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January 16, 2015

UK & International Railway News Friday 16th January 2015

..Total Railway News
PhotoPhotoPhoto
London King's Cross.(C) P.S. Lewis


Firstly Network Rail faces the music..( today issues an apology regarding London Bridge works).....and now HS2 is experiencing some discomfort, given MPs think the scheme will not give value for money....
And don't mention the forgotten north..(according to some, that is)
Fair fares come under scrutiny on Southern's trains....the devil is in the ticketing details, it seems.
Meanwhile, across the pond, and right across the USA, California gets excited after the ground breaking ceremony effectively started the construction of the California high speed railway.


Click on the links....



Headlines
UK
HS2 value for money questioned by MPs.(BBC News)


MPs doubt high speed rail scheme will give value for money (Financial Times)


North East forgotten about as Ministers planned high speed rail scheme (The Journal)




UK rail fares aren't just overpriced – they're confusing and unfair, too(CityMetric)

Train company accused of rip-off smart card ticket prices despite fairness pledge.(The Telegraph)






Government slammed over ‘piecemeal’ commitment to Yorkshire rail.(The Yorkshire Post)


Stagecoach beat East Coast rivals on quality.(Passenger Transport)


Network Rail


Network Rail apologises to passengers and tackles reliability problem at London Bridge
First trains arrive at new London Bridge platforms

Network Rail Picture
Network Rail has apologised to passengers after equipment on the railway near London Bridge has proved unreliable and caused delays this week.

The equipment, which includes a set of points at a junction east of London Bridge station near New Cross Gate, has not provided the reliability expected and engineers are tackling the problem.

Thameslink programme director Simon Blanchflower said: "Passengers and operators expect equipment to work reliably and so do we. We realise the quality of the service we have offered around London Bridge has not been good enough this week and we are doing everything we can to get to the root of the problems.

"We have already undertaken a great deal of work on site and we have identified the key equipment that needs to be tackled.

"The Thameslink Programme is a huge undertaking that will bring a big improvement to travel through London Bridge, but in the meantime we are working hard to improve the services people are relying on today."

Views sought on railway crossings from Aylesbury to Princes Risborough

People from Aylesbury to Princes Risborough will have the opportunity to give their views on how railway crossing safety can be improved in their area by attending public consultation events on January 21 and 28.

The railway between Princes Risborough, Aylesbury and Bletchley will be upgraded and reconstructed as part of the East West Rail scheme and this includes the level crossings in Stoke Mandeville, Great and Little Kimble, Monks Risborough and Princes Risborough.

As part of this work Network Rail is undertaking a study which will look at how to improve safety at these crossings.
Charles Hurst, Network Rail’s project manager for East West Rail, said: “Safety on and around the railway is a top priority for us. The East West Rail project will open up many new journey opportunities, but we want to make sure that the reinstated sections of railway are safe for everyone to use, which is why we are undertaking this study.
“So far, we have discussed our initial proposals with the local authority, landowners and ramblers, but we are keen to hear the wider community’s views. This event gives us the chance to share our initial plans with residents and invite them to give us the benefit of their local knowledge and experience.”
Details of the public consultation event are as follows:
For railway crossings at Aylesbury and Stoke Mandeville
Date: Wednesday 21 January
Time: Drop-in anytime between 5.00 and 8.00pm
Location: Stoke Mandeville Stadium, The Lodge, Rooms 3 & 4, StokeMandeville, Aylesbury HP21 9PP
For railway crossings at Little Kimble, Great Kimble, Monks Risborough and Princes Risborough
Date: Wednesday 28 January
Time: Drop in anytime between 4.30 and 7.30pm
Location: St Mary's Church Hall, Church St, Princes Risborough, HP27 9AW

Notes:

The East West Rail project plans to reintroduce passenger and freight services between Bedford and Oxford, and between Aylesbury and Milton Keynes. It will connect the Great Western, West Coast and Midland main lines, creating many new journey opportunities, reducing journey times and avoiding the need to travel via London.

