RailStaff July 2017

JULY 2017 | ISSUE 236

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CONTENTS JULY 2017 | ISSUE 236

AVENTRAS SET TO BOOST SOUTH WESTERN | 06 A new 90-strong fleet of trains for South Western will be built by top performing rail staff at Bombardier Transportation’s Litchurch Lane works in Derby.

LORD ADONIS: POLITICS SHOULDN’T GET IN THE WAY OF PROGRESS | 07 Andrew Adonis calls for the government to move forward with major rail infrastructure schemes.

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RAILWAY MOUNTAIN CHALLENGE REACHES FUNDRAISING SUMMIT | 08 Railway mountaineers again took on the Three Peaks

by Rail challenge in aid of Railway Children.

GOOD SAMARITANS IN RAIL | 18 Around one in six rail staff are now trained to prevent people taking their lives on the railway.

INSIDE THE NORTHERN LINE EXTENSION | 20 Marc Johnson went underground to see the Northern line extension’s TBMs at work.

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THE VALUE OF STEAM | 36 How relevant are heritage railways to the modern industry?

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Cover - Jonathan Cooper, Northern line extension project manager.

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The current drama pursuant to Mrs May’s electoral debacle obscures the real political issue of our times: the presumption of power by the state. Forget traditional left-right polarity and consider instead the abolition of the right to privacy, to make our own decisions and govern our own affairs.

The British are already the most photographed, filmed and drone-patrolled in the world. Even the Russian media comment upon it. Those who argue for greater powers, suggest that the public is not interested in personal freedom. Really? Is the individual quite happy for the state to switch off the life support systems of those they love? Is it right to send the local constabulary round if a social media comment is deemed to be in some way phobic - that is irrationally hateful?

The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 already allows for the wholesale suspension of civil

liberties and imprisonment without trial. It can turn the UK into a dictatorship overnight. The rail industry would be subject to draconian powers. Yet Britain slumbers on largely ignorant of this.

The writer George Orwell once wrote that we owe our freedoms to the armed services, to those who once protected our shores, skies and streets from the depredations of the Third Reich and the Soviet Union. Both regimes conjure images of barbed wire, concentration camps and secret police knocking on the door in the middle of the night.

The new enemy is more insidious. We make the mistake of assuming the pursuit and capture of angry young men is the answer.

In fact our freedoms are best protected through education, discussion and the robust exchange of views. We should embrace the historic freedom of speech to express views however politically incorrect, however contrary; to debate and to debunk.

Mrs May should be thanked for wrapping up Tony Blair’s ill-conceived scheme for identity cards. But who is brave enough to back liberty and compel the state and its bloated minions to step back? The real anger in Britain this summer stems from people tired of being told what to do - witness the Brexit vote.

We have a choice between a perpetual political adolescence, as Mr Corbyn implies, and the challenge of personal responsibility.

Many are fearful of the power of huge corporations and the electronic media they control. Soon it will be too late to argue with the secret policemen at the door. Assert yourselves. We, the torchbearers, should be the ones who knock. andy@rail-media.com

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Rail murals festival fun Emphasising the diverse and vibrant culture of south London, railway bridges and buildings sported works of art in Brockley, south-east London.

The Brockley Street Art Festival turned the neighbourhood which is just eight minutes by train from London Bridge station - into an open-air art gallery.

Network Rail was involved. Says Phillipa Ellis from Brockley Street Art Festival, ‘We’re really lucky this year to have permission from Network Rail to paint an incredible signpost mural under the bridge at Brockley. We were also given permission for two other landmark

murals which have united the two halves of Brockley separated by the railway.’

Artists Aspire, Koeone and Lionel Stanhope transformed three railway bridges into murals.

Says Eddie Burton from Network Rail, ‘It’s great for us to be able to work with organisations like Brockley Street Art and the incredible artists they attract. We own bridges and other structures across the South East and not only do these murals make them much nicer to look act, but they also encourage people to respect and look after them.’

The street festival is now in its third year.

Support Grenfell Tower Friends and fellow footballers have rallied round to raise £10,000 for Crossrail worker Paul Menacer, who managed to survive the Grenfell Tower disaster.

Paul, 23, lived on the seventh floor of the tower block.

Interviewed by the BBC, Paul said he woke up at 2am and looked out of his window to see people fleeing the burning building.

Despite billowing black smoke, Paul covered his face with a t-shirt. ‘I put on my shoes and ran out of the building as quickly as I possibly could,’ says Paul who works on the Crossrail project.

Friends from South London Football Network set up a page and railway colleagues including Crossrail boss Andrew Wolstenholme - are chipping in.

Help Paul by going to https://www.justgiving.com/ crowdfunding/south-london RAILSTAFF.UK | @RAILSTAFFUK | FACEBOOK.COM/RAILSTAFF

Litchurch Lane Aventras set to boost South Western A new 90-strong fleet of trains for South Western will be built by top performing rail staff at Bombardier Transportation’s Litchurch Lane works in Derby.

FirstGroup and MTR have signed an order for the 750 new carriages, which will operate in five and 10-car formations.

The £895m fleet of Aventra trains will provide a 46 per cent increase in peak capacity, sport free, reliable Wi-Fi, at-seat charging points, realtime information screens, air conditioning, wide gangways and wide doors to speed passengers on their way.

The new trains will enter service from summer 2019 and will all be in action by December 2020.

The Aventras will operate on the Windsor, Reading and West London suburban routes.

The fleet will be maintained at Wimbledon depot, with South Western franchise employees undertaking maintenance, supported by Bombardier employees who will supply technical advice and spares.

FirstGroup and MTR included the plans for these new trains as part of their winning bid for the South Western rail network, with the new franchise due to start on 20 August this year. They will be capable of 100mph, be highly energy efficient and will

contribute to reduced journey times. Funding comes from Rock Rail, SL Capital and GLIL Infrastructure LLP. The trains will be leased to the new South Western rail franchise.

Says Transport Minister Paul Maynard, ‘We are delivering the biggest rail modernisation programme for over a century and this franchise will provide more frequent trains, faster journeys and a more reliable service that passengers across the South Western network expect. This multi-million pound investment in a new fleet of British-built trains is excellent news for South Western passengers and the British economy.’

The move is good news for Bombardier in Derby and further stabilises the future of the railway industry in the city.

Says Richard Hunter, UK managing director, Bombardier Transportation, ‘We are thrilled to have won this important contract. It demonstrates further confidence placed in this market leading rolling stock, designed and built in Britain. This order is a fantastic endorsement of our skilled workforce and the quality of the products we design, engineer and manufacture here in the UK. It will ensure a stable, long-term workload for our staff in Derby.’

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

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Lord Adonis: Politics shouldn't get in the way of progress

Lord Andrew Adonis praised what he described as a ‘railway that fundamentally works’, addressing the Institute of Railway Operators’ (IRO) annual member’s lunch last month, while acknowledging some of the challenges still to overcome.

The Labour peer talked about the image problem Southern has created for private railway operators and how the current political climate could make it difficult to deliver the kind of nation-changing infrastructure projects that he has spent much of his career pushing for. HS2 will change the economic geography of the UK but had the hybrid bill come through parliament in five years time it may not have received the same backing, he believes.

A few days later, Lord Adonis, who is the chairman of the independent National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), issued a statement urging that the government not allow Brexit and a hung parliament to delay major infrastructure projects like HS2 and Crossrail 2. The latter’s exclusion from the Queen’s Speech raised some eyebrows.

The NIC published a list of 12 priority projects that it believes the government needs to progress over the next 12 months.

Railway projects listed included Crossrail 2,

HS2 and the so-called HS3 link - billed by some as Crossrail for the North.

‘Britain’s historic weakness has been to underinvest in infrastructure, and to adopt a stop:go approach even where decisions are taken in principle,’ said Lord Adonis. Nothing symbolises this more than the long-running saga of Heathrow Airport. A third runway was agreed in principle 14 years ago but there has still not been a firm decision to proceed.

‘There’s no point saying Britain is open to the world if you can’t get to and from the rest of the world because Heathrow is full.’

The statement included comments made by Lord Adonis during a speech he delivered to the Institution of Civil Engineers on 29 June.

He said, ’Brexit and the hung parliament must not lead to dither and delay on the key infrastructure challenges facing the country.

We need to press on with decisions on Heathrow, HS2 to the North of England, new electricity generating capacity, and radical improvements to digital communications, to underpin jobs and economic growth.

‘Rapid progress in the next year on these top 12 major projects and priorities is an acid test of the Government’s commitment to the ‘jobs first Brexit’ which the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, argued for recently.

‘All of these have been agreed in principle, but require decisive action to get them moving in the new parliament. They ought to be at the top of ministers’ in-trays, and they ought not to linger there a day more than necessary.’

The announcement included the timetables that the NIC hopes the government will stick to. This includes introducing the hybrid bill for Phase 2a of HS2 and the final route for Phase 2b by the end of July, publishing a detailed integrated plan for HS3 by the end of the year and producing a funding/construction plan for Crossrail 2 by the end of 2017.

Soldier cool wins OBE A one-time American Army officer has been awarded an OBE for services to engineering and gender equality.

Linda Miller has worked for Bechtel as an engineer and project manager for more than 25 years and was involved in Crossrail. She was a project manager for Farringdon station.

Still with Bechtel, Miller is currently construction director on the tunnel and station excavation works on the Sydney Metro project.

Linda was born in the USA and began her career as a US army officer and helicopter pilot. She has a bachelor’s degree in engineering from West Point Military Academy and a masters degree in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.

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Railway mountain challenge reaches fundraising summit

Railway mountaineers again took on the Three Peaks by Rail challenge in aid of Railway Children - the charity which supports vulnerable young people around the world.

This year was the event’s 15th birthday.

Since the first trek, participants have summited 45 times and climbed around 50 km.

This year, 172 people signed up to undertake the gruelling trek, which took place between 15-17 of June. The challenge is to scale the highest peaks in Wales, England and Scotland: Snowdon, Scafell Pike and Ben Nevis in less than 48 hours.

Few were surprised to see that the BTP clocked the fastest time, completing all three mountains in just 12 hours, 19 minutes and 44 seconds.

The event raised £185,000 for Railway Children, taking the overall total to £2.7 million.

To provide some context, Railway Children says a donation of just £4 will pay for a child in India to go to school for a month. Direct Rail Services raised the most money (£14,000).

Says Katie Mason, events manager at Railway Children, ‘The Three Peaks by Rail is our biggest event of the year and where RAILSTAFF.UK | @RAILSTAFFUK | FACEBOOK.COM/RAILSTAFF

we always see the rail industry at its best, all working together to raise funds for some of the most vulnerable children in society.

‘Brian Freemantle of the DfT team has now completed the challenge a record breaking 11 times and raised in that time £100,000 in support of Railway Children – an amazing achievement.

‘We had a fantastic group of volunteers on the train, many of whom help us out year after year. One of the on-board crew recorded a

staggering 72,000 steps walked, so without even leaving the train they covered almost as much ground as the competitors. It just shows their amazing commitment and how integral our volunteers are to everything we’ve achieved.

‘A special thanks also goes to the companies supporting this year’s challenge – CMAC, Direct Rail Services, Network Rail, Rail Delivery Group, Rail Gourmet, Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway, Riviera Trains and Virgin Trains.’

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Protecting our members’ interests is our priority

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Lincoln Brown for Northern Rail David Brown is the new managing director of Arriva Rail North Ltd which operates the Northern Rail franchise.

Currently chief executive of Transport for the North, David Brown takes up his new role at Arriva in September.

Brown succeeds Alan Chaplin, who has been acting managing director since February - stepping in to the breach following the departure of highly acclaimed Alex Hynes - now head of the ScotRail Alliance.

Prior to his job at Transport for the North, David Brown was chief executive at Merseytravel and before that headed South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive. He led the

establishment of Rail North. David also spent more than 10 years at North West Trains.

Says Arriva chief executive Manfred Rudhart, ‘David’s wealth of experience in the rail and transport sector, particularly in the North of England, makes him perfectly placed to help us achieve our vision of transforming travel services for our passengers in the region.’

David Brown was educated at Carres Grammar School in Sleaford, Lincolnshire, and Staffordshire University, where he read geography.

Arriva operates CrossCountry, Chiltern Railways and Arriva Trains Wales as well as the London Overground concession and open access operator Grand Central.

New director heralds rail growth for Graham Jonathan Kerr has been promoted as Graham’s director for the rail sector.

A respected civil engineering professional, Kerr has worked on a variety of complex infrastructure projects, in the rail, highways and marine sectors.

Kerr joined Graham 15 years ago and has progressed through the business, starting as a site engineer before moving into project management and then contract management.

He is currently responsible for several high-profile rail projects undertaken by Graham, including Kenilworth railway station; a design and build project on behalf of Warwickshire County Council, and Bellenden and Westdown Road bridge replacements, on behalf of Network Rail. Prior to this, Jonathan managed the delivery of the £10.5 million Tennison Road project in Croydon for Network Rail. This highly challenging and successful project involved the “Live Launch” of a 55m span, 515 tonne bridge structure over 10 railways lines whilst trains

continued to run.

As part of his new role, Jonathan will be responsible for providing leadership and direction to the company’s growing rail team.

Martin looks forward to expanding the company’s involvement with the rail industry.

