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NewsSignalling to be centralisedby Katie SilvesterNetwork Rail is to centralise allits signalling into just 14 regionalsignalling centres by 2030, withwork beginning in Control Period5 (2014-19). There are currently 800signal boxes and centres.The cost of consolidation will beThe Derby Communications Centre,which opened in 2008£1.1bn, but £250m will be saved eachyear once it has been completed.The plan will form the backboneof Network Rail’s proposals for CP5,with more than 80 per cent of thenetwork moved to the new centresby 2029. The majority of the workwould be done in CP5 and CP6under the proposals, which wouldSpencerneed to be approved by the Office ofRail Regulation.A spokesman for NetworkRail said: ‘Much of our existingequipment is old and inconsistent,it needs to be replaced. With bettersignalling and control technologywe can reduce costs, reduce delays,deliver extra capacity and improvepassenger information, helping tocreating the 21st century railwayBritain deserves.’Countering anticipated protestsfrom traditionalists, he added: ‘Thiskind of activity has been going onfor generations – it’s part of theongoing evolution of the railway.’In 1900 there were around 10,000signal boxes, which dropped to justover 5,000 following the Beechingcuts. British Rail closed around 100boxes a year. Network Rail would beclosing around 50 a year under thenew plans.The new signalling centres willsee performance improve, NetworkRail says, with far fewer reactionarydelays, which account for 50 per centof all disruption. Punctuality shouldimprove by two per cent.But signalling centralisation willmean large numbers of redundanciesfor signallers, according to figuresfrom the RMT union, which is intalks with Network Rail about theplans. Today’s 6,000 signallers will bereduced to just 2,000 over the next30 years, the union has warned.RMT general secretary BobCrow said that discussions wereat an early stage, adding: ‘RMTwants to make it absolutely clearthat we will not agree to anythingthat compromises the job security,safety or standards of living of ourmembers. We are not opposed tonew technology but we are clear thatany changes that may arise shouldbe accommodated through a shorterworking week, additional annualleave and the right to retire at 55 onfull pension entitlement.’Existing signalling centres thatwill form part of the final 14 are:Derby, Gillingham, Cardiff, Saltley,Edinburgh and Ashford. Didcotand Glasgow will be retained, butupgraded. New centres will be builtin Romford, Three Bridges, York,Manchester Rugby and Basingstoke.n katie.silvester@railpro.co.ukWorker death blots otherwisegood year for rail safetynA Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB)report has given the railways a clean bill ofhealth for the financial year 2010-2011.The figures show that there was just oneworkforce fatality, where an infrastructure workerfell from height. The overall figure for fatal andnon-fatal workforce injuries has decreased by 10per cent compared to the previous year.No one was killed in train accidents and therewas a reduction in higher risk train accidents from42 in 2009-10 to 18. But eight passengers died inseparate incidents, all at stations.There were 31 fatalities among members ofAlstom fails in Eurostar challengeCourt action by Alstom challenging Eurostar’stendering process has failed after a highcourt judge rejected the claims. Siemens’Valaro platform won the £527m train orderfor Eurostar, but Alstom had claimed that thebidding contest was flawed. Alstom, whichis headquartered in France, has built all ofEurostar’s trains until now.the public, not including those due to suicide.Of the 31 deaths, 27 were trespassers and theremaining four were pedestrians at level crossings.Anson Jack, director of policy, research andrisk at RSSB said: ‘The rail industry’s primarysafety objective is to avoid harm to people andproperty, and rail continues to be one of the safestforms of transport.’ORR’s director of rail safety Ian Prosseradded: ‘Great Britain’s railways are facing a periodof change as the industry works to improve itsefficiency in the light of Sir Roy McNulty’s valuefor-moneystudy – but we stress that safety mustnot be compromised.‘We say again, improvements in safety andefficiency go hand-in-hand.’The ORR’s National Trends Yearbook 2010-11shows that 1,353 million franchised passengerjourneys were made, a 7.6 per cent increase fromthe previous year. Nine out of 10 (90.9 per cent) ofall trains were on time.The number of complaints per 100,000passenger journeys decreased by 5.9 per centcompared to 2009-10, while the average increase inrail fares between January 2010 and January 2011was 6.0 per cent.Union merger talksin progressPlans to merge the TSSA and RMT are afootafter the two unions agreed to formal talks.Initial discussions will focus on closer working– initially through a federation structure – witha view to moving towards a merger.The move is being billed as a merger of therail industry’s two biggest unions in a bid tofight cuts expected in a potential railways whitepaper in the autumn. The plan is for the RMTand TSSA to set up a federation to campaignand ballot for action. Both unions agreed thatthe door will stay open for smaller, specialisttransport unions – that may be thinking alongsimilar lines – to join the discussions at a futuredate.TSSA general secretary Gerry Dohertysaid: ‘The decision will hopefully be the startof a process designed to serve the interests offuture generations of transport and travel tradeworkers. We owe an obligation to our childrenand our children’s children to leave betterorganisations that protect workers in the veryuncertain future that they currently face.’Speaking on behalf of the RMT, generalsecretary Bob Crow said: ‘These talks will bringtogether two unions, each with over 100 yearsof specialising in the transport industry in theinterests of workers.’AUGUST 2011 PAGE 5

Hammond evaluatedThameslink bids ‘blind’by Paul Cliftonand Katie SilvesterRail minister Theresa Villiers hasadmitted that the bids for theThameslink rolling stock contractwere assessed on an anonymisedbasis, which is standard DfTpractice.Answering a written questionfrom shadow business secretaryJohn Denman, she said that thebids were viewed without anyconsideration of the impact onBritish industry. The work wentto Germany’s Siemens, meaningBombardier, which would have builtthe units in Derby, lost out.More than 1,400 permanentand temporary jobs are to be lostat Bombardier’s Derby worksfollowing the decision.The German company wasawarded preferred bidder status forthe contract, worth more than £2bn,in June.Twelve thousand jobs in the UKsupply chain are also under threat,although Labour claimed the figurecould be as high as 20,000.Locals showed their support forBombardier when 10,000 peopleattended a rally in Derby organisedby Unite on 23 July.The Litchurch Lane workshas a Tube train contract thatwill continue until 2014, but thiswill support only a few hundredjobs. Its other orders for LondonUnderground and London Midland,will both be completed by the end ofSeptember.Bombardier has started a 90-daystatutory consultation process.Colin Walton, chairman ofBombardier Transportation in theUK, said: ‘The loss of the Thameslinkcontract has forced us to conducta review of our operations. Thisannouncement is part of an ongoingprocess. These are highlyskilled people.’The transport secretary, PhilipHammond, said the job losses were‘by no means’ all attributable to theThameslink decision.He told the BBC: ‘Bombardierhas had a fantastic run of success;they have been building train ordersfor all sorts of companies over thelast few years; they have geared uptheir labour force.‘They always knew when thosecontracts came to an end, therewould have to be some job losses.‘The company wrote to meback in May and said that whateverthe outcome of the Thameslinkcontract, regardless of whether theywon or not, they would have tomake 1,200 redundancies.’Hammond said the Thameslinkprocurement process had beenstarted by the previous government,Bombardier’s Litchurch Lane worksand that under Europeanprocurement law he had no abilityto influence the outcome.John Denham has called for anindependent review of the process.He told the BBC: ‘In Germany, allthe trains are German. In France, allthe trains are built in France. It ismuch the same in Italy and Spain.Do they interpret the same rulesdifferently from us?’Hammond told the BBC: ‘Ithink the question is whether theprocurement was correctly framed.‘The way some of ourcontinental partners approach thesethings is to look more strategically atthe support of the domestic supplychain, and it is clear because theFrench routinely award contractsfor trains to French builders andthe Germans award contracts toGerman builders.‘I think we have got to look athow we manage these things for theUK in the future.’Condemning the awardingof the contract to Siemens, theRMT has raised concerns aboutthe company’s plans to use bogieswhich currently only exist onpaper. Bombardier’s B5000 bogies,which would have been used onThameslink had Bombardier won,have a proven track record, both inthe UK and abroad.RMT general secretary BobCrow said: ‘It is extraordinary thatthe government has ignored themost basic piece of engineering intheir awarding of the Thameslinkcontract to Siemens.’n Though the DfT requiresdetails of bids to be keptconfidential, Bombardiermost likely lost out on theThameslink contract because therequirement to finance the 1,200carriages would have left it at acompetitive disadvantage.Siemens has a higher creditrating than Bombardier, whichwould have made it eligible forloans at lower interest rates.On a contract of this size, thedifference could have amountedto hundreds of millions ofpounds.n See Rail Professional opinionpage 4 and Wright track 16-17for commentMPs investigate rollingstock procurementThe Transport Select Committee is to hold an investigation into UKrolling stock procurement. The committee will question witnessesabout the decision to award the Thameslink contract to Siemensinstead of to Britain’s last remaining train builder, Bombardier in Derby.It will also look at broader issues relating to the way rolling stockis ordered. The first hearing will be on 7 September at the House ofCommons.PAGE 6 AUGUST 2011

NewsORR ‘needs teeth’ say MPsToo cosy? Anna Walker, chair of the ORR and Rick Haythornthwaite, chair ofNetwork Railby Katie SilvesterThe Office of Rail Regulation shouldnot be fining Network Rail forunder-performance, a report by theCommittee of Public Accounts hasfound, but should be enforcing astronger link between performanceand bonus payments.The report is critical of the ORR,accusing it and its advisors of being‘too cosy’ with Network Rail.Margaret Hodge MP, chair ofthe Committee of Public Accounts,said: ‘We doubt whether the Officeof Rail Regulation can put effectivepressure on Network Rail toimprove its performance.‘Fines simply reduce the amountof investment in the railways. Britainneeds a regulator with teeth, whocan ensure proper value for moneyfor both the taxpayer and fare-payer.‘Our railways cost up to 40per cent more than our Europeanequivalent operators. Everybodyneeds to focus on improving theefficiency of British railways.’Network Rail does not facenormal commercial pressures fromshareholders or lenders to improveits efficiency, so the ORR’s job is tohold Network Rail to account for itsperformance and to incentivise it tobecome more efficient.The report says: ‘We wereparticularly concerned that theregulator did not enforce a strongerlink between performance andbonus payments to Network Rail’ssenior managers, leading to excessivebonus and performance paymentsbeing paid to senior executives.’It continues: ‘The relationshipRunaway excavator blamed onhuman error and design issuesHuman error and design flaws were responsible for a rail accidentinvolving a runaway excavator, which left an operator seriously injured,the Rail Accident Investigation Branch has found.The accident happened last July near Inverness, when a machineoperator was placing a road-rail excavator onto the railway.Staff on site were unable to stop the machine when it began to rundown the track with the operator on board. It collided at a speed of 40to 50mph with a stationary freight train. The operator was thrown fromthe cab and suffered serious injury.The RAIB found the excavator brakes had not been applied when itwas being placed on the track. Recommending a review of safety andtraining, it blamed a combination of operator error and a failure of themachine’s control system.Network Rail has suspended use of the type of excavator involved,pending modifications.between Network Rail, the regulatorand their advisors appears to us tobe too cosy, with some companieshired by the regulator to provide anindependent view of Network Rail,also providing advice to them. Wequestion whether this serves theinterest of independent review.’The committee would like to seeNetwork Rail held more accountablefor its use of public money – in2009-10, it received £3.7bn in directtaxpayer support.The comptroller and auditorgeneral, the committee says, shouldhave full access to Network Rail, sothat parliament can scrutinise itsvalue for money.Anna Walker, chair of the ORRsaid: ‘The ORR has been successfulin challenging Network Rail toreduce its costs and to deliversignificant efficiency savings of£15bn over a 10-year period. Thisis in sharp contrast to other partsof the rail industry that we do notregulate where costs have remainedfar too high.Looking afterthe health ofyour business‘We regulate Network Rail usinga wide range of levers to drive upperformance, efficiency and safety– fines are rarely used and only as alast resort.’Tony Berkeley, Rail FreightGroup chairman, said: ‘We fullysupport the regulator holdingNetwork Rail to account on costreduction.’He added that new chiefexecutive Richard Price ‘must alsograsp the nettle of an incentivescheme that rewards success ratherthan failure.’n See Regulator’s platform,page 32, for Richard Price’scomments on the the ORR’speriodic reviewMedical expertise with first-class service levelshelping to increase productivity, reduce absenteeismand minimise risk.Rail MedicalsBlood TestingDrug & Alcohol Testing Skin AssessmentOccupational Health Travel HealthHealth Surveillance VaccinationsPhysiotherapyWellbeingCounsellingCustomer Service Team020 7500 6900www.expressmedicals.co.uk‘Our railways cost upto 40 per cent morethan our Europeanequivalent operators’Meet us onStand C41Railtex201114 –16 JuneEarls Court, LondonAUGUST 2011 PAGE 7

