Track and signalling

Rail electrification of the chase line between Rugeley and Walsall

08 July 2019As part of Network Rail’s track electrification, ABC Electrical Ltd identified MGF’s Vertishore as their preferred solution. Mark Norton, rail sector manager at MGF Ltd, reports. As part of the extensive line electrification works bet...

Dawlish railway may be ‘moved out to sea’ to protect it from storms under new proposals

13 June 2019The storm-battered Dawlish rail line could be “moved out to sea” and away from the “hazard” of the cliffs under new plans put forward by Network Rail. New proposals have been put forward to better protect the south Devon r...

Out with the old: London Underground's track renewal works

04 June 2019Alistair McLaughlin, programme delivery manager for Balfour Beatty, and John Lambert, head of track programme for Transport for London (TfL), explore the intricacies of London Underground track renewal works as part of the new Integrated Track Tea...

Northern leaders warn Treasury against scrapping under-fire HS2

23 May 2019Scrapping HS2 would be a “disaster” and would undermine Britain’s “national prosperity for decades to come,” more than 20 prominent local government leaders from the north and the midlands have warned. In a letter to...

£800m worth of rail haulage contracts awarded by Network Rail

22 May 2019Network Rail has awarded contracts for rail haulage and the operations of its engineering trains and seasonal treatment services for Control Period 6, worth around £800m. Adopting Network Rail’s supply chain’s new “commerc...

Scrap HS2 and use its £56bn budget to fund 28 alternative projects, urges TPA

14 May 2019Scrapping the £56bn HS2 project could pave the way for 28 separate local infrastructure schemes to be funded instead with the case “getting stronger by the day” a new report from the TaxPayers’ Alliance (TPA) has claimed. ...

Making the railways safer and more reliable with Ze-Power

13 May 2019Professor Meiling Zhu, chair of mechanical engineering and head of the Energy Harvesting Research Group (EHRG) at the University of Exeter, introduces us to Ze-Power (Zero Power, Large Area Rail Track Monitoring): an innovative Engineering and Phy...

Delivering cost-effective electrification

13 May 2019David Clarke, technical director of the Railway Industry Association (RIA), sets out the findings of a new report on how rail electrification can be delivered more cost effectively. In 2017, the government announced the cancelation of a number of...

Network Rail reveals winner of Dawlish sea wall construction contract

10 May 2019Network Rail has awarded the contract for the construction of the first phase of the Dawlish sea wall to BAM Nuttall ahead of work starting at the end of this month. The £80m sea wall was announced in February to protect the coastal rail li...

RAIB to investigate track worker near miss in Wales

09 May 2019The RAIB has launched an investigation into a near miss incident where a track worker narrowly avoided being hit by a passenger train. The train was travelling between Dovey Junction and Borth stations at approximately 59mph on 2 April when it ne...

Bond Street a year behind other Crossrail stations due to tunnelling problems

07 May 2019Crossrail’s Bond Street station is a year behind schedule compared to the rest of the project’s stations because of extensive tunnelling delays, Mark Wild has revealed. Speaking to the London Assembly, Crossrail’s chief executiv...

RAIB to investigate Welsh runaway train incident

07 May 2019The RAIB has launched an investigation into a runaway train on the Welsh Highland Railway which passed through level crossings and a train station, and passed signals placed at danger points without authorisation. The light diesel locomotive was...

£14m Peak District rail freight extension unveiled

30 April 2019A £14m rail freight extension in the Peak District has been unveiled by Network Rail to boost construction productivity and take lorries off the road. A disused council tip has been transformed by Network Rail into 430 new metres of railway...

Network Rail awards £750m of major signalling contracts for CP6

29 April 2019Network Rail has announced the winners of six major signalling and telecoms contracts worth a total of £750m across Control Period 6. The signalling and telecoms (S&T) frameworks have been split into six geographical lots, and are the f...

‘No justification’: Buckinghamshire councils demand government halt HS2 prep work until Notice to Proceed given

26 April 2019Councils across Buckinghamshire have agreed to pass a special motion calling on the government and HS2 to halt all current site work in the county. Aylesbury Vale and Chiltern district councils and Buckinghamshire County Council said they were &l...