‘This is an exciting time to work in the rail sector and I believe as we continue to expand our service offering we can secure long-term partnerships and become a major force in the industry.

‘We are acutely aware of the fact that CP6 will be upon us soon, and securing opportunities within CP6 is one of the principal targets within Graham.’

Graham’s rail team is currently involved in projects at Marsh Barton railway station where the company has been commissioned to design and build a new railway station on behalf of Devon County Council. Other projects underway include: embankment and retaining wall strengthening works at Pontypridd and the installation of new vehicle protection barriers at Reading station.

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Steady hands at GBRf Erstwhile rail apprentice Bob Tiller has been promoted to engineering director at GB Railfreight.

Ian Langton will take over as production director. Both will sit as members of GBRf’s board.

In his new role, Bob will oversee relationships with GBRf’s leasing and maintenance partners. He joined GBRf eight years ago as a fleet engineer.

Bob Tiller has worked on the railways for over four decades, starting as an apprentice with British Rail at Old Oak Common.

In that time, he has worked in various technical roles, including depot production manager and fleet engineer. He has been involved in various locomotive refurbishment projects. Tiller was also project manager for the repowering of First Great Western’s high-speed train power cars.

Ian Langton joined GBRf in April 2012 and has over 27 years’ experience in the rail freight sector, including 22 years working with DB Schenker and its predecessors, EWS, Transrail, and British Rail. In the final two years of this period, he was operations manager in the

Netherlands.

GBRf is one of the rail industry’s great success stories and has grown rapidly in recent years. GBRf introduced the ‘Train Manager’ concept, giving enhanced responsibility and status to its drivers. This helps deliver a top-class service for its customers.

John Smith, GBRf’s managing director, believes in loyalty to staff. ‘It is a real pleasure to welcome both Bob and Ian to the GBRf board, where I know they will be able to make significant contributions,’ says John.

‘They both have proven track records of providing leadership and direction to their teams, as well as the ability to successfully lead and implement business strategies.

‘In promoting Bob and Ian, I want to demonstrate that GBRf rewards loyalty and hard work, and is committed to creating more opportunities for others within the company. Maintaining the culture and work ethic within GBRf is paramount for me. I intend to work closely with all of the board to ensure this is maintained, developed, and improved upon.’

Mellors to lead South Western Andy Mellors is to head the new South Western rail franchise, which launches on 20 August.

Mellors joined FirstGroup in 2002 and is currently engineering director and deputy managing director at Great Western Railway.

He previously held a similar role at First ScotRail.

Andy Mellors was quick to stress the value brought to the South Western franchise by its current rail staff. ‘I look forward to leading the team at the new FirstGroup and MTR South Western franchise, and to build on the respected foundations established by the current South West Trains employees,’ he said.

‘We will offer the tangible benefits that customers and stakeholders have told us they want, on a key part of the country’s railway network which connects London to key towns and cities across the region. Passengers on our franchise can look forward to new and better trains, more seats and services, quicker journey times, enhanced stations and more flexible fare options.’

Andy Mellors has been responsible for GWR’s fleet, overseeing the introduction of new electric trains in the Thames Valley, and preparing for the introduction of the Intercity Express Trains.

Andy is a chartered engineer and a fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

Paul joins Komplete Paul Willerton has joined Komplete Group as business development manager.

Says managing director Simon Pitt, ‘I wish Paul all the very best, with his strong and relevant industry expertise. I have no doubt that he will help Komplete Group to further grow our market position and encourage the financial growth of our company.’

Paul joins from Resourcing Solutions and before that worked for ATA Recruitment. He has also worked for Syntax Technical Engineering Recruitment and On Loan Recruitment and Strategic Placements Ltd in Derby, where he spent nearly 10 years.

Outside work, Paul has been a keen and committed supporter of the St Vincent de Paul (SVP) children’s charity. Paul helps with the running of week-long holidays in Mablethorpe for disadvantaged children.

For the last seven years, he has been camp leader with responsibility for planning the week, budget control, recruiting, directing volunteers

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West Midlands Rail expands top team West Midlands Rail (WMR) has made two new appointments to its board.

and supervising activities. His fundraising efforts have helped raise over £8,000 in the last six years.

Paul was chosen as first chairman of the management committee overseeing all five Mablethorpe Camps. In addition, he’s a member of the Nottingham Central Council and the National Steering Committee which determines policies and procedures for the camps nationwide.

Every year around 2,000 disadvantaged children enjoy a one-week, care-free holiday in an SVP camp. Paul Willerton and more than 400 volunteers have been organising and staffing SVP holidays for over 50 years.

O'Neill joins Siemens Siemens Rail Automation has appointed Tim O’Neill as business development director.

Tim joins Siemens from Systra Limited, where he was chief executive of the company’s UK operations.

Before joining Systra in 2014 O’Neill worked for Atkins - spending 10 years with the firm and ending up as managing director.

At Atkins, he worked with Network Rail, London Underground and Heathrow Airport. Tim O’Neill also worked for Alstom between 2000 and 2004 where he was senior project manager – West Coast Mainline and worked on the ERTMS project.

In the 1990s, he worked on the Jubilee Line Extension.

Tom Painter and Toby Rackliff join WMR, a new organisation formed by a consortium of 14 local authorities and the DfT. WMR will manage the local network from October 2017.

Tom Painter moves from his business development role at Chiltern Railways to become franchise delivery manager. Tom will oversee management of operator performance and delivery in the West Midlands.

Toby Rackliff joins WMR as business development manager from Transport for West Midlands where he was responsible for rail policy and strategy. He has also worked for Centro and was railway development manager for Dumfries and Galloway Council. Two train companies, Abellio and Govia, are bidding for the eight-year franchise to run local services.

Keyline promotes shining example Christina Hopton has been promoted branch manager at Keyline’s Southampton depot.

The in-house smart move confirms company policy of boosting the careers of longserving staff as Keyline builds its rail supply business.

After starting her career in the sales office at Rowlands Castle five years ago, Christina has worked her way up to take the helm at the Southampton branch following stints as assistant manager and external account manager.

Says Christina, ‘I’ve enjoyed every moment of working at Keyline. They have given me so much support throughout my five years at the company, and I am thrilled to have been promoted and achieved my goal of managing a branch.

‘I’m looking forward to what the next stage of my career brings.’

Adds Paul Massenhove, regional director South East, ‘Christina is a shining example of the calibre of staff we have here at Keyline, and her promotion to branch manager at Southampton is very well-deserved. I wish her every success in her new role.’

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Steve and Mark in royal role Returning to her suspected favourite mode of transport, Her Majesty the Queen named the new Intercity Express Train 800003: Queen Elizabeth II, marking the 175th anniversary of the first British monarch’s journey by train.

On 13 June 1842, Queen Victoria made the journey from Slough to Paddington. The train that day was driven by Daniel Gooch and assisted by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.

This time two GBRf drivers, Steve McGlynn and Mark Ewington, were at the controls.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were joined on the train by Isambard Thomas and Gillian White, the direct descendants of Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Sir Daniel Gooch.

The trains are being built by the 900-strong workforce at Hitachi’s factory in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, as part of the Government’s £5.7bn Intercity Express Programme.

Her Majesty was greeted at Slough station by school children from four local schools who had produced their own drawings to mark the occasion.

Following the naming ceremony, Tim O’Toole, chief executive of GWR’s owner’s FirstGroup, presented the Queen with a pair of specially designed coins which will become a feature of GWR’s new Intercity Express trains.

Mark Langman, managing director of Network Rail, Western Route was on hand to greet the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh.

‘It is an honour to have welcomed The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh to Paddington station 175 years after the first royal arrival into the iconic London station by train. John Smith, Managing Director, GBRf was also there. ‘It was especially pleasing that GBRf could play a role in this memorable event by providing the crew for this operation through our successful partnership with Hitachi to test the new trains that will be rolled out by GWR later this year,’ John said.

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HS2 presents arms HS2 Ltd has become the largest construction project in Britain to sign the Armed Forces Covenant.

Says David Higgins, chairman of HS2, ‘Thousands of reservists and armed forces veterans up and down the country have the skills we need to help deliver the HS2 project.

‘HS2 will create 25,000 jobs during construction, which brings a huge opportunity to change the demography of the railway, engineering and construction sectors, something HS2 must do if it is to develop and deliver a railway for everyone.

‘In employing reservists, veterans young and old, and their families, HS2 will benefit from broader opinions, experiences and expertise.’

The rail industry has long been signing up men and women from the armed services. High motivation, battlefield ingenuity and a sense of camaraderie find a ready reflection on the railway.

HS2 Ltd will support the employment of veterans, young and old and their families.

There is also a commitment to support rail staff serving as reservists. The covenant was signed at the Houses of Parliament and was attended by members of HS2’s Veteran Network Speaking at the event, Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon said, ‘By signing the Covenant, HS2 has created opportunities for our Armed

Forces and their families, and is recognising the unique skills our service personnel can offer the construction sector. HS2 has also encouraged flexibility and support for reservists through their supply chain and it’s hugely encouraging to see.’

Army reservist and former Regular Army Corporal, Russell Armstrong, assistant facilities manager at HS2 and chair of the HS2 Veterans Network, said, ‘I am very proud that HS2 has signed the Veterans Armed Forces Covenant and that the company is being recognised by the MoD. It’s fantastic to work for a company that understands the value that ex-forces personnel and reservists can bring and one that is creating a team as diverse as the population which HS2 will serve.’

Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon and the Chairman of HS2 Ltd Sir David Higgins signing the Armed Forces Covenant.

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Alarm at HS3 and Crossrail 2 Rail chiefs, alarmed at the lack of commitment to Crossrail 2 and High Speed 3 in the recent Queen’s Speech, have voiced their concerns.

Whilst appreciating the announcement of further legislation on HS2, ‘We are concerned about the lack of commitment to Crossrail 2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail (or HS3) in the Queen’s Speech,’ says Darren Caplan, chief executive of the Railway Industry Association.

‘Rail infrastructure needs to be improved throughout the whole of the UK and major schemes like these provide wider benefits not just to those parts of the country they serve but also to the national economy; and they are essential to helping Britain become Brexitready in the years to come.’

It’s a view shared across the industry, not least by Crossrail 2

managing director Michele Dix. The parliamentary bill to progress the project has been set back by nearly a year, says Dix. ’Because of the election our timetable has been moved back slightly. What we want to do is submit a hybrid bill in 2020, get royal assent in early 2020s…We want to get this open before HS2 phase two opens and has that impact on Euston; [otherwise] we will have a big strain on the network and stall the growth of the south-east.’

Local leaders are up in arms, too. London’s Deputy Mayor, Val Shawcross, urged backing for Crossrail 2. ‘Not only does it wash its own face in a short period of time, but it will make High Speed 2 viable for London. As it currently stands, HS2 will generate enormous bottlenecks at Euston if it doesn’t have Crossrail 2, which is a complementary scheme in some ways to HS2.’

Ravenglass reprise © Shutterstock.com

The Ravenglass Railway Museum has officially reopened after undergoing a nine-month re-development.

Paul Atterbury, antiques expert and railway writer opened the ambitious expanded museum on the Cumbrian coast The museum owns more than 6,000 objects ranging from 15 inch gauge locomotives and rolling stock through to uniforms, photographs and historic engineering items.

The new development will see these artefacts come to life with interactive exhibitions allowing

visitors to see the heritage steam locomotives and learn how they work.

A star attraction will be the steam locomotive ‘Katie’ which ran at Ravenglass in 1916 and has just been restored to working condition for the first time since the 1920s. Other exhibits will include a collection of locomotives and rolling stock spanning the line’s opening in 1875 to the present day.

There will also be objects telling the story of ‘La’al Ratty’s’ industrial past as well as the daily life of workers on the railway including their uniforms and ‘bait’ boxes.

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© Shutterstock.com

Cliff hanger at Aberystwyth Employing apprentices boosts local business. That’s the message from a team of apprentices at the Vale of Rheidol Railway (VoR).

The team has built four new sets of wheels for nearby Aberystwyth’s Cliff Railway. The Vale of Rheidol’s workshops were completed in 2014 and hardworking engineers and apprentices have restored several locomotives for the VoR and for other railways.

The workshop employs skilled craftsmen and has

an apprenticeship training programme called ‘Our Past is their Future’.

The Vale of Rheidol Railway, which runs from Aberystwyth to Devil’s Bridge, attracts around 50,000 visitors annually.

For many years the Vale of Rheidol Railway - Y Lein Fach - was part of the national rail network. The 12-mile line, which was opened in 1902 to carry lead ore from the mines, was sold in 1989. Narrow-gauge steam engines help reveal one of Europe’s most compelling landscapes.

Life Saved in Golf Drama Scott Kilmer thought it was going to be a straightforward day on the golf course.

Preparing to tee-off on the 17th hole at Knowle Golf Club, near Solihull, with his friend and fellow player, Gavin Carpenter, he spotted a man just up ahead in difficulty.

Richard Pembury, 63, had suffered a major cardiac arrest causing him to collapse on the course. Scott immediately sprang into action, calling emergency services and performing CPR on Mr Pembury whilst Gavin rushed back to the clubhouse to collect the portable defibrillator. Scott and Gavin used the defibrillator to help resuscitate Mr Pembury. Scott, refusing to give up, continued to perform CPR for an astonishing 14 minutes until paramedics arrived.

Scott had received full first aid training from Keyline and is a designated branch first aider at the civils and drainage distributor.

