overseen by Pape. With its
contractor, Siemens, it failed to
complete the work during a sixweek
blockade from December to
February, and commissioning of
the signals is being delayed
indefinitely.
‘Basingstoke is a completely
different project with different
contractors,’ said Pape. ‘And it is
on a far bigger scale. We have
been planning this for four years
and we expect it to finish on time.’
Any over-run would have a
wide impact. The closure affects
all services on the routes from
Waterloo to Salisbury and Exeter,
and from Waterloo to Winchester,
Southampton and Bournemouth.
It also closes the busy link
between Basingstoke and
Reading.
Tom Smith and Leila Frances, Govia’s managing director of rail development
and bid director, deliver Govia’s bid for the West Midlands franchise to the
Department for Transport – all 14 boxes of it.Atoc estimates that it costs
each contender £3-5m to bid for a franchise.
Rows continue over New
Street station development
Plans to redevelop New Street
Station in Birmingham have
reached another key milestone.
The city council has approved
plans to demolish a nearby tower
block to make way for the
revamped station complex, writes
Peter Plisner.
The site, currently occupied by
Stephenson Tower, is earmarked
for a public square which will
provide a new entrance to the
modernised station. Two new 30
storey office blocks will also be
built on the same piece of land.
The redevelopment of New
Street Station, called ‘Birmingham
Gateway’, is expected to cost
£550m and will provide much
needed additional capacity for
passengers using the station. The
Department for Transport is
studying the scheme’s business
case. Its promoters want the
Government to provide £378m.
Meanwhile, claims that the
Gateway project will be unable to
cope with a predicted increase in
passengers have again been
rejected. Promoters of an
alternative scheme insists that a
new station in the city’s Eastside
would provide better access for
trains.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
5

NEWS
FARES RISE BY 20% AS SWT
BRINGS IN NEW PRICING TIER
South West Trains is putting up
first class and many off-peak fares
by 20 per cent – six times the rate
of inflation.
It is introducing a new grade of
ticket for passengers travelling
into London to arrive between
10:00 and midday.
Existing off-peak fares will be
re-named ‘super off peak’ and will
only be available in the afternoon
and evening.
A passenger from Winchester
to Waterloo travelling at 10:00
currently pays £23 for a day
return. From 20 May the fare will
rise to £27.80.
‘There is a spike in demand as
people queue to get the first
cheap fares of the day,’ explained
Bruce Akhurst, SWT’s
commercial and marketing
director. ‘To smooth that spike,
we are putting in a new price
bracket – higher than the cheap
day return but still cheaper than
the peak rate.’
SWT says peak rate season
ticket holders will not be affected
by the changes, nor will
passengers travelling within the
Greater London area. But it could
not say what proportion of its
customers will pay the 20 per
cent higher fares, claiming it did
not know how many travellers
would switch to other times of the
day to avoid the new structure.
Passenger Focus condemned
the increases as unjustified and
unfair. ‘They have the effect of
extending the peak throughout
the whole of the morning,’ said
chief executive Anthony Smith.
‘The lack of consultation and
explanation will leave passengers
frustrated and angry.’
Other rail user groups were
outraged, claiming SWT was
exploiting its monopoly, putting
profits before passengers’
interests and pricing people out
of a day-trip to the capital.
The company is also putting up
all first class fares by 15-20 per
cent throughout the day. Akhurst
said more people are trying to
buy first class fares than there are
seats available, and putting up
fares would help suppress
demand.
‘This is a move towards airline
style pricing, with a more
sophisticated range of fares,’ said
Akhurst, who came to SWT a
month ago after an earlier spell at
Eurostar, which has long used
yield management techniques. ‘It
allows us to better match demand
and pricing. From 2009 we will
also be using smart card
technology for ticketing.
‘We can look forward to a
passenger boarding a train,
seeing an empty seat in first
class, and simply swiping his
card to enter first class and
paying the upgrade
automatically.’
SWT says most passengers in
the period between 10:00 and
12:00 are business travellers
avoiding the peak, as well as
leisure day trippers to London.
6 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

NEWS
Six-week closure may
over-run – by a year
‘This is a cock-up of simply
staggering proportions.’ That’s
how one of the industry’s most
senior executives described the
Portsmouth re-signalling project,
writes Paul Clifton.
Network Rail began a six-week
blockade of the city last December.
The lines were meant to re-open on 5
February. They didn’t. Now insiders
suggest it’s likely to be a whole year
before the new signals can work.
One train at a time is allowed into
Portsmouth Harbour station – a
maximum of three trains an hour,
compared with the usual seven.
South West Trains has to maintain a
fleet of buses running at 10-minute
intervals to shuttle passengers from
the Isle of Wight ferry terminal to
Fratton, the nearest railhead.
Southern Railway is not allowed to
run any services at all into
Portsmouth.
A month after the work should
have been completed, Network Rail
issued a carefully-worded statement
which avoided giving any date at all
for the signalling to be switched on.
Sources within the organisation
confirm privately that the £100m
signalling project with Siemens
simply does not work. It does not
integrate with other systems and is
currently incapable of running trains
over 50 miles of track in an area
between Fareham, Petersfield,
Portsmouth and Chichester.
Instead, Network Rail must revert
to using hand-pulled levers in Havant
signal box. Little has changed there
since 1937: it’s a Grade 2 listed
building.
The situation’s unlikely to change
until at least next Christmas. A sixweek
scheme is turning into a 12-
month fiasco – the description
chosen by a furious train company
manager who has to cope with the
consequences.
‘We regret and apologise for the
continued delay,’ said Siemens
Transportation Systems’ managing
director, Christian Roth, in a
statement which offered passengers
no further explanation.
An additional blockade will be
needed before the system can work.
It can’t be done at Easter, because of
a much bigger re-signalling job that
will close all tracks at Basingstoke for
10 days.
South West Trains has already
booked a fleet of 90 buses to get
commuters around it: there will be
no trains to London on the Exeter
and Salisbury line, or on the main
line from Winchester, Southampton
and Bournemouth. The long
diversionary route is via Portsmouth,
along the re-signalled line.
Network Rail could not risk a
summer closure of the main rail
connection to the Isle of Wight. The
tourist trade would take a big knock,
and the ferry operators whose
services connect at Portsmouth
Harbour station would be livid. That
leaves next Christmas as the next
practicable option.
So who is to blame?
Robin Gisby, Network Rail’s
director of operations said: ‘It hasn’t
gone well. There are some technical
issues that Siemens have got to sort
out. It’s a long over-run and we regret
that. But we are trying to bring
equipment that is new and different
into the country.
‘When it is complete it will require
less maintenance and be costeffective.
But we must apologise to
the many passengers who have been
affected over far too long a period
while we are getting it right.’
Passengers catching the
replacement buses in Portsmouth
reacted with incredulity. ‘There’s just
been a fatal accident in Cumbria, with
a train rolling down an embankment,’
said one. ‘And the line’s closed a week
or so. But send some electricians into
Portsmouth and they stop trains
running for a year.
www.railimages.co.uk
Grand Central bought out
Open access operator Grand
Central has been bought out by a
private investment firm.
Grand Central’s major
shareholder, Fraser Eagle, has
sold its holding to Equishare, in a
move which will see all
employees remain with the
company.
The board will be joined by
Giles Fearnley as chairman, Bob
Howells as vice-chairman and
two new directors, Philip Moody
and Phil Gartside.
Ian Yeowart, managing director
of Grand Central, said: ‘We are
delighted to have secured our
continued independence and the
management expertise and
financial resources that Giles, Bob
and their team bring to us. This
agreement ensures Grand Central
now has the necessary resources
to deliver its long term vision.’
CONFERENCE WILL ADDRESS 100-
MILE RAIL GAP NORTH OF LONDON
A conference in Bedfordshire is to examine the need for better transport links in
the Bedfordshire area, including the need for an East-West Rail Link from
Felixstowe to Birmingham. Delegates at the event will hear speakers, including
Keith Jipps and Dave Bateson from First Capital Connect, discussing the need for
improved rail links in the area.The conference, Rail in Context, is organised by
Bedfordshire Railway and Transport Association.
BRTA chairman Richard Pill says:‘Even on existing lines, over-crowding and
over-demand on road and rail is causing many problems.The North London Line
is carrying a lot of freight and it’s got capacity and pathing problems.
Peterborough to Nuneaton will get you so far, then there is 100-mile gap. BRTA
wants to bring people together to focus minds to see how we can address this.’
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
7

NEWS
LAMBRIGG SPARKS VERTICAL INTEGR
The section of the West Coast Main
Line damaged during the Lambrigg
derailment re-opened on 13 March,
writes Katie Silvester.
Almost a kilometre of track, 600
metres of powerlines and four signal
control boxes had to be replaced by
Network Rail engineers, more than
300 of whom worked on the line
during the two-week closure.
As the rail industry awaits the
results of the inquiry into the
Lambrigg derailment, questions
are already being asked as to how
such incidents can be avoided in
future. Since the Potters Bar
accident in 2002, after which
Network Rail brought track
maintenance in-house, its safety
record has been good.
But Virgin founder Richard
Branson has called for a debate on
whether train operators should
also take on the responsibility for
maintenance – a stance that would
be backed by the Conservative
party, which supports the idea of
vertical integration.
Others believe this would
compromise safety further. RMT
general secretary Bob Crow was
quick to respond to Branson’s
comments. ‘It is bad enough that
there are still contractors, subcontractors,
labour-only agencies
and one-man-and-a-trolley outfits
let loose on the tracks under
Network Rail,’ he said.
‘Trains and tracks should be
operated by the same
organisation, but that organisation
should be publicly owned and
controlled.’
RAIB queries Style 63s
The RAIB’s initial findings into the
immediate and underlying cause
of the Lambrigg derailment on 23
February have focused on the
stretcher bars and lock bar. The
RAIB investigation is still ongoing.
But there are other safety
concerns about points, dating
back to 2005, which Network Rail
has not yet fully addressed, writes
Paul Coleman.
In December 2005, the Rail
Safety & Standards Board
recommended that Network Rail
considers replacing all Style 63
points machines across the UK.
A Style 63 points motor,
manufactured by Westinghouse
Network Rail rebuilds the embankment using 22,000 tonnes of stone. More than 2,000 tonnes of ballast was needed for the tracks.
Rail Systems, controlled the
Lambrigg 2B points at the centre
of the RAIB’s Grayrigg
investigation.
Following the derailment of a
commuter train on points at
Leigham Junction in south
London on 27 May 2005, the
RSSB, in a formal inquiry report,
stated: ‘This and other Style 63
point machines were in a
potentially dangerous condition.’
The RSSB categorised the
13mph Leigham Junction
derailment as a ‘potentially higher
risk train accident’. The first coach
completely derailed at the points.
There were no injuries.
Compared to previous highspeed
rail accidents, however,
relatively few people were injured
or killed. Though one person
tragically died in the crash and a
handful of others were
hospitalised, the safety credentials
of the Pendolino have been
confirmed.
Many of the injuries seen in
The RSSB report, published in
December 2005, contained 10
recommendations to Network
Rail. The first stated that Network
Rail ‘consider the development of
a strategy for the gradual
replacement of Style 63 machines’.
The report said the underlying
cause of the derailment was
incorrect adjustment of contacts
on the points motor by a
technician who ‘was not rigorously
applying the relevant specification’
and who ‘did not have the correct
tools to undertake the work
correctly’.
The RSSB said it would track the
industry’s response. However, the
RSSB’s 2005 Annual Safety
Performance Report, published in
May 2006, stated that none of the
previous train crashes, caused by
passengers being thrown out of
windows or colliding with sharpedged
furniture, were avoided.
‘The Pendolino performed
brilliantly,’ said Branson. ‘We
transport many millions of
passengers and have spent a lot of
money on Pendolinos. If you are
going to have a massive accident, a
10 recommendations had been
completed.
An RSSB spokeswoman said
that since last May, four of the 10
recommendations remain open,
meaning Network Rail are still
working on them. The remaining
six have been satisfactorily
completed, including the first
recommendation to ‘consider… the
gradual replacement’ of Style 63
machines.
‘That recommendation has
been dealt with, it’s done in it’s
entirety, it’s closed,’ said the RSSB
spokeswoman.
She said that the Safety
Management Information System,
which records all safety-related
events, now states: ‘In areas that
are re-signalled, the machines are
© Network Rail
8 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

NEWS
ATION DEBATE
Almost a kilometre of
track,600 metres of
powerlines and four
signal control boxes had
to be replaced
Pendolino is the safest train to be
in.
‘The train itself stood up
remarkably well, it's built like a
tank. If this had been an old train,
the injuries would have been
horrendous. Pendolinos have solid
crumple zones and most managed
to walk away.
‘The train has proved itself, is
formidable and strong, and the
basic fabric of the train stayed
intact. Damage to the carriages is
negligible, the lights stayed on and
the windows didn't break. As far as
safety is concerned, rail is
massively more safe than the car.’
Virgin is hoping to finalise a
deal for a batch of new Pendolinos
soon, following delays caused by
the investigation into Roscos’
profits by the Office of Rail
Regulation. The Department for
Transport is believed to be
planning to ensure their long term
use by writing the trains into
future West Coast Main Line
franchise agreements.
The Pendolino involved in the
derailment is unlikely to be back in
use for another two years, allowing
for examination by accident
investigators and repairs.
Network Rail has accepted
responsibility for the condition of
the points, which led to the
derailment, but a full investigation
is still underway.
John Armitt, chief executive of
Network Rail, said: ‘We continue
to work closely with accident
investigators and will leave no
stone unturned as we aim to get to
the truth. We will listen carefully to
the results and recommendations
that come out of the investigation,
learn the lessons of this terrible
tragedy, and make the railways
even safer.
‘Our thoughts continue to be
with the family and friends of
Margaret Masson, who died as a
result of the incident, and to other
passengers who were injured and
shaken.’
See pages 12 and 13 for more
analysis of the crash
Competition enquiry stalls
Wrexham & Shropshire
Plans to run direct trains from
Wrexham and Shropshire to
London have suffered a set-back
after an open access application
to the Rail Regulator fell foul of
competition rules, writes Peter
Plisner.
Wrexham & Shropshire
Railway had planned to begin
running five trains per day,
through the Shropshire and West
Midlands to Marylebone station,
this summer.
However, the company has
been forced to revise its plans
and submit a new application,
following an objection lodged by
Virgin’s West Coast Trains.
According to the Rail
Regulator, the company holds a
‘non-compete’ protection clause
which prevents other rail
companies picking up Londonbound
passengers at
Wolverhampton station.
Wrexham & Shropshire
Railway has now submitted a new
application proposing an
additional stop at Tame Bridge
Parkway.
The station is on the border of
the three West Midlands
boroughs, including Walsall,
which doesn’t have a direct rail
link to the capital.
John Nelson, director of
Wrexham & Shropshire, said:
“We are keen to provide rail
services that serve the
communities in Wrexham and
Shropshire as soon as possible.
Our revised proposals are even
stronger than before.’
The revised plan means the
service, if approved, won’t start
running until December this year.
likely to be replaced with
upgraded versions.’
One of the recommendations
still to be completed is to include
in training programmes any
revisions to the design or
maintenance tasks in respect to
Style 63 machines.
The Office of Rail Regulation,
in its own Annual Report on
Railway Safety 2005, published
last July, stated that Network Rail
had reviewed its maintenance
procedures for type-63 point
motors following the Leigham
Junction derailment.
However, the ORR added: ‘Poor
maintenance of the infrastructure
continues to be significant in the
cause of derailments. Although a
low speed derailment with no
injuries, the derailment at
Leigham Junction could have
been more significant in other
circumstances.’
Network Rail operates and
maintains some 3,000 similar
points across the network. During
the weekend following the 23
February derailment, its
maintenance teams performed
precautionary checks on 600-700
of these and found no problems.
A spokesman for Network Rail
said: ‘The RAIB’s initial findings
are pretty clear – this is about
stretcher bars, not points
machines or motors. Speculating
on cause when a full investigation
is ongoing in an area that clearly
has nothing to do with the
accident is not helpful.’
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
9