New concept sees passengerschange between moving trainsnThe designer of the Pendolinohas proposed a new conceptin train travel, which would seepassengers able to change from highspeed trains to local trams – whilethe trains are still moving.The system, which is morelikely to find its way into the sci-fisection of Blockbusters than intoa DfT policy document, is calledMoving Platforms. It involves anetwork of high speed trains thatrun non-stop between two ends ofa continent. The trains run on a linethat passes outside towns and citieswith a network of local feeder tramscarrying passengers from local stopsout to meet them.As they near each other, thehigh speed train slows down andthe tram speeds up alongside it, atwhich point the trains connect via adocking system, allowing passengersto transfer directly across from thetram to the high speed train andvice versa.Paul Priestman, ofPriestmangoode, said: ‘I can’tbelieve that across the world we arespending billions on high speed railmaking it run on a network that wasinvented in the 19th Century.‘I’m under no illusion thatMoving Platforms is a big idea, butif we really want high speed rail tobe successful and change the waywe travel, getting people off theroads and reducing the number ofshort haul flights, it is imperativethat the infrastructure we useworks with, not against, this newtechnology to enable a seamlesspassenger journey from start todestination.’n A short film of the conceptcan be seen at: www.vimeo.com/25403519LONDON ‘GETS TRIPLE SPENDING’nTransport spend for Londonis close to triple the spendin the north of England and WestMidlands, according to a report bythe Passenger Transport ExecutiveGroup.Pteg’s analysis of Treasury publicspending figures has found thatspending on transport in LondonLib Dems: Northern Hub ‘threatened’nThe fall-out from May’s local electionsthat saw Labour sweep to power hascontinued, with Liberal Democrats claimingthat government spending on the Northern Hubimprovements could be threatened.Lib Dem group leader Councillor RichardKnowles has written to transport ministerNorman Baker after being denied a majorposition on the new Transport for GreaterManchester.He said: ‘I assured him that TfGM’s LiberalDemocrat opposition will continue to vigorouslyArtist’s impression of a tram pullingalongside a high speed trainhas now risen to £802 per head,compared with £286 per head forthe West Midlands and the north ofEngland combined.Geoff Inskip, chair of Pteg,said: ‘Our cities are economicpowerhouses but a greater level oftransport investment in Britain’smajor urban centres is needed tohelp bridge the north-south divideand ensure that we can boost oureconomic performance and reachour potential.’He points to projects such as theredevelopment of St Pancras, theintroduction of Oyster cards and theTube upgrade as the main consumersof funding in the capital.promote the case for transport investment andtransport policies which enhance sustainabletransport, economic development and socialinclusion in Greater Manchester.‘I fear that Labour’s partisan power grabwill undermine the effectiveness of GreaterManchester’s hitherto successful all-partycampaign on transport investment. The chanceof securing new investment in much needed newrailway carriages, the £500m-plus Northern Huband further electrification schemes has been putat risk.’West Coast‘dependent onnew high speedline’ to increasecapacityThe need for a new high speedline from London to Birminghamand Manchester forms thecentral tenet of Network Rail’sroute utilisation strategy for theWest Coast Main Line.Forecasts predict that the linewill be running at full capacityat the southern end by 2024. Anew line will help to free up theexisting line for faster commuterjourneys.Other plans for the linebetween 2012 and 2024 includerunning longer trains, moreoff-peak long-distance trainsand faster services betweenBirmingham and Manchester.Network Rail believes thatincreases in the amount of freightcarried can be accommodated,but it recommends a movetowards electric traction toimprove both journey times andcapacity.However, this would requiresome infill electrification, aswell as the electrifying of freightterminals.Paul Plummer, Network Rail’sgroup strategy director, said: ‘TheWest Coast Main Line is Britain’sbusiest and most economicallyvital rail artery – but by 2024 itwill be full, with no more spaceto accommodate the continuedpredicted growth in demand.‘There is broad consensusthat Britain needs a high speednetwork to provide better, fasterjourneys for passengers andcreate the extra capacity weneed.’Labour has returned to power after threeyears of being kept in opposition by a Lib Dem/Conservative coalition.New chair Andrew Fender said: ‘He ishuffing and puffing hot air. How he canrealistically claim that on a body of 33 members,with only four members, they could realisticallyexpect to have a senior position in theadministration is a flight of fantasy.’He said he hoped to continue GreaterManchester’s traditional all-party approach tolobbying the government.PAGE 8 AUGUST 2011

NewsDeutsche Bahnapplies forChannel TunnelservicesnRail services from London toGermany have moved a stepcloser.Deutsche Bahn has made aformal application to run trainsthrough the Channel Tunnel.If approved, trains could runfrom St Pancras to Amsterdam,Frankfurt and Cologne in 2013.The application hasbeen submitted to theIntergovernmental Commission,which is responsible for safety inthe tunnel. Eurostar had exclusiveuse of the tunnel for passengerservices until 2010, and DeutscheBahn is the first operator to expressa wish to compete.It plans to run trains toBrussels, where they would bejoined to onward services. It wouldbring Frankfurt and Amsterdamwithin four hours of London.Cologne would take just under fivehours.The German operator’sapplication was welcomed bythe transport secretary, PhilipHammond, who described it as ‘animportant step along the way toa truly European high speed railnetwork’.Last October Deutsche Bahnran a one-off trial service withoutpassengers to St Pancras.Fares protest to hit 40commuter stationsby Paul CliftonA campaign against rail fareincreases has been launched by theCampaign for Better Transport.It includes protests at 40 keycommuter stations, highlighting thefact that season tickets are likely torise by an average of eight per centnext January.Until now, the annual increasein regulated fares, which includeseason tickets, has been limited tothe Retail Price Index inflation rateplus one per cent, with July’s RPIfigure determining the followingJanuary’s rise.Inflation is currently running ataround five per cent.CBT campaigner AlexandraWoodsworth said: ‘Ministers haverushed to provide help for motoriststo cope with rising fuel prices, butthey are hitting train travellerswith astronomical fare hikes. Thisis a deeply unfair blow to railcommuters.’A spokesman for Atoc said:‘We understand that these aretough times for many people,but the government has decidedthat taxpayers should pay less andpassengers more towards the overallcost of running the railways.’A Department for Transportspokesman responded: ‘We havealready committed to one ofthe biggest programmes of railEurotunnel signs coach deal forthrough-transport during OlympicsnA contract has been signedbetween coach companyEurolines UK and Eurotunnel LeShuttle which will lead to a ‘key role’in transporting sport fans to andfrom the Olympics next year.John Gilbert, managing directorof Eurolines UK, said: ‘Our networkconnects over 600 destinationsacross Europe and we’ll play akey role in helping people fromacross the continent visit the UKnext summer. We are committedto providing passengers with anaffordable, convenient and easilyaccessible service to key points inthe heart of London. By linking withEurotunnel we are able to increaseinvestment for 100 years. The longtermsolution is to get the cost ofrunning the railways down.‘That way we can get a betterdeal for passengers and taxpayers. Ifwe succeed then we hope to see theend of above-inflation average risesin regulated fares.’Gerry Doherty of the TSSAunion said: ‘The governmenthas the next month to come to asensible decision and stop penalisingpassengers who are already payingthe highest fares in Europe.‘If they don’t, commuters insouth-east England will have to findhundreds of pounds to meet theextra cost of buying a season ticketin the new year.’our normal timetable to provideadditional services for customerswhen they need them most.’Jo Willacy, commercial directorof Eurotunnel Le Shuttle added:‘This contract means that Europeanvisitors will benefit from EurotunnelLe Shuttle’s unbeatable 35 minutecrossing time through the tunnel.’Hendy sets out plansfor cooling TubeLondon’s transportcommissioner Peter Hendy hasattempted to ease mountingpassenger criticism of hightemperatures on LondonUnderground trains byconfirming that action is beingtaken and users are alreadyreaping the benefits.He said: ‘We are workinghard to overcome the uniqueand considerable challenge ofcooling the Tube.’Hendy said achievementsincluded the roll out of newair-conditioned S stock trains onthe Metropolitan Line, as well asplans for 40 per cent of the Tubenetwork to have air conditionedtrains by 2016.Emily Goodman, the seven-year-old daughter of GB Railfreight’s Whitemoor Yard shift leader BenGoodman, won a GBRf ‘design a livery’ competition last autumn. Aged just six at the time of entering, hertwo colourful designs of night and day now feature on both sides of loco 66720PAGE 10 AUGUST 2011

Edinburgh tram goes aheaddespite £200m funding gapby Arthur AllanCity leaders have voted to pressahead with Edinburgh’s tramsystem, despite uncertainty overhow to find a £200m-plus fundingshortfall.Meanwhile, a former director atNetwork Rail is so incensed by thescheme that he is seeking electionin a bid to have it cancelled.After debating into thenight, councillors opted to tryto complete the tram line fromEdinburgh airport to the citycentre.They decided against pullingout of their deal with a consortiumled by Bilfinger Berger, despite atwo-year dispute that has stalledthe project. They also dismissed anoption for a truncated route, afterhearing that only a line to the citycentre would deliver a profit.A previous report had foundthat scrapping the scheme at thisstage could cost over £700m for nobenefit.Council chief executive SueBruce said the city centre route was‘the only option that will, with ahigh degree of certainty, produce atram line for Edinburgh, as the firstbuilding block of a future network’.She promised to work closelywith the consortium, with whomshe said the council had an ‘everimprovingrelationship’.nFirstGroup says there isincreased demand for railtravel, with more people takingholidays in the UK, and reducingcar use because of rising fuel prices.Its rail services, which includeFirst Great Western, FirstCapital Connect, ScotRail andTransPennine Express, saw like-forlikepassenger revenues increase by8.5 per cent in the three months to30 June.First says train travel is seen asa cheaper alternative to driving,despite fares rising by an average of6.2 per cent in January. The price ofHowever, the total costsof the line are estimated at£725m to £773m. With theScottish government ruling outfurther grants beyond its £500mcontribution, this leaves thecouncil seeking to borrow funds orinvolve the private sector.Paul Tetlaw of transportcampaign group TransformScotland called on the governmentto ‘show similar leadership’ to thecouncil and provide extra money.But John Carson, retireda litre of petrol has increased by 15per cent in the last year.It says trains to the south-westand north-east coasts were boostedby more people choosing holidaysin the UK, as the cost of flyingand a relatively weak pound madegoing abroad more expensive.First is echoing Stagecoach,which last month said the price ofpetrol was a factor in its increasedprofits.It added that the reason forgrowing passenger numbers on theFirst Capital Connect commuterfranchise was an increase in thedirector of maintenance atNetwork Rail and a member ofthe team that set up Tubelines, isstanding in a council by-electionin August as an independent on ananti-tram platform.An increasingly vocal critic ofthe scheme, he said: ‘The impact ofthe tram on the city for decades tocome won’t be an insignificant andmanageable issue – it could be adevastating tsunami of debt.’n arthur.allan@railpro.co.ukArtist’s impressionof a tram on Princes StFirstGroup: Rising fuel costshelping drive demand for rail travelnumber of jobs in London.In the most recent NationalPassenger Survey, First CapitalConnect was the worst performingfranchise, with First Great Westernalso in the bottom five operators.Shares rose seven per centfollowing the announcement of thegroup’s trading update.n FirstGroup’s UK graduatescheme attracted 749 applicantsfor its 2011/2012 intake – 50per cent more applications thanusual. The company was lookingfor just 17 graduatesNews in briefCar movements upDB Schenker has moved 15per cent more cars by railduring the first quarter of 2011than it did during the sameperiod in 2010, signalling afurther recovery in a key freightmarket. Cars manufactured inthe south east are being movedby rail to north-west Englandand Scotland, while vehiclesmade in Oxford are taken toPurfleet for export.Amey gets fivecontractsNetwork Rail has awarded Ameyfive rail signalling contracts wortha total of £37m. The companyhas secured contracts inYorkshire, Nottingham, Tameside,London and Devon for workranging from detailed design andinstallations, through to testingand commissioning.New locos for ColasColas Rail Freight has leasedfive Class 66 heavy haullocomotives from EversholtLeasing. Simon Ball, Colas’head of freight, said: ‘We are aconfident freight business that’sseeing traffic growth in variousbusiness sectors. Buying theselocomotives makes long termcommercial sense.’Thameslinkframework contractgoes to InvensysnInvensys has been awardedthe Resignalling FrameworkContract for ThameslinkProgramme by Network Rail. Theoverarching contract will consist ofseveral smaller contracts runningfrom August 2011 to December2018.Simon Kirby, Network Rail’sdirector of investment projects,said: ‘By involving our deliverypartners at an early stage, theindustry will be able to deliverone of the most complex station,track and signalling projects beingundertaken on the railway networkin a generation.’Despite the win, Invensys iscurrently looking to make up to20 per cent of its 1,000 strong UKworkforce redundant, after failingto win a signalling upgrade contractfor London Underground.AUGUST 2011 PAGE 11