The work involves re-constructing and upgrading disused and underused sections of track and signalling between Bletchley and Claydon junctions and upgrading other sections of the line.
For more information about East West Rail, visit www.networkrail.co.uk/east-west-rail or www.eastwestrail.org.uk

Crossrail
Crossrail submits plans for improvements to Goodmayes station
Crossrail has submitted proposals for improvements to Goodmayes station for approval. 
The proposed improvements, which will be delivered by Network Rail, have been submitted to the London Borough of Redbridge and include:
  • Three new lifts to provide step free access to all platforms 
  • Platform extensions to ensure that the station can accommodate the new, 200m long Crossrail trains
  • New platform lighting
In addition to these upgrades, Crossrail has been working with Redbridge Council on proposals for improvements to the area around the station.
From 31 May 2015, Transport for London (TfL) will begin operating the existing rolling stock between Shenfield in Essex and Liverpool Street. In 2017, new Crossrail rolling stock will be introduced on the line. In 2019, when the Crossrail route fully opens, passengers will be able to travel right through central London without having to change trains.
From 2019, the journey from Goodmayes to Bond Street will take 29 minutes and passengers will be able to reach Heathrow in 57 minutes. 
Matthew White, Surface Director at Crossrail said: “Crossrail will provide a step change in public transport for people in Redbridge – better stations, new trains and quicker journeys. Passengers will be able to travel right through central London without having to change trains, making it quicker and easier for them to get to a whole range of destinations across London and the South East.”
Councillor Helen Coomb, Redbridge Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration said: “The planned improvements to Goodmayes station are welcomed and if approved should, together with the eventual introduction of Crossrail services and new state of the art trains, transform the experience of local commuters. The improvements will make travel safer and more attractive for our residents, businesses and visitors to Redbridge, including disabled passengers and others with reduced mobility.”
When TfL takes over the Shenfield to Liverpool Street services in May 2015, there will be staff at every station at all times that trains are running, better accessibility provision, full integration with TfL customer information channels and with TfL fares and ticketing.
TfL will also put in place a phased programme of deep cleaning and painting the stations and introducing help points, CCTV, gate lines and better lighting and customer information. Ahead of the new Crossrail trains being introduced TfL will clean up the existing trains and refresh them inside and out within six months of taking over the services.
===================================================================

Rail Accident Investigation Branch

Near-miss involving construction workers at Heathrow Tunnel Junction, west London, 28 December 2014

RAIB is investigating an incident in which a train almost struck two construction workers, and collided with a small trolley, on the Up Airport line between Heathrow Airport Tunnel and the Stockley Flyover.

The incident occurred at about 10:05 hrs on Sunday 28 December 2014 and involved train 1Y40, the 09:48 hrs service from London Heathrow Terminal 5 to London Paddington. The track workers jumped clear just before the approaching train struck a small engineering trolley that they had been placing on the line. The train, formed by a Class 332 electric multiple unit, was travelling at approximately 36 mph (58 km/h) when it struck the trolley. 

The two track workers were among a large number of people carrying out construction work on the approach to a new bridge that had been recently constructed adjacent to the existing Stockley Flyover. This new structure, which carries a new railway track over the mainline from London Paddington to Reading, was built as part of the Crossrail surface works being undertaken by Network Rail.

To enable this work to take place, parts of the operational railway in and around the construction site had been closed for varying periods during the few days before the incident. The two construction workers were unaware that the Up Airport line had returned to operational use a few hours before they started to place the trolley onto this line. They formed part of an eight person workgroup which included a Controller of Site Safety (COSS). The COSS and other group members were not with the two track workers at the time of the incident. The presence of temporary fencing, intended to provide a barrier between construction activities and the operational railway, did not prevent the two track workers accessing the open line.

Network Rail owned the infrastructure at the site of the accident and had employed Carillion Construction as the Principal Contractor for the construction works. The two track workers and the COSS were all employed by sub-contractors.

RAIB’s investigation will establish the sequence of events, examine how the work was planned, how the staff involved were being managed and the way in which railway safety rules are applied on large construction sites adjacent to the operational railway. It will also seek to understand the actions of the people involved, and factors that may have influenced their behaviour.

RAIB will also consider whether there is any overlap between this incident and the factors which resulted in an irregular dangerous occurrence at the same construction site on the previous day. This occurrence involved a gang of railway workers who walked along a line that was open to traffic, and without any form of protection, until other construction workers warned them that the line was open to traffic.

