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HS1: Going international

03 July 2018Wendy Spinks OBE, commercial director of HS1 Ltd, discusses the potential of new, direct international train services from the UK. Passengers value international  train  travel and want new direct destinations. That should come as no su...

Timetable chaos: Strong and stable?

03 July 2018David Sidebottom, director at Transport Focus, paints a stark picture of the considerable human impact of delays across London and the north – even before the full extent of the crisis becomes known. The current timetable chaos on Thameslin...

Welsh rail: Left in the dark

03 July 2018Chair of the Welsh Affairs Committee, David Davies, argues that, in light of cancelled electrification plans, Welsh rail has been left in the dark and has seen little investment compared to the rest of the UK. The cancellation of plans to electri...

Wi-fi as a weapon

03 July 2018Self-described ethical hacker Ken Munro, a security entrepreneur at Pen Test Partners, attracted a full house at this year’s Infrarail during his presentation on how customer communication networks can be used to take over trains and have ca...

The Green Corridor: More than a railway

26 June 2018HS2 will inevitably leave a footprint on the British countryside – but there are extensive plans in place to turn this into an opportunity, not a threat, for the natural environment. Anthony Coumbe, the organisation’s head of environme...

Digital Railway: From potential to kinetic

26 June 2018David Waboso, managing director of Group Digital Railway, talks to Luana Salles about the importance of striking a balance between new lines and modern technologies to deliver the capacity and efficiency the industry is yearning for. Mark Carne h...

Franchising: Time for change?

26 June 2018The recent timetabling chaos up and down the country has underlined that the current rail franchising model is broken – and passengers are paying the price, argues Meg Hillier, chair of the Commons Public Accounts Committee. The recent dela...

Hull Trains: On the horizon

26 June 2018The last 18 years of Hull Trains services have been great, but the future – with its brand-new fleet, better customer service and increased investment – will be even better, says Louise Cheeseman, its new managing director. Hull Train...

Open for Business: Network Rail is breaking down supplier barriers

26 June 2018The Open for Business programme – Network Rail’s response to the Hansford Review – is breaking down barriers in the organisation to ensure suppliers have a greater say in the way projects are run and funded. David Ollerhead, the...

Why the rail industry needs more women

22 June 2018Anesha Rachel Malhan, one of the learners at the National College for High Speed Rail (NCHSR), discusses her experience as the only woman at her 20-person course and advocates greater gender diversity for the benefit of the whole industry. Doing...

Apprenticeship levy: the latest picture

05 June 2018Mark Holmes, head of membership and development at NSAR, describes the current resources available to the rail industry to ensure companies of all sizes are taking full advantage of the apprenticeship levy. The need to have highly-skilled individ...

Moving in the right direction

05 June 2018Alex Cropper, head of projects group at Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), reports on the exciting progress so far in building the Trafford Park Line extension as part of the Metrolink network. This is going to be a big year for Metrolink a...

Overcoming leaves on the line

05 June 2018Paul Gray, professional lead of engineering R&D at the RSSB, explains how latest research proves using double variable rate sanders on trains dramatically reduces braking distances. Low adhesion conditions cause an average of 350,000 delay mi...

A year of change for the north

18 May 2018Achieving statutory status represents a landmark moment for northern transport and will have an enormous impact on what be achieved over the coming years, says Barry White (pictured, left), chief executive of Transport for the North (TfN). TfN ha...

Gordon Wakeford: The rail industrial revolution

18 May 2018Gordon Wakeford, managing director of the Siemens Mobility Division, explains how the company plans to make Yorkshire the base for the new UK rail industrial revolution. The prosperity of the Northern Powerhouse is crucial to the growth of U...