‘When you enrol on a first aid

course you hope that you will never have to put anything you learn into practice and certainly not in such serious circumstances,’ says Scott. ‘My natural instinct was to immediately help and I did what anyone else would have done. My first aid training definitely contributed to giving me the confidence to carry out CPR and do everything I could to assist a fellow human being.’

Mr Pembury was treated in hospital and put into an induced coma for three days. He underwent an operation to have five stents fitted to his arteries and has since made a full recovery.

Doctors and paramedics have praised Scott for his actions.

Says Richard Pembury, ‘I am so grateful to Scott for taking such immediate action and coming to my aid so quickly. I consider myself extremely lucky to have had somebody so close by who knew exactly what to do. If it hadn’t have been for Scott and Gavin then I wouldn’t be here today.’

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

Climbing the stairway to Heaton

NEWS

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Lions Clubs 100 East Midlands Trains has teamed up with Lions Clubs International to name Meridian train, 222017, ‘Lions Clubs 100’.

Hard work by station adopters and railway staff sees Heaton Chapel station, near Stockport, take on a new lease of life this summer.

An essential passenger stairway at the station has fully reopened for business after vandalism caused significant damage last year. Friends of Heaton Chapel joined Liam Sumpter, regional director, Northern Rail; Robert Ellams, asset engineer, Network Rail; and local councillor John Taylor to celebrate the future of the station.

Says Liam Sumpter, ‘Following the installation of new roofing and the completion of other enhancements at Heaton Chapel during the past 12 months, I am delighted to confirm that the station has returned to business as usual.

‘The station looks the best it ever has, which is a testament to the joint efforts of industry stakeholders in the region, including Network Rail, Transport for

Greater Manchester, Carillion and Northern.

But the pinnacle of the improved station is undoubtedly the work undertaken by community group, Friends of Heaton Chapel (FoHC) station.

‘FoHC continue to work tirelessly to give the station some real character and make it more welcoming for customers. They have delivered a number of projects, such as the development and ongoing maintenance of gardens and installation of numerous art projects. Well done to everyone involved with getting the station up and running again and thanks to our customers for their patience over the last year.’

Artwork installed by the Friends of Heaton Chapel was destroyed during last year’s vandalism. After repair work, the Friends worked with a local artist to create 12 pieces of artwork which depict iconic buildings from the Four Heatons; Mersey, Moor, Norris and Chapel, and these have now been installed at the station.

Lions Clubs International works in over 200 countries throughout the world and has 1.3 million members. The charity started 100 years ago.

Says Clive Yates, service delivery manager for East Midlands Trains, ‘This was a really special moment for me because, as well as being a dedicated member of staff, I have also been active in Lions Club International Vale of Belvoir branch for 32 years.

‘I am currently serving my third term as the club president and I’m very proud that we continue to raise in excess of £10,000 each year to support local, national and international causes.’

After the unveiling of the ‘Lions Clubs International’ plaque at Nottingham station, the 1205 train departed for London St Pancras. Several of the assembled guests boarded the service to Beeston where they continued to reminisce about various community initiatives from the past and look forward to future community events.

Police heroes merger attacked An unusual alliance between Scottish Tories and rail unions like the RMT, Aslef and TSSA hopes to see off plans to subsume British Transport Police in Scotland. The legendary force shot to renewed recognition following the bravery of BTP officers at the Manchester Arena terrorist attack.

North of the border the Scottish government wants to absorb the force into Police Scotland. The legislation to allow this was passed by ministers in Scotland on 27 June. Rail unions, the BTP’s staff union, Scottish Labour and Scottish Conservatives

are opposed to the plans.

Says TSSA general secretary Manuel Cortes, ‘In the light of the recent terrorist attacks in Manchester and London, it is clear people want and need to be better, not worse, protected. If the SNP, the Scottish Greens and the Scottish Lib Dems press ahead with this Bill, they will find themselves to the right of even the Scottish Tories who are busy building a wall between themselves and their leader Theresa May who accused the Police Federation of ‘crying wolf’ when she was slashing their numbers…’

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16

NEWS

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

Taking a break from politics, Prime Minister Theresa May officially opened a new £4.5 million railway siding in her constituency of Maidenhead.

The sidings have been installed to allow Great Western Railway (GWR) to introduce a further three new eight-carriage Electrostar trains on local routes. Mrs May acknowledged the work had been completed ahead of time - no fixed term working for the Orange Army.

‘It is great to see that this vital work, which will increase capacity and improve services for passengers, has been completed ahead of schedule. Improving peak-time services between Maidenhead and London is one of my priorities as an MP, and it is good news for the town that we are making such progress.’ said the Prime Minister.

The new Electrostar services were extended from Hayes & Harlington to operate between Maidenhead and London Paddington in May this year at peak times.

Today will see a total of 8, eight carriage electric trains now in service, replacing five and sixcarriage diesel services.

The newly opened sidings have been delivered 18 months early, and electrification between Maidenhead and London Paddington was also completed ahead of time after being funded and delivered by the Crossrail project. The new sidings will be used by Elizabeth line trains from 2019.

Theresa May with Mark Langman (L), Network Rail Western Route MD, and Tim O'Toole (R), CEO of FirstGroup

Walestaff - simply the best Passengers using train services on the Wales and Borders franchise rate their local rail staff highly, according to a report by rail watchdog Transport Focus.

Station staff, guards and drivers are seen as generally friendly, helpful and approachable. The report quotes passengers, ‘The conductors are always helpful if you want to know where to change trains, what platform you want or if you want directions…

They do go the extra mile,’ says a frequent traveller from Machynlleth.

Passengers also value station staff. ‘The man at the ticket office at the station is great. He gives me advice on all sorts like what ticket I can buy and how much those cost,’ says another.

However, capacity is a challenge, with seats at a premium on some services

- a tribute to the growth and success of Arriva Trains Wales.

The franchise is up for renewal with the Invitation to Tender to be issued in August.

The new contract will be awarded in June 2018 and commence in October 2018.

Says RMT general secretary Mick Cash, ‘This report confirms what our members are telling us all the time, that passengers value the vital service, safety and security provided by conductors and station staff.’

Adds editor Andy Milne, who lives on the borders, ‘Trenau Arriva Cymru runs services from Cardiff up through Hereford and Shrewsbury to Manchester.

Although we’re in England, the staff couldn’t be kinder or more welcoming. Station staff deserve a mention too, almost always cheerful and knowledgable, ready with good advice and a credit to the industry. Long may they prosper.’

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Theresa May seen siding with rail staff

Challenge hat-trick for SNC-Lavalin SNC-Lavalin Rail & Transit, Derby has won the Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ Railway Challenge for the third time. The nine-strong team saw off stiff competition from ten other teams all competing to build an innovative, efficient and quiet small-scale locomotive at the Stapleford Miniature Railway near Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire.

Says Professor Simon Iwnicki, chair of the Railway Challenge Organising Committee, ‘We would like to congratulate SNC-Lavalin Rail & Transit for an impressive win in this year’s competition against a record number of competitors. The judges were impressed with the calibre of design and innovation of all the team’s locomotives, which included the competition’s first ever compressed air piston

locomotive from the University of Brunel. We were also delighted to host the competition’s first ever non-UK entry from Germany’s FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences.’ The locomotives are designed to work on 10¼” gauge railway line and must be powerful enough to transport a 600kg load – including one of the Railway Challenge judges.

As well as SNC-Lavalin Rail & Transit, there were also teams from the University of Birmingham and AEGIS Engineering Systems, Huddersfield University, Sheffield University, Transport for London, the University of Southampton and Siemens Mobility, the University of Warwick, Alstom UK & Ireland, FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences, Bombardier Transportation and University of Derby and Brunel University took part.

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

Severn Valley turns the tables

© Shutterstock.com

The Severn Valley Railway is now half way to raising £2.5 million in new shares. The offer will fund an ambitious restoration and turntable at Bridgnorth Station in Shropshire.

The share offer was launched in November last year. Work proceeds with SVR volunteers working alongside Iris contractors to help keep building costs down. The project includes the installation of a turntable, which

will allow locomotives to turn at Bridgnorth – in full view of visitors.

Although acquired for the SVR by the Bridgnorth Turntable Fund in 1998 from the now closed Bristol (Bath Road) steam locomotive depot, its installation has been held up pending development of the Bridgnorth station site. The turntable, which is 65-feet long, has been in store at the SVR for the last 19 years.

During this time, additional funds of around £30,000 have already been raised to support its installation, but further investment in the Bridgnorth station infrastructure is needed before the dream can be realised. These works form part of the second phase - a vital part of the current share offer.

Tony Bending, long-standing volunteer and SVR board member, stressed the importance of meeting the railway’s share offer target before the end of October this year to ensure development plans for Bridgnorth are fully realised.

‘Although reaching £1.25 million is a great achievement, we can’t

NEWS

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afford to rest on our laurels. With less than five months to go before the share offer must close, we urge all our supporters to help us achieve our target, particularly those who have registered their interest but have not yet bought shares,’ says Tony.

‘Whilst the building of the new GWR-style refreshment room, the careful refurbishment and reinstatement of the original booking hall and expansion of the Railwayman’s Arms are now secured, reaching our target of £2.5 million is vital if we are to afford the significant and costly infrastructure developments necessary to allow improvements to car parking and the installation of the turntable.’ The original station at Bridgnorth was built in 1862.

Run by a dedicated body of 1,700 volunteers, the full-size, standard-gauge railway line runs regular steam-hauled passenger trains along a scenic 16-mile route between Kidderminster in Worcestershire and Bridgnorth in Shropshire. www.svr.co.uk/shareoffer

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NEWS

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

Good Samaritans in rail Around one in six rail staff are now trained to prevent people taking their lives on the railway, as part of the suicide prevention partnership between Samaritans, Network Rail, British Transport Police and the wider rail industry.

Between April 2016 and the end of March this year, 1,593 interventions were made across Britain’s rail network by staff, British Transport Police, local police and the public, an increase of 40 per cent on the previous year. In the same period, suicides and suspected suicides on the rail network dropped from 253 to 237, showing a decline in rail suicides for the second year in a row. This is a fall of 18 per cent in two years and 2016/17 represents the lowest yearly figure since 2010.

Samaritans delivers two training courses for railway staff and BTP officers as part of the partnership. One teaches them how to identify and approach people who may be suicidal.

The other is trauma support training, aimed at those who may be affected by a suicide on the railway.

Partnership approach Says Samaritans chief executive, Ruth Sutherland, ‘The reduction in suicides on the railway shows that the partnership between Samaritans, Network Rail, BTP and the wider rail industry is making a real difference. But suicide is everybody’s business and we want to see the same dramatic reduction in suicide figures in general. We look forward to taking this learning to a wider audience and having an RAILSTAFF.UK | @RAILSTAFFUK | FACEBOOK.COM/RAILSTAFF

even greater impact on suicide numbers in the coming years.’

Ian Stevens, who manages the suicide prevention programme on behalf of the rail industry, agrees.

‘It’s encouraging to see the number of suicides on the railway fall for the second year in a row, and hopefully this trend continues in line with our ongoing suicide prevention work.

Around one in six rail staff is now trained in suicide prevention and their commitment to preventing suicides on the railway is translating into lives saved on the ground. Put simply, we are now more likely to intervene and prevent people being injured or killed through suicide attempts on the railway.’

BTP - national role Last year, Samaritans launched its ‘We Listen’ campaign through the partnership with posters in railway stations across England, Scotland and Wales highlighting the importance of seeking help if you are struggling to cope, rather than hiding your feelings and suffering in silence.

The campaign has been extended to hospitals, GP surgeries and sports events, and appears on the side of buses.

Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 50 and of men and women aged 20-34, with those from more deprived communities particularly vulnerable.

Mark Smith, BTP, National Suicide Prevention and Mental Health, says, ‘As the national police service for the railways, we are committed to reducing suicide and to our partnership with the rail industry and Samaritans.

‘We are very pleased to see the reduction in suicides and suspected suicides and the increase in life-saving interventions for the second year in succession.’

Prevention The sheer scale of the work is impressive.

‘One of our contributions is through the work of our suicide prevention and mental health teams, which have NHS psychiatric nurses working alongside police officers and staff,’ says Smith.

‘These teams work with statutory and thirdsector partners to help those people that come to the railway in mental health crisis or suicidal circumstances, access effective care pathways and get on the road to recovery. In the last year, these joint health and policing teams and our Community Safety Unit in Scotland, dealt with nearly 2,000 cases, which includes 86 people who survived a suicide attempt on the railway with serious injuries.’

Railway suicides continue to account for approximately four percent of all suicides in the UK. Anyone can contact Samaritans. Whatever you’re going through, call free any time from any phone on 116 123. The number is FREE to call and will not appear on your phone bill.

Alternatively email jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org to find details of your nearest branch, where you can talk to someone face to face.

Samaritans has trained 15,000 rail and British Transport Police staff in suicide prevention skills

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FEATURE

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

INSIDE THE

NORTHERN LIN W MARC JOHNSON WENT UNDERGROUND TO SEE THE NORTHERN LINE EXTENSION'S TUNNEL BORING MACHINES AT WORK

hen the second phase of Battersea Power Station was completed in the 1950s - giving the building its iconic four chimneys - the site around it on London’s South Bank was part of the capital’s industrial heartland.