Our investigation is independent of any investigations by the safety authority or the police. We will publish its findings at the conclusion of the investigation. This report will be available on our website.

Parliament.uk




Lessons learned from major rail infrastructure programmes report published

The Department still lacks a clear strategic plan for the rail network according to the Public Accounts Committee's report, published on Friday 16 January 2015.



The Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP, Chair of the Committee of Public Accounts, today said:
"Investment in major rail infrastructure programmes takes a long time and costs a lot of money. It is therefore hugely important to ask the right questions and make properly informed judgements on priorities. Yet the Government takes decisions without a clear strategic plan.
For instance, the Government recently announced proposals for High Speed 3. It did not carry out an assessment of High Speed 3 before it gave the go-ahead to High Speed 2 and it therefore did not test whether improved connectivity in the North was a greater priority.
The Department has still to publish proposals for how Scotland will benefit from High Speed 2, including whether the route will be extended into Scotland.
The Department should set out a long term strategy covering the next 30 years for transport infrastructure in the UK, and use this strategy to inform decisions about investment priorities and specific investment decisions.
We are sceptical about whether the Department can deliver value for money for the taxpayer on High Speed 2. The overall funding envelope of £50 billion includes a generous contingency, and we are concerned that this will simply be used to mask cost overspends, rather than valid calls on contingency funds.
The contingency includes provision for likely inflation based on the Treasury’s guidance on the rates to apply, but construction costs can increase more quickly than general inflation.
Furthermore, David Higgins, the Chair of HS2 Limited, had said in announcing HS3 that he believed both HS2 and 3 could be built at the same time but the Department has not yet properly considered the impact of this on construction capacity, capability and costs.
Even though regional economic growth is one of the objectives of High Speed 2, from which businesses will presumably benefit, the Department considers measures to reduce the burden on the taxpayer, such as a supplement to business rates as happened with Crossrail, are not appropriate for High Speed 2.
The Department has a long way to go to prove that it is being more effective in realising benefits from major programmes.
The lessons from Ebbsfleet show that, without proper planning and active intervention, regeneration and the expected substantial economic benefits have not been delivered, despite High Speed 1 construction being completed seven years ago. The Government is only now putting in place an urban development corporation at Ebbsfleet to rectify this. We should not repeat these mistakes with HS2.
Finally, all too often extra costs, long delays and poor implementation result, in part, from a failure by the Department to invest enough people and money into supporting the infrastructure projects.
We are concerned that the Department is repeating the mistakes of the past with HS2 given the limited resources it is investing in supporting the project to secure regeneration benefits from this £50 billion programme."
Margaret Hodge was speaking as the Committee published its 28th Report of this Session which – on the basis of evidence from Philip Rutnam, Permanent Secretary, Department for Transport, David Prout, Director General, High Speed 2 Group, DfT and Clare Moriarty, Director General, Rail Executive, DfT – examined lessons from major rail infrastructure programmes.


The Department for Transport is responsible for a number of ambitious, expensive transport infrastructure programmes including the planned High Speed 2 programme. We are not convinced that these programmes are part of a clear strategic approach to investment in the rail network. In particular, recent proposals for a railway connecting cities in the north of England—a possible High Speed 3—suggest that the Department takes a piecemeal approach to its rail investment, rather than considering what would benefit the system as a whole and prioritising its investment accordingly. The Department told us it will deliver the full High Speed 2 programme within its overall funding envelope of £50 billion.


However, this funding includes a generous contingency and we are concerned that, without appropriate controls, it could be used to mask cost increases. When it comes to the wider regeneration benefits, insufficient planning meant that regeneration benefits in Ebbsfleet did not flow from High Speed 1 as expected. Although the Department told us that it has learned and is applying these lessons on High Speed 2, it needs to set out clearly who is responsible for ensuring that benefits are realised, and how that work will be coordinated.


Over the last 20 years the Department for Transport has overseen several large rail infrastructure programmes through which it aims to improve services to the public. We have reported on five such programmes over the last decade or so: the modernisation of the West Coast Mainline and the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (now known as High Speed 1), which are now complete; Crossrail and Thameslink which are under construction; and High Speed 2, which is being planned. The programmes are all expensive—costing between £3.6 billion for Thameslink and up to £50 billion for both phases of High Speed 2. They also take a long time to complete, with some taking nearly 30 years from planning to completion, and construction alone taking up to 10 years.