Readers air their views about the railwayindustry and Rail ProfessionalEmail your letters to: editor@railpro.co.uk Fax them to: 01223 327356Or post them to: The Editor, Rail Professional, 275 Newmarket Road,Cambridge CB5 8JE. Letters may be edited for lengthBicycles could be carried on the front of tramsTim Shoveller provides a number of reasonsthat have led to Stagecoach maintaining apolicy of refusing to carry bicycles in trams, andjudging by the problems faced trying to loadbicycles into Pacers in the rush hour on mylocal service they are good reasons.But is this the only possible solution?Last week in New York I was reminded thatbuses there, as in a number of other AmericanThe US could do with aMark HopwoodThe article on First Group andFGW in the June 2011 RailProfessional made some validpoints. However, from theperspective of an Americanwho is well acquaintedwith First Group and FirstGreat Western, some of thedescriptors are not withoutirony.The characterisation of‘ancient diesel trains andcreaking infrastructure’ isamusing at the least. Granted,the FGW is not the ‘billiardtable’ of years past, but I, andmost of my colleagues, wouldhave tears in our eyes if anyroute in the US was of thisquality, and if we could havejust a few of those letterperfectHST sets. Or Class 165DMUs! Our newest ‘high speed’corridors, in Michigan andIllinois, will, when completed,have largely single track, goodin part for up to 110 mph!Commercial speed whennew equipment is brought online may approach 60mph.One understatement,though: ‘Mark Hopwoodcities, have a bicycle rack on the front of thebus. It is lowered by the driver on request forthe cyclist to hang his bicycle on it.Given the litigious nature of American societythis procedure must be safe, or it would notstill be available. I wonder if Stagecoach mightconsider this possibility?Clive Fletcher-WoodBristolstepped in and completed thejob: First Great Western is nowwell run.’ No, it is superblyrun, by one of our industry’ssmartest, most professional, andmost decent managers.Like the creakinginfrastructure and ancienttrains, any of us in US passengerrail would sell our souls for thelikes of a Mark Hopwood (orbetter, six or a dozen of him).We have in the US intercitypassenger railway establishmentperhaps a handful of managerswho are in Mr Hopwood’sleague. Out of several thousand!Given today’s date (4 July),one wonders if, had this sidenot been successful 235 yearsago, we might be similarly‘plagued’ with four track,125mph railways, trains everyfew minutes, about to beelectrified, and managed by thelikes of Hopwood and O’Toole.Would that it be so!Michael R WeinmanManaging directorPTSI Transportation, and formerRail Professional columnistThameslink needs arethinkOn 27 June we once againsuffered First Capital Connectattempting to provide aservice on its Thameslinkroute after some NetworkRail infrastructure failed atBlackfriars.Still incredulous at the beliefthe managing director has thatFCC has turned a corner (RailProfessional, June 2010) I notethat in times of disruption, FirstCapital Connect and NetworkRail always make the samemistakes:n Stabling trains. What use arethey in sidings in the peakhour? Why run a shortformedtrain in the peak?n Trying to run through an areaof disruption. There is theability to reverse along theline, including at St Pancras.Try it!n All stations service every15 minutes. Come snow orsun, in times of disruptionthe default is to cancel halfthe trains and run the restall stations. It’s like nobodyrealised there’s a good,demand-based reason, whyfive to six trains an hour are‘semi-fast’ and four are allstations.n No information: CIS screensfreeze on data from severalhours ago. Can it not beremoved? At 22:00 who caresthat the 17:34 was cancelled?n Wrong stock locations: noinclination to cancel thePAGE 12 AUGUST 2011

Lettersovernight works in the tunnelto get stock to the correctlocation for the morning peak.It is evident to me that FCChave no contingency plan,no ideas on how to react to aproblem on their line, no ideahow to maximise the capacityprovided, no idea how manypassengers they carry, no idea ofthe demand for their service, andno intention of learning fromtheir past mistakes.On the plus side they havefinally painted Luton station.Mark CurranLutonHigh speed line mustgo to ScotlandTransport Futures, a groupbringing together localgovernment interests acrossthe United Kingdom, stronglysupports proposals for a highspeed rail network in the UK.However, we aredisappointed that there is as yetno clear commitment to extendthis network to the north eastand Scotland.The group believes thata modern, high speed railnetwork is essential to thefuture transport system of theUK, to narrow the economicgap between London and otherregions of the UK and to allowthe UK to compete effectivelywithin European markets.The proposed Y-shapedhigh speed rail network willprovide faster journeys acrossthe UK and will transformour transport system, bringingpeople and places closer tonational and internationalmarkets and improving access toa wider range of labour markets,customers and suppliers.However, the full benefits ofhigh speed rail will only berealised when the network isextended further northwards.Transport Futures welcomesthe current consultationby the government and thecommitment shown so fartowards developing high speedrail. Nevertheless, the projectwill face many challenges aheadand bringing this project toreality will require continuingpolitical and financialcommitment by all parties.It is essential that thepositive messages in support ofhigh speed rail as the transportsolution for the future continueto be heard.Transport Futures willwelcome further discussion onthe development of a high speednetwork beyond Birminghamand the currently proposedY-network, to create a trulynational network to supporteconomic prosperity throughoutthe UK.Stuart WrigleySecretaryLGA Transport FuturesDon’t let the Derbyplant closeI’m an employee at Bombardierin Derby. My Dad and Grandadworked for the railway, and I’vebeen here for the last 12 and ahalf years.I am proud to be part of thishistoric site and would hopeI could retire here in 20 yearstime, but it seams as though thegovernment are willing to let allthis disappear.I don’t think they realisewhat impact this will have onDerby and the East Midlands asa manufacturing hub, as well ason the country as a whole.I feel one of the only waysto make the government situp and take notice is that allmanufacturers in the UK shouldstick together as they do inGermany, France and Spain– and protest even if it meansgoing on strike to overturn thisunforgivable decision.If we don’t, this factory willclose and 10,000-plus families(Bombardier employees and thesupply chain) will suffer as aconsequence of this.Clive RoeQuality specialistBombardierTGV celebrates 30 yearsThis year is the 30th birthday of the first TGV, so the eventsof the last 30 years have been reviewed in some newspapersin France. It is true that some provincial French cities havebenefited to a greater or lesser extent – Marseilles and Lille inparticular – but many ‘people in the street’ responded as tohow it had enabled them to get to Paris – to work, or see theirgirlfriend, or for regular visits to a medical specialist.It has enabled people to visit their second homes in thecountry, from their Paris base, more often or live further awayand commute into the capital. A neighbour used to travel byTGV to Paris for a day for meetings – sometimes twice a week.This is a journey of about 310 miles each way.A good friend, who knows a lot about Irish rail history,answered my queries about the branch lines in the westof Ireland that were opened quite late in the history of railopenings. They would never pay, but were built to ‘open up’the places, to enable them to ship their goods out. Whatactually happened was that it made them a market more readilyaccessible to people outside the area to ship goods in – theopposite of what was planned! These branches were amongthe first to be closed.This fits in with the TGV story. The benefit has been as much– if not more – toward Paris as outward. For HS2, we are toldit will benefit the northern parts of the UK. I imagine it will, but itcould well have the effect of bringing more ‘stuff’ to London andthe south east. When the French started to raise the speed onLGV, they found that the cost of maintenance rose exponentiallyand a query immediately arose as to a positive cost:benefit ofgoing faster.This is an even more valid theory with rising fuel costs. Wehave seen some fast ferry services withdrawn, as with Concord,because the costs are too great compared with the benefit oftheir extra speed. So, would it be better if HS2 were marketedmore as XC1 (Extra Capacity Route 1)? It will certainly makeother lines freer to accept more trains and benefit far morepeople. I am pro HS2. But, with more debate still to come, arethere not other ways to market it?Eric Stuart CMILT MIROFranceStefan Ataman / Shutterstock.comAUGUST 2011 PAGE 13

Making tracksBirmingham and the West Midlands are to get asecond fast service to London. In September ChilternRailways launches its new ‘Mainline’ offering, withsome journey times dropping to just 90 minutes.Peter Plisner has been looking what’s happened tomake it possiblet’s claimed to be the largestdomestic rail infrastructureproject that’s been built withouthelp from the UK taxpayer sinceWorld War Two. And in thesetimes of hardship for UK plc, it’sbeing seen as something of the model forthe future. Evergreen 3, which in total isestimated to be costing around £250m, hasseen major upgrades to infrastructure and,later, will see even more new trainsentering service on the line.The latest batch of improvementspromises to deliver super-fast journeyson several parts of the Chiltern networkincluding from Birmingham to London.It’s more good news for passengers ofthe route, which until rail privatisationback in the 1990s, was seen as somethingof a Cinderella line, with little or noinvestment. Even where work had beencarried out, little thought was given towhat might happen if passenger numbersincreased in the future.The Evergreen 3 project is beingdelivered in stages. First has comeimprovements on the line, delivering thefaster journey times from September.Phase 2 will see the opening of a new lineto Oxford, including a parkway station atWater Eaton. That’s expected to open by2013, subject to Transport and Works Actapproval.Chiltern’s business developmentdirector, Graham Cross says: ‘Evergreen3 is the biggest project in the history ofChiltern Railways and will see a hugeimprovement for our customers with mostof the route upgraded to a line speed of100mph – a phenomenal achievement.’The infrastructure upgrade comes inaddition to new trains designed for fasteracceleration and low emissions on theLondon suburban services. There’s alsothe introduction, next month, of specialcarriages on the Birmingham route. Inadvance of the launch, new platformshave been opened at Birmingham MoorStreet station. There’s also new ticketingtechnology in the form of a smartphoneapp which, according to Chiltern Railways,has already been downloaded by more than30,000 people.Phase 1 of the Evergreen 3 roll-outcomes on 5 September, 2011, when Chilternlaunches its much publicised ‘Mainline’service. Initially expected to launch earlierthis year, problems with delivery of someaspects of the project meant that it had tobe delayed until the next timetable change.Graham Cross says: ‘We were obviouslydisappointed to postpone the launch of theChiltern Mainline, but do believe it was theright decision for our passengers. We areundertaking this project to offer a betterservice and we are keen for customersto see the benefits of our investment assoon as possible. However, we were notcomfortable with a risk of our passengersexperiencing unplanned disruptionand would rather spread the work overa slightly longer period and enable ourpassengers to plan their journeys withconfidence.’According to Chiltern it means theentire route will be brought closer toLondon, with commuting times fromBanbury and Bicester reducing to less thanan hour. The West Midlands effectivelygets a new mainline connection to Londonto rival the West Coast route to Euston,with the average journey times fromBirmingham Moor Street to LondonMarylebone dropping to just 100 minutes,against the current 128 minutes. Some peakjourneys will drop to just 90 minutes.The dramatic reductions in journeytimes are being delivered through a seriesof upgrades in several key areas. Crosssays: ‘We identified a number of targetedareas of the line that we could remodel togive us a higher line speed. In addition, weidentified other areas that we could adaptto give us more operational flexibility,for instance the opening of the two newplatforms at Birmingham Moor Streetenabling us to terminate and start trainsfrom there.’Work completed already includesa new crossover in the Gerrards Crossarea. It allows additional flexibilityduring engineering work and means thatterminating trains that are returningto London can do so directly from theBirmingham-bound platform. Some of thebiggest improvements have taken placeat Bicester North where, for historicalreasons, the London-bound track curvedsharply either side of the station. It’s alwaysmeant that non-stop trains have had toslow down to 25mph. Now the track hasbeen realigned and a new widened platformhas been construction. Further north atAynho Junction, where the London toBirmingham line meets the Oxford toBanbury line, the existing track layoutagain meant speed restrictions.The junction has now been remodelledso that trains can run at much faster speeds.Meanwhile, this month sees more worktaking place in the Neasden area, where ajunction is being reconstructed at the pointwhere the Birmingham and Aylesbury linesdiverge. Once complete, it should allowtrains on the Birmingham lines to passover the junction at 75mph, instead of at40mph at present. Between Northolt Parkand South Ruislip, the line used by trainsPAGE 14 AUGUST 2011

News analysisto Birmingham follows a new, less tightlycurved alignment, helping to increase thespeed of trains to 100mph, again somethingthat was not possible on the old alignment.Other improvements along the routeallow a smoother ride at higher speeds andadditional track to allow overtaking ofstopping services at Princes Risborough.But the improvements aren’t just onthe track. Chiltern is having a number of‘classic’ railway carriages refurbished foruse on the Mainline service. They’ll beloco-hauled and similar to those used onthe now defunct Wrexham and ShropshireRailway service. Cross says: ‘Ourprinciple Mainline peak services betweenBirmingham and London will be mainlyClass 67/Mark 3s. We will also continueto use our Class 168s. Both formations arerolling stock that our customers tell us thatthey like and which offer air conditioning,power points and tables.’All trains running on the Mainlineservice will be fitted with wi-fi internetthat will be free to all passengers. The stateof the art wi-fi equipment is provided bySwedish firm Icomera AB. At the heartof each on-train system is the router,which uses special software to seamlesslycombine multiple mobile networksalong the Chiltern route to deliver fastbroadband connections. The system hasalso been ‘future proofed’ because it’s alsoable to take advantage of super fast nextgenerationLTE mobile networks whenthese start going live in a couple of years.Cross says: ‘We believe in offering theproducts that our customers want. In thisdigital age, it is crucial to remain connectedto the internet for work or pleasure and,critically, we believe that you shouldn’thave to pay a supplement for it.’Next for Chiltern’s Evergreen projectwill be the opening of the connectionto Oxford in a couple of years time. Butlooking ahead to the future what elseis being planned? Will there be anEvergreen 4?‘In this digital age,it is crucial toremain connectedto the internet and,critically, we believeyou shouldn’t haveto pay for it’Very possibly, according to GrahamCross.He says: ‘We’re always looking atways that we can improve our service forour customers. We are starting to look atwhether there is a financially viable case toelectrify the Chiltern route.’PETER PLISNER is the BBC’s Midlandsbusiness and transport correspondent:peter.plisner@railpro.co.ukGraham Cross, Chiltern’s businessdevelopment directorAUGUST 2011 PAGE 15