The power station is now being transformed into a modern commercial district - flanked by luxury apartments for the city’s thriving professional population. The whole of the surrounding area of Nine Elms, Vauxhall and Battersea appears to be in some state of redevelopment. High-end supermarkets

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built to serve future residents are, for the time being, occupied by construction workers, preferring orange PPE to a suit and tie.

Behind Battersea Power Station, work is underway on the Northern line extension (NLE), which will link the new development to the Charing Cross branch of the Northern line at Kennington station. TfL received permission to proceed with NLE in 2013 and the initial preparatory works began two years later. A joint venture between Ferrovial Agroman and Laing O’Rourke (FLO) was appointed to deliver the project and tunnelling works began earlier this year.

The £1.2 billion NLE project is the first addition to the Tube network since the Jubilee line extension and will be built mostly

using private-sector money. The new line will pass beneath the Victoria line near Vauxhall and includes new stations at Nine Elms and the Battersea Power Station site.

Once the tunnels are complete, the station fit-out will begin in 2019 and the railway will be ready for its first passengers in 2020. TfL has said the line will support 25,000 new jobs and the creation of 20,000 new homes.

LONG DRIVE AHEAD

Jonathan Cooper, a project manager for the extension’s tunnelling programme, said he remembered travelling into London when he was still at school and seeing engineers delivering London Underground’s last major extension project. Jonathan wouldn’t have imagined that 20 years later he’d be leading a similar scheme. He said good progress had been made since the first tunnel boring

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

FEATURE

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© TfL

NE EXTENSION ‘It’s a once in a generation sort of project.’ machine (TBM) began its drive in March from the Battersea Park shaft.

Two TBMs, Helen and Amy, are being used to excavate the 3.2 km north and south-bound tunnels. Heading east from the shaft at Battersea, the TBMs are now slowly making their way towards Kennington, moving approximately 50 mm an hour and installing around 20 precast concrete tunnel rings a day.

The north-bound tunnel is the most advanced, having made its way through around 450 metres of stubborn London clay so far. Further down the route, a team is excavating the station box for the Nine Elms interchange.

The ground conditions encountered by NLE’s tunnellers are similar to those Crossrail’s engineers confronted. The specification of the TBMs was actually based on those used to create Crossrail’s tunnels - albeit on a slightly smaller scale.

‘One of the trickiest parts of the job is really dealing with unknown ground conditions and unforeseen obstructions in the path of the TBM, which we then have to get together with our contractor and agree an approach which makes sure we minimise the impact on programme and on cost,’ explained Jonathan.

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FEATURE

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

There have been some other challenges, including wells appearing where they shouldn’t be. ‘It was 10 metres away from where it was shown on the plans, so historic information is not always accurate.’

The TBMs will complete their drives in the autumn, but that won’t be the end of the tunnelling programme. Smaller mining equipment will be used during a closure of the Northern line at Christmas to connect the TBM tunnels with the Kennington loop. Jonathan explained how the NLE tunnels will actually be larger than the existing Northern line tunnels to accomodate a walkway, which would make it easier to evacuate passengers in an emergency.

SUPPORT TEAM Just as critical as the cutting face at the front of the TBM is the conveyor system behind it that removes spoil from the site.

A barge carrying 1,600 tonnes of material had just left Battersea for Essex, said Jonathan, where it will be turned into arable farmland.

The excavated material is mixed with water and a foaming agent to make it more workable and it is then carried along a conveyor belt system through the tunnels and out of the shaft.

‘We also have all the support staff above ground which support the operation,’ said Jonathan.

‘Fork lift drivers that move the segments around the yard. We have slingers and signallers

which then enable the lifting of the segments down into the pit bottom onto the locos. We have the conveyor systems that take the muck out.

‘Without those, without all of these support systems, none of this tunnelling could actually take place.’

As well as the technical challenges of tunnelling beneath London’s surface, Jonathan has to juggle the needs and concerns of stakeholders along the route. These range from the developers that will build over the line once construction is completed and some of the area’s oldest residents. The tunnels will go 20 metres or so beyond the station at Battersea, taking the extension right up to the boundary of Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.

ONCE-IN-A-GENERATION PROJECT Jonathan called the NLE a ‘once in a generation sort of project’ and an important one for maintaining tunnelling skills within the UK. ‘It’s been a small enough project that I’ve been able to get involved in a large number of areas,’ he said.

The project runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week. At any one time, there is a team of around 45 people working on site.

Jonathan, who joined the team in 2013 after moving from another part of TfL, is getting ready to take his young family on a summer holiday in the Alps. A well-earned break, you feel his colleagues would say.

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COMPANY FOCUS

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

ST

THE NETWORK CERTIFICATION BODY’S CRAIG YOUNG TALKS ABOUT HOW A GROWING PROJECT MANAGEMENT CULTURE IS CHANGING THE WAY THE COMPANY DOES BUSINESS.

I

n October last year, Craig Young - an engineer turned project manager for the Network Certification Body (NCB) - was named Project Manager of the Year at the 2016 RailStaff Awards.

Craig had been recognised for his exemplary work overseeing NCB’s large project portfolio and had just been appointed to head up a new programme management function within the business. Catching up nine months on from collecting his trophy, Craig says the whole business has changed quite dramatically.

NCB has evolved and grown quite substantially since it was established five years ago. In 2012, the department within Network Rail that looked after assessment and certification became an independent body: the Network Certification Body.

Network Rail’s new venture would still focus most of its resources (80 per cent) on Network Rail projects, but part of the business would now seek to win work from the whole industry.

By the end of CP5, NCB expects to have a workforce of around 80 to 100 people - a sizeable increase from the 20 or

so that were there at inception.

Although this wasn’t necessarily the dramatic change Craig was referring to.

ALLOWING ENGINEERS TO BE ENGINEERS In May this year, NCB’s programme management function went live. Led by Craig, the team looks at things like the projected demand for resources, delivery schedules and costs, freeing up the company’s engineers to be engineers.

‘Since winning the award, NCB has formally established a new programme management team, which I now head up. My responsibility is to manage and grow the new function,’ says Craig. ‘Their competence, their development, their delivery, as well as them driving the project management governance of our business. The way we want to work, how we want to work, how the engineers need to deliver against x, y, z.’

Craig added, ‘The business is now project-management led and more customer focussed on our delivery.’

The growth of this part of the business has also allowed NCB to plan further ahead.

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Says Craig, ‘If you could imagine that in May 2015 I was one person trying to oversee 225 projects… Each individual project manager now only needs to understand 35 projects.’

Adding, ‘We used to manage a three-month resource profile whereas now we predict a five-year resource profile,’ says Craig. ‘The business growth is good. The pipeline’s there.’

OUTWARDS LOOKING IN Craig’s education background is in automotive engineering. While at university, he had the chance to see how the world’s biggest car manufacturers did things, but after graduation he moved from the road to the railway, beginning a rail vehicle engineering graduate scheme at Network Rail.

Says Craig, ‘The link between my engineering and my project management helps me understand project delivery from everyone’s perspective.’

Craig thinks a competitive streak that has evolved from his love of sport has also helped him professionally. He played semi-professional football for many years and has also had stints coaching and in management.

Some of Craig’s previous engineering roles have also required him to be more commercially savvy, something that should be a consideration for all engineers, he believes.

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

COMPANY FOCUS

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TAYING ON TRACK

‘Without your customers, you’re actually not surviving at all and you probably wouldn’t be here anyway,’ says Craig. ‘So I’ve always been a bit more outwards looking in rather than inwards looking out. It’s something which I try to instil into my team as well.

Although based in Milton Keynes, NCB engineers are stationed all around the country. As well as major infrastructure

schemes NCB is supporting alongside Network Rail - like EGIP and the Wessex capacity improvement programme - the company is delivering external contracts for the likes of CAF and Hitachi.

The company's size has allowed it to develop quickly in an industry that can be slow moving. Says Craig, ‘The great thing about NCB is the fact that even though we are part of that railway we do things quicker, so the change in our business over the last two years has been quite big whereas in the previous eight years I don’t remember ever being part of so much change in such a little time.

CHANGE OF STYLE When Craig was nominated for the Project Manager of the Year Award last year, he was praised by colleagues for the way he was able to successfully bring NCB’s engineers together with project teams, but Craig says it

took him some time to fit into his new project management role, having worked as a senior vehicle conformance engineer prior to it.

‘Suddenly I had to adapt and change my style. It took a long time if I’m being honest…

I had to understand the varying degrees of engineers out there to get what I needed to get done for the benefit of them and for the business as well.’

However, it’s these kind of challenges that he relishes. ‘I’m very driven,’ says Craig. ‘In every role I’ve done, I’ve always wanted to leave something behind that in five years time they’re still doing something you introduced.’

In October, Craig will present the award to this year’s RailStaff Award winner, handing over his title. He’s looking forward to presenting an award that highlights the significant contribution of project managers throughout the industry. ‘I was very, very proud to win it, so I’ll be as proud to give it to somebody else.’

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28

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FOR MORE DETAILS AND AN APPLICATION FORM visit www.railsportangling.uk or go to www.facebook.com/railsport or contact David Franks on 00 353 87 2141831 or email angling@railsport.uk

JULY 2017 | ISSUE 236

d! e c n u o n n Theme a 1980s e h t o t k c Ba

The thought of returning to the 1980s may not be welcomed whole-heartedly in every quarter of Britain’s rail industry, but for a night in October we’ll be doing just that.

The theme for the RailStaff Awards 2017 is the 1980s - a decade that saw the sectorisation of British Rail that gave rise to brands like InterCity and Regional Railways.

It is an era that guests of a certain vintage will know well; those whose careers have straddled the latter days of British Rail and the inception of privatisation. But it’s a period that anyone joining the industry now will know very little about. It’s amazing to think that

those joining the industry straight from school were not even born before the turn of the millennium.

One thing the RailStaff Awards seeks to do is recognise the achievements of people at all stages of their careers. Talented apprentices just completing their first year have as much of a chance of taking home an award as someone celebrating their 20th year in the industry.

What’s certain is that the network and rail travel have changed quite markedly although plenty of relics from that era still remain. The number of passenger journeys made by rail had been in decline coming into the 1980s. That trend had

been reversed by the end of the decade and passenger numbers have grown substantially since.

The latest set of figures from the ORR show the number of passenger journeys is now more than double even the best annual results from 30 years ago.

Whether you experienced it the first time around or are discovering it for the first time, we encourage guests to embrace the best - and worst - of 80’s fashion.

It’s what makes the RailStaff Awards unusual - in the best sense of the word. The bigger the shoulder pads the better and only the most garish combination of lycra and leg warmers will be allowed.

NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN! RailStaff Awards, Saturday 7th October, at the Ricoh Arena www.railstaffawards.com

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RAILSTAFF AWARDS

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

The future's bright

W

ith focus very much on the future and what that looks like for rail, the Railway Benefit Fund (RBF) wants to show the industry how it is developing for a changing industry.

The Railway Benefit Fund sponsors of the RBF ‘Heart of Gold’ Award for Charity at this year’s RailStaff Awards - has one simple purpose: to support rail staff and their dependents in times of hardship. However, how we have achieved this in the past, and how we will continue to do so has and will evolve alongside the industry.

What won’t change is those entitled to our help - that is anyone that works in the rail industry from maintenance to freight, from administrative staff to station staff. We are the only charity that solely supports rail staff and their families and have an open support programme available. We want to be inclusive and there for anyone who may need us.

160TH ANNIVERSARY As we approach our 160th anniversary, we are reviewing the support we offer to allow us to extend our reach and impact across the industry. In particular, we are developing services that support

current rail employees. We have recently completed a large piece of market research and conclude that our challenge is to meet the real needs of current staff whilst ensuring that we continue to provide valuable support to those in financial hardship.

We will also continue to support those no longer currently employed.

The support we offer has broadened to include advice and information services, ensuring that those seeking help receive a package of support. Our aim is to provide assistance that deals with both the immediate hardship affecting the individual and the underlying causes, wherever possible. We offer free, confidential support that is person focussed.

CHANGING WORLD Our charity has a long and poignant history within the rail industry. When we first set out, a very long time ago in 1858, we were dealing with issues regarding safety and working conditions.

Today in 2017, we are looking at a step-change in the services that we provide to current staff and, by extension, to develop and broaden the relationship that we have with rail employers.

Job insecurity, debt and financial worries, relationship and family issues and increasing caring responsibilities are a few examples of where RBF is looking to support rail staff.

We are keen to develop our debt advice offer and recently launched a free confidential advice line for those struggling with debt or dealing with financial worries that is available to all staff irrespective of role or grade. Our aim is to develop this service and extend its reach across the industry on a rolling programme. We have launched a service assisting rail staff who may be tempted by the use of payday loans and other forms of short-term, high-interest finance that often escalate cost and which does not solve financial difficulties.

SPREAD THE WORD With the help of our supporters and dedicated team, our future is bright! We need you to spread the word and tell your colleagues that we are here for them.

If you want to speak to our dedicated service team about help contact: welfare@ railwaybenefitfund.org.uk or call: 0345 241 2885.

To nominate visit the website www.railstaffawards.com and click on the ‘Nominate Now’ tab.

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RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

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29

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RAILSTAFF AWARDS

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TALKING SAVES LIVES TBF is proud to sponsor the 2017 Station Staff of the Year award.