The Department has faced a number of issues during its sponsorship of these programmes, such as setting out a clear case for investment, planning effectively, and evaluating and realising programme benefits. The Department is currently looking at further rail infrastructure programmes, including possible routes linking cities in the north of England, currently referred to as High Speed 3, and Crossrail 2. 

Conclusions and recommendations

The Department still lacks a clear strategic plan for the rail network, and it is unclear how the Department makes decisions about which programmes to prioritise for investment. The Department acknowledged that one project can have an impact on other projects and routes, so it follows that programmes should be considered together. However, it did not provide a clear explanation for why an assessment of a high speed rail line between cities in the north of England (so-called High Speed 3) was not carried out before High Speed 2, to test whether improving connectivity in the north was a greater priority. We are also concerned that the Department continues to have a narrow geographical focus. For example, the Department is still to publish proposals for how Scotland will benefit from High Speed 2, including whether the route will be extended into Scotland.


Recommendation: The Department should set out a long term strategy covering the next 30 years for transport infrastructure in the UK, and use this strategy to inform decisions about investment priorities.


We remain concerned about the Department’s ability to deliver on time and budget. On some past programmes, including modernisation of the West Coast Mainline and Thameslink, the Department has needed to extend timescales and alter its approach to bring programmes back on budget and schedule. We also saw academic research which showed that the cost of delivering a kilometre of railway in the UK is higher than in other countries, and the Department acknowledges that it may be possible to make faster progress and considerable savings by adopting construction techniques used overseas.


The Department acknowledges that good planning and preparation determine success on major programmes and there are some signs that this lesson is being applied. For example, the Department told us that it is applying the governance structures used on Crossrail to High Speed 2, including the separation of the Department’s role as sponsor from the delivery role of HS2 Limited. HS2 Limited is recruiting the people who will build the railway now, earlier than has been done on other programmes, and has appointed a Chief Executive for Construction from Network Rail. While we recognise the importance of good preparation, we note that the scale of expenditure on High Speed 2 before the High Speed Rail Bill has been passed is unusually large.


Recommendation: The Department should apply learning from its previous projects and from overseas to speed progress and improve value for money to all projects it sponsors, including High Speed 2.


We are sceptical about whether the Department can deliver value for money for the taxpayer on High Speed 2. The Department told us that it is confident that it will deliver phase one of High Speed 2 within its available funding of £21.4 billion. However, the Department has included a generous contingency within that amount to give it 95% certainty that it can deliver within the available funding. Value for money will depend not only on the programme coming in within its funding, but also on the use of contingency funds being properly controlled. The Department is less confident about current cost estimates for phase two of High Speed 2 because it is at an earlier stage of development. Nonetheless, it told us that it will complete the whole of High Speed 2 within the overall funding envelope of £50 billion. This is despite the complexity of the programme, and uncertainty around, for example, future construction inflation.


The Department and Transport for London used various means including a supplement to business rates in London to help pay for Crossrail. However, even though regional economic growth is one of the objectives of High Speed 2, from which businesses will presumably benefit, the Department considers that such measures to reduce the burden on the general taxpayer are not appropriate for High Speed 2.


Recommendation: The Department should set out how it will control use of contingency on High Speed 2 and other projects, to provide assurance that generous contingency funds will not be used to hide cost overruns.


There is a risk that industry does not have the capacity to deliver all current and proposed programmes. David Higgins, the Chair of HS2 Limited, has stated his belief that High Speed 2 and High Speed 3 can be built at the same time. The Department, however, told us that it would need to carry out further work to establish whether this was feasible. One of the challenges in delivering multiple programmes is whether there are the skills and capacity to do so both within government and industry. The Department is taking steps to increase its own capacity and capability to sponsor programmes, and it told us that the most acute skills shortage facing the rail industry is in signalling.


Recommendation: The Department should work with industry and with other departments responsible for major infrastructure programmes to understand gaps in industry capacity, and put in place plans to manage any gaps to ensure all programmes can be delivered on schedule and within budget.