A lack of rolling stock orders could meanthe closure of Bombardier’s Derby plantand the end of train building in the UK. The root of the problemis not Siemens’ victory in the Thameslink tender, but the DfT’schaotic rolling stock ordering policy, says Robert WrightEnd of the line?Anyone with a sincere interest in the health of theBritish railways will feel a pang over the fate ofBombardier’s Litchurch Lane factory, the UK’s lastfull trainmaking facility. Bombardier announcedon 5 July that it planned to make redundantaround 1,400 of the roughly 3,000 staff currentlyworking at the plant, 446 of them permanent staff and 983 on shorttermcontracts. There has to be a real fear that the decision about theplant – which only narrowly escaped closure during Bombardier’sEurope-wide reorganisation in 2004 – marks the start of the lastchapter in Britain’s 200-year trainmaking history.Yet, while British policy towards trainmakers has been hopelesslymuddled, thinking about the alternatives has been no clearer. Thecentral – almost unexamined – contention is that, in continentalEurope, orders are handled more cunningly, so that nationaltrainmaking industries are protected and work is not allowed to leakabroad.But continental Europe’s rolling stock markets, whichundoubtedly remain far more protected than Britain’s, are notobviously providing train operators, passengers or taxpayers witha better deal. Anyone who thinks otherwise would have beendisabused at a Financial Times forum I chaired in June in Berlin. Atthe Hitachi-sponsored event, Volker Kefer, Deutsche Bahn’s directorfor technology, reiterated long-standing complaints about the qualityof product it receives from DB’s suppliers, which build all their trainsin Germany. Train reliability in the last, harsh winter in GermanyFinishing touches are addedto rolling stock for LondonUnderground at Litchurch LanePAGE 16 AUGUST 2011

PAGE 18 APRIL AUGUST 2010 2011

Interview The seven-minutejourney is a hugeattractor foranybody coming toLondon to gothe OlympicsThere aren’t many sides of the rail industry thatNicola Shaw hasn’t been involved in. From seniorroles at the SRA and ORR, she switched to busesfor a while at FirstGroup, but now she’s back on therailways, heading up HS1. Alan Salter met her atSt Pancras InternationalPHOTOGRAPHY SIMON WEIR: WWW.SIMONWEIR.COMFive years in a lonely cottage in the wilds ofAberdeenshire has obviously left NicolaShaw in need of some company. Now, asthe new boss of High Speed One, she isinviting the world to her doorstep.‘This railway is ready and waiting,’she pronounces, anticipating the arrival not only of theOlympics next year but also of Deutsche Bahn passengerservices in 2013.Of course, the 42-year-old stockbroker’s daughterprobably spent as much time in her flat in London as atthe cottage in Aberdeen while she was managing directorof First Group’s UK Bus division. But now, installedas chief executive of HS1, she is feeling exceptionallyhospitable. ‘We have got the facilities on freight andpassenger services to deliver and if anybody wants tocome and talk to me, other than Deutsche Bahn, they arevery welcome,’ she says in her first interview since takingAUGUST MAY 2010 2011 PAGE 19

PAGE 20 AUGUST 2011up the post. HS1 Ltd – bought by a pair of Canadianpension funds from London & Continental last year for£2.1bn – is the company that holds the 30-year concessionto operate Britain’s first high speed railway, running fromcentral London to the Channel Tunnel.Its jewel-in-the-crown St Pancras International isLondon’s only non-Network Rail station. It also runs theinternational stations at Stratford, Ebbsfleet and Ashford.The infrastructure is used by Eurostar and the Kentdomestic high speed services – the company has a 30-yearconcession from the government.As I read up on the history of St Pancras, I realisejust how shallow my first question was. ‘Are you a bitof an unnecessary tier? Wouldn’t it be better just to letNetwork Rail and the train operators get on with it?’ Iventure, Paxman-style.I was forgetting just how multi-tiered this piece ofrailway used to be. A century and a half ago, the poor oldMidland built St Pancras so that it would no longer haveto pay fees to the Great Northern to use Kings Cross andto LNWR to get into Euston.But Shaw, educated at Oxford and later at theMassachusetts Institute of Technology, has my measure.‘It is a way of protecting the value of the asset for ourinvestors and the government for the long term. Thatfocus on thinking about both the protection and thevalue is something that we have that nobody else wouldhave. Coming here to St Pancras, you know, you can seethe difference to a Network Rail station. That is becausethat’s the strategy we have picked.’You certainly can. Where else on the railway can youpay £12 for a glass of champagne, have your picture takenwith John Betjeman… and get into the gents withouthaving to pay 30p? Retail is all and the space at the stationso valuable that HS1’s 35 staff work half a mile down theroad in a modern office block.And yet Network Rail is still a close friend, througha subsidiary headed by Richard Schofield, Dave Ward’sdeputy for Network Rail’s Kent region. ‘The interfacebetween the Kent network and our network worksbecause they have got that relationship,’ says Shaw.‘Richard Schofield has done a great job so that the guyswho work for us down on the ground understand thedifference in working on a high speed asset. It’s a nicebalance between having Network Rail branding and HS1branding in our major facilities.’She is proud that HS1’s four stations top thePassenger Focus list of passengers’ favourite stations.Stratford International will become a really big ticketitem when Westfield – the largest shopping centre inWestern Europe – opens in September.Southeastern high speed trains will be whizzingbetween St Pancras and Stratford every three minutes,come the Olympics. But it is important, she says, not tohog all the limelight. ‘We can take a lot of people and theseven-minute journey is a huge attractor for anybodycoming to London to go the Olympics. But we have gotto make sure that people understand that there are otherservices, too, running from central London, because the

Interview‘HS1’s four stations topthe Passenger Focus list offavourite stations’key thing for the whole of the UK about the Olympics isshowcasing London and the UK.‘Overall, reputation depends on people being able toget to the Games to see the events and that they are notstanding at their transport hub in London. It’s a greatservice and it is going to be fantastic. Southeastern areall over it. They know exactly what they are going to do.Network Rail is raising the platform at Stratford, so wecan run international trains as well as domestics. And ithas done lots of signalling work, so we know we can takethe capacity.‘We have done lots of work on how we are going tomanage the queues and what the environment is goingto be like here and at Stratford. Everybody is pullingtogether. It is going to be perfect, but we know thatpeople are going to want to do different things on theday, so we are working really closely with TfL and others,talking about how we can make sure that people knowwhere the best place to go is at any time.’She left FirstGroup in June 2010 and did not take upthis post until nine months later. There were rumoursthat she walked out in a fit of pique after failing to beappointed Sir Moir Lockhead’s successor. But she says:‘Everybody needs a rest sometimes but that wasn’t thereason I did it. I had done a lot with the bus company andI think it was the right time for me to move on and dosomething different.’With spells at the Office of Rail Regulation andthe Strategic Rail Authority as her main experienceof the rail industry, she says it is nice to be working oninfrastructure.‘Some things are very similar in the industry to howthey were when I left. There are a lot of the same facesaround – you can have proper conversations. Somethings, I think, are more sophisticated. But I think westill need to work on being properly forward-lookingand thinking about how the railway stays at the kind ofquality you need to keep the customers happy.’Many railway managers would give their pensionsfor a 30-year concession, but that has its own challenges,she says.‘HS1 is about really good quality delivery and we’vegot to make sure that we keep thinking about how tokeep it that way. Over a 30-year concession, what looksgreat now won’t necessarily be what people perceive asgreat in the future.’High Speed Two, you would think, would be closelyrelated to HS1. But Shaw insists: ‘Connection to HS2was not the premise of the investment in HS1 at all. Thepremise is a stand-alone asset. On the other hand, wewould be mad not to want a connection to HS2 becausethat does open up new possibilities. That is going to betowards the back end of our concession, so it matters, butit’s not the driving force.’We should not be surprised to find a femaleincumbent of such a top job these days but you can’tresist asking what it is like being a woman on the railway.There is steel in her cut glass accent as she patientlyexplains: ‘I have no idea what it’s like to be a woman inthis industry because I’ve always been one and I’ve alwaysbeen in transport. What it is like versus another industry,I can’t say. I have never found any problem anywhere inbeing female in this industry.‘People do ask that question but if I asked you what isit like to be a man in the rail industry, you would give methe same answer, I think. I’ve always done it and it’s neverbeen a problem. Every now and then you have a doubletake when there is more than one woman in the roombecause you are so used to it not being that way.’If she was ever to encounter a ceiling, you wouldback her to break through it pretty quickly because herpassion for the industry – held since her days at Oxford –is truly impressive. ‘When I was a student, somebody saidto me, “Why do you want be in the transport industry?It’s dead”.‘Well we are absolutely not dead, are we?’Curriculum vitae1969 Born in Kent. Attended King’s School, Canterbury1990 BA in modern history and economics at OxfordUniversity1990 London Transport corporate planner1993 MSc in transport at MIT, Boston1995 World Bank (transport)1997 Associate at Halcrow Fox, consulting engineers forpublic transport in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi1999 Deputy director at the Office of Rail Regulation2002 Business development, Bechtel2003 Chief operating officer at the Strategic Rail Authority,in charge of management of franchises2005: Managing director, UK Bus, First Group2011: Chief executive HS1AUGUST 2011 PAGE 21

‘Biggest changesince Brunel’The government claims a £5bn revamp of the Great Western will bring double thatsum in wider economic benefits. Paul Clifton reportsThe Great Western is to be transformed with a decadeof investment. There was nothing specifically newannounced in the gathering of the great and goodbeneath the recently refurbished and elegantly lightfourth span of Paddington station’s roof. Instead, it wasa drawing together of all the threads that collectivelywill make a 10-year re-vamp of this tired, creaking intercity route.With new InterCity trains from Hitachi, electrification, in-cabsignalling, improvements to Paddington for Crossrail, a new stationat Newport, double-tracking of 20 miles of the Cotswold route andthe huge Reading modernisation, Network Rail claims it is the biggestchange to the railway since Brunel built it 175 years ago.The precise calculation of £5bn is unfathomable, given that someof the biggest contracts have yet to be concluded. But it is estimatedthat the wider economic benefit to communities along the route willbe at least double that figure. It is thought 50 per cent more people willeventually use the Great Western, which already has some of the mostovercrowded services in the country. The greatest problem is east ofBrunel’s Royal AlbertBridge, PlymouthNetwork RailPAGE 22 AUGUST 2011

