Construction news, punctuality, a British Transport Police appeal, the train service between Harlech and Pwllheli open for business again, Merseyrail hopes, The Northern Echo starts a campaign for more rail investment in the north of the UK, the joys of Chinese high speed rail...and a new line in Siberia.....
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Headlines
UK
Thank you for your patience: new platforms arrive on time at London Bridge.(Thameslink)
Open House London 2014. (Crossrail).
Crossrail is welcoming Londoners to look behind the hoardings during Open House London weekend at Farringdon, Moorgate and Canary Wharf Crossrail construction sites.
Open House invites the public into more than 800 architecturally impressive buildings and to see behind the hoardings of major construction. More than 700 Londoners will have the opportunity to visit Crossrail’s worksites over the weekend of 20 and 21 September and find out about the architecture and engineering involved in building the most significant addition to London’s transport network in a generation.Tickets for 2014 Open House London tours at Moorgate and Farringdon are now fully booked
Tickets for our 2014 Open House London tours at Moorgate and Farringdon worksites went live via our Eventbrite page at 10am on 1 September 2014. Due to overwhelming demand, tickets for our tours at Moorgate and Farringdon are now fully booked.Canary Wharf Group will be running first come, first served tours of the Canary Wharf Crossrail station during Open House weekend on 20 & 21 September. You can find further information about the event on the Open House website.
British Transport Police.
Man forces gates at Victoria station. Published: Friday, 29 August
CCTV footage has been released of a man who, when told the station was closed for cleaning, forced open the gates.
The incident took place shortly after 2am on Thursday, 20 June - a few hours after England played Ukraine in the World Cup. PC Stephen Webster said: "After he was refused entry, the man managed to force his way into the station by pulling the gates out of the ground and bending them. "We believe the man shown in the CCTV footage has important information about this incident, and urge anyone who knows who he is to contact us." -
Can you help? Anyone with information is asked to call 0800 40 50 40, or text 61016, quoting B8/SSUB of 27/8/2014. Information can also be passed to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 1110800 555 111. -
See more at: http://www.btp.police.uk/latest_news/appeals/man_forces_gates.aspx#sthash.oQOl45PU.dpuf
'I survived POW camp but HS2 is going to kill me' (London Evening Standard)
New Pont Briwet rail bridge over Dwyryd estuary to open.(BBC News)
Network Rail Press Release..
"Cambrian Coast railway up and running"
With ARRIVA TRAINS comment...
The train service between Harlech and Pwllheli is open for business again today (Monday, 1 September) following the successful rebuild of Pont Briwet viaduct.
The project has seen the 150 year-old wooden bridge over the Afon Dwyryd near Llandecwyn replaced with a modern structure.
Funded by the European Regional Development Fund, Welsh Government, Network Rail and TraCC, and managed by Gwynedd Council, the project has also involved line speed improvement work across the new bridge as part of plans to deliver faster journey times on the route.
With the rail bridge now complete, trains are now able to run the entire Cambrian Coast line for the first time since late 2013.
The upper section of the Cambrian Coast railway closed between Harlech and Pwllheli in November 2013, shortly after the £20m bridge-replacement project commenced, so work to replace the structure could be conducted safely.
Further work was required on the Cambrian Coast earlier this year after ferocious winter storms caused widespread damage. The lower section of the line – between Dovey Junction and Harlech – closed in January, after storms and tidal surges severely damaged the infrastructure.
The railway was quickly opened between Dovey Junction and Barmouth, with more substantial works needed at Llanaber. Following a £10m programme to repair the damage, the railway opened between Barmouth and Harlech in May.
Work continued at Pont Briwet through the summer months and, now the rail-bridge is complete, trains can continue onward from Harlech to Pwllheli.
Mark Langman, Network Rail's route managing director for Wales, said: “I am grateful for the support we had in communities like Barmouth, Harlech and Tywyn during our efforts to re-open the lower section of the line following the unprecedented storm damage earlier this year.
“Now Gwynedd Council has completed the rail section of Pont Briwet, we are thrilled that services can now resume all the way to Pwllheli. I’d like to thank the communities for their patience while the work has been carried out.”
As the railway line is now open to trains, Network Rail is reminding people of the risks of trespassing on the railway.
Mr Langman continued: “The communities along the line have been extremely patient while this vital work has been carried out, however we know that some people have been taking shortcuts across the railway while it has been closed.
“We would like to remind them that trains are now running as normal and trespass on the railway or misuse of level crossings is extremely dangerous as well as being a serious criminal offence. We want everyone to stay safe and stay off the tracks.”