NEWS/LETTERS
NEWS IN BRIEF
EDINBURGH TRAM GETS GO
AHEAD
Glasgow city centre and Glasgow
Airport, costing between £170m and
£210m to build.
LETTERS
unfortunate accident at Grayrigg. I have
been gratified to note the (dare I say,
Scottish ministers have approved
Edinburgh's new tram line, which has
been allocated £60m of funding.
SHEFFIELD GATEWAY OPENS
The reburbished Sheffield Station
Don’t call us…
In her comments on your report
somewhat grudging?) acknowledgment
by the media of the remarkably low
level of casualties, due to the excellent
Transport minister Tavish Scott said:
Gateway has been opened by transport
concerning the fall in customer services
design and construction of the
‘Trams will give passengers a safe,
minister Gillian Merron. Since the work
at Scotrail (Rail Professional February)
Pendolino trains. Certainly, they were
environmental travel choice, a choice
began five years ago, the station and its
Mary Dickson, managing director,
very expensive initially, but this
which will see reduced congestion and
surroundings have undergone a
commented that some points on which
accident proves that it was money well
reduced emissions.’
complete facelift at a cost of £50m.The
they had failed were ‘fairly minor’.
spent.
SOUTER’S £100M DIVIDEND
project was given the Project of the
Year Award in the 2006 National Rail
At my local station, the auto dial
telephone, the only means of obtaining
One aspect of the aftermath of the
accident which I believe warrants closer
Stagecoach has drawn criticism from
Awards.
information on current train running,
scrutiny is the storage and placement
passenger groups after it reviewed its
balance sheets and decided to pay out
IRO TEAMS UP WITH CILT
has been out of order since August
2006.This facility was provided many
of passengers’ luggage. It has been
suggested that a significant proportion
£700m to shareholders, including
Students who are awarded the
years ago by British Rail.
of injuries were caused by various items
£100m to chief executive Brian Souter.
Institution of Railway Operators’
The following efforts have been
of luggage, including suitcases and
Anthony Smith, chief executive of
bachelor of science degree in
made to get it repaired together with
bottles, being ejected with great force
Passenger Focus, pointed to the
professional studies in railway
brief comments on their responses:
from overhead luggage racks.
overcrowding on Stagecoach’s South
operational management will now be
•First Scotrail manager, Inverness:
I have felt for some time that the
West Train franchise and questioned
given automatic membership of the
Profuse apologies on two occasions –
traditional open overhead luggage rack
whether profits should be directed
Chartered Institute of Logistics and
the matter has been referred to their
is a basic design weakness in modern
more towards reducing fares and
Transport when they graduate, the two
headquarters;
rolling stock, and readers might have
providing more seats.
institutes have announced.
•First Scotrail Customer Relations: Reply
seen the interview with Maureen
NEW CHARTER COMPANY
LAUNCHED
received five months after the
registering of the complaint to the
effect that the matter had been
Kavanagh of a disaster support
organisation in which she drew
attention to this point.
Riviera Trains and EWS Network have
referred to their information systems
If it is felt desirable to retain the
launched a new company to provide
manager;
overhead racks, then surely at the very
high class specialist rail services.
•Rail Passenger Council (Passenger
least they should be replaced by
Charter Alliance will supply charter
Focus): Complaint made late
overhead lockers of the type found on
trains to customers such as football
September 2006, reply received late
most modern aircraft, which would
clubs, film companies and individual
December 2006 stating they ‘are
retain their contents in the event of a
customers.The first trains will be four
confident the problem is not being
violent impact of any kind?
private football specials to the
ignored’. Following further
Indeed, it is not unusual for items to
Johnstone’s Paint Trophy Final at
representations, a telephone call from
fall from existing racks onto the heads
Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium on 1 April
them on 16 January 2006 advised that
of passengers in the course of a normal
NEW FREIGHT SERVICES FROM
SOUTHAMPTON
Freightliner has launched its first
for Bristol Rovers and Doncaster Rovers.
TUBE PPP CONTRACTOR SEEKS
REIMBURSEMENT
First Scotrail had given an assurance the
telephone would be repaired within
two weeks; and
•Transport Scotland:Advice inter alia
journey, purely as a result of vibration.
An alternative idea which I would
like to see tried would be to design
carriages with the seating areas raised
service from Southampton to
Metronet is to try to recoup costs from
that First Scotrail is being subject to
on platforms say, 9 or 10 inches higher
Doncaster and has added a further
London Underground to cover around
‘ongoing penalties’ in respect of their
than that of the central corridor,
daily service from the port to
£750m that it overspent on station
failings.
thereby creating space underneath the
Manchester Trafford Park. Rival carrier
renewals, following a judgement by the
As of today, 21 February, the
seating area for the stowing of luggage.
EWS has also added a new daily freight
PPP arbiter that it would have to meet
telephone is still out of order. It would
In many vehicles fitted with back-
service from Trafford Park to
the additional costs itself.
appear that the penalties are
to-back seats, there is already space
Southampton and as well as an
additional daily service from the port to
Wakefield in west Yorkshire.
WALES GETS LONGER
PLATFORMS
insufficient to motivate First Scotrail
into putting the matter right. Perhaps
to Mary Dickson this is also a ‘fairly
between the seat backs for stowing
quite large items: raising the seating
area could generate even larger spaces.
AIRPORT LINK TO BE
COMPLETED IN 2010
Forty-two platforms will be extended in
South Wales to accommodate longer
trains at a cost of £13.2m, the Welsh
minor’ issue. If so, users of her services
do not share her vision.
NC Walker
Whatever solution is adopted, I
believe the demise of the traditional
open-style overhead racks is long
The planned Glasgow Airport Rail Link
Assembly has announced. Funding has
Kyle of Lochalsh
overdue, and would contribute
has passed another milestone – the Rail
Link Bill has been granted Royal Assent.
It is expected that the first trains will be
also been made available for an
additional eight two-car sprinter trains,
at a cost of £5m annually, enabling
Baggage claim
No doubt you have received many
significantly to passengers’ safety far
more than, for example, the fitting of
seat belts, which I imagine very few
running by 2010.The scheme will
Arriva Trains Wales to run six car trains
comments related to the recent
people would willingly use.
provide a fast, direct rail link between
on the Rhymney and Treherbert lines.
10 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

LETTERS
No room for manoeuvre
The high level of complaints about
poor service provision by South
West Trains over the last few
months culminated in a huge online
Q&A session on 12 February when
the SWT managing director Stewart
Palmer answered over 700
questions, mostly from passengers
on the Portsmouth and Reading
lines.
He also received a petition with
over 1,000 signatures from
disgruntled passengers. In an open
letter to its customers, Stewart
summarised SWT’s response to
these important issues and I would
like to offer some thoughts from the
passenger viewpoint.
Stewart made a point about the
current overcrowding being the
result of an increase of 40 per cent
in passenger numbers over the last
10 years. However, when you look
at the impact of this you find an
inner suburban problem, not one
anywhere near Portsmouth or
Reading.
Longer distance travellers are
suffering much reduced quality of
service due to lack of capacity in
and around the capital. As the SWT
fleet manager has mentioned
recently, there is a requirement for a
purpose-built, high-acceleration,
inner suburban train to deal with
this problem, together with
extended platforms and improved
signalling. Passengers do not accept
that their inter-city trains should
perform this function as it does
now.
Stewart quoted from the new
franchise, saying: ‘The Department
for Transport in its invitation to
tender for the new South Western
franchise made it very clear that it
was asking all bidders to cater for
significant further growth without
the provision of additional
infrastructure.’
How can SWT square this circle?
It is obvious that by accepting this
as a pre-condition to the franchise it
accepts that customer service must
fall and fares must rise significantly.
Even so, there is an increasing
realisation amongst informed
observers that SWT were perhaps in
no position to fight this, however
unrealistic it appeared.
The real fight is now for the
future development and financing
of Britain’s rail system. The rail
companies, passenger groups,
unions and staff throughout the
industry should now work together
to reject Treasury dictat that can
only result in a steady increase in
overcrowding, increasing fares and
stress for the hard pressed
passenger.
And perhaps a more strident
rebellion by those caught in the
crush on Britain’s trains.
Mike Johnson
Wokingham
Berkshire
Ian J Turnbull,
Alderley Edge, Cheshire
Toilet conundrum
You report on the National Passenger
Survey in the March issue and highlight
the fact that 75 per cent of Merseyrail
passengers find our on-train toilets
unsatisfactory.
It would have been far more
newsworthy to report that 10 per cent
think they are ‘satisfactory or good’
and another 15 per cent think they are
neither one nor the other.
Why is this more newsworthy? We
don’t actually have any toilets on our
trains at all as our average journey
length is just 6.5 miles!
Rudi Boersma
Media & corporate affairs
Merseyrail
And another thing…
Some time has elapsed since the
publication of my ‘Emperor’s new
clothes’ letter in Rail Professional, but
still the railway companies blunder on
with cramped uncomfortable seats on
ever shorter trains.
Only now there are less seats per
passenger and the passengers are
beginning to get rather fed up. FGW is
coming under fire, commuters on the
Portsmouth Line are already fed up
with their ‘new’ suburban trains and
standards have not increased on routes
such as the franchise formerly known
as Thameslink.
Passenger unhappiness has existed
for some time and the railway
continues to, for the most part, ignore
it. But now it is becoming more vocal
as the numbers continue to swell.This
is obvious.
And yet like the emperor with his
new clothes, the railway industry has
still to accept that in the eyes of
most passengers, their ‘service’ is
unravelling through threadbare to
nakedness!
Marie Brume
Schoolteacher, former long distance
rail user and new motorist!
Manchester
Germany beat us to it
I have just read the February edition of
Rail Professional. Much of interest as
usual, but one point. In the news section
in the story ‘Coming soon to a tunnel
near you’, you mention the ads in
Heathrow’s tunnels as being the first of
their kind in Europe.
Not so, there is a system operating in
a section of tunnel of the Munich S-bahn
network which shows an older lady
apparently running alongside the train.
Exactly what she was advertising I
cannot remember, but the system is in
place, working, and quite entertaining!
Neil Kendall
Route freight manager
Network Rail
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
11

FEATURE NEWS ANALYSIS
THE PRICE OF
SAFETY
The fatal crash at Lambrigg in
Cumbria has set off another
round of rail industry soul
searching.Paul Clifton considers
the implications of the accident
At least this time we know who to
blame. With rail maintenance now
under Network Rail control, chief
executive John Armitt was quick to assume
responsibility for an avoidable crash that
happened ‘on his watch’. Sir Richard Branson
was equally quick to praise him for ‘taking it
on the chin’.
The parallels with the 2002 Potters Bar crash
were quickly identified. There, a train derailed
at high speed on points that also had loose and
missing nuts and faulty stretcher bars. It was the
most recent crash for which the railway was
responsible, killing seven people. Private
contractors had been involved, and it was one
of the factors which led Network Rail to bringing
maintenance work under direct control.
The mistake at Lambrigg appears to have
been even more serious. One of three stretcher
bars seems to have been removed altogether and
not replaced. A visual inspection would have
picked up the error, but Network Rail has
admitted that it did not carry out a scheduled
track inspection in the area on the Sunday
before the crash. The interim report from the
RAIB states that all 36 pairs of wheels on the
Pendolino train derailed at the points.
Mr Justice Sullivan, the High Court judge who
will conduct the inquest into the crash in
Hertfordshire, said the similarities could not be
ignored. He suggested a joint public inquiry
could be held. He adjourned the Potters Bar
inquest, which had been due to begin on 23
April. He said he would write to the transport
secretary, Douglas Alexander, to see whether it
should proceed ‘by way of inquest or public
inquiry or some other route’.
Peter Rayner, a former senior British Rail
manager and now an independent safety
consultant, believes Network Rail is still
suffering a hangover from the Railtrack era,
when different contractors had overlapping
responsibilities along a section of track.
‘The contractor culture has not been
removed,’ he says. ‘There were two failures at
Lambrigg. The first was the failure to maintain
the points. The second was the failure of the
maintenance team to hold their hands up, admit
it and get something done about it.
‘Although Network Rail has brought control
of maintenance in-house, there are still many
contractors. For example, tamping of ballast is
classed as “renewals” work rather than
maintenance and is done by firms such as Jarvis
and Balfour Beatty, which own very expensive
machinery to do the work.’
The RMT union claimed that 90,000 people
have authorised access to railway tracks, but
only one third of them are Network Rail
employees. The rest, says assistant general
secretary Mick Cash, ‘work for contractors and
sub-contractors that can range from Balfour
Beatty to a one-man band’. The union claims
that Network Rail still doesn’t know who is on
the track or what they are doing.
But unlike the aftermath of most other
serious incidents of recent years, there has been
no public witch-hunt for the guilty train
company or contractor. John Armitt quickly put
those flames out by admitting responsibility.
Hatfield, Ladbroke Grove, and Potters Bar led
the public and politicians to believe that the
privatised railway was guilty of putting profits
before safety. That perception led to a
restructuring of the industry.
But there was good news in this crash too.
That’s perhaps insensitive to the people who
have been badly injured, but it’s fair.
Virgin’s Pendolino train survived largely
intact. Carriages that had de-railed at 90 miles
an hour and careered down an embankment
were still in one piece, with even their windows
unbroken. Eighty of the 110 passengers were
able to walk away from the wreckage. The
Pendolino performed far better than an older
train would have done. Tables, seats and other
fittings are more rounded than equipment on
older trains, and together with high seat backs
this helped to reduce the severity of injuries.
Most of the bogies and some of the couplings
remained intact. It has reinforced a perception
that trains are safer now than in previous years.
The design of the rolling stock saved lives that
in the past would have been lost.
Whilst praising the Pendolino, Peter Rayner
believes that of the rolling stock now in use, only
Pacer trains are not crashworthy. He chaired the
inquiry into a crash at Colwich 21 years ago in
which the combined speed of the trains was over
100 miles an hour. Three hundred people were
on the two trains and, although many were badly
hurt and one driver died, no passengers were
killed. In the five years since Potters Bar, the
railway has been largely accident-free, except when
vehicle drivers or pedestrians have been involved.
This run of excellent safety is unprecedented
in the modern railway. There is a clear
12
RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

NEWS ANALYSIS FEATURE
© Robert France
The Lambrigg derailment, where a
Virgin Pendolino derailed and slid
down an embankment.
Although no death of a
passenger can be trivialised,
the railway can be proud of its
safety record.Ten deaths in
five years is an impressive
statistic
implication that, although there continue to be
failings, safety has not deteriorated under the
present ownership structure.
Although no death of a passenger can be
trivialised, the railway can be proud of its safety
record. Ten deaths in five years is an impressive
statistic and one death in a 90 mile an hour
crash is a testament to a safe railway, even if
Network Rail is eventually found to have acted
negligently.
On the same day as the crash, roughly eight
people would have died in road accidents,
and 550 others will have been injured. In
the five years since Potters Bar, more than
15,000 people have died on the roads and
more than 1m have been injured.
One billion passenger journeys a year are
made in complete safety. Statistically, the odds
of a passenger being injured in a train crash are
now slightly better than the chances of being
struck by lightning. In calculating safety, the
prevention of loss of life has to be given a price.
The industry calculates what it spends to save
the equivalent of one person. On the railways,
the value of preventing a single fatality (VPF) is
£1.57m (RSSB, Feb 2007.)
On the roads, the VPF figure is very similar:
£1.43m (DfT, June 2005) That includes costing
lost output through delays and queues, the
‘human’ costs of the individual and the medical
and ambulance costs. But calculated in a
different way, saving a life on the roads can be
as low as £20,000, for such simple things as
removing roadside trees. According to John
Dawson, Chairman of the European Road
Assessment Programme, in Britain 500
motorists die every year from collisions with
roadside objects. Our verges are littered with
bunches of wilting flowers, reminders of lives
cut short because nobody fitted affordable
safety fencing.
‘Death on the roads is routine and
predictable,’ he says. ‘But it should be no more
acceptable than a train or plane crash, or an
industrial injury in the workplace. We must put
in place the low-cost protection measures that
save lives, targeted at single carriageway main
roads outside urban areas. Because that’s where
60 per cent of fatal road accidents occur.’
All but one passenger at Lambrigg survived.
On the roads, only five per cent of pedestrians
survive an impact of more than 32 miles an
hour, yet where speeds are higher, we have
thousands of busy junctions where highways
engineers have done nothing to separate
pedestrians from fast-moving vehicles.
If there is money in the pot to reduce the
number of accident casualties, it should surely
be directed to an area where demonstrably the
biggest benefit is to be achieved: road design.
Paul Clifton is transport correspondent for BBC
South.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
13

INTERVIEW
THE RAIL PROFESSIONAL INTERVIEW
TOM
HARRIS
PARLIAMENTARY UNDER SECRETARY
OF STATE FOR TRANSPORT
Government decisions in 2007 could
shape the railways for years to come.
Can Tom Harris wield true influence
over the Treasury to keep the railways
high up the political agenda?
The rail minister speaks to Paul Coleman
PHOTOGRAPHS BY SIMON WEIR
As long as the painting of a Glasgow Subway
Clockwork Orange train remains on his office wall,
Tom Harris knows his tenure as rail minister is safe.
The garish framed image, of a train being lowered onto tracks
at Govan, was lent to him by Malcolm Reed for as long as
Harris remains rail minister.
Reed, now Transport Scotland’s chief executive, was Harris’
former boss at the now defunct Strathclyde Passenger
Transport Executive. Harris, 43, quit his job as SPTE’s chief
spin-doctor to win the Cathcart seat for Labour in the June
2001 general election. In his maiden speech in the House of
Commons, Harris wryly quoted George Bernard Shaw who
once said: ‘He knows nothing and he thinks he knows
everything. That points clearly to a political career.’
‘I was cock-a-hoop,’ Harris recalls when Tony Blair phoned
him last September to offer him the ministerial job. ‘No other
job is as interesting in terms of its remit,’ says Harris, as his
afternoon is split between a meeting with Douglas Alexander
and an imminent three-line whip Commons vote.
Harris’ ascent from New Labour’s backbenches comes as
passengers and some train companies are crying out for the
Government to fund major investment in extra capacity to cut
overcrowding and cope with projected increases in demand.
The next six months will reveal whether Harris has exercised
any real influence over Gordon Brown and the Treasury or
whether prudence has tied his hands.
Can we afford not to build Crossrail and Thameslink?
‘The Government’s absolutely aware of the capacity and
economic benefits of Crossrail,’ says Harris. ‘These arguments
about the capacity and economic benefits of Crossrail have
been strongly made to the Treasury so I am optimistic about
the Comprehensive Spending Review.’
Harris is similarly confident that the Treasury, the DfT,
Network Rail and the ORR are constructively toiling over this
year’s High Level Output Specification and Statement of Funds
Available. ‘It’ll be about what Eddington referred to as lowhanging
fruit about capacity enhancements,’ says Harris. ‘We’re
not going to solve capacity problems everywhere but it’s a
really exciting departure for the industry and for the
government.
‘We plan for there to be 1,000 extra carriages on the network
– an increase of 10 per cent. This investment programme will
run through to 2014, but we will start bringing in the first of
the new trains as soon as possible. Indeed, we're already talking
to the manufacturers.’
Harris was asking Rail Group officials to spell out industry
acronyms when he first got his feet under his Marsham
Street desk. ‘On my first day, I had to say, “hold on, HLOS
isn’t a real word”. Within a couple of weeks, the deputy
speaker called me to order, asking me to spell acronyms out.
Departmentalitis set in much more quickly than expected.
‘I really do love this job,’ emphasises Irvine-born Harris,
14 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

‘On my first day, I had to say,“hold
on, HLOS isn’t a real word”.Within a
couple of weeks, the deputy speaker
called me to order, asking me to spell
acronyms out. Departmentalitis
set in much more quickly than
expected’