Samaritans is proud to sponsor the Lifesaver award at this years’ RailStaff Awards 13,000 rail industry personnel and British Transport Police officers have been trained with the skills to help a person in need. These skills can encourage people to talk about their problems and help save lives.

With the help of the TOCs, Network Rail and other employers throughout the public transport industry, TBF now has over 52,000 members.

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Do you work with someone who is truly kind and caring? Someone who makes a difference just because they have a heart of gold?

Then NOMINATE them for the at the RailStaff Awards!

Anyone who works in the rail industry can be nominated in this category. They just have to be an individual who puts everyone else first, goes the extra mile, is selfless and is always first to help out.

We want to hear about these special people so they can be celebrated!

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RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

33

EVENTS

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CONFERENCE

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RAIL SAFETY SUMMIT LONDON, 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017

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EVENTS

exhibition

RAILSPORT 2017

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RAIL SAFETY SUMMIT

network awaards

www.railsport.uk

exhibition tech

press conference

5th OCTOBER, Derby press conference

www.railsummits.com free

www.rve-expo.co.uk

network

HOW TO SUBMIT A WINNING BID

RAIL SUSTAINABILITY SUMMIT conference exhibition

8th JULY, Birmingham

dinner RFEM ANNUAL GOLF conference DAY free

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www.railsummits.com

www.midlandsrail.co.uk/events/rfempress conference

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RFEM SUMMER BBQ NETWORKING EVENT

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INTERNATIONAL SELLING SKILLS WORKSHOP

ICRE 2017: 19TH awaardsdinner INTERNATIONAL free CONFERENCE ON RAILWAY conference ENGINEERING exhibition

conference

INNORAIL 2017

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25th-26th SEPTEMBER,tech London

AUGUST

press conference

www.waset.org/conference

RAILWAY FORUM - THE INNOVATION AGENDA OF THE MOBILITY INDUSTRY 30th-31st AUGUST, Berlin conference

tech

dinner

26th-29th SEPTEMBER, Poland press conference exhibition

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tech press conference

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EXPO FERROVIARIA free dinner

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3rd-5th OCTOBER, Milan, Italy press conference www.expoferroviaria.com.eng network

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10-12th October, Sweden press conference https://www.elmia.se/en/ network nordicrail/For-Exhibitors/ awaards dinner exhibit/

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13th October London, UK network www.ice-conferences.com/ network awaards awaards dinner ice-bim-2017 dinner free

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NORDIC RAIL 2017

ICE BIM 2017

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RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE NETWORKING network

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10th - 12th October press conference Budapest, Hungary network www.innorail2017.hu/en/ awaards

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OCTOBER

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7th SEPTEMBER, York

TRAKO 2017

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19th JULY, Derby

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7th October, Ricoh, Coventy www.railstaffawards.com

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RAIL VEHICLES AND conference ENHANCEMENTS exhibition tech

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GUIDE TO UP COMING EVENTS IN THE RAIL INDUSTRY THE NEXT FEW MONTHS, AT A GLANCE

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34

FEATURE

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

MAYNARD REPORT BY STEWART THORPE

URGES HS2 CHEERLEADERS

M

aking his first speech since being appointed HS2 minister, Paul Maynard says the high-speed line is no longer a pipe dream. Phase 1 has been approved by parliament and initial construction work has begun. The utility diversions, the land clearance and environmental surveys are all underway.

The procurement process for the rolling stock have been launched. Plans for an initial three new stations are in progress. A shortlist of companies to run the West Coast Partnership - which will operate the first HS2 services - has been drawn up. Multi-billion pound engineering works contracts are soon to be awarded. The political case has been won but the public one has not.

Maynard, who still oversees the rail and accessibility portfolios, was addressing audience members at the High Speed Rail Industry Leader’s annual all-day conference at the Thinktank Birmingham Science Museum. It was a fitting location: Birmingham, the city from where HS2 will stem from and where HS2 Ltd is headquartered.

Thinktank is situated across the road from the planned HS2 terminus on Curzon Street.

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CHEERLEADERS Around 140 industry leaders, political figures and delegates, compered by BBC Breakfast presenter, Steph McGovern, gathered to discuss the wider economic benefits of Britain’s second high-speed line. One key strand of debate - and what Maynard described as the ‘main challenge’ - centred on improving public support and the need for ‘cheerleaders’ - just without the pom poms.

‘The political case for this project has largely been won, but I know I have to keep on running it,’ said Maynard. ‘But we as a sector have to remember that while we may get excited about

overhead wires, what actually matters is the change it can make to individuals lives,’ he added, touching on the impact highspeed has had on Bordeaux, Utrecht and Lille.

‘The main challenge is to ensure the public properly understand that HS2 is not just an engineering project, it isn’t just a way of delivery a very complicated piece of infrastructure, it’s about much more than that.

‘I am one of the cheerleaders for that but everyone in this room has to be as well.’

As well as the minister’s keynote speech, a number of industry figures shared their experiences and visions for HS2 - including a fast-paced PechaKucha-style presentation from the Young Rail Professionals on transforming passenger experience.

Paul Griffiths, HS2 Phase 2 development director, said that lessons could be learnt from Crossrail, which had done a ‘fantastic job’ in terms of selling the project’s benefits to the public, its ingenuity and the engineering that had gone on.

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

GOOGLE’S EUROPEAN HEADQUARTERS

BENEFITS TO MANKIND Adding to the narrative, Laing O'Rourke’s high-speed director, Nadia Savage, said that engineers are good at talking about moving so many million cubes of muck, or moving lifts so many 100ft high in the air, but were not so good about talking about ‘the benefits to mankind.’

‘I am an engineer, but I’m absolutely certain that the success of HS2 will not be measured by engineers it’ll be measured by economists, measuring the impact of the regeneration. So the jobs matter, the skills matter, the fact that we’ve created new opportunities in connecting people matters. And that’s what we need to work on, using language that connects with people, real-life people and isn’t dry, dull and boring.’

Once the line is operational, Britain’s railway capacity will be boosted, being able to carry an extra 300,000 people every day and it is an attractive piece of infrastructure for business, according to HS1 chief executive Dyan Crowther. ‘Google is coming to the St Pancras/ King’s Cross area, it’s putting its European headquarters there,’ she said. ‘Google’s not going there because of chance, it’s going there because of the high-speed connections and the regeneration that has occurred in the area.

‘Saint Martins College has moved to King’s Cross and the Olympics wouldn’t have come in 2012 if we didn’t have the high-

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35

speed route.

‘You walk around there now and it’s a buzzing place.’

But it’s not just about maximising the project’s potential in the UK. Will Roberts, High Speed Rail Industry Leaders director, said that the UK should have a generation of engineers that are capable and confident of building and running high-speed schemes around the world.

HS2 is no longer an ‘if’ but a ‘when’ and from the conference there was a clear message.

There will be a plethora of opportunities and it’s about debating the positives, the possibilities and maximising its potential, to shift the expectations of what HS2 can do for Britain.

Cheerleading starts here.

HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF JOBS During peak construction HS2 will directly employ 25,000 workers, many of whom will be trained at the National College for High Speed Rail, but the impact afterwards would be ‘many, many’ times that number, said Maynard.

West Midlands’ mayor Andy Street - the former managing director of John Lewis - attended, as did his deputy Bob Sleigh. Sleigh predicted that 104,000 jobs, 2,000 apprenticeships and business opportunities for 700 companies will be created in the West Midlands’ area alone.

Further north, Maynard said 120,000 jobs and 100,000 homes could be supported in Cheshire and Staffordshire and 180,000 in Greater Manchester, where the estimated boost to the regional economy is £1.3 billion. Such a seismic change to the industry offers up the opportunity to ‘change the way the rail industry looks’ he added, to address the gender balance as well as other examples of diversity.

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36

FEATURE

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

A

lmost as soon as the Swanage Railway closed in January 1972, a railway preservation society was set up to try and restore the service for the now-isolated Dorset community.

Finally, 45 years on, the branch line connecting Swanage and Corfe Castle with the South Western main line at Wareham has been reinstated. Sadly, many of those that took up the challenge all those years ago were unable to see their project realised.

For the next two summers, Swanage Railway will operate a trial diesel service on the line, which will connect to South West Trains services at Wareham. If it proves popular, regular passenger services could return to the line.

The restoration of the line began just a few months after it was closed

by British Rail with the formation of the Swanage Railway Society. It was one of many routes lined up for closure as part of the post-Beeching cuts.

The society’s challenge was made more difficult when British Rail tore up a northern section of the line near Furzebrook. But, bit by bit, the society’s dedicated volunteers have been bringing the line back to life.

Reconnecting the Swanage branch line to the national rail network has cost £5.5 million - paid for with a £1.8 million grant from the government’s coastal communities fund, £3.2 million from Purbeck District Council and a £500,000 legacy donation from BP.

© Shutterstock.com

What the Swanage Railway Society has done, with the support of South West Trains and Network Rail, is evidence of the role heritage railway associations are playing in bringing regular passenger services back to communities as well as boosting local economies.

Swanage Railway, which carried 211,000 passengers last year, claims the line is worth £14 million a year to the Purbeck economy. © Andrew P. M. Wright

© Andrew P. M. Wright

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ENCOURAGING START June also saw the reopening of Hayles Abbey Halt station between Toddington and Winchombe - a station which hasn’t seen any passengers for 57 years.

The chairman of the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway Trust, which helped fund the project, said it was a ‘wonderful example of what can be achieved by volunteers’. The line will be served by request

by Great Western Railway diesel services and the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway.

Passengers will need to remember to tell the guard if they want to get off at Hayles Abbey Halt and passengers planning to catch a train from the station will have to flag it down but it is a victory for community rail nonetheless.

Mark Woolley, secretary of the Swanage Railway Trust, said the passenger numbers recorded in the first week following the line’s reopening were ‘encouraging’.

‘We are of course closely monitoring the take up and are carrying out customer surveys as part of our marketing strategy.

‘For example, last Thursday

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

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37

THE VALUE OF (June 15) the first train was as good as full with up to 50 passengers waiting for tickets by 10.30. On the last train of the day a gentleman got off the previous SWT mainline service down train, and purchased a ticket to Harmans Cross having flown in from Hamburg.’

HELPING OUT HERITAGE A report produced by the All Parliamentary Group on Heritage Rail in 2013 tried to put a figure on the national economic value of Britain’s 100+ heritage railways, estimating that they were worth just shy of £250 million a year to the country - although this figure was only given as a rough calculation.

The report made a number of recommendations, which it felt would create a healthy environment for heritage railways to operate. These included making the planning process less complicated and restrictive, encouraging the introduction of more ‘public tourist services’ on heritage lines and calling on heritage railways themselves to look at how much more effectively they could market their offering online and through social media.

Says Mark, ‘From our perspective, there has been progress on the key recommendations contained in

STEAM

the report. For example, we benefit from permitted development rights within the boundaries defined in the original 1885 Act of Parliament that authorised the building of the Swanage Railway.

‘We also have an excellent working relationship with the local authorities in fulfilling a key public transport objective. This can obviously be a good influence in respect of other heritage railways although, to date, I don’t believe that there has been any change in primary legislation.’

MUGS AND POCKET WATCHES Sometimes the economic value of steam comes from the popularity of locomotives themselves. Visitors rushed to the National Railway Museum in York to see the Flying Scotsman following its £4.2 million restoration.

The famous engine even has its own line of merchandise, with fans able to purchase their own Flying Scotsman T-shirt, mug or pocket watch.

The nationwide tour that followed also had a big impact on the heritage railways Flying Scotsman visited. The East Lancashire Railway recorded its highest visitor numbers since the railway reopened in 1987 thanks in no small part to the engine.

But there is one particular challenge that heritage is wrestling with that the mainstream industry can relate to. Another issue highlighted in the parliamentary report was the demographic challenge which could make restoration projects like the Flying Scotsman all but impossible to carry out in decades to come and derail the positive influence of the heritage rail movement.

Concerns had been expressed about how a rise in the pensionable age would affect volunteer numbers in the future and how the increasingly complex training requirements for safety critical roles could put potential volunteers off. However, the report also looked to the positive. It gave examples of heritage railways partnering with training providers and suggested there was a healthy number of young volunteers coming forward.

HERITAGE SKILLS TRAINING ACADEMY In 2013, Severn Valley Railway (SVR) launched its own pilot training programme: the Heritage Skills Training Academy (HSTA). The pilot programme is now coming to a close but SVR is confident about the future of the scheme and hopes to recruit another two apprentices in 2018. SVR received around 50 applications for each apprenticeship place offered and it has self-funded the majority of the £21,000 a year cost per apprentice - although any donations are welcome.

Apprentices at the HSTA learn the skills required to maintain and further restore the railway’s rolling stock fleet and infrastructure while studying for NVQ Level 2 and 3 qualifications in mechanical engineering.

SVR’s apprentices have even been able to carry out contract work for other heritage railways.

There’s enough evidence to suggest that heritage railways remain relevant to the modern network. Ardent railway enthusiasts like those in Swanage who refuse to give up on railways, even when others have, are as important now as ever.

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38

FEATURE

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

© William Bickers-Jones

SIERRA LEONE BACKS LEGACY OF HOPE

REPORT BY STEWART THORPE

N

ations have long looked to evolve and innovate their railways as a way of maximising economic potential. Few - if any - have looked to the past, to old technology and systems, to pin a nation’s hopes and dreams on, but Sierra Leone is not your typical country.

