Editor's Comment

Too many to mention

The RTM team has been very busy since the last edition went to press, at events big and small. We were there at Infrarail and Rail Live, of course, two great and inspiring shows – as well as the more research-focused Next Generation Rail.

Then there was Gen Y Rail, the series of competitions put on by RTM’s own UK Rail Industry Training Trust. That fantastic series of events reached its conclusion in June with a national final held at Network Rail’s Westwood training facility in Coventry. You can find full coverage of that day, plus the preceding heats around the country, in our special feature starting on page 18. If you’ve somehow missed them, take a look at the front page of the magazine for some truly brilliant quotes from students who took part. We were there, and saw the genuine interest and enthusiasm about the idea of a career in railway engineering from young people who had previously never considered it. It’s made us very proud to have been part of that, but thanks must also go to all the railway organisations and educational institutions who helped make it such a success.

Here’s just a few of those who took part, who put up staff to help, and who hosted or sponsored the events: Network Rail, Hitachi Rail Europe, Siemens, Northern Rail, Manchester City Council, the Birmingham Centre for Railway Research and Education, Newrail at Newcastle University, Alstom, Newcastle College, WMG, AECOM, telent, Pera Training, South West Trains, The Big Bang, Mission Room, Manchester Metropolitan University, HS2 Ltd…the list goes on, sorry to everyone I’ve left out!

This jam-packed edition of RTM covers every aspect of the rail industry, including some of the most topical issues at the moment, including electrification, BIM, London Underground’s new Stake delivery model, BS 11000, FutureRailway and innovation funding, freight infrastructure, and the big changes in track delivery under Steve Featherstone at Network Rail.

You’ll also find interviews with all kinds of people responsible for running the UK rail industry, coverage of all the events listed above, plus articles on sustainability, traffic management, new sensor technology and its application for rail tunnels and embankments, the Northern Hub, the HS2 petitioning process, the PWI’s new corporate membership scheme, Hitachi’s unveiling of its mock-up of an IEP train – or, more correctly, the Class 800 Super Express – and the Northern Line Extension. Oh, and also, supply chain management, getting rail on the curriculum at schools, changes to site safety rules…you get the picture.

There’s a lot of great stuff packed into these 144 pages, so get reading!

Adam Hewitt

Editor