Kimberley Kelly of UK Power Networks Services has been announced as the new client delivery manager.  Kim has extensive experience in managing multi-discipline rail projects across the south of England and has previously served as a senior project manager and contractors’ representative.  The company veteran who has been with the firm for 16 years, started off her career in the rail sector and this expertise led her to UK Power Networks Services’ high-voltage rail division.  In her new role, Kim will lead a newly unified team that combines the former High Voltage Rail, and High ..read more

Rail plant giant Quattro Plant Ltd has acquired 130 RRVs in a multi-million pound deal from the former TXM Plant, which fell into administration in January 2024. Quattro engineers inspected each of the 130 RRVs and the company is currently busy with a re-branding overhaul of the fleet. ‘We had a mammoth logistical operation on our hands moving all this kit whilst carrying on our normal operations.  We put an excellent field team out there to assess every single piece’, says John Murphy, Quattro Managing Director.  ‘Our team did an absolutely sterling job in a very short space of tim ..read more

In a UK-first, a rail industry partnership has successfully run a digitally signalled train on an intercity mainline route. In the early hours of Sunday morning, 2 June, a Great Northern Class 717 ran in test conditions between Welwyn Garden City and Hitchin in Hertfordshire using European Train Control System (ETCS), which sends signalling information direct to a computer screen in the driver’s cab. ETCS will enable a more reliable, more efficient and greener railway for passengers and freight customers. Sunday’s test was part of the early stages of an ongoing process to prove that the train ..read more

National rail contractor, QTS Group, has become the first dedicated rail business to attain a prestigious Silver Award for Social Value, awarded by the Social Value Business. To achieve the Silver Award, QTS had to demonstrate a strong commitment to social value and provide robust evidence of how it generates meaningful impact for its employees, supply chains, customers and communities. QTS Group achieved this by implementing initiatives aligned with its pledges and relevant social issues. The auditor for Social Value Quality Mark CIC particularly commended the organisation’s proactive approa ..read more

Hitachi Rail announced the completion of its €1,660m acquisition of Thales’ Ground Transportation Systems (GTS) business, expanding its global presence to 51 countries with the majority of its revenues now coming from higher-return signalling and systems. Hitachi Rail is right at the forefront of the global mobility sector following the acquisition. The closing strengthens the company’s strategic focus on helping current and potential Hitachi Rail and GTS customers through the sustainable mobility transition – the shift of people from private to sustainable public transport, driven by digital ..read more

Greater Anglia is celebrating Pride Month 2024 and is inviting those heading to parades and festivals across East Anglia and London to let the train take the strain. The operator, which runs trains from London to Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Suffolk, and Norfolk, has stations close to where a number of the key events will be held, enabling everyone to celebrate across the region. These include: Suffolk Pride Fringe Festival (centred around Ipswich) (Friday 31 May to Sunday 30 June) Cambridge Pride (Saturday 15 June) Essex Pride (Chelmsford) (Saturday 22 June) London P ..read more

Popular open access operator, Hull Trains recently (Friday 31st May) welcomed the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Louise Haigh, to officially open the company’s new Learning and Development Academy and to experience the facility’s new world-class train driver simulator in Hull city centre. As one of the UK’s most successful rail companies, employing 120 people and recently achieving an industry leading 96% customer satisfaction score, Hull Trains actively promotes apprenticeships, particularly for the role of drivers. The company received more than 400 applications for its ..read more

Siemens Mobility has calculated that its new battery bi-mode trains could save Britain’s railways £3.5 billion and 12 million tonnes of CO2 over 35 years.   The trains, which would be assembled at Siemens Mobility’s new Train Manufacturing Facility in Goole, East Riding of Yorkshire, would be powered by overhead wires on already electrified routes, then switch to battery power where there are no wires.  That means only small sections of the routes and/or particular stations have to be electrified with overhead line equipment (OLE), making it much quicker and less disruptive to repla ..read more

Northern says the iconic, orange ‘magstripe’ train ticket could be something of a museum exhibit within as little as five years. The train operator says its customers’ ever-growing preference for digital tickets and the introduction of actual ‘paper’ tickets has seen them use 2.3m fewer ‘magstripes’ in the last 12 months. Less than 20% of journeys on Northern services in 2023-24 were made using a ‘magstripe’, with the number in-use falling by 12% compared to 2022-23, from 20.3m to 18m. During the same period, the number of people using digital tickets on Northern services grew by almost 19 ..read more

Last week c2c’s MD, Rob Mullen, completed the gruelling Cape Wrath Ultra, a 400km race widely regarded as the toughest long-distance trail in the UK. Starting in Fort William and finishing at Cape Wrath in the far northwest tip of Scotland, the 8-day journey took runners through the spectacular scenery of the Scottish Highlands, crossing rugged landscapes through genuine wilderness many miles away from civilisation. Of the 172 entrants of all ages and representing 19 nations, 57 hardy souls made it to the finish line, with competitor number 111, Rob, coming home in an incredible 41st place in ..read more