Devastated by more than a decade of civil war and the Ebola virus epidemic, the government of Sierra Leone has placed a group of 14 non-functioning locomotives and carriages at the front of its strategy to become a middle-income country by 2035.

There are no public railways in the country – a 50 mile private line connecting iron mines to the nation’s ports is all that remains – but the British-built engines, which were saved from the scrap heap when the Government Railway was ripped up in 1974, now sit proudly in the Sierra Leone National Railway Museum. Established in 2005 by the then-President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, the museum – complete with a gift shop, full-time staff and a Trip Advisor page – stands as a reminder of the nation’s heritage, as a source of learning, and as an attraction to boost Sierra Leone’s tourism trade. © William Bickers-Jones

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THE GRAND TOUR

Back in Britain the Friends of Sierra Leone Railway Museum, in collaboration with the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway (WLLR), have embarked on a summerlong campaign to increase the profile of the African country and the museum to holidaymakers looking for a destination with a difference.

A former Sierra Leonean tank locomotive that was bought and saved from being scrapped by WLLR in 1975 – the heritage line having the same gauge as Sierra Leone’s – will take in a number of high-profile destinations on a tour of Britain. The No. 85 locomotive is travelling on a low loader because its original 1954 boiler is in need of repair and will be accompanied by museum exhibitions and staffed by volunteers from the WLLR and Friends of Sierra Leone Railway Museum.

Leaving the National Railway Museum in Shildon, Durham, the engine visited the Leeds Industrial Museum, near to where it was built by the Hunslet Engine Company; the Streetlife Museum of Transport in Hull, a city twinned with the Sierra Leonean capital Freetown; the London Museum of Water & Steam, as part of an exhibition on the African Railway Adventure; and the Tyseley Locomotive Works in Birmingham as part of its 50th anniversary open weekend. The final steps are to be confirmed but are expected to include a

© Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway

© William Bickers-Jones

The No.85 locomotive with its African carriages on its last day of service in April 2010.

stop at the Shrewsbury Steam Rally, the Ironbridge Gorge Museum in Shropshire and a ‘big profile’ event that the Friends of Sierra Leone Railway are currently keeping firmly under wraps, before the locomotive returns to the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway, in Wales.

THE AFRICAN TRAIN The tour will tell the story of slavery and freedom, strengthen the links between Sierra Leone and Britain and broaden the public’s perception of the African country beyond civil war and Ebola. It will also launch WLLR’s £600,000 fundraising campaign – backed by a £22,800 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

– to create a new workshop and launch ‘The African Train’ on its network by refurbishing the No. 85 locomotive and two Gloucester-built Sierra Leone Railway carriages, which the railway also purchased in 1975.

Once operational, this train will serve as a reminder of Sierra Leone’s railway history and further promote the country’s national railway museum.

HOPE Life in Sierra Leone couldn’t be further away from that in Britain. Generations of locals are growing up without having experienced train travel, some have perhaps never seen one and – with life expectancy at 50, according to the World Health Organisation – few will have survived who remember the look, smell and sound of a steam or diesel locomotive. But one thing Sierra Leoneans do have is bags of hope.

‘What is great about the people of Sierra Leone is that they have very little but they are the most optimistic people,’ says Helen Ashby, chair of the Friends of Sierra Leone Museum, who adds that many museum visitors ask what they could do to see the railway return.

‘They pick themselves up and dust themselves down to make

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39

things better. We could learn a lot from them.’

Helen has visited Sierra Leone half a dozen times as part of the wider project which has an incredible vision to transform the poverty-stricken country by making use of its old railway assets.

Talking about the Welshpool Railway’s project, she adds, ‘For the Friends of Sierra Leone Railway Museum, it is about getting people to understand where Sierra Leone is. Civil war and Ebola are two of the reasons people have heard about it but it is a commonwealth country and it is a beautiful country, people should go and have a look.’

A NEW LEGACY Fast approaching the 50th anniversary since the Sierra Leone railway was torn up, the cluster of old British locomotives remain as iron reminders of Britain’s legacy. Putting the events of recent years behind them, it is hoped the trains can carry the country forward in ways it never has before and help Sierra Leone establish a new legacy.

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IMPROVED SAFETY SINCE THE 1870'S...BUT...

REPORT BY COLIN WHEELER

EARTHWORKS AND STRUCTURES, TRACK WORKERS, ROLLING STOCK, LEVEL CROSSINGS, PASSENGER TRAIN INTERFACE ISSUES, FATIGUE, WORKSITE COLLISIONS & COMMUNICATING MUST ALL IMPROVE!

I

have been studying a 1963 booklet published to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the National Union of Railwaymen. In 1913 its original 267,611 members came from the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, the General Railway Workers Union and the United Pointsmen’s and Signalmen’s Society.

This booklet refers to the Royal Commission of 1874 whose report concluded that “the companies maintain that in about 900 cases out of every 1,000 fatal accidents the men fall

victim to their own misconduct or imprudence”.

It went on to allege that “the remaining cases are due to the legitimate risks inseparable from their employment”. In 1875 it states that no fewer than 767 railwaymen were killed at work equating to one in every 334 employed and 2,815 were injured equating to one in every 89 employed.

These shocking conclusions and statistics I suggest put the recent publication of the Rail Accident Investigation Branch’s (RAIB) Report for 2016 into perspective, although the “might have been” should still urge us on to do more and be safer.

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RAIB Annual Report for 2016 The RAIB’s role is summarised as investigating accidents and incidents, identifying factors which could result in further incidents, and making and publishing reports.

2016 was Simon French’s first year as Chief Inspector and in his Foreword he sets the scene by reminding everyone that the Croydon tram accident at Sandilands Junction resulting in 7 deaths with 51 taken to hospital occurred in 2016. Interim reports have been published and the final report will be out this year.

In his Foreword the Chief

Colin Wheeler.

Inspector acknowledges the ongoing need to “review and revise memorandums of understanding with both the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) and the Police.” He also reminds readers that both the ORR and other authorities are required to report to the RAIB on the actions taken in response to published reports.

“Only luck prevented serious accidents” He refers to reports already published of four accidents and incidents where luck ensured that no one lost their lives, and another two investigations begun in the year which fall into the same category.

The partial bridge collapse at Barton-on-Soar near the station on August 1st occurred as a freight train was approaching the over-bridge and just after a passenger train had passed under it is a case in point.

A second one was the derailment of a southbound passenger train in the mouth of Watford Tunnel after it ran into a landslip at 70 mph. Just two minutes later a northbound train struck it a glancing blow but luckily did not derail. Either accident could have resulted in multiple fatalities.

The report of the Barton-onSoar bridge collapse has just been published and will feature in my August article.

A busy year for the RAIB The report stresses the importance of establishing the causes of less serious accidents and near misses, as well as recurrent types of incidents.

Simon French highlights the Lamington Viaduct structural bridge failure as “revealing a gap in how Network Rail was managing scour.” He goes on to mention RAIB’s identification of a lack of understanding of door control systems when referring to the problems with the Platform Train Interface.

During the calendar year 2016 RAIB received 367 rail accident notifications; 52 preliminary investigations resulted in 19 full investigations being started. Sixteen Safety Digests were published. Twenty four full reports containing 73 recommendations were issued and the aim of an average time to publishing of less than a year was achieved (the average during 2016 being 10.7 months) with a slight improvement on the 2015 achievement of 11.3 months.

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Safety Digests During the last year Safety Digests have been published instead of the “safety bulletins” used previously. They are being used when safety learning has or will shortly be covered by a recommendation in a report or the safety learning relates to compliance with existing rules, procedures or standards or where the safety learning has only a narrow application.

COMPLETE STRAPPING KIT 1 • RW19501 – Proving Unit x 1

4 • RW19301 – Marker Board x 2

2 • RW19511 – Live Line Tester x 1

5 • RW19788 – Insulated Short Circuit Bar x 1

3 • GH4101 – Electricians Gloves x 1

7 • RW19785 – 3rd Rail Short Circuit (Straps) x 1 8 • TB28102 – Strapman Black Kit Bag x 1

6 • TH12468 – Wire Brush x 1

6

2

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RAIB’s top eight “areas of concern” “Areas of concern” are listed in the published report as follows: failure of Earthworks and Structures, Track Worker Safety, Condition and Maintenance of Rolling Stock, Level Crossings, Platform Train Interface, Fatigue, Collisions in Worksites and Safety Critical Communications.

Attention is drawn to the number of incidents that occurred in 2016 which RAIB says could (maybe that ought to be should) have been avoided if “previously identified causal factors had been addressed more fully”.

Amongst the incidents identified as falling into this category are the accident at

7 5

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PRODUCT CODE: RWSMK01

T: 0208 527 5888 www.spartansafety.co.uk post@spartansafety.co.uk

Unit 3 Waltham Park Way, Walthamstow, London E17 5DU

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The Thameslink Programme Issue Date: 25th May 2017 For Further Info Contact mike.netherton@networkrail.co.uk

Issue Number: TLP 073

Title: Unsupported UTX Excavation During Construction

Overview of Event:

West Whickham where a passenger was trapped in the doors and dragged under a train; the freight train collision near Logan in East Ayrshire and the two instances of Signals Passed at Danger at Reading and Rushcombe!

Rotherham to Blackfriars and back!

Recently Network Rail published details of what happened when a contractor (who was not expected to be working) arrived at a Blackfriars Station rail site. The supervisor agreed to let him work the shift.

Since he was not booked to be there, no arrangements had been made for his accommodation at the end of the shift. He was given the choice of waiting at the end of the shift until a booking could be confirmed or driving home; provided, as the Supervisor said that “you don’t feel too tired and won’t go over your hours”.

After around two hours driving he fell asleep at the wheel and his vehicle veered across two lanes narrowly missing a lorry travelling in the nearside lane.

Although he was not very far from home by this time, he was close to the current 14 hour door to door limit time. He had travelled a total of around 240 miles, worked a six and a half hour shift and had been driving for a total of six hours and fifty minutes. Fatigue was obviously a factor!

Work stopped, trench unsupported Network Rail’s Safety Central website includes worrying details of the way in which excavation for an undertrack crossing under three tracks at New Cross Station went wrong.

The work was planned for two weekends; just the sort of work which should be routine and safely executed. When the Network Rail Project Engineer visited the site he saw that the sides of the excavation were unsupported but was assured by the site supervisor that propping would be in place before anyone entered the excavation.

The machine worked on and when the Project Engineer made his second visit the support system was still minimal, but he received a second assurance from the supervisor. On his third visit he found workers in the still unsupported trench and stopped the works!

Read the SSOW first!

A third example from Safety Central is yet another repeated classic, they may all be described as failing to learn from our mistakes (and are challenges to the good work done by the RAIB)!

At 3 am in the morning on December 2nd last year a signal survey team completed their work at Blackheath. The appointed Controller of Site Safety (COSS) and the team then travelled to Maze Hill by road to carry out more surveys. On arrival they found other workers in the area and began to take measurements themselves.

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As part of signalling and track works an under track crossing (UTX) was required to be installed at New Cross Station, to achieve this an excavation was needed passing under 3 tracks from the Cess to the station platform. The work was planned to be carried out in stages over 2 weekends.

On digging out the first part of the trench using an excavator a Network Rail Project Engineer visited the site to check progress and noticed the sides of the trench had not been supported. He mentioned this to the supervisor who confirmed that work was in progress to install props before personnel entered the trench.

On visiting the site later in the day he noticed personnel in the trench with minimal supports in place. On observing this he mentioned to the Site Supervisor who agreed to install additional support. Then on a third visit he found 2 operatives in the trench with no supporting props.

The works were therefore stopped on the grounds of safety.

Underlying Causes:

Photo of event:

• Late design approval impacted on decisions around temporary works requirements.

• Poor decisions were made on the level of site supervision required.

• The Task Briefing Sheet and Work Package Plan lacked specific detail to manage the works • There was time pressure to complete the UTX to maintain other parts of the programme • Poor management of temporary works and exclusion zones • Lack of competent direct supervision by the contractor and minimal overseeing supervision by the main contractor

Actions Taken As a Result of Investigation: Recommendations were aimed in two distinct areas of planning and execution of UTX construction including: • Establish guidelines where the use of CBA (Construction Before Approval) can be used • For future UTX designs AFC (Authority for Construction) to be put in place at least one week before construction • Work Package Plans and Task Briefing Sheets to clearly describe the working methods including, temporary works, key resources and number of staff required • The availability of supervisors to be increased to cover all simultaneous work activities • Audits of suppliers and onsite works to be added to the Principal Contractors audit programme • Principal Contractor staff to take part in refresher training on their internal process for the Management of Excavations

General Key Messages:

a steel tape across the six-foot. Contact was approached them at 67 mph. The COSS • Detailed, timely planning is essential to working safely during construction activity made with the conductor rail which was live.

(Controller of Site Safety) had fitted insulating • Temporary works should be robust, checked and followed on site The tape partly disintegrated, and when they shrouds over the conductor rail and climbed • Direct competent supervision is paramount in leading a team to work safely then checked SSOW (Safe System of back onto the platform.