InfrastructureReading, where the tracks are already at full capacity and passengergroups regard overcrowding as intolerable. It will be six years beforenew trains arrive to ease the problem, during which time it will getworse.‘We recognise that,’ said First Great Western MD Mark Hopwood.‘That’s why we can’t wait for all this to happen. We are working rightnow on a way to bring in some additional rolling stock within the nextfew months, and we are hopeful that the Department for Transportwill accept the urgency of the situation and agree to it.’Overall, the Great Western has seen a 40 per cent increase inpassengers in the last decade. But that masks bigger local figures.Around Bristol, demand has increased by 90 per cent and Bath is up 70per cent. Until now, the government has under-played the plans forthe Great Western. In fact, in scope and ambition, it is not far behindthe West Coast modernisation. At the Paddington launch, a ratherhassled Philip Hammond, secretary of state for transport, arrivedbarely on time, rather like the trains on the platforms behind him. Notquite fresh from being a government voice on the News of the Worldhacking scandal, and already behind schedule for making a U-turn oncoastguard policy, he dashed in, said a few words, and dashed out.‘Two questions only,’ his minder said menacingly to reporters.‘The reasons for this investment are primarily economic,’ saidHammond. ‘The greater line speeds and faster journeys will makethe area much more attractive to investors. The greater connectivitywith London will enhance the economy. Faster, more comfortable,more economic and greener journeys are all things we want to achieveduring the renaissance of the railway which is now under way. Thisis now Great Western’s turn to get its slug of investment to get therailway up to 21st-century standards.’The event was organised by Network Rail. Unfortunately itsmap of the Great Western clearly showed new InterCity expresstrains running all the way to Penzance and, for all but the very closestscrutiny of confusing colours, overhead wires doing the same. Theinadequately-briefed chief executive, Sir David Higgins, referred toit in interviews, exciting guests from the south west who suddenlythought they would get more than merely refurbished 40 year oldHSTs in future. In fact electrification on the Berkshire and Hampshireroute to the south west will stop at Newbury.‘A bi-mode Hitachi train or two will make it to Exeter,’ clarifiedChris Irwin, the well-informed chairman of TravelWatch SouthWest.‘But it’s a gesture really. People from Plymouth will have HSTs untilthey are 50 or 60 years old. Even today they are the oldest InterCitytrains in the country, and they’ll be around for another generation.‘This further delays the decision – which will have to be madesome time – on new trains for the far south west. But there is muchhere to celebrate. Oxford and Bristol in particular are in desperateneed of a better service, and what we see today is a good step in theright direction.’It was not a champagne launch. The fizzy liquid refreshment waslemonade – a sign, perhaps, of more austere times. But the investmentis huge. The £850m Reading scheme alone is one of the largestengineering projects in the UK. At Reading, old buildings have beendemolished, and track torn up. Diggers are scraping away ground atthe eastern end of the station. The first step in the five-year schemethat passengers will really notice is a pair of platforms for SouthWest Trains services to Waterloo, due for completion this winter.‘This part of the world has seen phenomenal growth and as a railwayindustry we need to respond to that,’ said Mark Hopwood. Thoughhe did his best to show a united front with the other key players atPaddington, Hopwood’s patience has been tested by poor NetworkRail performance. The train operator has just posted the best-everperformance by HSTs, reaching a reliability level not seen in morethan 30 years. But it has been masked by frequent track problems– circuit failures and speed restrictions causing lengthy delays andpassenger frustration.‘We’ve been disappointed by the quality of infrastructureperformance. But we’re pleased that Network Rail recognises that ithas to focus on the day-to-day business as well as working on the longtermproject. They’ve given us an assurance that they are on the case,’said Hopwood. First Great Western believes poor infrastructure is themain reason why the franchise fell into the bottom five operators inthe country in the most recent National Passenger Survey. And thereis no escaping the huge disruption that the best part of a decade ofengineering work will bring.Already passenger groups and politicians at Paddington werelooking beyond that. Two months ago the Airtrack scheme to providerail access to Heathrow from the south west seemed dead and buried.BAA withdrew its Transport & Works Act application in the face ofrising costs and waning Government backing. Yet the scheme thathas been on the stocks for 20 years ticks every box in terms of publictransport access. Now local MPs are talking to the rail industry,looking for a way to ease it back. Along with extending Crossrail toReading, the missing links of the Great Western’s transformationcould yet be put into place.PAUL CLIFTON is the transport correspondent for BBC South:paul.clifton@railpro.co.ukAUGUST 2011 PAGE 23

Display modeThe European Rail Traffic Management System,currently being trialled on the Cambrian line in Wales,is due to be rolled out onto the Great Western nextand eventually onto the whole Intercity network.Katie Silvester finds out how it’s goingIn October 2010, the very firstpassenger service to be controlledby the European Rail TrafficManagement System ran on ArrivaTrains Wales’ Cambrian line.The advanced signalling system– which, as the name suggests, is designedto be compatible across the Europeancontinent and beyond – will bring aboutthe biggest revolution in signalling sincethe railways began. Instead of linesidesignals, the signals are inside the driver’s caband could eventually increase capacity atbottlenecks by allowing a greater frequencyof trains than could safely be accommodatedusing conventional signalling.The Cambrian line is being used as apilot scheme. The route was chosen becauseits self-contained layout made it ideal forexperimentation – and it needed resignallingas the old system was becoming life-expired.ERTMS has replaced the radio electronictoken block system. ‘There’s now one ofthe most advanced signalling systems in theworld operating on a fairly rural route,’ saysJim Morgan, Network Rail’s sponsor for theETRMS programme.But, he adds, even when ERTMS hasbeen fitted to most major lines over the nextcouple of decades, it won’t find its way ontoall rural routes. ‘It’s not worth resignallingmanually signalled routes, where you’vegot an awful lot of not very well-utilisedinfrastructure out there. You wouldn’t everwant to fit a pacer with ERTMS, I don’tthink.’But back to the Cambrian line. ‘It’s goingvery well – we’re pleased with the way therolling stock, the drivers and the signallershave taken to it.’One unforeseen problem on thecoastal route, however, involved the sunA driver gets to grips with adriver machine interface in aClass 97 locomotivePAGE 24 AUGUST 2011

Signallingreflecting off the sea and in through thedriver’s window, making it difficult to readthe screen. ‘We thought we’d tested it withbright lights shining from all sorts of anglesbefore we took it to the Cambrian,’ admitsMorgan. The problem was soon ironed outusing screens and shading on some of theside windows, plus better contrast on thescreens themselves.Peter Leppard, operations director atATW, is pleased with the way the trial hasbeen progressing: ‘It’s been a tremendouslearning experience for us. It’s beginningto settle down and I think we can see nowthat it’s going to be absolutely fine. Insafety terms it’s been completely reliable;there’s never been any doubt about it. It’s acompletely safe signalling system.‘As with any new system, there havebeen teething problems. The installation ofmodern electronic equipment in the shape ofERTMS kit onto quite old trains – the Class158 dates back to 1990, so before the timeof most computers – has caused one or twoodd faults that have taken some trouble tofind. And the radio block centre, the modern‘In safety terms it’sbeen completelyreliable, there’s neverbeen any doubtabout it’name for a signal box, has had one or twofeatures in the design that caused someglitches, because it’s basically designed for adouble track railway and the Cambrian is asingle track.’Initially, the ETRMS trials just ranbetween Pwllheli and Harlech at thenorth end of the line. The full route wascommissioned in March 2011. After someinitial trepidation, the drivers are now happywith the in-cab system, says Leppard. ‘If youwent down there now and spoke to them,they’d all tell you that it’s bread and butterstuff and they’re completely used to it.’Arriva Trains Wales drivers get their ERTMS competencycertificates from equipment manufacturer AnsaldoDifferent levelsERTMS is not one single system; it has threelevels that offer increasing sophistication.Level 1 focuses mainly on safety – it is theFor all yourengineering andsignalling needsT: E: W: AUGUST 2011 PAGE 25

SignallingEuropean standard version of the UK’sautomatic train protection system, whichstops trains passing signals at danger. At Level1, information about speed limits is passed toa screen, or driver machine interface (DMI),in the driver’s cab via balises on the track,but conventional signals are still used. Axlecounters or track circuits monitor a train’sposition.Level 2, which is being used on theCambrian trial, sees signals replaced by amore sophisticated cab display, but axlecounters and track circuits are still needed toprovide information on a train’s location.Level 3 is still being developed, but it willeventually see the introduction of movingblock signalling, where radio signals wouldbe able to continuously monitor a train’sposition. This will potentially allow for trainsto run more closely together than they canusing traditional signal blocks.‘If you look at the East Coast MainLine, ETRMS is not going to give you morecapacity because it’s constrained by itsjunctions,’ explains Morgan. ‘But if you lookat these remoter lines where you’ve got 20minute headways, ETRMS could give youa lot more trains – lines like the HighlandLine, Aberdeen to Inverness, Aberdeen toDundee. You can add an awful lot more blocksections. So there’s potential for reducingcost for upgrading signalling and improvingcapacity.’Cost reductions come into playbecause belises are cheaper than signals.Unsurprisingly, the DfT wants Network Railto work with the rest of the rail industryto find the cheapest way to fit ERTMS.Industry-wide standards mean that allthe major signalling suppliers have beendeveloping their own equipment, whichshould all be compatible, offering ‘mix andmatch’ options when future routes areprocured. At Levels 2 and 3, the main cost isin fitting out the trains.‘If you can make the cab fitment processsimple and cheap, you could save a lotmoney,’ says Morgan.How big a job is it to fit the kit to a train?‘It depends on the train! I think it’sfair to say that the wiring in UK trainsdiffers quite a lot. If you look at a new train,that’s fairly straightforward. If you lookat an old BR-built train, the wiring candiffer an awful lot. The ones on Cambrianinvolve accommodating a unit the size ofA GSM-R training panelsmall wardrobes and they are a problem,because they take up luggage space. Butmanufacturers are now getting the sizedown.‘Your first of class design might costyou a million quid, because you’ve got toknow how to do it and get all the safetyimprovements in place. Then the cost comesdown significantly depending on how manytrains you want to do. So it makes sense to dothe largest fleets early on.’From Network Rail’s point of view,signalling centres will have roughly thesame staffing needs as they do now – but thejob of a signaller will become simpler. Anemergency speed restriction, for example,just has to be fed into a computer and within10 seconds all trains in the affected area willhave that information and will have to obeythe speed limit.‘You don’t have to go and put boardsout, which can take ages,’ Morgan explains.‘You don’t have to caution trains until you’vedone that. So emergency, or normal, speedrestrictions are much easier to apply.’The first mainline to use ERTMS willbe the Great Western, which is due for a fulloverlay system to be operational by 2018,as the automatic train protection system inthe HSTs will be becoming life-expired. ‘Theexisting lights on sticks will be there andthere will be an overlay of ERTMS. So fittedtrains will have the DMI, which will tell thedriver what to do. And let’s just hope thesignals say the same thing!’When the Intercity Express fleet – whichis set to replace HSTs – goes into production,ERTMS will be in-built from the outset. Thesame goes for the new Thameslink rollingstock, expected to be built by Siemens.In the meantime, another text track willbe equipped on a five-mile section of theHertford Loop on the East Coast Main Line.Test trains will run during quiet parts of theday, which will allow the new Thameslinkand IEP trains to be tested before they gointo passenger use. This is due to begin in2013, but Network Rail is hoping to have itready from the end of next year.The DfT-chaired ERTMS StrategyGroup, with representatives fromorganisations including Atoc, the Roscos,RSSB and ORR, is working on a strategyfor fitting ERTMS nationally. The currentschedule will see the Great Westerncompleted by 2018, though the signals willnot be removed until 2025. East Coast is dueto be re-signalled with ERTMS by 2025 andthe Midland Main Line by 2023.PAGE 26 AUGUST 2011

CommentRecognising the signalsJohn Judge argues that the McNulty report shouldhave provided the UK rail industry with a platform toembrace new signalling technology and innovationSir Roy McNulty’s value-formoneyreport was right topick up on the challengethat signalling poses to theUK rail industry in realisingits full potential. Signallingtechnology may well be expensive, but it hasthe potential to be the catalyst in makingsignificant cost reductions to the rail industry.However, the McNulty report failedto be clear enough on signalling. Thereare factors it should be shouting from therooftops in order for the industry to moveforward and implement proactive and costeffectivechange.Capital expenditure can be reducedby choosing to use newer and smartersignalling technology. Page 276 of the reportcites the German rail network in Kassel,which has developed low-cost signallingand train control solutions. On page 153 thereport states that in 2009 the Thameslinkprogramme faced a series of difficulttechnical and scheduling challenges, whichincluded introducing new operationalconcepts and technology, in the form of incabsignalling and automatic train operation;but this is somewhat misleading.While those technologies may be a newconcept to the UK, they are not new in othercountries. To put this into context, in-cabsignalling has been used in the USA fordecades, so we are certainly not breaking newground, and as such the report includes veryfew examples of our rail network embracinggenuinely new technology.McNulty says that further costs can besaved by removing up to 500 mechanisedsignal boxes, and the labour costs theyincur, but there’s scope for a far greaterimprovement in the capacity of the runningof trains. Greater flexibility of timetableswould result in a smarter network. Smartermaintenance access would also drive costsdown, especially if it was done in a controlledmanner during the day. Night labour isfar more expensive in comparison, not tomention a potential nuisance in terms ofnoise pollution to nearby residents.The report fails to sufficiently challengethe conflict between Railway GroupStandards and railway service, with only onepage amongst its 320 dedicated to the topic.The report should be demanding asolution to that problem. Group RailwayStandards are a key challenge to the railindustry if it is to stand any chance of givinga better value-for-money service. At present,those standards are a substantial barrierto many of the industry’s decision makers,who often cite them as the reason they areunable to enhance the newer and smartertechnical innovation that would implementcost efficient change to the network. GroupRailway Standards could be made moreresponsive to embracing new signallingtechnology by developing the role of theORR (Office of Rail Regulation) to undertakethe approval of all signalling products.Alternatively, the responsibility ofproduct approval could be transferredto British Standards. This would free upNetwork Rail to be able to make informedchoices on the best technology to use toimprove performance, freeing them fromtheir current role, which involves the settingof standards, as well as being asset owner.However, no possible solutions to thisproblem are explored in the report. This lackof challenge to Group Railway Standards,and railway standards in general, is a missedopportunity, one that the industry cannotafford to continue if it is to truly run a bettervalue for money service, particularly assignalling is not the only discipline whichwould benefit from a challenge to standards.Changing Group Railway Standards toa performance-based approach will allowmore cost-effective signalling systems to beintroduced, which in turn will offer greatercapacity, flexibility and ultimately a morecost effective rail network. If changes are notmade, then much of what Sir Roy McNultyseeks to achieve will not materialise, resultingin the same questions being asked about theefficiency of our rail network in another 10years.John Judge is founder and director of commercialmanagement organisation, Judge 3Dwww.judge3d.com‘In-cab signallinghas been used in theUSA for decades,so we are certainlynot breaking newground’Network RailAUGUST 2011 PAGE 27