INTERVIEW
Tom Harris with the
painting lent to him by
Malcolm Reed for the
duration of his tenure
as rail minister.
despite the DfT Rail Group’s methods and officials being
swarmed by stinging criticisms accusing them of a premiumblinded
analysis of GNER’s bid, micro-management of First
Great Western’s rolling stock and timetable, the scuppering
of Virgin’s West Coast plans with the Rosco referral, pursuit
of anti-light rail and anti-open access agendas and persistence
with the ‘tactless’ Rail Group director general Mike Mitchell.
Unruffled, Harris aims a swift boot at each rebuke.
‘Mike Mitchell is great,’ declares Harris, defending Mitchell’s
remarks to the Public Accounts Committee that commuters
shouldn’t expect to get a seat in the peak. ‘Mike’s not a
politician. All he did was identify and recognise a fact of life
on the railways that we are trying to address. I rely on him. His
wisdom and knowledge of the industry is second to none.’
Harris, a Labour Party member since 1984, displayed his
parliamentary toughness when a haughty gaggle of mainly
Conservative MPs, led by Theresa May, lambasted the DfT for
allowing FGW to sacrifice commuter services. ‘I am not the
minister for First Great Western,’ Harris threw back at May,
adding: ‘It is not down to me defend the unacceptable level of
service that First Great Western has provided.’
As a former journalist and press officer, Harris seems acutely
sensitive to media commentary about the DfT’s role in the
FGW crisis, even attacking Private Eye. Harris rubbishes
suggestions the Rail Group specified the number of coaches
that FGW should operate. He vehemently denies that his
officials micro-manage franchises and write timetables. ‘Why
would we deliberately create more cramped conditions on any
particular line?’ Harris believes many commuters aren’t fully
aware of the rail industry’s structure. ‘I understand why
commuters want to blame the Government for everything,’ he
says. ‘That’s understandable.’
The MP for the new Glasgow South seat denies the DfT Rail
Group made any mistakes when analysing the GNER bid,
despite Chris Garnett’s admission the company did overbid
for the franchise. The Treasury, Harris says, has no mechanism
to lever premiums out of companies like GNER, FGW or
South West Trains. Bidding companies, he says, produce the
premium profiles. ‘Our accountants analyse those figures and
look at their books,’ says Harris. ‘We say, if these guys can
afford to pay it, why would we go for a lower bid, one that
offered less value for money for the public, when the higher
bid was shown to be sustainable?’
Harris has told MPs there’s never been any doubt over
FGW’s ability to pay the premium to which it is committed
under the franchise. Similarly, he’s unfazed by the cash
promised by SWT. ‘Stagecoach is an experienced company,’
says Harris. ‘It’s a very valuable franchise for them. They know
it inside out. If they think they can meet those premium
payments of £1.2bn over 10 years, then who are we to argue?’
He’s prudently economical with comments about the hail
of criticism that has fallen on the DfT since it referred the
Roscos to the ORR, especially since Angel Trains used the
referral to justify withdrawing from the deal to finance two
extra coaches on each of Virgin’s Pendolino sets. ‘They are a
private company with shareholders to consider,’ says Harris.
‘But we want value for money for taxpayers. I think we had a
genuine grievance and that’s why it was referred to the ORR.’
He shakes his head upon hearing the charge that the Rail
Group is ‘anti-light rail’, a claim invoked by fellow Labour MP
Graham Stringer. ‘As I said to Graham, that is nonsense,’
Harris sighs. ‘I’ve been incredibly impressed by the cast-iron
advice from the Rail Group. It wouldn’t be in the interests of
the light rail industry if we were to give the go-ahead to
schemes that don’t stack up in terms of the business case.
We’d lose cartloads of money.’ But what about the perception
amongst the All Party Parliamentary Group on Light Rail
that Rail Group officials had gone too far, losing sight of the
wider regeneration benefits of light rail schemes?
‘No, I absolutely don’t accept that,’ retorts Harris. ‘I put the
ball back in the hands of the applicants to come up with a
robust business case. It comes back to us being the steward
of the public purse. I know this sounds a bit pompous but
we’ve got to convince people money is well spent,’ Harris adds,
a prudent mantra that suggests he might thrive in a Brownled,
post-Blair world. Not that you’d hear Harris utter a bad
word about Blair. Indeed, Harris’ own impulsive submergence
into politics seems more Blairite than Blair’s own ‘conversion’.
‘Gosh! Originally, it was because of my Christian faith,’ says
Harris.
Harris, now married with two sons, recalls how he was
heavily involved in the church as a youngster, his own social
conscience sharpened by clashing with active Thatcherites
who had proudly ditched their own. The miner’s strike of 1984
tugged him politically leftwards. ‘But I’m not a class warrior,’
16 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

INTERVIEW
‘It wouldn’t be in the interests of the
light rail industry if we were to give the
go-ahead to schemes that don’t stack
up in terms of the business case.We’d
lose cartloads of money. I put the ball
back in the hands of the applicants to
come up with a robust business case.’
says the Beith-raised Scot with understatement that would
make an Englishman proud.
As a young Labour activist, he led an attack on a militant
tendency incursion into the Cathcart Labour Party, which led
to eight people being expelled. He criticised people who refused
to pay Thatcher’s poll tax; and, when Blair won the Labour
leadership election in 1994 and immediately set out to abolish
Old Labour’s totemic Clause IV, Harris stood up to be counted
at a boozy Burns Night fundraising supper organised by the
Maryhill constituency Labour Party. The master of ceremonies
challenged the assembled throng, ‘who in this hall had dared
to vote for Blair?’ Harris recalls: ‘I was the only person who put
my hand up. It’s remembered by some.’
Perhaps the one quality that sets Harris apart from Blair and
company is his distaste for using football as an Arctic Monkeystype
badge of cool. ‘Hampden Park is in my constituency but
I’m bored by football like no other subject bores anybody.’
Harris is a union man, whose father – also Tom – was a lorry
driver. He’s a member of Amicus, the Co-op Party, the Fabians
and the Christian Socialist Movement, but he’d be an unlikely
inclusion on Gerry Doherty’s TSSA Christmas card list, let
alone that of the RMT. His take on rail privatisation is that ‘at
the time, it was an unmitigated disaster’, a political ruse by
John Major, who resented being overshadowed by Margaret
Thatcher. However, he seems to think all’s well that ends well:
‘I don’t think it is a disaster that the industry is largely in the
private sector.’
Harris asserts that passenger safety has never been higher.
‘You are far safer travelling from London to Glasgow by train
than you are by driving,’ says Harris. Of course, the rail minister
was speaking to me before the fatal Cumbria derailment, yet
his comment is still robust enough to recall police figures that
detail 35 fatal road crashes in 2005 – in Cumbria alone.
Since Lambrigg, Harris has avowed the DfT’s determination
to ensure that any new safety measures that emerge from
RAIB’s investigation will be swiftly implemented. He’s also
voiced sadness at the death of 84-year-old Margaret Masson,
who hailed from Glasgow.
Harris believes that – post-SRA – the rail industry structure
is just about right. ‘It’s a logical, private industry specified by
government,’ says Harris. ‘Don’t blame the structure for
failures. Let’s get on with the job,’ he concludes, giving the
impression that he’d be unhappy if he is spun through the
DfT’s revolving ministerial doors clutching Dr Reed’s painting
under his arm.
See RBA review for Tom Harris’ speech at the awards.
Harris was one of the
few Blair supporters in
his Glasgow
constituency when the
now prime minister
was elected party
leader in 1994.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
17

FRANCHISING
GNER
EASTERN
PHILOSOPHY
Breakfast is served onboard a GNER Mallard.
With just a few months to go until the winner of the ECML franchise is announced,Alan Whitehouse takes a
closer look at the bidders and what they might be able to offer
The one thing you can say about the East Coast Main Line is that
since privatisation, it has never failed to generate news of one
sort or another.
It was one of the first sections of the railway system to be privatised
and it quickly drew attention with a radical commitment to put some of
the romance and elegance back into everyday travel. More recently, the
rail industry was agog when the size of the franchise premium offered
by GNER became known; and last, but not least, it has become the first
franchise that the Government has stood back and allowed to fail as a
lesson to the others.
Now it is shaping up to be one of the more interesting franchise battles.
In around three months’ time we will have a new franchisee chosen from
the short-list of four.
In some ways this is pretty predictable line-up: Virgin, whose long-held
ambition to run the East Coast Main Line is well-known; National
Express, smarting from the loss of Scotrail and anxious to expand its
18 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

FRANCHISING
rail portfolio; First, trying to contain its little local difficulties on Greater
Western; and Arriva, currently the holder of just one franchise, for Wales.
The unknown quantity comes from GNER itself. Instead of laying down
and dying as per the re-franchising script, the management team is alive,
kicking and insisting it will do all it can to preserve the levels of service
and customer care which made the company the rail travellers’ darling.
But which of the four will they team
up with? Those in the know say there
is so little common ground between
GNER and First – which is, after all,
taking buffet cars out of its trains –
that no deal would be possible. Those
same knowledgeable sources reckon
that approaches to National Express
and Virgin were made, but rebuffed.
That leaves Arriva. And Arriva and
GNER could be a better fit than they
might at first look. Arriva has so far
had a hard time with rail franchising in this country. Brought in as a white
knight to save the transport department from the follies of MTL, it became
the incumbent in what has eventually amounted to three franchises and
it managed to lose the lot – Merseyrail , Trans-Pennine (which became
TransPennine Express and went to First) and Regional Railways North
East, which cut and shut with RR North West and is now Northern Rail.
That leaves Wales and more experiences of running local and
commuter services. What Arriva lacks is any experience in operating
UK long distance express trains. This is a box that GNER’s management
team can tick better than most. But, if you are sifting through the franchise
bids, do you throw Arriva/GNER into your waste bin anyway, on the
grounds that these are the guys – at GNER – who got it so badly wrong
in the first place?
That ought not to happen. If the £1.3bn franchise premium offered by
GNER is set aside, then the franchise is basically a sound business. With
the premium burden removed, it is nicely profitable. It has innovated in
the past and continues to do so: £45m on refurbishing the HST fleet is
one demonstration of that. Bringing the half-hourly Leeds service to
fruition is another.
When you glance back to what the ECML looked like at privatisation,
and compare it with today, the record is not a bad one. Thirty years ago,
when those high speed trains first came to the route, there were 26 trains
between Leeds and London. By 1996 it was 37. Today it is 53. The halfhourly
service will take it to 65. These extra services form part of the
core on which all four bidders will base their offers, so it is difficult to
see this as anything other than solid achievement. In addition, passenger
numbers – the setback of 7 July now receding into the distance –
continue to grow. Selling tickets will be the last problem the new
franchisee will face.
What of the competition? First is off to a bad start. For the first time
in a franchising contest, the DfT is making it plain that the bottom line
will not be the only deciding factor. Sitting alongside franchise premia
will be each bidder’s track record – another important box that the GNER
team could tick on Arriva’s behalf. First has a problem here. The Greater
Western franchise has got off to a poor start and having the MPs of the
Thames Valley queuing at the DfT’s door to complain and demand that
First are stripped of the franchise – even though it will not happen –
must see them marked down.
National Express has established itself as a safe pair of hands. Midland
Mainline is the best long-distance franchise on the PPM by a country
mile. Its passengers are by and large a satisfied lot. The only cloud on
the horizon could be the competition issue: would it really be wise to
The unknown quantity comes from GNER
itself. Instead of laying down and dying as
per the re-franchising script, the
management team is alive, kicking and
insisting it will do all it can to preserve the
levels of service and customer care. But
which of the four will they team up with?
have two of the three main lines to the north and the dominant motorway
coach service owned by one company? Assuming, that is, that National
Express retains MML as part of the new East Midlands franchise.
Virgin, like the rest, is saying little about what its actual plans for the
route are. Virgin simply says it is intending to operate a fast and safe
service and will look at cutting journey times – but this will not be
achieved by attempting to run at
speeds over 125 mph as the West
Coast franchise is currently trying to
do. The DfT has a real juggling act
here. The £1.3bn promised under the
old franchise was a key part of the
department’s plans to turn around
railway finances. The premia offered
during the new contest will be
important and discreet pressure will be
applied by the Treasury to ensure that
cash is king.
But – and this is GNER’s true legacy – in a climate where the fate of
the GNER restaurant car can take centre stage in a Lords debate on the
future of the ECML, the DfT will find it difficult to justify appointing any
franchisee who promises to take an axe to the restaurant service and
thin out the rest of the customer-care staff – both on the trains and on
the platform.
Which would leave Arriva/GNER with just one problem: what colour
to paint the trains.
Alan Whitehouse is transport correspondent for BBC North.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
19

FEATURE ROLLING STOCK
CONDITIONS
OF CARRIAGE
The Government’s promising a
thousand new carriages to ease
congestion. But where? Nobody’s
saying. Even the train operators
are left guessing.Paul Clifton does
some investigating
Rail commuters are being promised an
extra 1,000 carriages to be used on the
most congested routes on the network.
They would be delivered between 2009 and 2014,
at a cost to the government of £130m a year.
The commitment was made by the transport
secretary, Douglas Alexander, who says it is ‘an
important first step’ in tackling overcrowding.
‘My department is actively considering exactly
where these carriages be added and has very
recently begun to discuss with train
manufacturers how they can cost-effectively be
delivered. Of course these carriages are not the
only answer. We will need investment in
infrastructure as well,’ he says.
Senior rail industry executives were in the dark
about the detail. Calls to the Department for
Transport brought no enlightenment. ‘The
transport secretary wanted people to know the
way he was thinking as he prepares for the High
Level Output Statement in the summer,’ was as
far as a department spokesman would be drawn.
Would he be looking for the rapid results of
repeat orders of existing designs, or a fresh
approach to commuter services? Both
Bombardier and Siemens have spare production
line capacity. ‘We would expect ideas to come
from a vigorous international tendering process,’
says the spokesman. The news was strongly
welcomed by both Atoc and Passenger Focus. ‘We
badly need these additional trains and we need
to get them quickly,’ says George Muir.
The RMT union was less fulsome in its praise.
‘It would be even better news if the Government
were to signal that it will move away from the
A Bombardier engineer works on a Class 377 Electrostar
for Southern.Will more orders follow?
wholly unnecessary reliance on the Roscos that
have robbed our railways blind and raked in
profits at obscene rates,’ says Bob Crow, the union
general secretary.
Liberal Democrat transport spokesman Alistair
Carmichael suggested Network Rail should own
the trains and operate as a rolling stock leasing
company. ‘Given the Government’s record of
incompetence at managing the railways,’ he says,
‘taxpayers will be rightly worried about them
spending at least £4bn on new rolling stock.’
The industry puts a more realistic estimate at
a little over £1bn. ‘Overcrowding is already
endemic, and we’ve been promised all this before
in the Ten Year Plan five years ago,’ says Shadow
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling. ‘This is just
another “jam tomorrow” announcement.’
Alexander recognised that most new trains in
the last decade have been for the replacement of
old stock, and not for growth in capacity. In the
Mark 1 slam-door replacement, all but 300 of the
Bombardier
carriages were replacements – and that’s without
counting seating capacity. Alexander also pointed
to future funding. ‘We are building a railway that
starts to create the means for its own improvement
and increasingly from revenue rather than
subsidy.’
So where will the carriages go? Alexander says
they would be in addition to other replacement
programmes, including the inter-city express fleet.
That would include HST2 and discussions over
additional Pendolino and Voyager carriages on
Virgin’s West Coast and Cross Country franchises.
Alexander says the carriages would go where
congestion is greatest. That means the London
commuter region will inevitably get the lion’s
share, moving towards a 12-car suburban railway.
South West Trains, South Central and
Southeastern in particular would require longer
suburban trains, stopping at lengthened
platforms. The suburban services of First Great
Western, formerly Thames Trains, are another
obvious candidate.
When Rail Professional contacted these train
operators, each said it had been given no
indications by government. The trains would help
to serve rapidly growing employment centres such
as Reading and Croydon, where inward
commuting is now greater than the daily outward
flow into London. It was also suggested that at
least some new rolling stock would lengthen trains
serving Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and
Liverpool.
A thousand carriages represent roughly 10 per
cent increase in the total stock. A few would be
replacements rather than real growth. It seems
increasingly likely the redundant Class 442
Wessex Electric trains from SWT will end up on
the scrap heap rather than on the Brighton line.
And Alexander made no mention of either
Thameslink 2000 or Crossrail.
With passenger numbers growing by 10 per
cent a year on some routes, would the new trains
even keep up with demand? We must wait for
July’s High Level Output Statement and
Statement of Funds Available for answers.
20
RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