ADDITIONAL QUOTE FROM ARRIVA TRAINS ADDED:
Ben Davies, Stakeholder Manager for Arriva Trains Wales says “It is great to see the Cambrian coast line fully up and running again and we look forward to welcoming customers old and new to use what I believe to be one of the most beautiful scenic rail journeys in the UK. This line plays an important role in people’s daily lives and I know the hundreds of school children returning to school for the autumn term will be glad that the service is now fully operational. As part of the celebrations we have a special “Pricebuster” promotion for local journey s on the Cambrian Coast line – we hope this will act as an added incentive for more people, both locals and tourists alike, to use the line. “
Funded by the European Regional Development Fund, Welsh Government, Network Rail and TraCC, and managed by Gwynedd Council, the project has also involved line speed improvement work across the new bridge as part of plans to deliver faster journey times on the route.
With the rail bridge now complete, trains are now able to run the entire Cambrian Coast line for the first time since late 2013.
The upper section of the Cambrian Coast railway closed between Harlech and Pwllheli in November 2013, shortly after the £20m bridge-replacement project commenced, so work to replace the structure could be conducted safely.
Further work was required on the Cambrian Coast earlier this year after ferocious winter storms caused widespread damage. The lower section of the line – between Dovey Junction and Harlech – closed in January, after storms and tidal surges severely damaged the infrastructure.
The railway was quickly opened between Dovey Junction and Barmouth, with more substantial works needed at Llanaber. Following a £10m programme to repair the damage, the railway opened between Barmouth and Harlech in May.
Work continued at Pont Briwet through the summer months and, now the rail-bridge is complete, trains can continue onward from Harlech to Pwllheli.
Mark Langman, Network Rail's route managing director for Wales, said: “I am grateful for the support we had in communities like Barmouth, Harlech and Tywyn during our efforts to re-open the lower section of the line following the unprecedented storm damage earlier this year.
“Now Gwynedd Council has completed the rail section of Pont Briwet, we are thrilled that services can now resume all the way to Pwllheli. I’d like to thank the communities for their patience while the work has been carried out.”
As the railway line is now open to trains, Network Rail is reminding people of the risks of trespassing on the railway.
Mr Langman continued: “The communities along the line have been extremely patient while this vital work has been carried out, however we know that some people have been taking shortcuts across the railway while it has been closed.
“We would like to remind them that trains are now running as normal and trespass on the railway or misuse of level crossings is extremely dangerous as well as being a serious criminal offence. We want everyone to stay safe and stay off the tracks.”
ADDITIONAL QUOTE FROM ARRIVA TRAINS ADDED:
Ben Davies, Stakeholder Manager for Arriva Trains Wales says “It is great to see the Cambrian coast line fully up and running again and we look forward to welcoming customers old and new to use what I believe to be one of the most beautiful scenic rail journeys in the UK. This line plays an important role in people’s daily lives and I know the hundreds of school children returning to school for the autumn term will be glad that the service is now fully operational. As part of the celebrations we have a special “Pricebuster” promotion for local journey s on the Cambrian Coast line – we hope this will act as an added incentive for more people, both locals and tourists alike, to use the line. “
Pont Briwet bridge rebuilt (Network Rail Photo)
Punctuality
Public performance measure
The public performance measure (PPM) shows the percentage of trains which arrive at their terminating station on time.PPM combines figures for punctuality and reliability into a single performance measure. It is the industry standard measurement of performance.
Performance for 22 June to 19 July 2014 (period 4)
The national PPM is 88.8%.This compares to 91.3% for the same period last year.
The moving annual average (MAA) is 89.5%.