Supplied by the IRO, PO Box 128, Burgess Hill RH15 0UZTel: 01444 248931 Fax: 01444 246392Email: info@railwayoperators.org Website: www.railwayoperators.orgClass of 2008 – a fantasticdisplay of hard workTwenty-two students graduated in this summer’s IRO graduation ceremony in Glasgow.Two participants reflect on their expectations from the coursesnIRO students donned caps andgowns to receive their BScdegrees and diplomas at GlasgowCaledonian University’s (GCU)summer graduation ceremony.At the event, held in Glasgow’sRoyal Concert Hall, GCU’schancellor, Lord Macdonald ofTradeston, presented 22 IROgraduates with their BSc degreesand diplomas of higher education inRailway Operational Management.The ceremony, for graduateswho began their IRO degree anddiploma courses in 2008, wasfollowed by a reception sponsoredby Freightliner.Incoming IRO chiefexecutive Fiona Tordoff said:‘Congratulations to our latest batchof graduates. Their achievement isa fantastic display of hard work andcommitment and we are all veryproud of our association with them.We look forward to a continuedrelationship with them as we growour tutor and mentor base at theinstitution, and we wish themcontinued success in their careers.’The aim of the IRO is toprovide its students with a broadunderstanding of the rail industryat all levels and help them developa variety of skills to allow them agreater degree of flexibility as theybuild their careers, no matter whatlevel they are at within the industry.Tricia Meade, the IRO’slearning and developmentmanager, said: ‘Our graduates haveworked long and hard to attaintheir qualifications, which arerecognised as a top qualificationsacross the railway industry. Theirnew qualifications will be of hugebenefit to them throughout theircareers.’IRO students and graduatesGraduates celebratetheir achievementsPAGE 28 AUGUST 2011

IROare drawn from all age groups andlevels of responsibility across theindustry.For one graduating IRO student,Martin Bonnington, 26, who iscurrently a train service controllerof high speed services at First GreatWestern, the IRO degree coursecame as part of his employer’sRailway Operations ManagementTraining Scheme.He said: ‘Although the threeyearcourse could be tough going,particularly at times such as startinga new job and moving home, it waswell worth all the effort.The IRO has put a great dealinto organising and running itseducational programme and gettingthe qualifications recognisedacross the industry. The coursehas significantly added to mybackground knowledge of how theindustry works.’Brian Barry, 46, operationsassurance manager with Railfor London, joined the industryafter seven years service with theRoyal Engineers disarming bombsand shells during and followingconflicts across the world, includingthe first Gulf war.As a father of four he saysfinding the time to complete thecourse modules had been ‘quitetricky’ at times!He said: ‘When I started mycurrent job, I soon realised the IROcourse would be a big benefit tome in my new role, as well as in mycareer generally.‘I never had the chance of goingto university as I joined the armysoon after leaving school, so I waskeen to grab this opportunity. Asa result I now have much moreconfidence and I am in no doubtthe BSc will significantly help myfuture progress.’This summer’s graduation event,the IRO’s seventh such ceremony,brought the total number ofstudents who have successfullycompleted IRO courses, part ofthe institution’s ProfessionalDevelopment Programme, to 156.Launched in 2005, theprogramme includes the BScdegree, diploma of higher educationand certificate of higher educationcourses that have now seen 62students gain the degree, 69students gain the IRO diploma and25 the IRO certificate.The next set of IRO degree,diploma and certificate courses aredue to commence in October 2011– enrolment is still open but placesare limited. For more informationor to enrol on any of the coursesvisit the IRO website at www.railwayoperators.orgTown and gownIRO students graduating as Bachelors of Science in Railway OperationsManagement in 2011 were: Alan Bannister, Mott Macdonald; Brian Barry,Rail for London; Michael Bones, Virgin Trains; Martin Bonnington, First GreatWestern; Michael Brown, Transport for London; Noreen Clohessy, Irish Rail;Ian Denning, Network Rail; Richard Earey, National Express East Anglia; PhilipEaton, First Great Western; Kamran Hussain, East Coast; Philip Hutchinson,Southern; Rufus Impey, Network Rail; Oluwatimilehin Joel, Southeastern;Jeremy Kennedy, Translink NIR; Urban Magee, Translink NIR; ChristopherOwen, ScotRail; Jason Pearce, Transport Scotland; Keith Pullan, MottMacDonald; Jonathan Scott, Network Rail; Colin Weir, Network Rail; andWilliam Windrum, Translink NIR.Leslie Day, Iarnrod Eireann received a Diploma of Higher Education inRailway Operations Management.Irish AreaFor information on Irish Areaevents, contact Hilton Parr at:hilton.parr@railwayoperators.orgScottish AreaFor further information on IROScottish Area, contact RossCampbell on 0141 242 8620 oremail Jim Gillies at: scottish@railwayoperators.orgNorth East Area5 August: Guided tour ofSt Pancras International andhotel. Time: 14:00. Individualsshould arrange their owntravel to St Pancras. For moreinformation contact: northeast@railwayoperators.org15 September: AGM and visit toSheffield Supertram operations.For information on North EastArea events, contact DavidMonk-Steel at: northeast@railwayoperators.org or bytelephone on: 01751 473799during office hours. North EastArea meetings normally takeplace at 17:30 for 18:00 in York.North West Area21 September: Opportunity tohave a go on Virgin Trains’ simulator.Time: 16:30 and 18:00. Please notethat two group sessions are beingscheduled. Location: Crewe Station,Virgin Trains Offices.All events and enquiries shouldbe via Roy Chapman at: ironw.booking@railwayoperators.org.General membership enquiresto Carl Phillips at: northwest@railwayoperators.orgMidlands Area12 September: Presentation byInvensys: The Modular Signallingof the Crewe to Shrewsbury Line.Location: The Mailbox, Birmingham26 September: Visit to Worcesterarea mechanical signalboxes. Detailswill be confirmed in due course.For information on MidlandsArea events, contact JuliaStanyard on 0121 3453833 or email: midlands@railwayoperators.org Unlessotherwise indicated, our eventsstart at 17.30.South West Area22 August: Talk: Regulationof Heritage Trains on ThreeContinents. Time: 17:00 for 17:30.Location: Brunel’s Board Room,The Old Station, Bristol, BS1 6QH(near Temple Meads Station).Refreshments will be provided.To book a place contact: chris.prior@firstgroup.com23 September: Return tripon New Measurement Trainfrom Paddington. Space is limitedto 12 people. For furtherinformation please contact:chris.prior@firstgroup.comFor information on South WestArea events, contact: Chris Priorby email:chris.prior@firstgroup.comSouth East Area7 August: Serco Docklands/DLR Emergency Exercise. Time:09:00-16:00. Volunteers are soughtfor a day of testing. Meet: 09:00 atStratford Regional station. Lunch willbe provided. All volunteers will receivea £20 voucher. Contact: Simon.Hulse@sercodocklands.co.uk orSteve.Whitley@dlr.co.uk12 September: Please note changeof date. Talk: Traincrew Resource– A critical Measure. To book aplace, contact: glen.merryman@londonmidland.comAll South East events take placeat London Underground’s HQ, 55Broadway, St James Park, SW1,unless otherwise indicated, with a17:30 for 18:00 start.For further information on the IROSouth East Area, contact JonathanLeithead by email at: jonathan.leithead@networkrail.co.ukMore details of area events arelisted on the website at www.railwayoperators.org/Events.aspxAUGUST 2011 PAGE 29

Leading from the topTrain operators are under pressureto cut costs following the McNultyreport. Productivity can be improved byimproving employee engagement, saysJuliette Alban-MetcalfeThe McNulty report requirements denote a seismicchange in the industry, putting companies underunprecedented pressure to leverage more for less andwork differently. That’s the bad news. But there’splenty of good news – there are simple, proven waysthat leaders in your company can rise to the challengethrough their people in a sustainable way.The report requires companies to develop and execute a newvision for how they work, with the full support of their workforce.Specific requirements are ‘leadership and energy’ and ‘wholeorganisation effort’ as key to a successful response. The industry is nostranger to this kind of pressure, and has, for many years, been awareof the need to leverage performance under unrelenting pressure.However, we will soon see which companies succeed in the new worldand which become casualties in the drive for greater efficiency and acultural change in how they work internally and externally.Success, in the form of leveraging whole-organisation effort, willbe achieved where employees feel they have a part in developing thevision for where the company is going, and how it will get there. Theseemployees will be enabled to harness their strengths at whatever level,and thus feel motivated and committed to achieving that vision. Theywill be encouraged to continually look for better, more efficient waysof working, and at how partnership can thrive.Everyone can be a winnerThe type of organisation described above will feel quite utopian formany. Indeed, such places are not that common, but they do exist.They’re not characterised by high levels of pay, or huge investment inperks or formal development opportunities. The difference betweenthe winners and the losers in this game is nothing to do with physicalor fiscal factors, it is all about culture – how leaders behave – and it iswithin the reach of all companies.Organisational research has never before converged so stronglyon one factor that differentiates the successful organisations from theunsuccessful: employee engagement. Engagement has been shown,through numerous studies, to have a strong link with innovation,productivity, profitability, safety, lower employee absenteeism andturnover. It is regarded as so critical to the success of this country thatit has been the subject of the government’s ongoing MacLeod Reviewof Employee Engagement for the past three years.Engaged employees feel that they are getting as much from thecompany as the company is getting from them. Findings suggest thataround 20 per cent of employees are naturally engaged at work – theywant to give their best. Around 20 per cent are actively disengaged –they are uninterested in contributing to the success of the company,and may be actively sabotaging it. This leaves a massive 60 per centwho are neither. Those companies that can positively move this 60 percent into engagement, and thus harness their discretionary effort, willlead in the industry.A consistent finding is that the most stressful and disengagingaspect of anyone’s job is their immediate boss. At the same time,the right kind of leadership behaviour can have the most powerfulpositive effect on an employees’ engagement. Of course, there areother factors that can create a marked improvement, such as a newrole, or enhanced facilities, but none of these has a sustained effect.The Real World Group has been researching the behaviours thatare proven to enhance engagement for 10 years. The leadership modelOksa/Shutterstock‘Engaged employees feel thatthey are getting as much fromthe company as the company isgetting from them’PAGE 30 AUGUST 2011

Managementthat emerged is very distinct from most, having a fundamentallydifferent basis. While the vast majority of leadership models arebased on asking senior managers what they think makes them soeffective, the Real World Group’s research adopted the approach ofasking employees at all levels what they most valued in leaders whowere highly effective and enhanced their engagement. The researchcaptured the views of over 4,500 people, proving a direct, causal linkbetween leadership behaviours and performance.In reality, as two rail companies that have worked with thismodel found, the leadership behaviours that create engagementare not complicated, or in any way unusual, except in terms oftheir commonality. Both London Overground and Northern Railrecognised that organisations have for far too long almost exclusivelystudied and measured managerial professional competence and skill.While these factors are important, they are not enough to harness thediscretionary effort of employees.In times of increased pressure, leaders who are unaware ofhow to effectively leverage performance tend to act in particularlynegative ways and can do untold damage to morale and organisationalperformance. Pressure on them cascades down through theorganisation, so that levels of stress and dysfunctional behaviours aremagnified and multiplied. Knowing that there is a simple and muchmore effective approach to dealing with the future, your company hasthe opportunity to lay the tracks for success now.Juliette Alban-Metcalfe is an organisational psychologist and managingdirector of the Real World Group. She has published a number of articles andchapters on the subject of leadership and engagement:www.realworld-group.com; juliette.albanmetcalfe@realworld-group.comLondon OvergroundDarren Hockaday, Lorol’s director of human resources, has longunderstood the importance of engagement. ‘Creating the right workingenvironment is important, but the harder task is to create the rightlevel of engagement between the employee and line manager, withthe emphasis on leaders empowering employees on the front line andimplementing good ideas.’Hockaday and Lorol’s managing director, Steve Murphy, aredetermined that Lorol will create the conditions for sustainable highperformance through leadership at all levels. Knowing that mostleaders lack the full understanding of how to optimise engagement,Lorol decided it was important to create a leadership framework toprovide managers with clear guidance to ensure they get the best outof everyone.Using Real World Group’s model, Hockaday and his team took thebehaviours and presented them to senior colleagues. They collectivelyagreed what would facilitate Lorol realising its potential.He says: ‘We are fortunate to have a truly engaging leader who hasgalvanised the top team to fully get behind what is required to deliver thebusiness vision. The executive team experience Steve Murphy leadingby example – focusing on our people, being visible and empowering thefront line.‘This was our reference point and one I wanted to replicate throughthe organisation.‘We started by getting all our senior managers together who wereencouraged to prioritise the Real World Group behavioural statementsto those that are most critical to our success.’Lorol now has a leadership framework based on proven leadershipbehaviours that the leaders have shaped. The leaders’ profile forms partof the performance review for all managers. Plans are in place to roll out360-degree feedback within the year.Northern RailUnderstanding the crucial importance of leadership from the very top,Northern Rail commissioned Real World Group to run the NorthernLeadership Development Programme.The aim was to develop a consistent approach to leadership, workinginitially with senior managers, to be made available to all levels.The main objectives were to:n Provide an excellent standard of development;n Encourage senior managers to be more confident to leadthe business;n Encourage cross-functional working; andn Build on existing skills.Programmes developed for participants across all functions of thebusiness at the various levels, comprised the following main elements:n 360-degree feedback using a bespoke model that combined engagingleadership with Northern Rail competencies;n Coaching;n Workshops on how to engage individuals and teams resulting in clearaction plans; andn Group projects that focused on aspects of the business plan.This enabled participants to put their learning into practice at a strategiclevel.The many positive outcomes of the programme are described in aChartered Institute of Personnel and Development publication:www.cipd.co.uk/shapingthefuture/_leadershipreport.htmDo you qualify for afree subscription toRail Professional?Rail Professional is circulated free of charge tosuitably qualified individuals every month. Toqualify for a free subscription, you must work for: A train operating company; Network Rail; National or local government; or Agencies involved in regulatingthe rail industry.To apply for your freesubscription, email:subscriptions@railpro.co.ukAUGUST 2011 PAGE 31RP Managerial Subs Advert QP.indd 1 20/1/11 16:30:42