FEATURE TRAINING
SENT TO COVENTRY
Back in 2005,Network Rail
revealed that it was to set up a
new training centre to strengthen
the company’s leadership
capabilities.It’s been open for
business for just over a year and
Peter Plisner has been looking at
what it’s achieved so far
When Network Rail was created from
the ashes of Railtrack, one area that
was seen as crucial to the new ‘notfor-dividend’
company was staff development
and particularly the leadership skills.
It wasn’t long before board members were
expressing concern that they didn’t have
sufficient processes in place to develop talent
and succession within the company. Also,
Network Rail had no idea what strength of
leadership existed within its senior
management team.
The board called for action and the answer
was the Westwood Leadership Centre. The
complex, close to the campus of Warwick
University – which is actually in Coventry – was
bought from the communications firm Cable
and Wireless. The deal, rumoured to be worth
around £20m, instantly gave Network Rail its
own residential training and conference centre.
It’s now just over a year since Westwood
welcomed its first students and the man in
charge of leadership, Marc Auckland, is proud
of what’s been achieved. He joined Network
Rail three years ago and his brief was to sell the
idea of raising the leadership benchmark and
improving the strength of the organisation. As
part of a wide-ranging analysis, he
recommended that Network Rail should look
for a centre for leadership, which should be
more than just a location for training and
development. Westwood has since become
‘business critical’ to Network Rail.
Auckland says: ‘I was a little cynical when I
first came in. Sometimes boards of companies
make statements but they don’t actually follow
it through. Network Rail’s board truly did. They
put up the money to invest in the centre. They
worked closely with me and a small team to set
up the partnership with the Warwick Business
Professor Colin Carnall, from Warwick Business school, leads a session on change management for HR staff.
Westwood’s management team win Personnel Today’s
Talent Management Award.
School and other key preferred partners. They
also come along, open and speak at every
programme we run there.’
Auckland maintains that the involvement of
board members helps to keep them clued up
on what operational managers, at every level of
the business, are saying. He says: ‘It’s
something that’s valuable to every company, no
matter how big or small.’
Westwood runs what’s termed ‘Stepping
Stone’ programmes, designed for front line,
middle and senior leaders within the railways.
Courses are modular, accredited and last just
one year. At the end of each module, managers
have to complete an assignment to show that
they’ve put the knowledge they’ve learnt into
the workplace. It’s then evaluated when they
go back to Westwood for the next session.
Auckland says: ‘We’re assessing some of those
assignments and we’re finding them adding
value to the business, some of them into the
millions of pounds.’
Indeed, according to Network Rail, one
recent assignment that looked at how to make
maximum use of the rail network for freight
could potentially save a million delay minutes
each year. Auckland says: ‘What we’re trying to
do is get the proposals, put them in and
measure them over a year and see what there
difference is.’ It’s a concept that’s no stranger
to a development specialist like Auckland.
He used to work for BT which ran a similar
programme affiliated to University College
London. Work there brought huge savings, even
helping to recover the cost of the training
programmes themselves. One idea to come out
of the BT management college was its highly
successful Friends and Family initiative. To
ensure that assignments don’t end up gathering
dust on shelves, the line managers of those who
attend Westwood are involved in a ‘learning
contract’. It involves helping to set tasks and
assignments that will be applied in the
workplace.
Ultimately, Auckland wants to make the
programmes self financing. The leadership
activity is governed by a board called the
Leadership Development Group (LDG) which
includes Network Rail’s deputy chief executive
22
RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

TRAINING
Network Rail’s Westwood Leadership Centre has been open for a year, running Stepping Stone programmes, designed for front line, middle and senior leaders.
Iain Coucher, projects director Peter
Henderson and finance director Ron
Henderson. It also includes key directors who
collectively are responsible for 90 per cent of
managers and leaders across Network Rail.
They’re ideally placed to provide direction for
the management programmes. Auckland says:
‘They lead, coach and counsel me on where
they’re taking the company and I feed that into
the content of the courses. That way we can
make sure that the training is aligned with the
way the company wants to go.’
The LDG also decides who gets offered
places at Westwood. They receive
recommendations from their directors. One
important criterion for high-flying students is
that they must have the potential to become
the next Network Rail board members. A
development centre then assesses their
potential and successful candidates leave with
a development plan for their time at Westwood.
And it’s not just high flyers that are getting
places at Westwood. Auckland says: ‘We’re
taking everyone from your sort of staff
sergeants, your first line supervisors, leading
trackmen on the maintenance side right up to
band one managers.’
‘All the Stepping Stone courses at Westwood
are accredited and most participants can end
up with a professional qualification. The
courses award CAT points which count towards
MBAs and MScs.’
They’re also run in conjunction with some
high-profile partners. Westwood has hired in
expertise from nearby Warwick University and
from the Centre for High Performance
Development (CHPD). The professors and
other experts that work with Westwood have
been around the whole Network Rail operation
including visits to signal boxes. Auckland says:
‘The idea is that they live, eat and breathe our
world and our issues, so they can bring that
‘We’re assessing some of
those assignments and we’re
finding them adding value to
the business, some of them
into the millions of pounds’
Marc Auckland
into the classroom and into the assignments.’
It all helps to improve the credibility of the
tuition that managers receive at Westwood.
Many of the lecturers also attend the
Operational Executive meetings on a quarterly
basis to help add value to the continuing
assessment process of the centre. Auckland
adds: ‘We have a debate with the Exec putting
in some ideas about what we need to do next.’
Westwood has already been recognised for
its achievements. It recently scooped a top
award, winning the Talent Management Award
at the Personnel Today Awards. Its success has
also been recognised through assessments
made using the ‘Gallup Q12’ engagement
survey. It measures team leadership skills before
and after training courses.
The survey asks several key questions about
team management and provides an ideal
measure of indicators like worker engagement
Westwood, near Warwick University, was bought from
Cable and Wireless for a rumoured £20m.
and staff motivation. The end result of all the
hard work put in by Marc Auckland and his
colleagues could be the recruitment of more
people with potential back into the rail industry.
At the moment those with talent often look
elsewhere.
He says: ‘What we’ve got to do is get more
confident about banging the drum. I don’t just
mean putting a spin on it because there’s a long
way to go.’ He cites achievements including
Network Rail’s apprenticeship programme,
which is one of the largest in Europe, and
recent successes for Westwood in winning
awards. ‘It all helps to test out how we rank with
the best out there. I think, as an industry, you’re
almost too shy to highlight the areas that you’re
doing well, because you get knocked so much
for the areas you don’t do so well.’
Many multinational companies have been
swapping in-house training for cheaper
alternatives provided by outside organisations.
But Network Rail has been going in the
opposite direction.
Ultimately, Westwood’s achievements will
filter through into a better-performing Network
Rail and that’s certainly a prospect that all those
who come into contact with the company,
including its passengers, will certainly applaud
in the future. Auckland says: ‘We’re producing
managers with proven quality of leadership
skills required to move the industry on. In the
long-term it’s got to be good for the Network
Rail and that means it’ll be beneficial to the
customer.’
Of course, in the light of the Lambrigg
accident, if the ultimate responsibility for the
derailment is found to lie with Network Rail,
the company may find itself having to look even
harder at its management systems.
Peter Plisner is the BBC’s Midlands transport
correspondent.
24 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

THE HSBC RAIL BUSINESS AWARDS 2006
Review
Grosvenor House Hotel, Park Lane, London
Wednesday 28 February 2007

HSBC Rail Business Awards 2006 Review
Celebrating
success
The ninth annual RBA awards
gave Britain’s rail industry a
chance to look back on the
achievements of the last year.
Katie Silvester reports on
highlights of the evening
Following hot on the heels of the Oscars, the
HSBC Rail Business Awards may lack some
of the glamour and tear-filled acceptance
speeches of the Academy Awards, but they
mean every bit as much to the winners and
nominees in UK rail industry.
February’s awards saw more than 800
senior figures from the rail industry gather at
the Grosvenor House Hotel to celebrate
excellence within the industry.
The ninth annual Rail Business Awards
were opened by Tom Harris, parliamentary
Rail Minister
Tom Harris spoke
at the ceremony.
More than 800 professionals from the rail
industry attended the awards evening.
under secretary of state for transport. He
commented that it is often noted that he is
one of the few transport ministers who has
actually worked in the industry, joking that he
had, in fact, had a somewhat chequered
career: ‘I worked for the Scottish Labour Party
for the two years leading up to our defeat at
the 1992 general election,’ he admitted.
‘I then worked for Strathclyde Regional
Council, which was abolished while I was
working there. I then worked for Strathclyde
Passenger Transport, which has since been
abolished. I then worked for the Parliamentary
Private Secretary to the Rt Hon John Spellar,
the Northern Ireland minister who was
subsequently sacked. I’m now a member of
the Government. Watch this space!’
On a more sober note, he, and other
speakers, paid tribute to the emergency
services and the NHS for their work following
the derailment at Lambrigg, Cumbria, as well
as voicing his sympathy for the victims,
particularly the relatives of Margaret Masson,
who died. The accident occurred just a few
days before the awards evening, which took
place on 28 February. The Minister also vowed
that action would be taken ‘immediately’ if
accident investigators identified anything that
needed to be done to improve safety.
The awards were hosted by the BBC’s
Breakfast television business presenter
Declan Curry and each winner was briefly
interviewed on stage after accepting their
award by Paul Clifton, BBC South’s transport
correspondent, who is also a Rail Professional
columnist and one of the judges.
There were a few surprises in store. First
Transpennine Express bagged no fewer than
four awards – more than any other winner has
claimed in one year. And the coveted Train
Operator of the Year Award went to freight
haulier Freightliner, sweeping aside nine
passenger train operators which were also up
for the award – another first.
Judges recognised that First TransPennine
Express’s passengers had taken to its new
rolling stock ‘in a big way’. FTP’s managing
director Vernon Barker was recognised as a

HSBC Rail Business Awards 2006 Review
‘clear winner’ in the Business Manager of the
Year, with judges acknowledging that ‘his
reputation as a customer-driven business
leader is well known’. The operator’s student
campaign was found to be a ‘strong campaign
that had good application and execution’. FTP
also took the Rail Business of the Year Award.
Freightliner was recognised by the judges
for launching new services, founding a new
divisional company and investing millions of
pounds in specialist equipment staff and IT
resources in order to offer a better service to
its customers. They called its achievements
‘significant and clear’.
Another victory, which saw a small
company snag an award that much bigger
operators were up for, was Northern Ireland
Railways’ win in the PR Campaign category
for its Dead Cert campaign, raising awareness
of the dangers of level crossings. The judges
recognised ‘the consistently high level of
PR/communications campaigns that are
being implemented by this organisation, with
limited resources’, which saw it fend off the
huge Eurostar Da Vinci Code campaign.
The Rail Safety and Security Excellence
category had an impressive 15 entrants,
topped only by the Engineering Excellence
awards with 19 nominations. The safety
award was won by Halcrow and Arriva Trains
Wales for its Risk Triggered Commentary,
which judges recognised as assisting drivers
‘in retaining important safety information,
particularly in relation to signal aspects
thereby contributing to the avoidance of
Spads’. Engineering Excellence was awarded
to Silverlink for its Class 321 trains. Judges
noted the operator had ‘achieved a really high
reliability from this train fleet’.
GNER also won an award, despite having
handed back its East Coast Main Line
franchise. The company came first in the IT
category for its onboard wi-fi capability – it is
the first train operator in the UK to offer
uninterrupted wi-fi service and has the
world’s biggest fleet of internet-enabled
carriages. Judges called this ‘a big step
forward’.
Merseyrail’s Liverpool South station, a
multi-modal interchange for south Liverpool
and John Lennon airport, won the Station
Excellence award. In handing over the award,
judge Peter Plisner noted that ‘although
schemes like this are expensive in cost terms,
it’s worth every penny when you look at early
usage figures’.
National Rail Enquiries took the Rail
Supplier of the Year award, with judges
recognising ‘a world class operation that
monitors its own performance well and is
already looking to embrace the next
generation of information platforms’.
Internal communications was won by
Gatwick Express for its customer service
initiative – a campaign which also won an
award in the Railway Industry Innovation
Awards. Judges found that ‘the commitment
of the management and the internal
communications team is evident and
exceptional’.
Paul Clifton was on fine form and took the
opportunity once or twice to remind winners
that the rail minister was within earshot as
they accepted their awards, prompting them to
reiterate some of the rail industry’s biggest
concerns while they had a captive audience.
‘You must desperately need the upgrading of
the freight route from Southampton to the
Midlands,’ urged Clifton, as Freighliner director
Peter Maybury accepted the Train Operator
award. Maybury agreed that it was ‘crucial’.
First TransPennine Express also took the
opportunity to mention their hopes of
increasing capacity in the future. ‘We could do
with some more trains,’ joked managing
director Vernon Barker, following hints from
Clifton. ‘Give us a fourth vehicle!’
Declan Curry’s witty repartee ensured that
the ceremony ran seamlessly, while HSBC’s
Peter Aldridge adeptly summed up the year’s
high points, reminding everyone of all that
the industry has achieved and why the
evenings awards were so richly deserved.

HSBC Rail Business Awards 2006 Review
We are all winners
News of the accident on the West Coast
Mainline in Cumbria had come just days
before the HSBC Rail Industry Business
Awards event and, as we gathered at the
Grosvenor House Hotel, the shock of the
incident was still fresh in our minds.
But although a life had been tragically lost
and serious injuries sustained, I believe we all
felt that a number of encouraging aspects had
emerged from the incident to temper at least
some of the shock. The first was the
professionalism of train driver and crew who
did all they could to protect and help their
passengers, a clear demonstration of the high
level of training now in place across the
industry.
Secondly we saw how the strength and
design of the new rolling stock had
undoubtedly played a major part in helping
save lives that not long ago would have been
lost.
For nearly a decade the Rail Business
Awards have seen a continuous flow of
improvements in the railway, not least in
standards of safety. But this latest incident
served as a forceful reminder that our work is
far from complete.
Everyone knows just how big a priority
safety is in this industry. Terrible though the
accident was, it clearly could have been very
much worse had training standards not been at
an all time high and modern trains vastly safer
than those of the past. The introduction of
TPWS is also bringing about a giant step
forward in accident prevention.
On this occasion the media coverage was
much more balanced than has been the case
after previous accidents – perhaps because the
last five years have seen an unprecedented
improvement in safety.
Though mindful of the bereaved and the
injured, some of whom at the time remained in
hospital facing a long period of recovery, all
attending the awards ceremony found the
event to be once again the enjoyable occasion
everyone has come to expect.
And after seven years sponsoring the awards
and hosting one of the industry's most looked
forward to social events, HSBC Rail’s
enthusiasm for the Rail Business Awards is
undiminished. In fact we have grown so
accustomed to being part of RBA that HSBC
Rail has agreed to extend its sponsorship for a
further three years.
As well as the continuous effort to improve
PETER ALDRIDGE, Head of HSBC Rail
‘HSBC Rail’s enthusiasm for
the Rail Business Awards is
undiminished. In fact HSBC
Rail has agreed to extend
its sponsorship for
another three years’
safety, the railway is making great strides in
other areas too:
• 2006 saw a doubling of growth in passenger
numbers, not least due to the efforts of the train
operators in attracting people onto the railway;
• More journeys made on the network last year
than at any time in the past 60 years;
• Freight and passenger numbers are up by 50
per cent over the last decade;
• Passenger satisfaction stands at a
respectable 80 per cent;
• Even the unfinished business of raising
punctuality levels is progressing – as Network
Rail and the operators move us steadily closer
to the 90 per cent mark – one which I suspect
we are really not very far away from achieving!
• Most important of all, the trend line of
significant accidents on the railways continues
to fall. Despite the tragic accident in Cumbria, it
is important to emphasise how much safer the
railway is today than it was just 10 years ago.
The rail statistics would not be getting better
without the dedication, hard work and flair of
professionals right across the industry. Modern,
busy railways require a whole range of talent –
from IT, customer service and communications
to finance and engineering.
During 2006, all parts of the industry worked
together to meet the challenge of growth. But
we all know that we are already operating at
full capacity, and often at overcapacity, to meet
increasing demand. If we are to meet the
challenge of growth next year and the years
after, we will need some support and clarity
from Government.
This is the year in which the Government
must set out its strategic plan and decide what
funds will be available, both in the High Level
Output Statement and the three-year spending
review. If the Government puts its money on
the table and specifies how it wants to see
growth met, I have no doubt that we, the
professionals working in this industry, will
deliver it.
The rolling stock manufacturers and the
Roscos deserve a pat on the back for the year
they have had too. Vast numbers of new trains
are now in service and many more trains are
being refurbished and are delivering superior
performance, availability, reliability and safety.
We are proud of the value that we provide for
our customers through the leasing of our train
sets.
Since privatisation, the Roscos collectively
have invested some £4bn in new rolling stock
as well as a great deal in maintenance and
refurbishment. Of trains in service today 44
per cent were built in the last 10 years, but we
only have four per cent extra stock carrying the
thousands more people now using the railway
as most of the new stock replaced life-expired
fleets.
It would be great if the same again could be
invested in the railways over the next 10 years,
helping to deliver an even better performance.
To do so, we need regulatory certainty and the
commitment of Government to fund a railway
that has enough capacity for all the passengers
and freight businesses wanting to use it.
The current scale of expansion continues to
exceed anything envisaged by politicians at the
time of rail privatisation, when pundits were
predicting a further decline in the industry. So I
think all of us, as well as those who carried off
the awards, can consider ourselves winners.
Together we have thoroughly modernised an
industry that just a decade or so ago was
thought by many to have no future, but which
is now equipped to successfully provide a
transport solution fit for the 21st century.