The Department has a long way to go to prove that it is being more active in realising benefits from major programmes. There was insufficient planning for regeneration at Ebbsfleet in Kent, and the expected substantial economic benefits have not been delivered, despite High Speed 1 construction being completed seven years ago.


The Government is only now putting in place an urban development corporation at Ebbsfleet to rectify this. The Department told us that it has learnt and is applying this lesson on High Speed 2, and that it has accepted 18 of the 19 recommendations of Lord Deighton’s Growth Task Force for High Speed 2. The Department sees it as the role of local authorities to use their existing powers and budgets to plan for development around proposed High Speed 2 stations, although it told us that it is looking into establishing an organisation to work with local areas on this. However, we remain concerned about the scale of action and resources the Department is dedicating to secure regeneration benefits from this £50 billion programme.
Recommendation: The Department should set out who is responsible for ensuring that benefits are realised, and how that work will be coordinated.


International
Africa

Canada








China



US HSR
HIGH SPEED RAIL HAS LAUNCHED!



Last week, more than 1,200 people gathered in Fresno, California along with Governor Jerry Brown, elected officials, business leaders, and a who's who of high-speed rail officials to formally kick off construction for the visionary fast rail project - one of the biggest transportation projects the country has ever seen.

"It was an amazing and inspiring event," said USHSR President Andy Kunz. "This is history in the making - the day America began its revolutionary 21st century transportation system! Congratulations to all those who have worked to deliver this exciting project." 





CA HSR Awards $1.4 Billion Contract

The California High-Speed Rail Authority board awarded a $1.36 billion contract for the design and construction of its second segment of rail line in the central San Joaquin Valley, a 65-mile stretch from American Avenue south of Fresno to the Tulare-Kern county line.

"This is big news!" said Joe Shelhorse, US High Speed Rail Association Vice President.  "The multi-billion dollar contracts are now coming out as the project gets underway."

The consortium submitted the low bid of $1.2 billion for the rail segment. The team is comprised of Dragados USA Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Spain's Grupo ACS and Dragados S.A.; Flatiron West Inc. of the Southern California city of San Marcos; and Shimmick Construction Co. of Oakland.

Dragados has 25 years of international high-speed rail experience including 41 different projects totaling more than 630 miles, according to the team's website. Flatiron and Shimmick have expertise on infrastructure projects in California.
 
Dragados/Flatiron/Shimmick offered the lowest of three bids for the work, which engineers had forecast would cost between $1.5 billion and $2 billion. The consortium also scored the highest in a state evaluation of its technical ability to perform the work.

"This is a big deal," said Jim Hartnett, the rail board's vice chairman. "This is not just symbolism in a groundbreaking. These are concrete steps to fulfill the vision of high-speed rail in California. ... As technical as some of the contract issues are, and as comprehensive as the process is for evaluating (the bids), we should not lose sight of the true significance of this."  More  
QUOTES FROM GROUNDBREAKING


"Today we make history," said Federal Railroad Administrator Joe Szabo. "This Administration could not have asked for a more resolute partner than Governor Jerry Brown. Thanks to his visionary leadership, California will set the standard for high-speed rail in America." 

"We've got a lot to be proud of today," said Governor Brown.

"This marks the transition from all the planning and appropriations and legal challenges and the design work to continuous construction," said Dan Richard, chairman of the California High-Speed Rail Authority. "Now we build. We are entering a period of sustained construction on the nation's first high-speed rail system for the next five years in the Central Valley, and in the decade beyond that we will be building across California," added Mr. Richard.

"This is the day we commemorate the beginning of the nation's first high-speed rail project that promises to connect Northern, Central and Southern California like never before," said Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin.

"Are we capable of making similar serious investments for future generations? The answer is not only yes we can, but yes we will," said U.S. Congressman Jim Costa.  
  
Gina McCarthy, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said the all-electric trains, running on renewable energy, will take cars off highways and provide an effective alternative to flying on jet fuel, which pumps far more greenhouse gas into the atmosphere.
"High speed rail is good for our health, it is good for our climate and it is good for our economy," she said.


"The future is now, and it's in high speed rail!"





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