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Brexit and Railfreight

Author: Peter Wakefield - Published Tue 19 of Jul, 2016 16:17 BST - (4343 Reads)
Railfuture’s Freight Group head, Peter Wakefield, looks at the possible impact on the fragile and volatile railfreight market following the decision on 23 June 2016 by 51.9% of those who voted (37.4% of the electorate) in the UK’s referendum to choose ‘Brexit’.


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Letter to Chris Grayling

Author: Chris Page - Published Mon 18 of Jul, 2016 09:58 BST - (6897 Reads)
Railfuture has written an open letter to Chris Grayling, the new Secretary of State for Transport, welcoming him to his new role with our top ten recommendations for the future of rail.
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Go and Compare Berlin

Author: Ian Brown - Published Wed 06 of Jul, 2016 11:56 BST - (8667 Reads)
Railfuture’s Director of Policy, Ian Brown CBE was invited to visit Berlin for a few days in June, travelling out on the day of the Brexit referendum announcement. His first visit to Berlin saw the Berlin Wall come down, this visit ironically saw the barriers begin to rise. He took the opportunity to have a good look at the transport system, take photographs of good practice and compare the system with London.
Photo: Berlin's new Hauptbahnhof, a practical symbol of Germany's modern railway.
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Brexit rail economics

Author: Chris Page - Published Fri 01 of Jul, 2016 17:31 BST - (7199 Reads)
This is where we find out what membership of the EU was really worth – at least to Britain’s railways and rail users. Passenger numbers may fall, fares may increase, rail development projects may be cancelled or delayed and old trains may not be replaced. Already, the announcement of the winner of the Greater Anglia franchise has been delayed.

These are only the known unknowns. The law of unintended consequences applies to the Brexit decision, and the unknown unknowns will only become apparent as events unfold.

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Train staff duties

Author: Jerry Alderson - Published Mon 27 of Jun, 2016 19:13 BST - (15864 Reads)
Passengers

In 2016 there have been a series of strikes on Govia Thameslink Railway (which uses the Thameslink, Gatwick Express and Southern brands) because of a dispute about how on-board staff can be best utilised – see BBC tweet above. ScotRail trains have also been disrupted and, unless a network-wide agreement is reached or their franchise with the government is amended, Northern services will be in the future as well. Passengers are unclear why the disputes have arisen and what the issues are.

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Brexit and the Railway

Author: Jerry Alderson - Published Sun 26 of Jun, 2016 21:21 BST - (5284 Reads)

When 51.9% of those who voted in the UK’s referendum (37.4% of the electorate) opted for ‘Brexit’ the media focused on little other news for days on end. The decision could lead to a huge change for people in the UK but will there be any noticeable day-to-day impact for passengers on Britain’s railway?

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Big Apple vs Orange

Author: Ian Brown - Published Tue 14 of Jun, 2016 22:37 BST - (7469 Reads)
New York, like London, has a complex metro system as well as an expanding network of suburban and main line rail routes.

Railfuture Policy Director, Ian Brown CBE spent time in New York in May on various jobs which included invitations to visit depots, control centres, rail projects and stations. It was a great opportunity to use the system quite intensively and to compare it with London’s rail transport network.

Photo: The "Oculus" Is this a station or a work of art? You can build a fine station for 4 billion dollars. This is the exterior of the new World Trade Centre station still partially under wraps which opened in April this year. The bird like design is a statement rather than a practical station roof. As expected it has become very controversial, but the station has potential for growth and is expected to rival Grand Central station as a destination in its own right. An artist’s impression of the completed structure is also shown.
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SUAWOOX campaign

Author: Fraser Pithie - Published Mon 13 of Jun, 2016 17:51 BST - (5893 Reads)
Fraser Pithie, the Secretary of the Shakespeare Line Promotion Group, explains why the Stratford-Worcester-Oxford (SWO) campaign deserves public and political support.
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GOBLIN gets Flying visit

Author: Roger Blake - Published Mon 13 of Jun, 2016 14:38 BST - (4605 Reads)
While the west end of Gospel Oak-Barking line remains open during weekdays, Flying Scotsman passes Gospel Oak station on Friday 10 June 2016.
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Updating train passengers

Author: Jerry Alderson - Published Fri 10 of Jun, 2016 20:56 BST - (4163 Reads)
The worst passenger experience is surely when there is a complete lack of information and they have no idea what is happening. This is a frequent complaint that Railfuture hears from passengers and passes on to train operator management. It is pleasing when operators such as Eurostar, which has faced lots of criticism in the past (including from Railfuture), seems to be rectifying its failings - and it is not alone. The graphic above shows how Eurostar made good use of Twitter to inform passengers of severe delays to a service and the options available but was it at the expense of face-to-face communications?

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Railfuture gives evidence

Author: Jerry Alderson - Published Tue 07 of Jun, 2016 18:56 BST - (4124 Reads)
In June 2016 Railfuture appeared before Parliament’s Transport Select Committee to give evidence about Improving the Rail Passenger Experience. Railfuture was represented by the head of its Passenger Group, Chris Fribbins (pictured).

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Metro reaches New Street

Author: Michael Tombs - Published Fri 03 of Jun, 2016 19:28 BST - (4544 Reads)
As a proud Brummie, Railfuture member Michael Tombs has always been disappointed to see the city lagging behind others in the country in terms of transport planning. However, Monday 30th May 2016 was a rare occasion to hang out the bunting, to collect the promotional ‘goodie bag’, and celebrate the long awaited trams, much delayed, running to New Street station – better late than never!? Photo: New CAF-built tram leaves New Street station for Wolverhampton.
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Rail Week 2016

Author: Chris Page - Published Thu 26 of May, 2016 18:55 BST - (4226 Reads)
Young Rail Professionals is a voluntary organisation which promotes the rail industry as an exciting career choice for young people. Rail Week 2016 will provide an opportunity for the rail sector to engage with young people, and with those who influence young people’s career choice too. It will run from Monday 27th June to Sunday 3rd July.
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Prague compared

Author: Jerry Alderson - Published Sun 22 of May, 2016 21:40 BST - (6957 Reads)
Prague has a reputation as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe (even if graffiti appears to be everywhere) but arriving in Prague on a long-distance train doesn’t give a good first impression of the Czech Republic’s capital city, especially if doing so at night. The above photo shows the view on a very dimly-lit platform.

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Nice to see you

Author: By Trevor Garrod (additional material by Jerry Alderson) - Published Mon 09 of May, 2016 17:28 BST - (3585 Reads)
In April 2016 a group of Railfuture members visited Nice in the south of France, having taken a train from London. Place Garibaldi (centre photo, above) has been pedestrianised since the introduction of the initial 8.7km Nice tram system in 2007. At this point the tram lowers its pantograph and is powered by batteries. Birmingham Victoria Square will also be catenary-free when Midland Metro opens its extension to Centenary Square in 2019. All photos taken from Wikipedia.

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Washington DC compared

Author: Ian Brown - Published Tue 03 of May, 2016 21:34 BST - (8159 Reads)
Washington DC has a developing network of Metro routes and suburban and long distance rail routes. Railfuture’s Policy Director, Ian Brown CBE spent a week working in Washington in April and took the opportunity to examine the Metro network, visit Washington Union main line station also travel on the two suburban rail systems as well as Amtrak’s Regional main line service to New York.
Photo: Restored glory in the form of the concourse at Washington Union station. The station serves as a hub for long distance and commuter services serving the City with good interchange on to the Washington Metro.
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