The Review
Halcrow and Arriva Trains Wales – Rail Safety
National Rail Enquiries – Rail Supplier
Merseyrail and Merseytravel – Station Excellence
First TransPennine Express – Rail Marketing Campaign
RAIL SAFETY AND
SECURITY EXCELLENCE
OF THE YEAR
For the introduction of the most
innovative railway safety or
security improvement.
The entries, in alphabetical
order, were:
Atkins and Metronet
C2C
Central Trains
Cosalt:Ballycare
GKD Europe
GNER
Halcrow and Arriva Trains Wales
LPA Ecxil Electronics
Metronet Rail
Northern Rail
One
Silverlink Metro
Southern
South West Trains
Tube Lines
Brian Clementson, career
railman and visiting professor at
Newcastle University,
announced the shortlist and the
judges’ decision:
GNER – for its Zero Tolerance
campaign, focusing on antisocial
behaviour, verbal and
physical abuse of staff and fare
evasion.
HALCROW AND ARRIVA TRAINS
WALES – for its ‘risk triggered
commentary’ (RTC) as a tool to
help train drivers avoid SPADS.
METRONET RAIL – for its yellow
escalator combs, which help the
elderly and visually impaired
identify the aluminium edge of
the moving steps.
ONE – for its personal tracker
device which improves safety
for lone workers at night, by
connecting them to a control
centre.
Winner: HALCROW AND ARRIVA
TRAINS WALES
THE FRASER EAGLE
MANAGEMENT SERVICES
RAIL SUPPLIER OF
THE YEAR
For the company providing the
most outstanding business
service to the rail industry.
The entries were:
Cubic Transportation Systems and
Rail Settlement Plan
Heathrow Connect and ICTS
Institution of Railway Operators
Momentum Services
National Rail Enquiries
Neil Atkins, managing director of
Fraser Eagle Partnerships,
announced the shortlist:
NATIONAL RAIL ENQUIRIES – for
the provision of rail information
through an increasing number of
channels.
INSTITUTION OF RAILWAY
OPERATORS – for the development
of degree and diploma courses for
railway operators.
Winner: NATIONALRAILENQUIRIES
NCP STATION
EXCELLENCE OF THE YEAR
For the introduction of the most
successful new idea or outstanding
business performance at
a UK passenger rail station.
The entries were:
C2C
Central Trains
Chiltern Railways
Cobalt Telephone Technologies
GNER
London Underground (two entries)
Merseyrail and Merseytravel
Merseyrail
One
South West Trains
South Yorkshire Passenger
Transport Executive
Southern

Richard Talbot, general manager of
NCP, announced the shortlist and
the judges’ decision:
LONDON UNDERGROUND – for
Wembley Park station.
MERSEYRAIL AND
MERSEYTRAVEL – for Liverpool
South Parkway station.
MERSEYRAIL – for M to Go, the
booking office and convenience
store.
SOUTH YORKSHIRE PTE –
Sheffield station.
Winner: MERSEYRAIL AND
MERSEYTRAVEL
RAIL MARKETING
CAMPAIGN OF THE YEAR
For the most outstanding
marketing campaign within the
UK’s rail industry during 2006
The entries were:
C2C and Silverlink
Central Trains
Eurostar
First TransPennine Express
GNER
NI Railways
Norfolk County Council PTE
One
Stagecoach Group
Marketing consultant Roy
Campbell announced the shortlist
and the judges’ decision:
CENTRAL TRAINS – for its Over
50s campaign, offering price
discounts for older travellers.
FIRST TRANSPENNINE EXPRESS
– for the Bob Trotter Student Getaway
Campaign, which relaunched
the Student Getaway ticket.
NORTHERN IRELAND RAILWAYS –
for a comprehensive campaign to
reposition rail as a viable
alternative to the car
STAGECOACH – for its
Megatrain.com website, offering
discounted advance fares.
Winner: FIRST TRANSPENNINE
EXPRESS
ROLLING STOCK
EXCELLENCE OF
THE YEAR
For the introduction of the most
successful new trains or new
development in passenger or
freight trains.
First TransPennine Express and Siemens – Rolling Stock Excellence
Northern Ireland Railways – Rail PR Campaign

HSBC Rail Business Awards 2006 Review
The entries were:
Eurostar
First TransPennine Express
GNER
Hull Trains
Silverlink County
South West Trains/
Porterbrook/
Wabtec Rail
Stagecoach Supertram and
Atkins
Tube Lines and London
Underground
Alan Whitehouse, Rail
Professional columnist and BBC
North’s transport correspondent,
announced the shortlist and the
winning entry:
FIRST TRANSPENNINE EXPRESS
AND SIEMENS – for its £250m
investment in class 158s and
depots.
TUBE LINES AND LONDON
UNDERGROUND – for the Seventh
Car project on the Jubilee Line,
which came in under budget and
ahead of schedule.
STAGECOACH SUPERTRAM AND
ATKINS – for the refurbishment of
the Sheffield Supertram.
Winner: FIRST TRANSPENNINE
EXPRESS AND SIEMENS
RAIL PR CAMPAIGN
OF THE YEAR
For the most outstanding PR
campaign within the UK’s rail
industry during 2006.
The entries were:
Eurostar
First TransPennine Express
London Underground
Northern Ireland Railways
One
Siemens Transportation Systems
Tube Lines
PR consultant and category judge
Sanjay Mistry announced the
shortlist and the winning entry:
EUROSTAR – for its Da Vinci Code
campaign, in conjunction with
Columbia Pictures.
NORTHERN IRELAND RAILWAYS –
for its Dead Cert Campaign which
raised awareness of safety issues
relating to the introduction of new
trains.
ONE – for its campaign to raise
awareness of its upgrade of the
mainline intercity service between
Norwich and London.
TUBE LINES – for its external
communications during the
addition of a seventh carriage to
Silverlink – Engineering Excellence
every Jubilee Line train.
Winner: NORTHERN IRELAND
RAILWAYS
ENGINEERING
EXCELLENCE OF
THE YEAR
For civil, mechanical or electrical
engineering projects or services
within the rail industry.
The entries were:
AB Connectors
Atkins (three entries)
C2C
Carillion (two entries)
First Scotrail
Grantplant
Grantrail Signalling
Heathrow Express
London Underground
Metronet Rail and GB Railfreight
Northern Rail
One (two entries)
Silverlink County
South West Trains
Tube Lines
Ed Wells, head of assurance at
Tube Lines, announced the
shorlisted entrants and the judges’
decision:
ATKINS AND TAYLOR WOODROW
– for the First Transpennine
Express depot at Ardwick, which
was delivered with minimal
disruption.
C2C – for the Class 357 Eurostar
Vernon Barker – Rail Business Manager
GNER – Information Technology Excellence
Gatwick Express – Internal Communications Excellence
Freightliner – Train Operator of the Year

HSBC Rail Business Awards 2006 Review
units by East Ham depot.
SILVERLINK – For Bletchley depot’s
work on the class 321 units
TUBE LINES – for Tubevac, a
powerful vacuum excavation
machine for removing ballast with
minimal disturbance.
Winner: SILVERLINK
RAIL BUSINESS
MANAGER OF THE YEAR
For the most outstanding business
professional working in the UK rail
industry.
The entries were:
Vernon Barker – First
TransPennine Express
Martin Grier – First Capital
Connect
Clive Morris – One
Tony Smith – C2C
Kevin Walker – GB Railfreight
Colin Watts – Freightliner
JUDGES 2006
Steve Agg (chairman of the
judges)
Chief executive, Institute of
Logistics and Transport
Peter Aldridge
Head of HSBC Rail (UK)
Paul Brasington
Internal communications
consultant
Roy Campbell
Marketing consultant
Brian Clementson
Chairman of the Wheel Rail
Interface System Authority
Paul Clifton
BBC transport correspondent
for southern England and Rail
Professional columnist
Richard Gostling
Railway Industry Association
Alan Marshall
Editorial director of Railnews
Sanjay Mistry
At Public Relations
Peter Plisner
BBC Transport correspondent
for the Midlands and Rail
Professional columnist
Ed Wells
Head of assurance at Tube Lines
Alan Whitehouse
BBC transport correspondent
for northern England and Rail
Professional columnist
Peter Aldridge, head of HSBC Rail
(UK), announced the shortlist and
the judges decision:
VERNON BARKER, First
TransPennine Express – who
has helped transform rail
travel for people in the north
of England.
COLIN WATTS, Freightliner – who
is the driving force behind
Freightliner’s new division
Logico.
KEVIN WALKER, GB Railfreight –
who rose from train driver to
board member in just six years.
Winner: VERNON BARKER, FIRST
TRANSPENNINE EXPRESS
RAILNEWS INTERNAL
COMMUNICATIONS
EXCELLENCE OF
THE YEAR
For the best employee
communications.
The entries were:
Atoc
Central Trains
First Capital Connect
First Scotrail
First TransPennine Express
Freightliner Group
Gatwick Express
London Underground
Merseyrail
Metronet Rail
Northern Ireland Railways
One
Southern
The shortlist and judges decision
was announced by Railnews
director, Katy Bleasdale:
FIRST CAPITAL CONNECT – for its
communications programme at a
time of significant change.
FIRST TRANSPENNINE EXPRESS –
for an innovative communication
strategy during the introduction of
a new fleet of trains.
GATWICK EXPRESS – for its
customer service campaign
which relied on internal
communications.
NORTHERN IRELAND RAILWAYS –
for its campaign to add value to the
journey experience through culture
change.
Winner: GATWICK EXPRESS
THE INTERFLEET TECHNOLOGY RAIL BUSINESS
OF THE YEAR
The judges chose the Rail
Business of the Year from the
winners in each category.
David Rollin, managing director
of Interfleet Technology,
presented the award and listed
the contenders:
First TransPennine Express
First TransPennine
Express/Siemens
Freightliner
Gatwick Express
GNER
First TransPennine – Rail Business of the Year
INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
EXCELLENCE OF THE YEAR
For the very best IT projects,
products, systems or services
within the industry.
The entries were:
Atkins (two entries)
Atoc’s Rail Settlement Plan
Cubic Transportation Systems and
Atoc’s Rail Settlement Plan
First Capital Connect (3 entries)
First TransPennine Express
GNER
National Rail Enquiries
TEW
Jeremy Candfield, director general
of the Railway Industry Association,
introduced the shortlist and
announced the judges’ decision:
GNER – for full fleet on-board wi-fi
facilities.
NATIONAL RAIL ENQUIRIES – for
TrainTracker, a voice-activated
system that links callers to the
latest information about rail
services from any UK station.
RAIL SETTLEMENT PLAN – for AVS,
which provides an additional 600
transactions per second.
Winner: GNER
Halcrow and Arriva Trains Wales
Mersyrail/Merseytravel
National Rail Enquiries
Northern Ireland Railways
Silverlink
Introducing the winner, Rollins
said: ‘Rather like the Oscarwinning
films, The Queen and
The Departed, our winners tonight
have pretty much swept all before
them.’
Winner:
FIRST TRANSPENNINE EXPRESS
SSP TRAIN
OPERATOR
OF THE YEAR
The entries were::
C2C
Chiltern Railways
GNER
Freightliner
First Scotrail
First TransPennine Express
Hull Trains
Midland Mainline
Northern Rail
Southern
Tony Keating, managing director
of SSP, announced the shortlist
and gave the judges’ decision:
FIRST TRANSPENNINE EXPRESS –
for its £260m investment
programme and high customer
satisfaction.
FREIGHTLINER – for its new
services, new division and increase
in revenue.
MIDLAND MAINLINE – for its high
customer satisfaction, punctual
trains and safety record.
NORTHERN RAIL – for increasing
its customers and value-for-money
service.
Winner: FREIGHTLINER

VIEW FROM ACROSS THE POND
© PurestockX
CSX is defined as a Class 1 carrier by the Association of American Railroads.
VALUE FOR MONEY
Michael R Weinman reports on a
new analysis of the cost per mile
of the USA’s railways
Whether on this side of the pond or the
other, rail professionals are frequently
called upon by the general press for
comment on some technical issue or other, often
involving a recently reported accident or some
debilitation of service.
Though hard to put a positive spin on such
stories – after all headlines sell newspapers –
perhaps one of the most frustrating attributes is
that almost-audible sound, over the telephone, of
the reporter's eyes glazing over, when you have
just completed a reasonably erudite explanation,
or even defence, of a situation he or she didn't
really want explained or defended. After all, ‘my
story is written – don't try to confuse me with the
facts’.
Such a situation, involving commentary on
Amtrak timeliness, occurred on my return from
a meeting of the American Association of
Railroad Superintendents (AARS), an
organisation similar to the Institution of Railway
Operators. The IRO, its youth, has already
surpassed AARS in the development of an
education curriculum, a situation about to be
corrected by the new Certificate in Railroad
Operations at Michigan State University.
The new programme, supported by AARS and
the Association of American Railroads (AAR),
will resemble the former Kent Healy programme
of years past at Yale University, which spawned
as many railway executives as the famous British
Rail management training scheme.
The AARS meeting was, as always, a fount of
knowledge. In an address reminiscent of the
excellent 2006 paper given by John Cartledge of
London TravelWatch on public perceptions of
railway safety (available online at
www.intlrailsafety.com/Dublin/23_Oct_2006_%20
Papers/06_John_Cartledge.pdf), which was a
compendium of things we all know but seldom
see encapsulated in one hard-hitting and
educational presentation, Larry Shugart, vice
president of innovative scheduling, gathered
much publicly-available yet exceptionally potent
data on our Class 1 railroads. They are, as defined
by AAR, carriers with operating revenues in
excess of US$319.3m, and include Burlington
Northern Santa Fe, Union Pacific, Kansas City
Southern, Norfolk Southern, CSX Transportation,
Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.
Much of this data displayed a dichotomy
between the eastern and western carriers. All told
fascinating stories. Costs, for instance, were seen
to be about US$10 per gross ton mile, and on a
secular decline. Revenues came to US$30 per
revenue ton mile, and only in recent years has this
shown an increase – as pricing power and market
knowledge crystalised as a result of economic and
competitive factors. Western roads tended to have
both lower costs and revenues.
Shugart indicated that about 50 per cent of carmiles
are loaded, and this is increasing, as is the
6,500 tons per train – a telling number by
comparison with UK and continental railways,
even considering that all data herein is in US tons.
The average load per car is 80 tons, and increasing.
This, of course, is a result of the now-standard
286,000 pound gross maximum carload – and
may even be replaced by the 315,000 pounds
under investigation and test. The average haul is
now up to 920 miles, and also growing.
More telling numbers – train velocity is down
10 per cent, but car velocity is up 10 per cent (cars
may travel on different trains during their journey).
This is clearly spawned by the realisation that,
with the exception of unit trains, shippers don't
care how the train is doing – it's their carload's
arrival that counts. Consequently, much emphasis
has been placed on managing cars and
shipments, at the expense of system-wide velocity.
A disquieting statistic is that gross ton miles
per horsepower-hour are down 10 per cent in the
last decade. Since the average horsepower per ton
is about the same, the locomotive fleet is not
working as hard – and the railroads have invested
in new and rebuilt fleets as never before, so this
casts aspersions on the reliability of this power.
Software-related problems, perhaps due to oversophistication,
and a slight harkening-back to the
bad old days when mechanical departments were
not run according to modern and efficient
management principles, might be two of the
rodents lurking under the stone. However, one
way the new and better motive power is paying
handsome dividends is in the 850 gross ton miles
per (US) gallon of fuel they achieve, up 20 per cent
in 10 years. With fuel prices competing with
labour costs, and no sign of abatement, this,
especially in an era of mandatory and severe
emissions control, is clearly a positive note.
Larry Shugart gives this same presentation to
the investment market and he suggests to them
that some studious analysis of even publicly
available data clearly shows the railway industry
to be worthy of serious interest by investors.
Michael R Weinman is head of PTSI
Transportation USA, a railway management
consultancy. He is a former officer of New York
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
37

INFRASTRUCTURE
BRIDGE
OF SIGHS
Network Rail’s project by to restore Leven Viaduct in
south Cumbria was given a Merit Award for
Engineering Excellence by the Institution of Civil
Engineers’North West Region.Keith Lumley explains
the challenges and how they were overcome
Despite high winds constantly halting work, an inquisitive dolphin
coming too close to cutting equipment and the challenge of
replacing a structure which had foxed even George Stephenson,
the £14m scheme to refurbish the Leven Viaduct in south Cumbria was
completed on time and within budget. The 16-week project was the largest
civil engineering bridge scheme in a five-year programme of work in
Network Rail’s London North Western Territory, and was completed in
July 2006.
Leven Viaduct is a 49-span structure carrying the Carnforth to Barrow
line across the Leven Estuary in South Cumbria. It consists of an iron
and steel deck structure supported on cast iron piers, clad in reinforced
concrete and brick. The track is bullhead rail supported on long-timbers.
The viaduct was originally constructed in 1857 under the guidance of
John Brogden and his sons. It is said that George Stephenson did not
think the scheme was feasible and offered his hearty congratulations to
John Brogden on completion of the project. It was widened to
accommodate a twin track in 1863 and in 1867 the Ulvserstone and
Lancaster Railway, as it was known then, opened to passenger trains, 10
years after it had opened to freight traffic.
Major repairs to the structure were undertaken in 1915, when the cast
iron piers were encapsulated in brickwork and reinforced concrete, and
some of the deck was replaced. The last major repairs were made to the
structure during the 1950s, when maintenance was carried out on the
steelwork. The combination of ageing materials and extreme weather
conditions caused the structure to deteriorate to the point where it came
to the end of its natural life – routine maintenance of the structure had
only slowed down the inevitable.
Gary Openshaw, Network Rail area general manager for Cumbria and
Lancashire says: ‘The Leven viaduct is a remarkable piece of railway
engineering. Many of the challenges that faced John Brogden 150 years
ago, like the extreme weather conditions, were still relevant during its
reconstruction in 2006, but with the added pressure that it is now a
working railway. To have completely reconstructed a 500-metre viaduct
within 16 weeks, under difficult conditions, is a testament to the skills of
the project-management team.’
The Cumbria coast line is viewed as a vital link to the local economies
of Cumbria, with passenger services to the south, Manchester and
Manchester Airport. In addition to this, freight traffic from the British
Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL) Sellafield reprocessing plant uses the line
as a main transportation route in and out of the site. As a vital passenger
and freight line, Network Rail needed to carry out repairs to the viaduct
to enable the route to stay open.
A detailed examination of the structure in 2003 revealed that the viaduct
was in an advanced condition of deterioration and required major
maintenance work. There were temporary speed restrictions on the viaduct
as a stop gap and, had the work had not been carried out, gradually
Network Rail would have had to reduce the speed of trains across the
viaduct, until eventually it would have had no choice but to close the line
permanently.
The infrastructure company began devising a detailed programme of
work. It was originally anticipated that the line would have to close for 16
weeks during 2006 and a further 16 weeks in 2007 but the feasibility of
using two gantries on the viaduct to lift out the old deck plates and put
in place the new units meant that contractors Carillion could complete
the scheme in a single line closure. Network Rail carried out the work
during the spring and summer months because of the longer daylight
hours, which meant its contractors could work longer days, the blockade
was shorter and there was less chance of the project falling behind due
to the weather. Carillion worked on the structure 10 hours a day for six
38 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

