Fares, rail policy and DfT news

Branson says Virgin Trains could be gone by November after ‘baffling’ DfT franchise decision

11 April 2019Virgin Trains could disappear from Britain’s railways by the end of the year, Sir Richard Branson has announced after the government disqualified its joint franchise bid with Stagecoach. Branson he was “devastated” by the decisi...

Rail industry heralds smart-ticketing rollout to all major UK stations

10 April 2019Train companies are set to rollout smart tickets to thousands more passengers this month, the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) has announced, meaning nine out of 10 tickets will now be available as smart tickets. Major stations such as Waterloo, Brighto...

‘Shocked’ Stagecoach disqualified from three rail franchise bids in row over pensions

10 April 2019Stagecoach has accused ministers of putting the future of the UK rail industry in doubt and said it is “extremely concerned” after the DfT has barred it from three rail franchise bids. The DfT said that Stagecoach’s bids for the...

DfT awards East Midlands rail franchise to Abellio

10 April 2019Abellio has won the next East Midlands rail franchise and will take over from Stagecoach in August 2019 until 2027. The DfT announced that the ScotRail operator has been named as the successful bidder “after they presented a strong, complia...

Corbyn calls for new electrified West Country rail line bypassing Dawlish

09 April 2019The Labour Party leader has called for a new electrified rail line connecting the West Country with London which will bypass Dawlish. The inland rail line would avoid Dawlish, where the current railway clings to the coast between Plymouth and Exe...

Glasgow Airport’s tram-train link is ‘dead’ with shuttle pod system preferred

09 April 2019Plans for a direct tram-train link to Glasgow airport have been branded “dead” by the leader of the city council. Local politicians have been calling for a direct rail link between Glasgow city centre and its airport “as a matte...

Bristol’s MetroWest scheme receives final £32m funding from DfT

09 April 2019The DfT has announced its backing for the MetroWest railway line between Portishead and Bristol after confirming the final £32m funding for the “nationally-significant” project. The Portishead branch line shut in 1964, but is no...

DfT’s £300m scheme to see disabled access at 73 railway stations improved

04 April 2019The DfT has announced a £300m investment to see disabled access improved at 73 UK rail stations. Lifts, adjustable ticket counters, and footbridges will be among the new measures announced by transport accessibility minister Nusrat Ghani to...

MPs ‘not convinced’ two-year delay and £3bn overspend will be enough as committee slams Crossrail’s ‘disastrous’ governance

04 April 2019MPs have said they are “increasingly alarmed at the continual shortcomings” of Crossrail and the DfT as its nearly £3bn overspend and substantial delays still “may not be enough.” The Public Accounts Committee (PAC)...

ORR approves action improvement plan from Network Rail

03 April 2019An action plan from Network Rail to improve its performance in response to enforcement action taken against it in November last year has been given approval by the ORR. Network Rail has set out how it intends to improve its poor performance by wo...

Wales and Border rail franchise in £200m deal for new metro fleet

02 April 2019The Wales and Borders rail franchise has received £200m from the financial services giant Legal & General to provide new rolling stock on the south Wales Metro. The funding will see a new Wales and Borders rail fleet replace the current...

Network Rail buys up old Croydon sites in plans to fix Britain’s busiest railway bottleneck

02 April 2019Network Rail has bought two old Royal Mail depots and Volkswagen sites next to East Croydon Station as part of its plans to “unblock the London-Brighton railway bottleneck at Croydon.” The purchase of the old Royal Mail building site...

HS2 workers win £1m in back pay after ‘underpayment scandal’

02 April 2019A HS2 contractor has agreed to back pay over £1m to hundreds of its construction workers after Unite claimed they were being “systematically denied” their entitled holiday and agreed overtime pay. Last week it was reported that...

Network Rail unveils £2bn CP6 investment for Wales and Borders railway

01 April 2019Plans for a £2bn investment over the next five years across the Wales and Borders have been published by Network Rail. This includes investing £176m on track renewals and refurbishments, £135m to improve signalling in west Wales...

Funding sign-off for first half of HS2 construction delayed by ministers

01 April 2019Ministers have delayed signing off on the first half of funding for HS2 over concerns about the flagship rail project’s spiralling costs. A formal ‘notice to proceed’ on the major construction works for the first phase of the pr...