Commentby Richard PricePlanningfor 2014Big challenges, yet huge opportunities, are the keywords that instantly come to mind when I thinkabout the period ahead for the rail sector.On so many measures, our railways have neverbeen more successful. Britain’s railways carry morepassengers than ever before. Well over one billionjourneys are taken on Britain’s railways each year and this looksset to continue to increase. Between April 2009 and March 2010,nearly 86.4 million people entered and exited the UK’s busieststation, London Waterloo – that’s approximately two and a halftimes the population of Canada – and statistics show that passengersatisfaction is at its highest level since records began.But, success has come at a high cost to passengers and totaxpayers, and the industry now needs to demonstrate to everyonethat it is up to meeting the huge challenges ahead while grasping theopportunities it faces.What are the challenges?Industry costs are up to 30 per cent higher than other Europeanrailways, and one of the biggest challenges is how the industry makesvital changes to make the sector more efficient and better value formoney.Sir Roy McNulty’s Value for Money report, published in May,calls for £1bn of savings from the rail sector by 2019. It’s a hugechallenge but a great opportunity to move towards a more efficient,and better value, railway. As part of this challenge, improvementsmust be introduced to make industry costs more transparent, andthere should be better, and clearer, information available for thepublic on how public money is spent.Enhancing efficiency and driving down costs is rightly the keychallenge at the forefront of the industry’s mind. But, another keychallenge is how to ensure that as the rail industry works towardsimproving efficiency and value for money, safety is not jeopardised.ORR has always been clear that health and safety on the railwaysis its key priority. Efficiency and safety go hand-in-hand and therecan never be, nor does there ever need to be, room for complacency.How are we meeting these challenges?ORR’s periodic review (PR13) provides a major opportunity todiscuss with stakeholders and interested parties the changes thatshould, and must, be made to further improve and develop the railsector.The review is our assessment of what Network Rail mustachieve from 2014, the money it needs to do so in light of what thegovernment wants from the rail sector, and the incentives neededto encourage delivery and performance. PR13 presents a greatopportunity to help ensure a better railway for everyone. In orderto ensure success, ORR has been seeking views from, and discussingpriorities with, key stakeholders and interested parties, and hasdesigned and led events across Britain – in London, Edinburgh,Cardiff and Manchester. These events are helping us to developand shape our decisions and the advice we will put to ministers onseveral important matters, including public funding.I have been delighted to participate in these events and tohear a wide range of views from around Britain on the future ofthe railway. The opportunities are there to be grasped. But, onlyby working together as an industry to meet these challenges willthe huge opportunities we see as shaping the future of the railwaydevelop.The opportunities are for everyone – for customers, taxpayers,freight customers and rail employees. We encourage all thoseinterested to participate at: – www.rail-reg.gov.uk/pr13RICHARD PRICE is chief executive of the Office of Rail Regulation‘Success has come at a highcost to passengers and totaxpayers, and the industry nowneeds to demonstrate that it isup to meeting the challenges’An electrification team at RugbyNetwork RailPAGE 32 AUGUST 2011

CommentGood vibrations?The implications of HS2 remain a major concern formany at a local level, with protestors trying to stop it.Jim Herbert identifies the main noise and vibrationchallenges posed by high speed railAddressing the acousticimplications of thehigh speed rail linkat the launch of thepublic consultation,transport secretary PhilipHammond ascertained that additional funds,£215m, would be allocated to reduce theimpact of nuisance noise. While this maygo some way to mitigating homeowners’concerns, the adverse effect of nuisance noisecaused by ground borne vibrations, as well asthe source of these vibrations, will also needto be addressed to ensure the line is viable.To tackle the challenge of railwaygeneratedvibrations on a local level, it isessential that developers take preliminarysteps to seek out suitable anti-vibrationsolutions that will reduce disturbance toneighbouring communities.In railway applications, ground bornenoise and vibrations are generated from themovement of rolling stock. The high speedtrains will travel at speeds of more than200mph and, while this offers a considerabledecrease to journey times, there are a numberof vibration issues inherent in reaching suchspeeds that will have a notable impact on thesurrounding environment.Ground borne vibrations emanatingfrom fast-moving trains can have asignificant effect on communities, as energygenerated from rolling stock is transmittedinto nearby dwellings. In the first instancethis can trigger perceptible movement inthe building structure and nuisance noise,thereby causing considerable disturbanceto occupants. To minimise the potentiallydamaging effect of vibration transmissions,an encompassing anti-vibration solutionshould be sought during the planning phase.Isolating the problemTo reduce the impact of vibrations generatedfrom high speed rolling stock, developersare advised to treat the trackbed area.Active trackbed isolation provides anefficient means of combating ground-bornevibrations by tackling the problem at source.Comprising a high-performing springsystem, this method uses elastic interfacesto de-couple a vibrating subject from itsPéter Gudella/Shutterstocksurrounding structure, effectively isolatingthe dynamic force.There are various anti-vibration productsavailable that will accommodate a wide rangeof trackbed requirements. Best practice inthe instance of high speed rail is to selectan environmentally friendly elastomericmaterial that will deliver high-performingand sustainable structural isolation for thelifetime of the installation. Furthermore,this type of resilient material can be usedin a number of trackbed applications, suchas ballast mats, track support systems, railpads, base plates and mass spring systems, toprovide flexibility in vibration control.While the addition of undergroundtunnels to the proposed route will help toalleviate the pressure to relocate tenantswhose homes are located along the plannedhigh speed rail route, these areas must alsobe assessed for noise and vibration issuesand treated accordingly. Functioning on thesame principle as active trackbed isolation,the installation of an appropriate elastomericmaterial to tunnels will reduce noise andvibration transmissions by isolating thesource of the problem.Where railway tunnels are adjoinedto building foundations, there is a risk ofsound transmission from high speed rollingstock, which can disturb occupants andcompromise existing foundations. A versatiletreatment, elastomeric products can beapplied vertically to the tunnel walls thusproviding complete isolation of the vibratingstructure.Due to the complex nature of anytype of isolation, it is necessary to assessperformance requirements at initialplanning stage. The most effective andarguably only way to ensure that vibrationis adequately controlled to reduce impact onlocal communities is to conduct an extensivesite examination prior to the route beingfinalised and produce a vibration report.Ultimately, this will allow developers toselect a high performing isolation treatmentat the design stage that will effectivelycombat noise and vibration challenges.JIM HERBERT is the technical sales manager ofCMS Vibration SolutionsAUGUST 2011 PAGE 33

RBARail Business of the Year award‘An honourto win’National Rail Enquiries (NRE)grabbed the top prize inthe Rail Business Awards2010, scooping both the RailBusiness of the Year title andthe Supplier Excellence ofthe Year award.The judges selected NRE from all theyear’s category winners for the prestigioustop title, sponsored by Interfleet Technology.NRE’s ground breaking Real TimeJourney Planner (RTJP) – which providesaccurate and impartial information inresponse to around a quarter of a billionenquiries each year and represents a worldfirst – gained the Supplier Award, as well aswinning high praise from the judges.RTJP enables customers and staff tocheck, in addition to timetable and faresinformation, if there are any train servicedisruptions, where they occur and why. RTJPprovides alternatives to disrupted plannedjourneys, such as other available routes andconnections.Chris Scoggins, NRE chief executive,said: ‘It’s an honour to win the Rail Businessof the Year award. We have a fantastic teamthat works tirelessly to provide more than80 corporate clients and tens of millions ofpeople with helpful, relevant and up-to-date‘We will need tocontinue evolvingso that we cankeep pace withcustomers’ changingexpectations’information 24 hours a day, seven days aweek. In addition, the high volume of ticketsales that we generate for train companiesdemonstrates the central role that NationalRail Enquiries has come to play in theindustry in recent years.‘But we’re not complacent. The challengenow will be to continue to adapt and toensure that we are able to provide customersand the rest of the sector with the servicethat they expect and deserve. The way thatpeople access information is changing rapidly,in particular as smartphones become moreand more commonplace. Just like any otherbusiness, we will need to continue evolvingso that we can keep pace with customers’changing expectations.’Chris Scoggins, NRE chief executive, with (left)David Rollin of Interfleet and (right) Phil HammondMichael Roberts, chief executive of theAssociation of Train Operating Companies,said: ‘Week in week out, millions of peopledepend upon National Rail Enquiries tofind out about train services and get theright ticket for their journey. Winning theseawards is testament to the hard work of thewhole team in providing customers with firstrateservices that continue to improve.’Steve Agg, chairman of the judges andchief executive of the Chartered Instituteof Logistics and Transport, says: ‘Therecognition of excellence that these awardsrepresent encourages business and bringsopportunity to reward individual endeavourand service achievement for the benefit of allstaff and customers.’PAGE 34 AUGUST 2011

Peopleround-upCharity boosts its boardThe Railway Benefit Fund hasmade five new appointments.Joining the board ofmanagement will be SteveMontgomery, managing directorof ScotRail; Bart Schmeink,managing director of Merseyrail;and Deborah Gilshan ofpensions administrator RPMI.Montgomery will also chairthe RBF Scottish ManagementCommittee.Jane English, HR director ofMerseyrail; and Janet Goodland,a former director of Network Rail,will be co-opted members of theRBF Benefits Committee.Fleet manager retiresWork was suspended for a shortwhile at C2C’s East Ham depoton Friday 1 July when managingdirector Julian Drury made asurprise visit to pay tribute to TonySmith.The company’s fleet managerwas retiring after 36 years in therail industry, having started asan apprentice at Darnall depot,Sheffield in 1962.Despite taking a few yearsout from railways, Drury pointedout that Smith, 65, was respectedthroughout the industry, especiallyfor the success of the Class 357.Smith replied: ‘It’s all down toteamwork.’He was presented with a trainstylenameplate, before confidingto Rail Professional that it wasnot the end of his daily commuteby rail from Doncaster to eastLondon as he had planned towork for himself about three daysa week within the industry.Wilson joins InvensysInvensys Rail has announcedthe appointment of WillWilson to the position of vicepresident, commercial. He joinsthe company from SignallingSolutions where he wascommercial director.IRO recruits new CEO,as Daughton retiresnThe Institution of RailwayOperators (IRO) hasappointed a new chief executiveofficer, following ChrisDaughton’s decision to step downat the end of September.Fiona Tordoff, 46, is totake up the post. A fellow ofthe Chartered Institute ofProfessional Development, shehas been heading up WhitebridgeConsultancy, which has NetworkRail and National Express Groupamongst its clients.Her expertise is in humanresources, organisationdevelopment and projectmethodology.Tordoff said: ‘I am very muchlooking forward to helping theinstitution grow and develop, andto serving its members throughthe membership and academicroutes we offer.’As the IRO’s second CEO,Daughton, 67, oversaw a periodof rapid development and growthThe Transport forGreaterManchesterCommittee(TfGMC), a jointcommittee of thenew GreaterManchester Combined Authority,appointed its chair and vice chairsat its AGM at the end of June.Councillor Andrew Fender(Manchester) is to chair theTfGMC. Vice chair, and chairof theorganisation.A formerBR manager,he is to leaveas the rolebecomes fulltime. Hesays: ‘I’veenjoyed thejob and it haskept me intouch withpeople in theindustry.‘It hasbeen great tosee the organisation grow from anacorn to the mighty oak it is now.‘I wasn’t involved in foundingthe IRO in the late 1990s, but wasinvited in as chief executive in2001. I’m very proud of gettingthe education programmeaccredited and seeing the firstundergraduates enrol on certifiedcourses.’DB Schenker namesnew head of HRnFiona Guthrie has beenappointed as head of humanresources by DB Schenker Rail (UK).Guthrie joins the company fromproperty and construction companySimons, where she was grouphuman resources director.She has also held senior humanresources roles at the facilitiescompany Morrison and thesupermarket Safeway.Guthrie said: ‘DB SchenkerRail UK is a great place to be. Withstrong growth projections for railfreight and an increasing focus onenvironmental issues, there aresignificant opportunities for ourskilled workforce to develop theirexpertise, enabling modal shift fromroad to rail to increase.’Manchester appoints chairsof the Capital Projects & Policysub-committee, is to be CouncillorRoger Jones (Salford), whilevice chair and chair of the Bus &TfGM Services sub-committee isCouncillor Mark Aldred (Wigan).Vice chair, and chair of theMetrolink & Rail Networks subcommittee,is Councillor DoreenDickinson (Tameside).A total of 33 members wereappointed to TfGMC, representingthe 10 district authorities.Ex-Blairspokesman joinsNetwork Rail’scomms teamFormer BBC journalist TomKelly is to join Network Railas corporate communicationsdirector.Kelly’s CV includes his workfor Downing Street as TonyBlair’s spokesman, the postof communications directorfor BAA, and his current roleof communications directorfor the Financial ServicesAuthority.Prior to this, he workedfor the BBC in London andBelfast for 16 years.Kelly said: ‘I will be joiningNetwork Rail at a time whenthe company needs tocommunicate better thanever with its customers, thewider public, its people andgovernment. I hope to play mypart in helping the companyevolve into its new form.’SHAW GETSDIRECTORSHIPnWagon leasing company VTGRail UK has named Ian Shawas its new sales and marketingdirector. An internal appointment,Shaw, 47, has worked for thecompany for 10 years, during whichtime he has moved across from theengineering side to sales.Prior to joining VTG, he workedas a project engineer for Alstom onthe original Pendolinos, and beforethat at Westinghouse Brakes.He said: ‘In my 10 years atVTG I have played a major part inprojects at the forefront of wagoninnovation, so was delighted to takeon this new role, which will see thatwork continue.’Ian ShawAUGUST 2011 PAGE 35