INFRASTRUCTURE
Gantries lift out old deck plates and lower new units into
place during the 16-week closure of Leven Viaduct.
days a week. Better weather also meant there were safer working
conditions for the contractor.
The decision was also taken to finish before the start of the summer
school holidays when more tourists travel to the area and local people
rely on train services to get to their holiday destinations.
Network Rail consulted BNFL, which said it did not anticipate having
to transport any nuclear fuel during the blockade, although provisions
were made for services to be diverted via Carlisle if necessary.
Unfortunately, due to other work being carried out on the line at Grangeover-Sands,
no materials could be delivered by rail. The materials were
carried by road and used three main access points. Residents close to the
main compound were notified about the work and Network Rail wrote
to other residents just before the start of the blockade. Network Rail did
everything it could to ensure there were no deliveries on a weekend or
Bank Holiday when traffic was heavier.
The contractor removed and replaced the entire deck across the full
length of the structure, a total of 490 metres. The new deck was designed
to be compliant with modern standards and as such provides a much
safer operating and maintenance environment. Forty-eight spans were
removed and replaced with 96 pre-fabricated steel decks. These decks
were specially made off-site and transported to the viaduct by rail from
Ulverston. The old decks were removed and taken by rail to Cark.
Span 37, which is approximately 20 metres long and originally opened
to allow ships access to the estuary, was going to be difficult to replace
because of its size. A detailed assessment of the span, as well as scientific
analysis, proved that a full refurbishment would bring it up to the required
strength and be in line with the remainder of the structure. This was one
of the biggest challenges that faced the project team. Until they carried
out the analysis it was not known how much refurbishment would be
required or if it would be possible to refurbish rather than replace the
span. It was a partial ‘unknown quantity’ within the project and could
have affected the entire scheme.
The project also involved one of the first major applications of a new
direct fixing rail system within the UK, using Pandrol Vipa Baseplates.
This system, which originates from New Zealand, had previously been
used on the Liverpool loop line to fix rail to slab concrete, but this time
it was being used to attach track directly onto a structure. One of the
advantages of using this system is that the track can be aligned much
more precisely, but it does require complete accuracy when the units are
installed. The viaduct now has continuously welded track, ending the
familiar ‘clickerty clack’ noise and the Vipa Baseplates act as buffers
between the track and viaduct, meaning passengers now benefit from
much smoother and quieter journeys.
Some of the other challenges that faced the project team were the
weather and location of the viaduct. Due to health and safety
requirements, which were heightened because the viaduct crosses moving
water, no one could work on the structure during high winds. This meant
there was an element of unpredictability within the timing of the project.
Everyone working on or visiting the viaduct was required to wear a life
jacket and there was a safety boat on standby should the worst have
happened. In actual fact, Network Rail had to employ a hovercraft rather
than a conventional boat because at low tide the water is very shallow.
Unfortunately, strong winds within the first few weeks of the scheme
meant there was a total of 12 days when work could not be carried out.
A contingency, which was built into the scheme, and a re-scheduling of
the work meant that the work was still completed on time and the line reopened
on 17 July 2006. The viaduct also falls within a Site of Special
Scientific Interest and this meant that the project had to be
environmentally sensitive. Network Rail sought independent
environmental advice before and during the scheme.
The safety hovercraft was never needed to rescue fallen workers, but
did see action one morning mid-way through the project. Work to cut up
the old steel decking before it was removed was temporarily halted when
a young dolphin was spotted floundering in the shallow waters below the
viaduct. It was feared the showers of sparks from the cutting equipment
might have harmed the creature. The safety hovercraft was called upon
to try and usher the dolphin towards deeper water but to no avail. In the
end, one of the safety team jumped out of the hovercraft, scooped the
dolphin up into his arms, got back into the craft and released it in the
deeper waters of the estuary.
Openshaw concludes: ‘The work on Leven viaduct was essential and
unavoidable maintenance and now, it is complete, passengers and freight
companies will both reap the benefits. The local communities in south
Cumbria had feared that the Cumbria coast line was in danger of being
closed or reduced to a single track, which would have had serious
implications for both the local economy and local people. This is a
significant investment by Network Rail and shows our confidence that
the line will remain open for a long time to come.’
Keith Lumley is media relations manager (north west) for Network Rail.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
39

COMMENT
MAKING A STAND
FOR SAFETY
Ian Hammond wonders why passengers are still
allowed to stand on trains,when car and air
passengers not only must sit,but also have to be
strapped in for their own safety
It’s official: being unable to get a seat on a train is perfectly acceptable.
In the last few weeks Go-Ahead chief executive Keith Ludeman and
National Express’s Richard Bowker have both said that passengers
should expect to stand at peak times. They argue that it would be too
expensive to provide seats for all at the busiest times, leaving the extra
seats empty for the rest of the day.
They are in good company. Mike Mitchell, director general for rail at
the Department of Transport, told the Commons Public Accounts
Committee a few weeks ago that ‘Commuters should not expect to get a
seat when travelling at peak times… If you are travelling a relatively short
distance, I do not think it is unacceptable to expect to stand in the peak…
the cost of providing sufficient capacity to enable everyone to get a seat
would expand the railway budget to anything beyond what we have here.’
Transport minister Tom Harris backed him up.
Would the travelling public be astounded if the Government suddenly
announced that seat belt law was to be repealed and that people would
henceforth be allowed to ride in a completely unrestrained manner in
cars, coaches and taxis, where seatbelts are mandatory? Would they be
equally astounded to find on their next holiday or business journey by
BA or EasyJet that they not only need not bother with seatbelts, but that
the airlines were allowing some standing passengers in the aisles? All
persons of sound mind would be filled with fear at the thought of what
would happen in the event of an accident, where their unrestrained body
masses would be projected as a human missile inside their choice mode
of transport, not to mention their much degraded chances of safe exit in
the event of fire or other emergencies.
What major scientific or other fact differentiates between ‘local travel
standing passengers’ who are killed in a rail accident within five miles of
home as opposed to those on intercity journeys of 100 miles? Are they
much better off in a collision or accident? I think not. DfT advertisements
for car safety and the wearing of seat belts publicise the fact that the
majority of fatal accidents happen within the casualty’s local area. The
reality is that even local journey railway trains move at speeds of up to
60mph – where the laws of physics can ensure that loose bodies inside
the train can be propelled forwards with huge force in a sudden stop or
collision.
In the Lambrigg accident, one person was killed and 22 injured, five
of them seriously. Whilst it is unlikely that passengers were standing,
apart from those moving between seat and refreshment car or toilets, we
must now ask why they were injured given the proven integrity of the
passenger compartments. Could it be that unrestrained bodies were
thrown about inside the intact passenger compartments causing these
injuries – and what would have been the casualty rate if seat belts had
been worn? Rail capacity is, of course, a problem. But should this be
addressed by exposure of the customers to avoidable and manifestly
serious risk of death or serious injury? And there is always a cost to
providing safety wherever it is made to increase protection in the event
of an accident – but do we wish our rail system to adopt third world
standards of safety with passengers packed into trains?
Whether or not the DfT, the Rail Safety and Standards Board, and Atoc
find the laws of physics a trifle inconvenient or costly in this respect is
immaterial. It is a proven scientific fact that as soon as any vehicle –
whether it is road, rail or aircraft – decelerates or comes to a sudden
complete standstill, the human contents continue forward in the direction
of motion, unless suitably and efficiently restrained. In the last few years,
we have increasingly seen appalling levels of overcrowding on trains, with
the total acceptance of standing passengers. Quite apart from the chance
of being a human missile in the event of an accident, the standing
multitudes also would substantially impede swift evacuation in the event
of fire or other emergency – I wonder why we are required to maintain
gangways and aisles and fire escape routes in factories and places of work
and yet not on trains. One has only to see how long it takes to empty a
carriage at a station when there are no standing passengers.
One of the peripheral issues of passenger carriage safety used to be
the overhead stowage of baggage – again, a well proven method of killing
other passengers in an accident scenario – even a modest weight bag
becomes a potentially fatal missile at a deceleration of 2G.
The UK has an unfortunate track record in producing legislation too
late, following a disaster and usually with quite a time lag, after an elaborate
inquiry has been commissioned. Why, in the case of rail passenger safety,
do we have to get even more proof of known scientific fact by waiting to
have another high speed train accident where the train in full of standing
passengers?
Most of these events are entirely predictable – it’s not whether, it’s when.
Industries of most varieties shapes and sizes, given a reasonably risk-
The Government will only legislate where it
appears to be politically pressurised into a
requirement to ‘do something’, where
overwhelming evidence or the recent
aftermath of a disaster requires them to do so
40 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

COMMENT
© www.railimages.co.uk
Unrestrained luggage can cause fatalities if a train decelerates quickly in the event of an accident.
averse board and management, accept compliance with the law, as a
necessary evil and budget accordingly. But the Government will only
legislate where it appears to be politically pressurised into a requirement
to ‘do something’, where overwhelming evidence or the recent aftermath
of a disaster requires them to do so.
We frequently assess a safety case by reference to cost-benefit analysis
and work from the baseline of both the probability of killing a passenger,
or the calculated costs of a fatality. But the combination of the lack of
political will, lack of legislation, and the power of the accountancy
profession in industry, all lead to the frequent
state of paralysis when a compelling safety case
needs to be made and implemented.
Realistically, of course, there are cost
implications in any safety improvements, but
before protesting too loudly, we must first ask
ourselves whether we should aim for a much
safer railway as an end objective. If we accept
that objective, then means must be found for a
sensible pathway for the development of
improved safety containment for passengers on
the UK’s Rail system.
This would quite obviously need to be
considered in the context of future capacity
planning within the rail infrastructure. The
capacity problem relates to the ancient
infrastructure – for example signalling and track
limitations and bridge height limits that prevent
double-deck rolling stock.
One potential pathway would be to limit
standing passenger numbers and confine these
to a specified area, not including aisles and
gangways, but fitted with suitable restraining
features and passive protection measures to
minimise injury and to safeguard in the event
of a sudden deceleration.
All industries where necessary improvement
in standards was required would inevitably
squeal in pain when such issues were raised,
but after the pain, there follows the
commonsense and realisation that safety can
be a true aid to future growth and profitability.
Indeed, the RSSB Strategic Safety Plan 2006
states in its ‘purpose’ section that ‘delivery of a
safe railway is vital to our customers and staff’,
but moving on from the fine words, the strategic
plan offers absolutely nothing in terms of
passenger compartment safety improvement.
Instead of fighting sensible safety
improvements, we should fight for the
infrastructure to be radically improved such as
to permit the development of much greater
capacity trains that incorporate the correct
safety levels.
Failing that, a government health warning
should be printed on all rail tickets and be
displayed prominently in all rail passenger
compartments –
WARNING: RAIL TRAVEL WHILST
STANDING MAY CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY
OR DEATH IN THE EVENT OF A SUDDEN
STOP OR ACCIDENT. PLEASE DO NOT BOARD UNLESS A SEAT
CAN BE OCCUPIED
Let the debate begin.
Ian Hammond was employed within the Risk Management and Risk
Control Department of a major international insurer, and after taking early
retirement, was employed within the Loss Prevention Council and Loss
Prevention Certification Board. He is also a qualified lead assessor of quality
management systems to ISO 9001:2000.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
41

IRO NEWS
P O Box 128, Burgess Hill RH15 0UZ • Tel: 01444 248931
Fax: 01444 246392 email: info@railwayoperators.org
Website: www.railwayoperators.org
Off the beaten track
Chris Dugdale explains
how European Union
policies are applied in
one area of key
importance to
operators – track access
In many respects, track access
is the key to the European
Commission’s policy for
competition. Without fair terms for
access to infrastructure, the whole
policy of competition between
train operators collapses.
European Union policy covers
two aspects: path allocation and
charging for paths. Nevertheless, I
shall concentrate on the allocation
of paths, rather than charging.
The approach to infrastructure
access arrangements varies
significantly across Europe. These
differences give a great deal of
scope for the community to start
setting down common principles,
but also make it quite difficult to
develop a policy which the
majority of member states will be
prepared to accept.
In consequence, the
community’s approach has been
to set very general principles and
then leave member states to
overlay their own detail.
European Community policy
applies to all path allocation – and
charging – both for international
and domestic services, although it
allows exemptions to be made, for
example, for sections of railway
which are self-contained.
Interestingly, shuttle services
through the Channel Tunnel, but
not other trains, are excluded.
Path allocation processes vary
significantly between member
states. In some states, local
passenger services have a high
social importance and can
frustrate pathing long distance
freight; in other states there is
more balance. The European
Community does not, therefore,
attempt to standardise pathing
priorities but just says they must
be ‘fair’ as between the various
operators.
The community has enacted a
series of directives defining what is
and what isn’t permitted. There are
two cardinal principles: an
organisation that runs trains can’t
also allocate paths, nor can it
decide charging.
So, who can apply for paths?
This is not as stupid a question as
it may seem. Can a travel agency,
for example, apply for passenger
paths or a forwarding agency
apply for freight paths and then
get a proper train operator to run
Two international high-speed
Thalys trains in Belgium.
their train?
This was the approach adopted
by Ikea for a train it sponsored for
supplying its northern European
stores from Sweden. The set of
national paths was owned by Ikea,
which then had freedom to
employ whichever train operator it
chose to run its train.
A number of member states
thought that there ought to be full
freedom to own paths, but others
were convinced this was
inappropriate. The result was a
compromise; railway undertakings
– community-speak for train
operators – may bid for paths
everywhere but other parties, such
as intermodal operators, may only
bid where national governments
permit that.
The pathing of international
trains, particularly freight trains,
has always been difficult. They are
often quite late on the timing
graph and the paths have to be coordinated
at frontiers. For that
© www.railimages.co.uk
reason, infrastructure managers
are required to work together to
offer through paths.
This is an interesting issue.
Infrastructure managers can
jointly plan and graph end to end
paths – Birmingham to Northern
Italy, for example – speculatively in
the hope that a train operator, or
group of operators, will buy them.
Or they can merely co-operate
when and if train operators ask for
an international path.
The co-operative process in
which infrastructure managers act
together is known as a one-stopshop.
The directive requires
infrastructure managers to offer a
‘one-stop-shop’ facility so that a
train operator can apply to any
infrastructure manager for an endto-end
path.
Infrastructure managers have
set up the RailNetEurope
association, of which Network Rail
is a member, to facilitate their
working together to set up paths.
In fact, any train operator has a
close relationship with its
infrastructure manager for safety,
traction and myriad detail
questions, so the question may be
asked, what is the logic of using
the one-stop-shop, rather than
each operator asking its local
infrastructure contact for a path?
There are two advantages to the
one-stop-shop process. Firstly it
provides a guarantee that the
paths in each state will connect
and secondly, in states such as
Germany and France, an
international path gets a higher
priority in the planning process.
Where infrastructure is
congested, community policy
allows states and infrastructure
managers significant freedom in
42 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

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@railway
operators.org
SOUTH EAST AREA
Please accept our apologies
for the recent lack of IROSE
content in Rail Professional.
This is due to late and
unexpected changes to our
2007 programme. We hope
that these have now been
resolved and that future
editions will list the dates, if
not all the speakers, for our
2007 programme. For your
diary, IROSE meetings are
scheduled to take place on:
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
The North East Area meetings
normally take place at 17:30
for 18:00, at York. For further
news on the IRO in the North
East please email: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 23 April: Nottingham
Net presentation in Derby.
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 26 April: Rail
Industry Quiz night. Start time
and location to be confirmed.
Please check our website and
register for this event at
www.iroyoung-
professionals.org.uk/events
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.
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.or
g.uk/events. We welcome any
feedback or enquiries.
Contact us at
comms@iroyoungprofessional
s.org.uk or check our website:
www.iroyoungprofessionals.
org.uk
deciding which traffic is to get a
path. Infrastructure managers may
increase prices to price-off and
they may give priority to socially
desirable passenger services or to
freight.
That combination would seem
to include almost any priority
policy, but whatever they do,
infrastructure managers must be
scrupulously fair between
operators.
The last important issue is
continuity: how can train
operators make sure they get more
or less the same paths each year
so that they in turn can offer a
continuing service to their
customers? The community allows
an infrastructure manager to offer
his or her customers guaranteed
capacity over the longer term, but
not individual paths.
In this way an operator can be
offered, for example, passenger
paths every hour or a freight path
in the early afternoon for a long
period.
Next time I’ll look at issues such
as charging and the arrangements
for short-notice paths. But I hope
that I’ve given members a taste of
the European Community’s
approach to infrastructure
allocation.
Chris Dugdale runs his own
consultancy specialising in European
issues and the way in which they
affect railways.
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
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
43