• Any member the of staff should feel confident to Work) invoke the ‘Worksafe Procedure’ if they regard work to be unsafe pack they realised that they had been working The train driver saw them, sounded his horn outside the limits of possession and without the and applied the emergency brake reducing cover of a Conductor Rail Permit. his speed to 43 mph by the time he reached them. The report says that it was the fifth night Road/Rail Vehicle trailer ran away of working at Ascot and the COSS mistakenly believed that the Protection Controller had On Saturday May 28th a Permaquip Gator informed him that a possession was in place.

RRV (Road/Rail Vehicle) and personnel trailer was driven from Grindleford to Cowburn When will we ever learn?

Tunnel where its driver reported to an Assistant Section Manager that the trailer In the RAIB’s annual report their Chief brakes were sticking and the machine was Inspector Simon French makes the point that “sluggish”. only luck prevented fatalities occurring in As a result the manager decided to send the many cases. Blackfriars, New Cross Station, machine and trailer onwards to Bamford where Maze Hill, Cowburn and Ascot as well as it could be off-tracked within the time left of incidents investigated by RAIB are all cases the possession. To combat the sticking trailer in point. brakes a strap was applied to disable them.

Also RAIB’s chosen areas of concern are The journey to Bamford with the Gator evidently based on the mistakes which are propelling its trailer was a distance of some still being made. When will we ever learn? The seven miles. En route the trailer became report also reminds us that their powers are of detached from the Gator and ran away for investigation with both the Office of Rail and a mile and a quarter but stayed within the Road and other Regulators having the legal possession. Fortunately no one was working on power to initiate legal action. that section of the line at the time!

I began by highlighting how dangerous our industry was back in the 1870’s but more Near miss at Ascot Station recently we have stagnated. Improving communication, motivation and safety This incident occurred at 01-30 am on awareness are less tangible as objectives but Friday April 7th but has more recently been they must be addressed now. uploaded onto Network Rail’s Safety Central I look forward to doing my bit when the Rail website. When working in the number one Safety Summit takes place in September but platform line two track-workers narrowly of one thing I am already sure we all need to avoided being struck by a train. do more, for safety’s sake. The digital railway They moved off with less than three will help but changing attitudes is even more seconds to spare and were unhurt as the 01-11 important. am empty coaching stock Reading to Staines

Rail Safety Summit 2017

Safety Summit EVENTS

13th September 2017 – LONDON SUMMIT PROGRAMME 08.00 Registration, Refreshments and Exhibition

TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

09.00 Welcome From Our Host - Colin Wheeler

13.15 Managing Safety And Complacency On 4LM - Sarah Tack (Head Of Safety For The Ground Transportation In The UK) Thales

09.05 Keynote - Paul Maynard (MP) 09.25 Keynote - Francis Paonessa (Managing Director) Network Rail 09.45 Q&A with Keynote Speakers SAFETY CULTURE AND PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY 09.55 Bridging The Behavioural Gap: A Psychological Approach To Rail Safety - Stuart Webster-Spriggs (Director) VolkerRail 10.15 Causality: Why Are We Making The Same Mistakes? - Joanna Whittington (CEO) Office of Road and Rail (ORR) 10.35 Developing A Safety Culture - Mandy Geal (Founder) Learning Partners 10.55 Implementing Occupational Health And Training The Staff Of The Future - Emma Head, (Corporate Health & Safety Director) HS2 11.15 Q & A With Panel 11.25 Refreshments/Exhibition TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS 11.45 Using Technology To Improve Safety And Reduce Costs - Lex Van Der Poel (Director) Dual Inventive 12.05 High Output Track Renewals, Infrastructure Projects - Neil Sunner (Project Manager) Network Rail 12.20 Freight Wagon Maintenance And Loading - James Collinson (Managing Director) NCB 12.35 Q & A With Panel

13.35 A Brand New Railway: What Methods Are Being Used To Train Staff - Martin Brown (Director, Health and Safety) Crossrail 13.55 Application Of Investigation Techniques To Manage Risk - Simon French (Chief Inspector) RAIB 14.15 The True Cost Of An Incident And What Lessons We Learn - Pino de Rosa (Managing Director) Bridgeway Consulting 14.35 Q & A With Panel 14.45 Refreshments/Exhibition FUTURE OF SAFETY 15.05 A New Way Of Looking At Stressful Situations In The Work Place - Mark Wingfield (Speaker and Trainer) MAX Training 15.25 The Digital Railway: Improving Track Safety Without Lineside Signals, Joint Presentation - Selina Clarke (Senior communications and engagement professional ) and Joanne Bird (Head of Communications) Digital Railway/RSSB 15.45 How To Be An Effective Health And Safety leader - Jane Hopkins (Senior Psychologist) Health & Safety Laboratory 16.05 Q&A With Panel 16.15 Wrap Up and Thanks

12.45 Lunch/Exhibition

Purchase your tickets now at www.railsummits.com

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ROYAL RECOGNITION

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ust Eat, Brew Dog and Bridgeway Consulting. It’s not often you get to group a takeaway delivery service, a craft brewery and a diverse rail industry contractor but that’s what the London Stock Exchange has done in its publication ‘1000 Companies to Inspire Britain 2017’. The annual report features the country’s ‘greatest prospects for building a resilient and productive economy’, according to its CEO Xavier Rolet, and for the second year running Bridgeway Consulting has featured.

According to the report - which is based on a number of key financial indicators Bridgeway Consulting is outperforming its UK sector peers. The company has worked on high-profile projects such as the Thameslink Programme, Crossrail and HS2, covering a multitude of services from geomatics, site and ground investigations, training, underwater inspection and rope access. It’s high praise for the firm, whose co-founder and managing director Pino De Rosa was invited to 10 Downing Street as part of the award presentation earlier this year, but it’s not the only recognition the company has received.

Flying the flag for rail

On her Majesty’s 91st birthday, Bridgeway Consulting was one of 12 companies to be awarded a Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the category of sustainable development.

It was a proud moment, says Pino, and it’s allowed them to - quite literally - fly the flag for rail from its Nottingham HQ. ‘It’s a great accolade,’ says Pino. ‘And we’re the only company in the East Midlands area to win the award for sustainable development.

For both awards it’s recognition that we can contribute to stimulating the local and UK economy and creating not just jobs but careers.’

Pino says the Queen’s Award came as a surprise but that the company never rests on its laurels.

‘Everything’s got to evolve, you can’t just sit there and be complacent. It’s all about pushing yourself every day,’ he adds, touching on why the company has been successful.

‘People are a key part of sustainability and Bridgeway is a relatively young business. It’s important to us and it’s important for the rail industry because it’s got a lot of big projects and the age profile is generally the wrong side of 40 or 50. For us it’s about building that next generation of engineers, managers, supervisors and team members.’

L-R: Sustainability director Steve Diksa, managing director Pino De Rosa and access services director Mike Harris outside 10 Downing Street.

New acquisition

© Four By Three

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The latest piece of the jigsaw to Bridgeway’s success is innovation, driven by its mantra: ‘if you don’t disrupt your own business somebody else will’.

In January, Bridgeway Aerial was established following the acquisition of a 50 per cent stake in UAV Services firm AM-UAS. The new Civil Aviation Authority approved branch of the business has a licence to survey over Network Rail infrastructure and offers a range of services, from highresolution aerial inspections and 4K filming to 3D modelling, LiDAR, thermal imaging and photogrammetry.

‘Another big part of sustainable development is our ability to look at opportunities and acquisitions,’ adds Pino.

‘We saw the dynamics of data collection from the air and the fact that it takes us into different markets other than rail. From three people in 1995 to 600 staff now, Bridgeway has constantly evolved and the more services it adds, the broader the offering to our clients and the bigger the business gets.’

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

© Four By Three

Safe work leaders One of its diverse services is the provision of training, such as the recent Safe Work Leader (SWL) refresher programme awarded by Network Rail. This required the training of 4,500 workers from around 300 organisations across Britain, a significant logistics challenge made even more challenging due to the 16-week time frame.

‘This was a first for Bridgeway and a great example of the

company pulling together its varied skills to provide an effective and innovative solution,’ said Pino, referring to the Octas system it developed especially for the contract to save time and money on booking training events. ‘At its peak, we were training 350 people per week, and we completed it all to a high satisfaction rating within the allotted 16-week period.’

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Lord Lieutenant

High-speed future

On July 25, the Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire, Sir John Peace, will visit Bridgeway’s Nottingham office and in the same month Pino will head to Buckingham Palace to a reception hosted by the Queen herself.

Pino is one of the driving forces behind this ‘disruptive mentality’, equally comfortable challenging his staff as he is them challenging him.

He established the business with two other engineers in 1995 following the privatisation of the railway. It offered underwater diving inspection services to companies such as Railtrack, Amec, Atkins, Mott McDonald and Arup but has since grown.

In 2010 - when the turnover was £10 million - Pino became the sole business owner. Its latest reported turnover was £31 million and its Nottingham base is now supported by satellite sites in London Euston, Bristol, Hayes, Oxford, Deptford and West Malling.

Locally, Bridgeway has worked on one of the big projects in the area, the building of the Nottingham Express Transit system, conducting stressing, hot weather precaution works, lifting, packing and maintenance over the last 16 years. But looking ahead it’s HS2 it is concentrating on, with the nearby suburb of Toton being chosen as the East Midlands hub.

‘HS2 is important for the nation and regions and important for us,’ says Pino. ‘I think it will regenerate those areas that were big under-utilised rail hubs, and will be a serious driver for growth for the Midlands Engine and help put our region back on the map.

‘HS2 is obviously a huge project. Midland Mainline Electrification is something else we want to be involved in too.

‘We’ve got the Queen’s Award for five years, but we will constantly evolve and look at how we can keep exceeding expectations everywhere safely.’

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AMEY’S SECTOR DIRECTOR FOR RAIL, LEE JONES, TALKS ABOUT HOW THE COMPANY’S INVESTMENT IN ITS PEOPLE ALLOWS IT TO STAY AHEAD IN AN EVER-CHANGING MARKET.

A

mey is already seen as a diverse business, employing more than 20,000 people around the country across a mix of sectors. Its name is as synonymous with roads and utilities, even the military, as it is with railway maintenance.

The business only recently celebrated its 20th year in the rail industry. The milestone has been marked with a string of strategic wins, showing a clear direction of travel for the organisation as it enters its third decade in rail.

PEOPLE POWER

‘Our people are our business so having a great team is everything,’ said Lee, Amey's rail sector director, explaining how people are at the heart of the company’s strategy. ‘We know the industry is facing a shortage of skills so we’re investing heavily to build the workforce we need for the future.

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KEEPING AHEAD

OF THE CURVE Amey only recently expanded its apprenticeship scheme to meet this challenge. Three new starters have now completed the company’s first-ever rail on-track machine (OTM) maintenance apprenticeship.

All three employees started with no previous railway or maintenance related experience and have now completed level 2 and 3 engineering operations and a BTEC Diploma level 3 in operations and maintenance.

They have also completed Duke of Edinburgh Gold Awards.

Lee continued, ‘All of our apprentices and graduates have the opportunity to take part in Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Gold Award completing the DofE gives young people the opportunity to develop life skills like problem solving and team working which are vital in the workplace.’

Encouraging more diversity in the sector is also a key objective for Amey, and the company is working to improve and promote opportunities for women in the rail industry.

Says Lee, ‘We are working on a number of initiatives to ensure we close the gender gap in the rail industry, including the support of International Women in Engineering Day and the recent launch of our engineering badge for Girl Guides to help inspire a new generation of female engineers.

‘One of the reasons I’ve stayed with Amey… has been its people and something you get back from clients is that they value the people that are within Amey.’

‘The drone is transforming the way we inspect infrastructure and is capable of deploying ground penetrating radar, high definition video, thermal imaging and infrared, and has already been trialled in a railway environment.’

Collaboration is also key for Amey and reflects the changing market.

As a leader in infrastructure asset management, Amey’s rail team work with its engineering designers, strategic consultants and operational specialists to help clients and asset owners to better understand and manage their assets.

‘It’s the way we combine our analytic capabilities and consulting expertise with our experience of operational delivery that creates a unique offering,’ says Lee. ‘We have the expertise to harvest data that matters and then have some of the brightest talent interpret what the data is telling us and translate this into outcomes for our customers.’

There are plenty more examples. The company is also working with the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) in Coventry to develop innovative safety solutions to protect its workforce. For example, they are working on personal warning systems in helmets and PPE that alerts staff who are moving out of a safe working zone.

COMBINING SKILLS AND INNOVATION ‘Our people are so important,’ says Lee. ‘But it’s what happens when you combine our skills with the latest innovation, technology and data approaches that is really exciting.’

Lee began his career working for British Rail in 1971 in the civil engineers drawing office in Newport, South Wales. ‘That was in the days when you used linen tracing paper and real ink, and if you dropped your cup of tea on it, it turned into a handkerchief.’

He joined Amey in 1996 at the creation of the rail business and describes privatisation as a ‘step change’ in his career. ‘Things have changed a lot since I first started out, and I believe a lot of the innovation we’ve seen has been down to private-sector investment.’

Lee sees Amey as one of the rail industry’s innovators. He talks enthusiastically about the way much of the asset monitoring work is now done by drone to access hard to reach areas. Amey isn’t just utilising drones to support its projects, it is also investing in new technology. Amey has created a joint venture with a company called VTOL Technologies to develop an autonomous drone, called The Flying Wing, designed specifically to carry out asset monitoring.