NewsPeopleDavid Franks joinsKeolis UKnKeolis, the international wingof SNCF, has appointed DavidFranks as managing director fornew franchises.The new post will see Franks,54, based in Keolis UK’s Londonoffice reporting directly to AlistairGordon, Keolis UK chief executive.As well as being chair of theInstitution of Rail Operators (IRO)and ex-chair of the industry’sNational Performance Task Force,Franks has an impressive pedigree ofsenior rail roles. He was managingdirector of South Central from2001-2003 and chief executive ofMidland Mainline.He went on to becomemanaging director of the trainsdivision at National Express EastCoast and interim CEO of theStockholm Metro in Sweden.Keolis UK, which until now hasoperated in a joint venture in theUK with Go Ahead under the brandGovia, has prequalified for theInterCity West Coast Franchise in asolo venture.Gordon said: ‘David’sappointment underlines ourcommitment to the future of theUK rail industry. His proven trackrecord of success adds real weight toour industry expertise and opens upexciting new opportunities for us.’Franks adds: ‘Keolis hasconsiderable ambition for UK rail,making this a very exciting movefor me.’David FranksNetwork Rail apprentices Craig (left) and Andy Dobson are keepingup a 140-year family tradition. The brothers are the fifth generation oftheir family to work in the railways, with father Steve a rolling stocktechnician with Merseyrail. Grandfather Charlie worked for Liverpooltrams, great grandfather Robert worked at Edge Hill and great, greatgrandfather John started it all in 1871, when he joined the LondonNorth Western Railway Company at Edge Hill station.RecruitmentIf you would like your company featured here, call Rob Tidswell on 01223 477427 or email: rob.tidswell@railpro.co.ukGroup Assistant Risk ManagerA vacancy has arisen for a Group Assistant Risk Manager.Reporting to the Group Head of Risk the successful candidate willpromote risk management throughout the Group, with specifi c emphasison risk avoidance, administration and transfer.They will be responsible for the Group’s safety documentation andthe interface with statutory and regulatory bodies and will assist in theimplementation and audit of the duties outlined in the safety certifi cate,safety plan and other associated documents.To apply please sendcovering letter and CV to:Dave PerryFreightliner LtdMillbrook Point RoadMillbrookSouthamptonSO15 0ABIn addition they will be required to undertake trend analysis of key safetyindicators, horizon scanning, represent the company at senior level toexternal parties and assist with Group training.IT profi cient, the successful candidate will have at least 3 yearsexperience managing a commercial risk portfolio, preferably in the railor associated industries. The person will be educated to at least degreelevel and possess a safety qualifi cation to the equivalent of NEBOSHnational certifi cate.As a senior role, the above is not exhaustive.A clean driving license is required.

Your Journey starts with theirsFirst Hull Trains is beginning a new chapter in its journey towards providing a world classservice. This represents a fantastic opportunity to join a small but dynamic Senior ManagementTeam, working alongside our hand-picked, front line staff to shape the future of this awardwinning, privately owned railway.Head of OperationsSalary: Negotiable + benefits/Permanent Position/Based in HullThe successful candidate will report directly to the new Managing Director, deputising for them and heading up asmall operations department including a team of 26 drivers. Overall responsibility sits here for making sure ourtrain service operates safely everyday, our trains run on time and the necessary rules and regulations are adheredto. Our new Head of Operations will need to be ambitious and looking for a challenge in a broad role covering allaspects of operations management including performance and planning, resources management and developingeffective relationships with Network Rail and other major suppliers. They will be a natural leader, who inspires,motivates and can deliver on stretching targets; individually and through others. Ultimately, they will need to enjoya demanding, versatile role as a key contributor in the overall, exceptional customer experience we strive for.It will be essential to have operations management experience within the rail industry, experience of successfullymanaging a team of drivers and delivering ‘real time’ rail performance.For more information and to apply please visit www.firstgroupcareers.comClosing date Friday 12th August 2011Health, Safety & Environmental ManagerSalary: £40,000 - £45,000 + benefits/Permanent Position/Based in HullThe successful candidate will report directly to the Managing Director and will provide strategic direction in relationto all health and safety responsibilities and make a real difference day to day for colleagues and passengersalike. The role is versatile and requires flexibility with tasks ranging from validations and risk assessment, throughto defining and driving company policy, ensuring compliance with rules, regulations and legislation, and championsour Safety Management System to embed a safe way of working into everything we do.As we are a small team, creating broad and multi-faceted responsibilities, the candidate will need to be able to inspireand motivate people, creating an environment of excitement about health and safety, show passion and want othersto engage and encourage reward for safe behaviour. They will also require confidence and the ability to positivelyenforce change.NEBOSH Diploma or equivalent NVQ Level 4 qualification required. Potential high hazard industry experience essential,rail industry experience desirable.For more information and to apply please visit www.firstgroupcareers.comClosing date Friday 5th August 2011

Be part of a winning team...This multi-national transport business has ambitious growth plans within the UK rail market and a reputation for businessimprovement achieved through best practice exchange across its operations. With a clear focus of further expanding itsexisting portfolio in the UK through franchise bidding and acquisition, the business seeks to appoint three senior railprofessionals to their bid team to help facilitate this growth strategy.Bid Project ManagerAs the project manager for a major UK franchise bid, reporting to the Bid Director, the successful candidate will be responsible forensuring the bid is run effectively and efficiently to produce a high quality output to tight deadlines. You will be expected to supportthe bid team by planning and coordinating the interdependent work streams, reviewing and reporting progress in line with the bidstrategy and client requirements. This permanent staff role will initially be working on one major bid and will then continue onto furtherfranchise bids on completion.As an accomplished project manager you will possess the ability to project manage direct staff and consultants to deliver excellentbids in a high pressure environment. You will be analytically strong with good interpersonal skills and be educated to degree level orequivalent and ideally hold a qualification in a project management methodology such as PRINCE2. A good understanding of EFQMand RADAR is desirable for this role.Work Stream Leader - FinanceThis critical role will contribute to the bid by leading the finance work stream reporting to the Bid Director. By effective managementof modellers, management accountants and other experts in the finance work stream the leader will ensure a highly competitive bidline, supporting business cases and models are produced.As a commercially focused finance professional, you will possess franchise bidding experience and relish working in a competitiveenvironment developing a compelling financial proposition. A strong written and oral communicator, you'll interface well with otherwork streams and excel at leading teams of experts to develop robust financial bid components, on time and on budget. You willprobably be degree qualified in a finance-related discipline and hold an appropriate professional membership.Work Stream Leader - HR, Stakeholder and MobilisationWith a remit covering multiple work streams you'll be responsible for the HR, stakeholder and mobilisation plans of the bid. You willmanage input from internal staff and consultants to produce bid-winning delivery plans, engaging with experts across the organisationto share best practice and develop innovative solutions to operational challenges.Your senior management experience could have been gained in HR, mobilisation or stakeholder engagement within the rail sectorand will ideally include franchise bidding experience. With the gravitas to lead senior teams and broad management experienceacross the rail sector you'll be highly capable of leading these three functions and have extensive knowledge in at least one. Yourwriting ability will be excellent and you will ideally have experience of writing plans in RADAR format (as per EFQM methodology).All three roles are permanent staff positions with a senior management remuneration package and are nominally based in centralLondon, although flexibility to work from other locations on future bids may also be required.To apply please email your current CV and remuneration package to Jim Newsom atjn@newsomconsulting.co.uk quoting the position you are applying for in the subject line.Alternatively write to us at Newsom Consulting, 88 Kingsway, Holborn, London WC2B 6AA.www.newsomconsulting.co.ukExecutive recruitement in rail and infrastructure

Recruitment onlineVisit www.railpro.co.uk/recruitment for all our latest job vacanciesDon’t miss out! The rail industry’s top jobs will continue to appear in Rail Professional magazine,but please keep an eye out for regular job updates on the website throughout the monthCompany: c2c Position: Route EngineerLocation: London East Ham Salary: Circa £37,000c2c runs a high capacity service between London and Shoeburyness and has a proven record of running the most punctual railway in the country. Weare looking for an engineer to join our team at East Ham Depot to help us improve our performance still further.Ideally, you will have a degree in mechanical, electrical or electronic engineering with a good grasp of train maintenance and reliability management.Familiarity with train maintenance systems and onboard management systems would be an advantage. The post is responsible for delay attributionmanagement, understanding factors driving train reliability and acting as a single fleet point of contact within c2c for all issues to do with train serviceprovision.Visit www.railpro.co.uk/recruitment for further details. Closing date for applications: n/aCompany: FirstGroup Position: Depot Production EngineerLocation: Edinburgh Salary: £competitive plus benefitsSound leadership and communication abilities are key skills required. You must be an enthusiastic and highly motivated individual with a flexibleattitude to a changing working environment. An experienced time-served engineer or engineering graduate with SVQ Level 3 or above. Supervisoryor management experience is essential, along with proven people management skills. You should be able to plan and delegate in order to achievecommercial and engineering objectives. Knowledge of Human Resources processes and practices is required. Understanding database packagesand experience of Microsoft Office packages is advantageous.Visit www.railpro.co.uk/recruitment for further details. Closing date for applications: n/aCompany: FirstGroup Position: Safety & Operations Standards AssistantLocation: Manchester Salary: Circa £30,282The post presents an exciting opportunity to fulfil a key support role assisting both the Safety and the Operations Standards Teams. A varied rolerequiring excellent organisational skills, as well as previous administrative experience and a good working knowledge of Microsoft Office packages.You will have a keen eye for detail as the role requires the accurate collation of statistical information, maintaining accident databases, updatingspreadsheets and tracking registers. You will have had previous experience in an administrative role and will be a proactive and self-motivatedindividual who works well within a busy team.Visit www.railpro.co.uk/recruitment for further details. Closing date for applications: 5 August 2011Company: CrossCountry Trains Position: Head of Train Planning and Strategic Timetable DevelopmentLocation: Cannon House – Birmingham Salary: Salary to suit the best candidateThis role covers all aspects of planning including strategy development, access planning, long-term timetable development, diagramming and shorttermplanning. You will have a clear understanding of the commercial drivers of the CrossCountry business, including the ways in which the timetablecan match the pattern of passenger demand and deliver revenue for the business. As well as having an eye for detail, you will be able, with thesupport of your team, to produce a high-quality planning product to industry timescales.Visit www.railpro.co.uk/recruitment for further details. Closing date for applications: n/aThe essential website for railway managers: www.railpro.co.uk/recruitment

Who points theway when itcomes to signalling?The Siemens answer: The latest Simis W v3 interlocking for the UKSimis W v3 can now work in a de-central mode like SSI. This substantially reduces the civils footprint and cabling required, whilstretaining its central architecture feature for complex stations and allows cost effective solutions for projects of all sizes. It also comeswith hot swappable element controllers which can directly control DC point machines and NR LEDs, enhancing reliability even further.The geographic principle embedded in the Simis W logic allows for a high degree of automation in data engineering, leading toexcellent long term efficiencies like reduced onsite testing and shorter possessions. www.siemens.co.uk/mobilityAnswers for mobility.