LEGAL OPINION
ON YOUR MARKS…
Matthew Hansard-Ward explains the
process that the period review of
Network Rail’s funding will take
After nearly 18 months of warming up,
the Periodic Review of Network Rail's
funding has finally got underway. On
28 February, the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR)
published its advice to ministers and took the
first formal step on what will undoubtedly prove
to be a long and winding road. The review is the
first to be undertaken under the new process
established in the Railways Act 2005 and will
shape the future of the industry until 2014. It will
be a test for all concerned.
Network Rail receives the lion's share of its
funding through charges paid by passenger and
freight operators for access to its network.
These charges are regulated and periodically
reviewed, usually every five years. The current
review will determine Network Rail's regulated
output, its revenue requirement and ultimately
the access charges it will be paid for the period
2009 to 2014.
Since 2005, ORR and Network Rail have
been building up to February's publication. In
particular, Network Rail has had a first stab at
assessing what it thinks it needs and in July
2006 published its initial strategic business plan
(ISBP). This explains the company's ‘strategies’
for proposed activity, expenditure and revenue
requirements.
The ‘base line’ strategy is intended to deliver
a non-degrading network providing for minimal
growth – in other words, looking after what's
already there. The second is more ambitious,
and is designed to deliver significant
enhancements to address anticipated
passenger and freight demand growth –
arguably the biggest challenge now facing the
industry. ORR has assessed the ISBP and
February's publication offers the first real sense
of ORR's view: good, but could do better.
ORR considers that Network Rail can make
efficiency savings without compromising safety
or performance, and thinks the company
doesn't need as much money as it says it does.
For example, Network Rail thinks it needs
£19.92bn for the base line strategy in England
and Wales, whereas ORR thinks it needs
between £16.47bn and £19.20bn.
Unlike previous periodic reviews, this one
will follow a brand new process established
under the Railways Act 2005. Under this new
process, the ORR fires the starting gun by
issuing a formal statutory notice explaining that
it will undertake a review.
This is what February's publication
comprised. In response, the DfT and the
Scottish ministers must provide the ORR with
information about what they want to be
achieved by railway activities during the next
control period and the public financial
resources that are, or are likely to be, available
for the achievement of those activities.
They have already indicated that they will
express their requirements through high level
output specifications (HLOSs) which will cover
three main areas: safety, performance and
capacity. It is also thought that DfT will publish
a longer term rail strategy to accompany the
HLOS to put things in a wider, longer term
context. The amount of public money that is
available to deliver these outputs will be
expressed in ‘statements on the public financial
resources available’ (or SoFAs). ORR has asked
for the HLOSs and accompanying SoFAs to be
provided by the end of July 2007.
In the meantime, it has asked Network Rail
to work with the industry to develop a fullblown
strategic business plan by October,
which will set out its detailed costed plan for
how it proposes to deliver its contribution to
the whole industry outputs required by the
HLOSs.
The ORR will then assess whether the
HLOSs can be delivered within the constraints
of the SoFAs. If there is a mismatch, the ORR
must conduct an iterative process which may
culminate in the DfT and Scottish ministers
being asked to submit a more modest HLOS
or ultimately the ORR deciding to scale back
what can be delivered for the money. Clearly,
this may lead to some difficult, politically
sensitive decisions having to be taken. ORR
expects to offer its initial assessment of whether
there is any mismatch by the end of this year,
with a view to reaching final decisions next
summer.
There are some early clues as to what the
review might bring. For some time now, the
ORR has been concerned that the incentive
framework isn't properly aligned. It thinks there
is a lack of correspondence between whole
industry costs and whole industry revenues,
resulting from misalignments in incentives
between industry players and the public
interest.
To address these perceived shortcomings,
the ORR has been considering a number of
potentially controversial measures, including
volume incentives on Network Rail, benefit
sharing mechanisms and new ways to facilitate
operator innovation.
This year looks set to be an interesting one,
the race is on.
Matthew Hanslip Ward is part of the rail team at
Denton Wilde Sapte.
44 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

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For further information contact us at:
Rail Operations Development Ltd, Electra House, Electra Way, Crewe Business Park, Crewe, Cheshire CW1 6GL
E-mail: enquiries@rodl.co.uk Tel: 01270 588500 Fax: 01270 588500
or visit our website: www.railoperationsdevelopment.co.uk and download our Capability Statement

BUSINESS NEWS
Train operators look
overseas for cheaper energy
A huge hike in the price
Network Rail charges for
electricity to power trains
could lead to train
operators looking overseas
for an alternative supplier,
says Chris Randall
www.railimages.co.uk
Operators have been
angered by the
unexpected size of the
increases in their electricity bills,
which come into force this
month, particularly as many are
facing declining subsidies or
steeply rising premium
payments to the Government.
A number of franchise owners
are considering by-passing
Network Rail and going direct to
the open market, with one or
more of Europe’s large energy
companies seen as potential
suppliers.
A senior industry source said:
‘Train operators are locked into
very expensive contracts with
Network Rail until April 2008.
But after that there is nothing to
stop them going elsewhere for
electricity. In effect, they could
cut out the middle man, which
in this case is Network Rail. The
major suppliers on the
continent, such as EDF in
France, would be an attractive
option if the price was right.’
Simmering discontent over
the charges levied by Network
Rail erupted into a full-blown
row earlier this year when Keith
Ludeman, chief executive of Go-
Ahead said train companies
should be allowed to apply a
surcharge on fares to off-set
increased energy costs.
Unexpected increases in charges for power are denting operators profits.The cost of diesel has also increased.
Go-Ahead, which runs the Southern and
Southeastern franchises, was hit with a £16m
increase in its electricity bill from Network Rail
Ludeman made his comments
after learning that Go-Ahead,
which runs the Southern and
Southeastern franchises in a
joint venture with the French
transport group Keolis, had
been hit with a £16m increase in
its electricity bill from Network
Rail, threatening to put a huge
dent in the company’s rail
profits.
‘We currently make about
£36m a year across both our
franchises, so you don’t have to
be a mathematician to see this is
a material cost increase,’ he said
at the time.
‘It’s my view that in
circumstances where there are
extraordinary increases in costs,
rail operators should have the
ability to apply some sort of
surcharge.’
The proposal brought howls
of protest from passengers’
groups. Brian Cooke, chairman
of London TravelWatch, said the
idea was ‘a stupidity invented by
airlines’.
In the wake of the controversy,
Go-Ahead has succeeded in
negotiating a revised deal with
Network Rail. Ludeman told Rail
Professional that it has ‘helped to
ease the pain,’ although he
refused to go into any more
detail.
‘We can deal with modest
increases,’ he added. ‘The issue
for us has been the step change
in costs.’
Other operators echoed Go-
Ahead’s concern. National
Express, which operates six
franchises, saw its fuel costs rise
last year with the prospect of a
steep increase in electricity
prices to come. A spokesperson
for the transport company said:
‘This is a serious issue that
affects the whole industry.’
Network Rail denied it was
overcharging for electricity. A
spokesman said the tariff was
set using a model established by
the Department for Trade and
Industry. He added: ‘Operators
have had a good deal over the
last year at a time when energy
prices were rising rapidly. Those
increases are now being passed
on in this year’s contract.’
46 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

BUSINESS NEWS
EUROTUNNEL SEEKS
OUT-OF-COURT DEAL
IN SANGATTE ROW
Eurotunnel has won the first
round of its fight for compensation
over the disruption to Channel
Tunnel rail services caused by
thousands of illegal immigrants.
An international arbitration
court at The Hague ruled that the
French and UK governments had
failed to take tough enough action
to stop asylum seekers from
illegally entering the UK on
Channel Tunnel trains or, in some
instances, by simply walking
through the tunnel.
The ruling clears the way for
Eurotunnel to reclaim between
£30m and £35m it says it lost as a
result of the disruption, which
lasted between 2000 and 2002. The
bill would be shared between the
British and French taxpayers.
Eurotunnel spokesman John
Keefe told Rail Professional: ‘It’s in
everybody’s interest that this is
settled quickly so that we can
move on. We are not interested in
being in litigation with both
governments.’
Most of the immigrants who
used the tunnel to enter the UK
were housed at the Red Cross
centre at Sangatte, which by 2002
housed up to 1,500 people at a
time.
Fencing failed to stop
thousands of immigrants, mostly
from Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran
from breaking into the area around
National Express has revealed that it
spent £10m bidding for franchises in
2006.
The transport company, which has
been overtaken by FirstGroup as the
biggest operator of UK train services,
has been short-listed for the new Cross
the tunnel entrance at Coquelles
and hanging on to the side of
trains. Some even jumped from
bridges onto moving trains. At
least 12 died attempting the
crossing.
At the height of the crisis,
Eurotunnel said it was losing £5m
a month because of increased
security costs and cancelled trains.
Pressure from the European
Commission eventually resulted in
NEW HOPE FOR EUROTUNNEL
Country and East Midlands franchises,
and has pre-qualified for Inter City East
Coast, currently being run by GNER on
a management contract.
The cost of franchise bids has risen
steadily since privatisation and is now
acting as a deterrent to smaller
a deal between the French and UK
governments that saw Sangatte
close in December 2002.
Following the decision by the
arbitration court, Jacques Gounon,
Eurotunnel’s chairman wrote to
the UK and French governments
urging an out-of-court settlement.
Legal experts predict that further
compensation hearings could take
years and would lead to a huge
increase in costs.
Eurotunnel is predicting a brighter future after reporting a five per cent increase in
revenues in 2006.
The Anglo-French company made a £220m trading profit for the year, an
increase of 42 per cent compared to 2005, on revenues of £568m. However, debt
financing meant it reported a net loss of £143m.
Eurotunnel has put together a complicated restructuring plan that, if approved
by shareholders, will slash its debt from £6.2bn to £2.84bn.
Bidding wars dent National Express profits
companies from entering the
competition to run train services.
Rail profits at National Express fell to
£49.1m in 2006 compared to £64.2m
the previous year. Revenues went up
slightly in the same period. Passenger
numbers rose by 6.1 per cent.
www.railimages.co.uk
NEWS IN BRIEF
RAIL PROFITS FALL AT ARRIVA
Transport group Arriva has seen a
drop in rail profits despite an
improvement in performance at its
Wales franchise. Pre-tax profits for
the year up to 31 December 2006
were £12.3m compared to £14.9m
the previous year. Group profits were
up six per cent to £110m.Arriva has
been shortlisted for three franchises
to be awarded later this year: Inter
City East Coast, East Midlands and
Cross Country.
AMEC ENDS RAIL LINK
Engineering company Amec has cut
its links with the rail industry after
agreeing to sell its 50 per cent stake
in the Anglo-French joint venture
Amec Spie.The sale to the French
infrastructure company Colas is
thought to have raised £200m for
Amec, which is planning a string of
disposals.Amec Spie employs 500
staff and had revenues of £156m in
2005.The takeover was due to be
completed on 2 April.
LIVINGSTONE’S PLEA FOR
CROSSRAIL
London mayor Ken Livingstone is
urging the Government to give the
go-ahead to Crossrail, the £10bn
east-west rail network linking
Canary Wharf and Heathrow airport.
Livingstone joined a delegation of
business leaders that met with
Prime Minister Tony Blair at 10
Downing Street to lobby on behalf
of the project.The Government has
said it is committed to Crossrail but
doubts persist about its willingness
to fund the scheme.A funding
announcement was expected soon
at the time of going to press.
FORMER RAILTRACK BOSS
CORBETT TO LEAVE WOOLIES
Gerald Corbett, who resigned as chief
executive of Railtrack after the
Hatfield train accident in October
2000, will stand down as chairman of
the high street retailer Woolworths in
June after six years in the job. Corbett
was in charge of Railtrack from 1997
to 2000.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
47

PEOPLE
SIEMENS GETS
NEW PR OFFICER
Emma Whitaker has joined Siemens
Transportation Systems as its new PR
and communications officer.
A PR specialist with over seven
years' experience within the
consultancy sector,Whitaker, 29,
joins STS from the Midlands-based
PR agency,Armadillo, where she was
a media relations consultant and
account director. Previous roles
include positions with international
marketing communications agency,
Barrett Dixon Bell, and global PR
consultancy, Lewis.
Alison Emery, head of Siemens UK
communications, said:‘An agency
background provides Emma with a
strongly developed “client-service”
focus based on achieving measurable
results which will ensure all parts of
our business are supported.We are
delighted to have her on board.’
RFG APPOINTS A DIRECTOR GENERAL
The Board of the Rail Freight
Group has announced Alan
Bennett as director general.
Bennett is currently an associate
with consultancy Steer Davies
Gleave and will start full time at the
RFG in September.
RFG chairman Tony Berkeley
said: ‘I am very pleased that Alan
has accepted our offer to lead
RFG. There is much to do, both in
developing policy initiatives to
ensure that rail freight is able to
grow to meet the future demands
of the market and its
Mark Fell has been appointed legal services director
and company secretary for Cross London Rail Links.
Fell, 49, was a solicitor in the field of major
construction and engineering projects and has had
extensive exposure to the rail sector.
He was previously working for London
Underground where he had been advising on the
implementation of the PPP contracts and other
environmental agenda, and also to
sustain and enhance the RFG’s allimportant
services to its members.’
Bennett, 55, added: ‘I am greatly
looking forward to joining RFG and
working with the RFG board and
Tony Berkeley. My goal is to ensure
that the RFG aligns itself with the
priorities of its members in a
changing political and business
environment and builds on its
success as an authoritative, credible
and powerful voice for rail freight
users, service providers and
suppliers.’
Alan Bennett.
Crossrail takes on legal director
projects, including Phase II of the Kings Cross
redevelopment.
Douglas Oakervee OBE, CLRL's executive
chairman, said: 'Mark's extensive experience on
previous construction projects will be invaluable to
us in moving towards the construction phase. We
welcome him onboard at this exciting time for the
project.'
Whitaker (left) and Emery.
Davies joins
National Express
The National Express Group has
created a new position of
customer service director for its
Trains Division, to be taken up by
Annette Davies.
Davies was previously customer
services director for Silverlink and
C2C, where she was instrumental
in implementing a customer
relationship management
programme.
Chief executive David Franks
said: ‘Annette’s previous
experience within the travel
industry, which spans airlines,
shipping and rail, coupled with
her particular expertise of CRM,
will be invaluable in the delivery
of our customer initiatives to
place our customers at the core of
what we deliver.’
HEATHROW EXPRESS GETS THREE NEW MANAGERS
Heathrow Express has appointed three
new managers, to oversee
performance, operations and resources.
Shaun Furzer, 22, has joined as
performance manager from South
West Trains, where he was
performance co-ordinator. Based in
the Heathrow Express control room,
his new role consists of managing the
company. He will also develop and
enhance the resource management.
Richard Brown, head of operations
at Heathrow Express, said,‘Heathrow
Express has always had a philosophy
of not just maintaining performance
but of constantly looking for ways to
improve our service.
‘Heathrow Express recently topped
the National Passenger Satisfaction
Survey, making it the nation's
favourite rail service, and was also
awarded the Customer Service Team
of the Year.
‘These three new appointments
allow us to manage our performance
even more effectively and enhance
the customer experience.’
attributions and incidents on
Heathrow Express and Heathrow
Connect and publication of reports.
Dermot McEvoy, 43, is to look after
a team of service and operations
controllers as well as the performance
manager and resources department.
He joined Heathrow Express as a
customer service representative in
1998.
Matthew Knight, 33, has joined as
resources manager from Eurostar
(UK). In his new role as resources
manager, Knight is to ensure the
deployment of staff to meet the
operational and service needs of the Shaun Furzer, Dermot McEvoy and Matthew Knight.
48 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

PEOPLE
PEOPLE ROUND-UP
PROJECT PLANNING EXPERT
JOINS STEER DAVIES GLEAVE
Nigel Astell has joined transport
consultancy Steer Davies Gleave
as an associate.
Astell’s expertise is in finding
solutions for the business and
performance challenges facing
transport operators worldwide,
including increasing revenues;
reducing costs; and improving
service quality.
He spent the last 10 years in
the USA with Booz Allen
Hamilton.
NEW RECRUIT WILL BE
RECRUITING FOR NESTRACK
Recruitment consultancy
NESTrack been doing some
recruiting itself, adding Alan
Tarrant, 29, to its rail division as a
consultant.
CEO Mark Tully says:‘Based
within our Manchester
headquarters,Alan will be
responsible for the placement of
key personnel within the rail
industry.’
LEVEL CROSSING DESIGNER
DIES
Alan Smeeth, former managing
director of Polysafe Level
Crossing Systems, has died at the
age of 65, a year after retiring
due to ill-health.
Smeeth was a co-founder of
Polysafe in 1990 and helped
design the company’s level
crossing system. He worked with
his business partner to design
and manufacture a safer and
more cost-effective level crossing
panel.
Industry firsts such as level
crossings for highly curved track
and converging track situations
followed.
Current managing director
Michael Austin said:‘He will be
very sadly missed by all who
knew him, and I am sure they
would like to join us in extending
our deepest sympathies to his
family and friends at this sad
time.’
Morgan Est takes
on two new staff
Infrastructure services company
Morgan Est has appointed Jag
Paddam, 47, as the company’s new
regional infrastructure director for
the Midlands and the north, based
in Rugby.
He joins Morgan Est from
transport and construction
services provider Carillion, where
he was the director responsible for
the company’s roads projects
business. Paddam brings to his
new role more than 25 years of
management expertise in the
infrastructure sector.
‘Morgan Est is a dynamic and
successful UK company and I’m
delighted to be joining at such an
exciting time in the development
of the business,’ said Paddam.
Steve Hawkes also joins the
Bell rings
in changes
Engineering consultancy Grontmij
has hired Peter Bell as director for
Intelligent Transportation Systems.
Bell, 41, joins the company from
Cambridge Consultants, where he
also focused on ITS.
Charles Williams, director of
systems at Grontmij, said: ‘Peter’s
appointment is part of a strategic
move to cement ITS within our
specialist systems area of
expertise.’
company as marketing and
communications manager for the
UK. Based at the company’s
Rugby headquarters, Hawkes will
have management responsibility
for Morgan Est’s internal and
external communications.
Jag Paddam.
TheTrainline has appointed Jeremy
Acklam as business development
director, to lead the implementation of
TheTrainline’s business delivery
strategy.
He joins the company from ATOS
Origin where he provided strategic
consultancy to the Community of
European Railways & International
Union of Railways on the European Rail
Industry Telematics Regulation.
Before that Acklam, 46, was IT
FOUR NEW STAFF
FOR FABER MAUNSELL
Faber Maunsell has taken on four
new staff in its Transportation
Division. Jeff Wild, 52, is to be a
director in the Durham office.A
chartered member of the Institution
of Civil Engineers,Wild has extensive
highways and infrastructure
experience.
Kevin Sutton, 51, is the new
regional director in the Altrincham
office. Sutton aims to win work and
develop partnerships with local
authorities primarily in the northwest
of England.
Sidney Nasson has joined Faber
Maunsell’s St Albans office as a
principal consultant. He previously
worked for Mouchel Parkman as a
principal transport planner.
Juan Vazquez Redondo, 29, joins
Faber Maunsell's Glasgow office as a
senior engineer. He is also a member
of ICE and has worked for Carillion.
NEW DIRECTOR FOR THETRAINLINE
Jeremy Acklam.
Peter Bell.
director of Virgin Rail where he was part
of the original team that launched
TheTrainline in 1999.
Alan Tomlin, chief executive at
TheTrainline, said,‘We are delighted to
welcome Jeremy to TheTrainline – he
will be a valuable addition to our
management team. His wealth of
experience will help to drive forward
our market-leading innovations making
the customer retail and fulfillment
experience much more enjoyable.’
ICORE TAKES ON
NEW MANAGER
Electrical interconnect specialist
Icore International has appointed
Jerome Cheze as European new
business development manager
for the company’s power contact
business unit.
Before moving to Icore, Cheze,
30, worked for Multi Contact,
where he was involved in sales of
connectors into the French market.
He is a graduate of the Bourg
School of Business in France.
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
49