Performance 2002-2014
Performance by train operator
The table below shows the average PPM for Britain as a whole and by train operating company. The moving annual average is calculated over the 365 days to 16 August 2014.| Franchise | Punctuality % period 5 2013/14 | Punctuality % period 5 2014/15 | Moving annual average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arriva Trains Wales | 93.8 | 89.1 | 92.1 |
| c2c Rail | 97.5 | 96.3 | 96.6 |
| Chiltern | 93.9 | 95.9 | 94.8 |
| Crosscountry | 88.9 | 87.4 | 86.9 |
| East Coast | 85.8 | 87.1 | 85.7 |
| East Midlands Trains | 88.3 | 92.9 | 91.4 |
| First Capital Connect | 90.0 | 88.2 | 85.2 |
| First Great Western | 88.7 | 87.4 | 87.5 |
| First Hull Trains | 79.7 | 86.4 | 83.4 |
| First Scotrail | 90.9 | 84.7 | 91.5 |
| First Transpennine Express | 87.5 | 84.3 | 89.2 |
| Grand Central | 83.9 | 85.9 | 82.2 |
| Abellio Greater Anglia | 91.1 | 87.5 | 90.8 |
| Heathrow Express | 93.0 | 95.0 | 93.7 |
| London Midland | 86.9 | 88.8 | 86.6 |
| London Overground | 96.3 | 95.9 | 96.1 |
| Merseyrail | 96.8 | 94.6 | 95.6 |
| Northern Rail | 90.9 | 89.7 | 91.0 |
| Southeastern | 92.8 | 90.1 | 87.9 |
| Southern | 90.7 | 86.4 | 84.4 |
| Stagecoach South West Trains | 93.3 | 88.2 | 88.9 |
| Virgin Trains | 86.2 | 84.7 | 86.1 |
| National | 91.3 | 88.8 | 89.5 |
- The measure of train punctuality also known as PPM (public performance measure) means trains arriving at their terminating station within five minutes for commuter services and within 10 minutes for long distance services.
- This measure of punctuality is commonly used throughout Europe.
- National train punctuality is measured for all trains across the whole network, including cancelled services and delays caused by external factors (such as vandalism, extreme weather, suicides etc).
- Punctuality was not recorded in this thorough way until 1997. Before then Railtrack, and British Rail before that, did not measure all services and also excluded external factors and other items from their numbers.
- These figures represent provisional data for the period and individual operators' performance data may vary slightly from the full period performance report that we publishes on our website every month.
- Network Rail and the train operators run more trains across Great Britain than are run in most European countries - almost 20% more than in France and 60% more than in Italy.
- Great Britain's 24,000 trains per-day is also more than Spain, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Portugal and Norway combined.
Valleys rail upgrade deal 'shortly,' Stephen Crabb says.(BBC News)
Valleys Lines electrification is a 'knotty' problem but a solution will be found soon, Welsh Secretary Stephen Crabb saysHe told BBC Radio Wales Sunday Supplement programme that rail electrification was his number one issue...(Wales Online)
Transport authority cannot say when Merseyrail will get new trains to replace aging 36-year-old fleet.(Liverpool Echo)
Northern Echo launches campaign calling for major investment in North-East rail.(The Northern Echo)
Council leaders taking call for direct Middlesbrough-London rail link to corridors of power(GazetteLive)
Network Rail is on a new track.(heraldscotland)
Main viaduct completed of £45m west Reading railway scheme.(Newbury Today)
Eversholt Rail awards Alstom with contract to overhaul Scottish suburban trains(European Railway Review)
International
China
China's superlative rail network.(The Star online)
Ireland:
Don’t Mind Me: Pouring ice water on the Irish Rail meltdown.(Limerick Leader)
Malaysia
KL-S'pore high speed rail will create slew of new industries (The Star online)
Russia:
RZD (Russian Railways)
We are happy to announce that the Mannsky channel was officially opened on August 26. This channel was laid through Argazinsky mountain pass, in a parallel with the oldest and longest one, the Krasnoyarkaya railway, which is 2465 m in length.
We expect terminating the Southern way’s modernization (from Mezhdurechensk to Taishet) by 2019, which will help enhance rail capacity three times.
Siberia's great new railway starts operating to Yakutsk.(Siberian Times)
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia – Groundwork ongoing for Riyadh Metro (menarailpost.)
USA
Rail delays knock north US grain prices.(FT.com)
Quinn announces $102 million investment for high-speed rail.(Chicago Sun-Times)
Other Railway Press Releases
10 industry leader insights from last year's CBTC World Congress
(SmartRail World)
www.railway-technology.com
US FTA opens Cleveland's Cedar-University Rapid Station
The US Department of Transportation's (DoT) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has officially opened Cleveland's Cedar-University Rapid Station, formerly known as the University Circle Rapid Station.
Alstom opens new Citadis tram line in Le Mans, France
French train manufacturer Alstom has opened a second Citadis tram line in Le Mans, France, in a move to expand the city's tram network and the Citadis fleet.
Bombardier opens new Kuala Lumpur hub to support rail projects
Bombardier Transportation has opened a new Kuala Lumpur (KL) hub in Malaysia, in a bid to support the rail projects in Malaysia and the Asia-Pacific region.
Newag to supply trains for Polish suburban light rail line
Polish train manufacturer Newag has signed a contract with Warsaw Commuter Rail (WKD) to supply six new electric multiple units, which will operate on the Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa suburban light rail line to increase capacity.
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