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
3M
Currently based at a site near
Singlewell,Kent,Davor
Vujatovic,EDF Energy
Engineering Manager,High
Speed 1,is overseeing the
completion of the installation
of the final section of the
power network,which will
enable the Channel Tunnel Rail Link trains to run from London to
Europe at up to 300kph. Working closely with main contractor Birse
Power Networks (a Balfour Beatty Company) and suppliers including
3M – which has provided many of the joints and terminations used
in the project – Davor and his colleagues have created a highly
advanced power system that will see the High Speed 1 through to its
completion,on time and within budget. This is despite it being one of
the most challenging rail projects of recent times.
‘The second section of the rail link – from Fawkham to St Pancras
– brought new challenges for us’said Davor.‘In many places,it goes
deep under London and therefore travels in tunnels. This meant
several demanding requirements and limitations on the
specifications of the 25 kV power cable joints and terminations that
provide the traction power for the train derived from the 400kV
National Grid network and distributed through London Tunnels.’
John Hughes, Electrical Engineer, Birse Process Engineering
Ltd, said:‘The High Speed 1 railway,from the Channel Tunnel to St.
Pancras International is the first new railway to be built in the UK for
over a century.This meant we were breaking new ground.Taking
25kV and 11kV supplies through tunnels to meet strict 21st century
safety regulations meant specifying joints and terminations which no
supplier stocked as standard product. Fortunately,3M met the
challenge with modifications to its Cold Shrink joints and
terminations,and by incorporating other products from the 3M
arsenal of innovative technology.’
● Call 01234 299462 or visit www.3m.com/uk/ecb
BRETT MARTIN
Brett Martin Daylight
Systems has supplied
3,000 sq metres of Trilite
Ultra 36 (3.6kg/m2)
single-skin translucent
GRP rooflights to brighten
areas of Network Rail’s
Paragon Station in Hull.
The new translucent rooflights provide optimum levels of
diffused natural daylight and more than satisfy all the required
safety levels.
These 32/1000 profile (Class 1 fire rating) rooflights were installed
by Ross Wright Ltd and C.Spencer Ltd were the Design & Build
contractors for this major refurbishment project.
Trilite Ultra sheets are supplied with Superlife enhanced UV
surface protection to minimise the harmful effects of the sun
and ultra-violet radiation.Translucent GRP rooflights were
specified because they limit glare and give a more even
distribution of diffused daylight with minimal shadow effects.
Trilite Ultra 36 sheets have also been installed as vertical
lantern lights below the station’s steeply pitched main roof
areas and at the gable ends.
Brett Martin’s range of Trilite sheets can be supplied as inplane
site assembled rooflights and in double and triple skin
FAIR options to satisfy a full range of U value, illuminance and
safety requirements. Sheets can be manufactured to match
any roofing sheet profile and are also available in
polycarbonate material where direct daylighting is preferred.
With an unrivalled portfolio of products and the technical
expertise to match, Brett Martin Daylight Systems offers
impartial advice and provides the most appropriate solution
for any rooflight or roof glazing application.
● For more details or a copy of the latest Rooflights
brochure, please call 024 7660 2022.
BCM CONSTRUCTION
BCM Construction has been removing litter and graffiti for
the rail industry for over 10 years.
Managing the removal of trackside litter and graffiti is
a serious and complicated business, combining the
professional expertise to work safely and efficiently in the
rail environment, the intricate planning of works to be
carried out during railway possessions, and the skills to
manage the expectation of both the client and the local
residents.
Having recently secured another five-year contract for
the Kent, Sussex and Wessex area we have invested
heavily in our new plant.We have recently taken delivery
of 18 new custom-designed vehicles including a Ford
Transit van fitted with a cherry-picker.
Adding this new equipment to our fleet enables us to
offer more complete instant solutions to our client as
well as saving them money.
● Call Jason Moden 020 8640 7887 or
visit www.bcmconstruction.co.uk.
FORGETRACK
ForgeTrack, an accredited Primavera Solution Provider, has
been working successfully since 1989 with many
companies in the Rail Industry to achieve improved
project-delivery times, better resource-utilisation and
greater visibility of performance data from all projects.
This results in improved return on investment and
profitability.
ForgeTrack therefore offers not only Primavera software
sales, but also value-added services including training and
consultation – installation, implementation, integration
and interfacing, to provide the complete solution that will
meet your project needs, and engender business success.
Standard vendor-developed, or tailored training courses
can be provided on-site or at various locations around the
UK. ForgeTrack has a team of accredited consultants that
work alongside your project team to assist in taking your
implementation and project processes forward.
With many of the major players in the Rail – and other
market segments – now standardising on Primavera P5
(Enterprise/P3e), our P3 to P5 Conversion courses are
proving very popular not only with Companies wishing to
ensure a smooth transition from one product to the other,
but with individuals upgrading their skills to meet the
growing demand for Primavera planners.
● Call 01992 500900 or
email: sales@forgetrack.co.uk
C & S EQUIPMENT
C & S Equipment Ltd have been supplying
and installing WALL-MAN® and LIFTMAN
pneumatic work platforms to the rail
industry for over 14 years,to provide safe
access for personnel working in paint
spraybooths,wash areas and similar
environments where electrical or hydraulic
power could present safety and surface-finish
problems.
The platforms are air-driven and
move in three dimensions to provide
easy access to all parts of a rail
carriage, wagon or similar large object.
Standard models are available within
a few weeks and special models with
extended lifting height, greater
forward movement or other special
features can also be supplied. They
are easy and quick to use and meet all
current U.K. and EU legislation.
Maintenance is minimal and spares readily available.
Normally WALL-MAN® is a permanent installation
inside a paint booth, but the system can be erected in an
open work area using purpose-designed steelwork.
LIFTMAN (illustrated) is a free-standing platform which
allows work areas to be kept free of obstructions.
Operators can move easily from location to location
without having to return to floor level.
WALL-MAN ® installations are already widely used in
the rail industry and most major rail manufacturers,
restorers and repairers use them. LIFTMAN is also
gaining acceptance as a convenient, flexible solution.
● Call 01296 688500 or
visit www.candsequipment.co.uk
HOCHIKI
Hochiki Europe
detectors are integrated
to a fully networked fire
detection and alarm
system at Edinburgh
Waverley station.
A fully networked
fire detection and alarm
system has been
developed and installed for Network Rail,providing centralised
control of fire monitoring at Edinburgh Waverley station,as part of a
major enhancement programme.In excess of 500 Hochiki
detection devices have been integrated into the system by
specialist contractors, Dante Fire & Security, and the system
comprises four main panels from Advanced Electronics.
Central to the network’s system design is the flexibility to
accommodate cause-and-effect scenarios within complex fire
strategies. For such a demanding project, system reliability and
integrity are of paramount concern, and Dante affirms that
‘Hochiki’s warranted product quality and reliability’ were
deciding factors in determining Hochiki as the preferred
technology for this prestigious installation programme.
The quality assured,interference-free performance of Hochiki’s
ESP range detectors is just one aspect of the efficient functionality
demanded of the installation by the Network Rail specifiers.
Commenting on the installation Neil Corney of Dante Fire &
Security said:‘The installation of the system was challenging due to
the demands of working in a busy capital city railway station,with
minimal impact on the operation of the station of paramount
importance to the customer.However,the flexibility of the system
installed in conjunction with the efforts of the Dante Fire & Security
and Network Rail project teams ensured this was achieved.’
● Call 01634 260133 or
visit www.hochikieurope.com
IF YOU WOULD LIKE YOUR PRODUCT FEATURED HERE
CALL ROB TIDSWELL ON 01223 477427
50 RAIL PROFESSIONAL : APRIL 2007

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
NOMAD DIGITAL
TECHNOLOGY company Nomad
Digital has bought QinetiQ Rail in
a deal which values Nomad at
more than US$100m and sees it
teaming up with a global player in
the security and defence markets.
The deal will allow the
Newcastle-based company to
accelerate the roll-out of its technology,which allows wireless
broadband connections to and from moving trains,even in tunnels.
QinetiQ Rail is the commercial rail division of QinetiQ,one of the
world’s leading defence and security technology companies that
grew out of the Ministry of Defence’s research labs.QinetiQ has sold
QinetiQ Rail to Nomad Digital for 8.6 per cent of Nomad's ordinary
share capital,and retains a further interest in the company with the
purchase of £1.5m of Nomad preference shares. QinetiQ will now
use Nomad as a key channel partner for providing products and
services to the rail industry.
Nigel Wallbridge,Executive Chairman of Nomad Digital,said:
‘This acquisition is part of Nomad's high-growth strategy in the
provision of mobile wireless services to the rail transportation sector,
giving us further traction in this specialist market.The transportation
sector is full of opportunities for a wide range of WiMAX broadband
and narrowband mobile wireless services and it is largely underserved
by conventional mobile network operators.
‘The acquisition will strengthen our existing market-leading
technical capabilities,but more significantly,enhance our offering of
value added on-train services,such as live CCTV,train operating
system applications,more reliable train-to-shore communications
and entertainment services for passengers.By retaining an interest in
Nomad,QinetiQ has demonstrated its conviction that we have a
strong business here.’
● Call Peter Jackson 0191 516 6235 or
email pj@pressahead.info
OCS
THE HIGH-SPEED CLEAN
TEAM WORKS NON-STOP
FROM LONDON TO PARIS
A ‘high-speed clean team’ is
helping make the Eurostar
journey from London to Paris
even more of a luxury.The ontrain
cleaning team from OCS
provides a new service from November, making sure that
passenger accommodation throughout the prestigious
international rail service stays ‘spick and span’ every second of
the journey between the two capital cities.
OCS Transport – the specialist division of the £600
million property services group – has won the contract for
ensuring there is a continuous cleaning service on the
Eurostar as it travels at speeds up to 186mph (300km/h) on
the journey.
The high-speed cleaners will support Eurostar’s on-train
personnel by prioritising their activities to suit the particular
circumstances at every stage of the journey. In addition to
providing proficient, continuous cleaning duties, the thirteenstrong
OCS team have also been trained to high levels of
customer service in recognition of their front-line contact with
Eurostar passengers.
‘We are very proud to have been chosen for this unique
international contract’ said Martin Gammon, managing
director OCS Transport Division.‘We have been entrusted by
Eurostar with using a high degree of initiative and flexibility in
meeting the needs of their customers throughout the journey.
We won the business after a three-month trial which
demonstrated that we were more than capable of meeting
their very high expectations.’
● Email sonia.debbat@ocs.co.uk or
visit www.ocs.co.uk
PEI-GENESIS
PEI-Genesis offers
ITT’s versatile VEAM
CIR connectors with
48-hour assembly
service
International
assembling distributor
PEI-Genesis has added
ITT’s VEAM CIR series of multipin circular connectors to its
product range and will be offering them with the company’s
unrivalled 48-hour assembly service from May 2007.
Designed specifically for the hostile environment of mass-transit
applications,the VEAM CIR series can be configured to function as
electrical,optical or pneumatic connectors and therefore simplify the
design process as well as reducing product inventories.In addition,
this versatile connector is available in high-voltage,twin or tri-axial,
hermetic and EMC versions.
With the expansion of the company’s portfolio to include
the VEAM CIR connectors, engineers and buyers in the rail
sector will now be able to obtain the exact connector for their
requirement in the shortest possible time and without the
burden of minimum order quantities; PEI-Genesis will happily
supply just one connector if that is all the customer needs.
The basic design parameters of the VEAM CIR series were
derived from the MIL-C-5015 military specification and
enhanced by the addition of a positive-lock/quick-disconnect
bayonet coupling mechanism. High shock and vibration
resistance is achieved without the need for lock wires, and the
connectors are rated for a minimum of 2000 couplings.
The connectors can also be specified with various inserts to meet
low-smoke/zero-halogen requirements and provide superior
resistance to fuel oils,solvents and elevated temperatures.
● Call 08707 207804 or
email peiuk@peigenesis.com
RECRUITMENT
APRIL 2007 : RAIL PROFESSIONAL
51

RECRUITMENT
Rail Professional Recruitment –
May 2007
Achieve maximum impact with your
recruitment advertising spend:
Contact: Rob Tidswell –
Recruitment Sales Manager
Tel: 01223 477427
rob@railpro.co.uk
May Rail Professional
recruitment advertising:
Booking deadline: Wed 18th April
Copy deadline: Thur 19th April
Copies on desks: Wed 25th April
The business magazine for Railway Managers

TO LIST YOUR APPOINTMENTS CALL
Rob Tidswell on 01223 477427

RECRUITMENT
Optimise our revenue and
your opportunities.
Income Manager
£30,745 - £42,500 depending on experience
Blackfriars, London
Our vision: A growing railway for a growing region.
With busy services across Kent, East Sussex and into London, Southeastern completes around 145 million journeys a year. Our aim is to
provide an efficient and reliable service for the thousands of passengers who depend on us everyday. In December 2009, we’ll be launching
a major new high-speed train service between Kent and London St Pancras. Your analytical expertise will be essential to our success.
We’re offering you the opportunity to shape a TOC from the start of the franchise’s development. As a member of the Market Intelligence Team,
you’ll set, deliver and monitor income forecasts that will help us gain a greater understanding of market demand patterns. Working within all
relevant regulatory guidelines, you’ll devise and implement strategies to optimise our income. You’ll also analyse changes in traffic patterns
and maintain the link between our fare and income allocation systems.
As an expert in this field, you’ll probably already have knowledge of income allocation and analysis systems gained within a similar role in
another train operating company. You’ll also possess the analytical and communication skills needed to interpret complex data and present
your findings to senior level management. But it will be your English, IT, and most importantly your numeracy skills that set you apart from all
the rest.
In return, we can offer you an attractive salary and benefits package and a working environment that places high importance on
employee satisfaction.
To apply, please forward your CV to jo.brown@southeasternrailway.co.uk
Closing date: Monday 16th April 2007
Please visit our website at www.southeasternrailway.co.uk

TO LIST YOUR APPOINTMENTS CALL
Rob Tidswell on 01223 477427
ACCESS DISPUTES COMMITTEE
Vacancy for Committee Secretary
The Committee handles disputes between companies in the Railway
Industry that arise out of the Network Code, Station Access Conditions
and the bilateral Track Access Agreements between Train Operators
and Network Rail.
It is looking for someone with a good understanding of the current
Railway Industry to be the Committee Secretary when the present
Secretary retires in the summer 2007. The Secretary has to have a
thorough knowledge of the Access Disputes Resolution Rules (the
“Rules”) which are annexed to the Network Code.
The post is a flexible part-time one, normally three days per week,
located at the Committee’s offices near Euston. The Secretary is
responsible for the overall management of a Secretariat that consists
of 3 part-time personnel.
As well as overseeing the registration of disputes, and, in accordance
with the Rules, appointing Panels to hear disputes, the Secretary
also has to ensure that the Members and Officers of the Committee
are provided with all relevant information and papers for meetings
and hearings, and to ensure that the business of the Committee is
conducted and recorded in accordance with the provisions of the
Rules.
Written and numeracy skills are essential as the Secretary is required
to take minutes, draft letters and manage the Committee’s financial
affairs including preparation of accounts. The Secretary also
negotiates contracts for personnel and equipment on behalf of the
Committee.
To apply write to the Disputes Chairman at
Access Disputes Committee
Central House
14 Upper Woburn Place
London WC1H 0HY
explaining why you consider you are the right person for the job/post.
Please enclose a CV and give an indication of your salary expectations
bearing in mind that this is a part-time appointment.
A full job description will be provided on request.
Access Contracts Executive
Central London - £22k-£27k - + benefits
First Capital Connect is committed to series of improvement schemes at our own
stations. The company will also have a key involvement in the new St Pancras
International station; the re-development of Kings Cross station, and a major role in
delivering the Thameslink Programme. You will manage our agreement of the
physical and financial arrangements for these schemes with Network Rail and other
Station Facility Owners together with the recovery of our agreed costs. You will also
analyse other Station Facility Owners quotations for First Capital Connect's Qualifying
Expenditure along with its billing and recovery. Reporting to the Access Contracts
Manager, you will also assist him with the management and administration of the
company's Track and Station Access arrangements.
You should be able to demonstrate:
• Organising ability.
• Understanding of both the principle industry contractual relationships
and their practical application.
• Understanding of the basic principles of railway and station operation.
• Working knowledge of Word and Excel IT packages.
• “O” level/GCSE or equivalent in Maths and
English Language.
• Ability to work productively with others
within and outside of the company.
Practical experience of railway and station
operation, Station and Track Access relationships,
the Track Access "Schedule 4" regime; together
with an understanding of the principles of rail
timetabling and the planned changes to the industry
Station Access regime and Associate or full
Membership of the Institution of Railway Operators
would be advantageous.
Application forms can be downloaded from the website
(www.firstcapitalconnect.co.uk) or please contact the First Capital Connect
Recruitment line on 020 7427 2065 (24hr message service). The closing date
for completed applications is Friday 13th April 2007.