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A GROWING PRESENCE This change in ways of working has had a significant influence on Amey’s rail business. In 1996, Amey acquired Western Infrastructure Maintenance Company during the privatisation of British Rail. Since then, it has gone from being a business largely concerned with maintenance to a multidisciplined contractor delivering projects like the electrification of the Great Western main line and Crossrail.

‘Our footprint now is right across the network and it’s growing. We’re always looking at opportunities to expand our capabilities and expertise,’ says Lee. In the flurry of announcements that followed the election was the confirmation that Amey was one of two new organisations to be issued with a pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ) passport from the Department for Transport, allowing it to bid for upcoming rail franchise competitions between now and 2019.

In the announcement itself, Lee said, ‘This is a significant milestone for our rail business and it’s a testament to the exceptional work we’ve delivered in the sector over the past few decades. We’re really excited about taking on more passenger rail services and providing even better journeys for the travelling public.’

July also sees the start of the company’s contract to manage and maintain Greater

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Manchester’s Metrolink tram service. It will do so alongside Keolis - the same partnership that has been successfully running London’s Docklands Light Railway.

In 2003, Amey became part of the Tube Lines consortium which maintained the Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly lines on behalf of Transport for London (TfL) through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement.

As the operations director for Tube Lines, Lee oversaw some sizeable improvements in performance on the Northern line. When maintenance activities were brought in-house

by TfL in 2010, Amey was awarded a contract to continue maintaining the three lines. Lee says one of his proudest achievements was helping to deliver high levels of reliability on the Tube network during London 2012.

Amey’s core rail business, however, remains its infrastructure monitoring, maintenance and renewals. Through the Civil Examination Framework Agreements (CEFA)

framework it holds with Network Rail, Amey is responsible for monitoring the condition of more than 100,000 assets around the network.

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE Amey’s inroads into train operations reflects a wider transport sector that is becoming more closely integrated, Lee believes. ‘We’ve got to look at what’s happening generally in the rail market; it’s a changing market.’

In 2015, Lee was nominated by his colleagues for a lifetime achievement award.

The nomination described Lee as a team leader who is ‘respected for his management style and commitment to the job’.

Says Lee, ‘Being nominated for the lifetime achievement award was a huge honour, and I hope I’m not being disrespectful when I say that I’m not ready to hang up my oranges just yet.

The rail industry is such an exciting place to be and I can’t wait to see what’s in store next.’

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

TRAINING

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AMTRAIN INDUSTRY COMMON INDUCTION

21/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

26/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

HIGHWAY PERMISSIBLE VEHICLE (DPV)

ENGINEER SUPERVISOR RECERT

24/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

28/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

E-LEARNING

ENGINEER SUPERVISOR RECERT

TRAINING

SAFE SYSTEM OF WORK PLANNER RE-CERT

24/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

31/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

INDUSTRY COMMON INDUCTION 01/08/2017 - 1 day Fradley

PTS AC PRACTICAL DAY 01/08/2017 - 1 day Fradley

28/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

DCCR (DIRECT CURRENT CONDUCTOR RAIL)

PTS AC PRACTICAL DAY 25/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

POINTS OPERATOR RE-CERT

TANDEM LIFT

02/08/2017 - 1 day Fradley

31/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

INDUSTRY COMMON INDUCTION

E-LEARNING

INDUSTRY COMMON INDUCTION

25/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

31/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

02/08/2017 - 1 day Fradley

DCCR (DIRECT CURRENT CONDUCTOR RAIL)

COSS TO SWL 1 CONVERSION

PTS AC RECERT

31/07/2017 - 3 days Fradley

07/08/2017 - 1 day Fradley

26/07/2017 - 1 day Fradley

T – 01283 792 633

MC GROUP 4 TRANSPORTATION 08/08/2017 - 1 day Fradley

E – info@amtrain.co.uk

SAFETY IS NO ACCIDENT

OUR TRAINING CENTRE

CONTROLLER OF SITE SAFETY INITIAL WITH PTS RE-CERT 14/08/2017 - 6 days Fradley

Friendly and helpful staff Central UK location Ample parking Experienced trainers (male/female)

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TRAINING AND ASSESSMENTS

Wide variety of training and assessments Delivered 7 days a week, day or night.

Excellent standard of training High success rates Flexible courses Competitive prices

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Medicals delivered weekly Drug and alcohol screening available daily (8:30 – 15:30 mon-fri) On site and random drug and alcohol screening available For cause contracts

If you are an NSAR approved trainer and/or assessor and would like to join Amtrain Midlands, please email andy@amtrain.co.uk

SAFE SYSTEM OF WORK PLANNER INITIAL 14/08/2017 - 4 days Fradley

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YOUNG RAIL PROFESSIONALS

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

S L A N IO S S E F O R P L I YOUNG RA G N I W S R E M SUM

J

une was a busy month for the Young Rail Professionals with the relaunch of the Scotland and North East committees, some successful local events, and participation in the Big Rail Diversity Challenge.

THE BIG RAIL DIVERSITY CHALLENGE

The Big Rail Diversity Challenge, is a nationwide competition run by Women in Rail and organised by Nimble Media. The event is open to all companies in the rail industry. The aim: to recognise diversity in rail be it gender, ability or background.

Forty-five teams took part this year, up by 50 per cent from last year. Each team comprised 10 members with an equal gender split.

All teams took part in 14 out of 28 challenges which included hover crafting, quad biking, duck herding and a bath tub race.

It was obvious that the day inspired a real sense of fun and collaboration. It was a pleasure to see so many smiling faces, laughter and high team spirits, highlighting the sense of togetherness and growing commitment to diversity apparent within the rail industry.

Paul Case, national chairman of YRP attended the event and noted that it was ‘a hugely enjoyable day which carries with it the important message that balanced gender diversity strengthens teams and enhances organisations’.

National external relations manager Olivia White said, ‘It was like sports day for adults! Everyone was focused on having fun, working together and encouraging one another.’

We can’t wait to see what new challenges the day will bring next year and look forward to supporting this great event!

RE-LAUNCH OF SCOTLAND AND NORTH EAST YRP is very pleased to announce the re-launch of the Scotland and North-East committees. With increasing interest from those regions and some strong railway heritage, YRP are very excited to deliver events and seminars and provide a networking opportunity for young people in those regions.

The New North East chair is Rachel Thompson, a solicitor at Bond Dickinson who has a particular focus on the rail sector. The Scotland chair is Ben Ross, who works for Nevis Technologies, an American tech company which provides

services relating to ticketing payments and software security.

Rachel and Ben are now starting the process of building committees in their regions, so if you are interested please get in contact with either of them and they would be delighted to have you on board.

UPCOMING EVENTS July is the season of Summer BBQs, and most YRP regions are offering a BBQ this year, a fantastic opportunity to network with other professionals from across the industry, meeting new people and reconnecting with past colleagues.

Although we’re crossing our fingers for sun, whatever the weather you’ll get a great evening and lots of food! To find out where your nearest BBQ is, please go to the YRP website, where you will also be able to reserve your place.

RAIL WEEK 2017 Rail Week 2017 takes place from Monday, 9 October, to Sunday, 15 October, with the aim of bringing the rail industry in all its guises closer to

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RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

YOUNG RAIL PROFESSIONALS

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schools, teachers, career advisors and students. The dedicated week of activity will help address the skills shortage in rail-related roles and inspire a generation of young people through a series of events, visits and talks. Plans are well underway for the week and now is the time to pledge your support for the campaign.

Why get involved?

• Attracting talented and ambitious young people into rail is essential to meet the rail demands of the future.

• By working together as an industry we will create greater awareness among students, parents and teachers about the opportunities and great careers in rail.

• Rail Week will help challenge people’s perception of what it is to work in rail by showcasing the many different people, skills and roles in the industry which keeps passengers moving and allows us to deliver some of the most ambitious infrastructure projects around.

• Rail Week will help improve the public perception of rail by delivering an engaging coordinated campaign which shows the best of rail and the people who work in the industry.

We need you to: • Confirm you are supporting Rail Week through events, social media or content • Host tours of your depots, factories, control centres, stations, etc.

• Badge any events/publicity you have in the diary for 9-15 October as part of the Rail Week campaign • Volunteer your staff to promote rail in schools as Rail Week Ambassadors

Get involved in Rail Week

Get involved in Rail Week

Rail Week aims to inspire young people to choose rail car of events, visits and talks. By working together we can bri Rail Week aims to inspire young people to choose rail careers, through and attract talented and ambitious young people into the a week of events, visits and talks. By working together we can bridge the love. skills gap and attract talented and ambitious young people into the sector that we all love.

The week is a great way we can showcase the diverse ran

roles in the passengers moving and a The week is a great way we can showcase theindustry diversewhich range keep of people and some of themoving most ambitious roles in the industry which keep passengers and allowsinfrastructure us to deliver projects aroun some of the most ambitious infrastructure projects around.

Now is the time to commit to getting involved!

Now is the time to commit to getting involved!

We need you to: We need you to: • Host tours of your depots, factories, control centres, sta • Givecontrol publiccentres, lecturesstations, and seminars • Host tours of your depots, factories, etc… about your incredible • Volunteer your staff to promote • Give public lectures and seminars about your incredible projects rail in schools as Rail W

• Volunteer your staff to promoteRail rail Week in schools as Rail Weekyou Ambassadors can be whatever want it to be. If you have a Rail Week can be whatever you about want itit!to be. If you have a great idea shout about it!

www.railweek.com

www.railweek.com

@railweek @railweek

Pledge your support by emailing hello@railweek.com.

For more information visit www.railweek.com

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PEOPLE

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

Rail Advance for Metcalfe Specialist rail recruitment consultancy Advance-TRS has a new CEO at the helm and the newly appointed chief hasn’t wasted any time getting down to business.

the business from a standing start to £150 million in annual turnover. He hopes to lead Advance-TRS to similar success.

Despite his successes, Metcalfe has shied away from the limelight throughout his career. A wealth of executive experience and a long list of notable achievements has nevertheless established him as a heavyweight name throughout the industry.

His refreshing candour and sense of humour has already endeared him to his new team who have welcomed him to the business with open arms.

Says Paul, ’I met Andy not long after he started the business and after I’d started my own business - we had something in common as I had already started Fusion People - and what attracted me to work with Andy was his energy and passion for the rail business and his commitment for his recruitment business to deliver a first class service.’

Paul’s main remit at Advance-TRS is to support the company’s upward trajectory

Recruitment veteran Paul Metcalfe agreed to work with Advance-TRS on a non-exec basis earlier this year after meeting with the company’s founder and group managing director, Andy Ridout.

Ridout knew that, following Metcalfe’s departure from Fusion People, it was the perfect opportunity to bring on a chief executive with the experience and knowledge to help Advance-TRS achieve its ambitious long-term growth plans.

Metcalfe began his executive career in 1991 with AndersElite (then Anders Glaser Wills) where he served as managing director for 12 years. In 2004, following his spell at AndersElite, Paul moved on to co-found his own recruitment consultancy, Fusion People, where he led the company as group managing director for 12 years, growing

Let us separate the wheat from the chaff.

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Advance-TRS is a specialist provider of niche, highly-skilled professionals to the

UK rail sector. With decades of success supplying to rail projects across the country, Advance-TRS’s specialist recruitment consultants are known for their sector specific expertise.

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info@advance-trs.com

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with a combination of organic business growth, mergers and acquisitions. Since joining the consultancy, Metcalfe has taken the time to get to know everyone within the business whilst working on securing business deals with new and existing clients.

‘With any recruitment business, the asset is the people that are employed,’ he said. ‘I hope to add to that without diluting it.’

Advance-TRS, which approaches its seventh year of trading this year, recently saw its annual revenues top £16.3 million in the last financial year, up by 38 per cent from £11.8 million in 2016. Now, with more than 30 full-time employees, the recruitment consultancy is projected to reach £25 million in turnover by the end of the 2017-18 financial year.

Paul will bring a wealth of knowledge of the rail industry with him, having worked in the sector for more than 20 years. Says Paul, ‘It’s stable as any market can be and there’s always investment going into rail. As a result there’s always a need for good quality recruitment services.’

Bolstered by a diversification into new sectors, namely water, utilities, construction and property, Advance-TRS provides a comprehensive range of services that are tailored to match each client’s individual requirements. These bespoke add-on services include training and development, recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), managed services (MSP), payroll provision and executive search.

On the 30 July 2014, MTR Corporation (Crossrail) Limited, a 100% owned subsidiary of MTR Corporation, was awarded the concession for operating the new Elizabeth line across London. By December 2019 the construction project shall be complete, marking the introduction of full Elizabeth line services through London.

We are looking to recruit a number of new key posts to complement our existing Control team to manage the on-shift responsibility of running our safe and punctual high profile railway on a daily basis.

Duty Head of Control

Customer Experience Controller

These roles will be supported by our Head of Control to create an engaged and motivated working environment and act as a role model to develop and maintain a culture that supports and encourages the team.

Our Customer Experience Controllers play a vital part in our link between customers, staff and our service. They ensure real time train running information is clearly communicated to stations and future Elizabeth line customers. They also pro-actively monitor and respond to live CCTV image data ensuring that the safety of both staff and customers is monitored 24 hours a day, liaising where necessary with the British Transport Police and other key stakeholders.

You will be involved in leading the development and delivery of all aspects of the short term operational strategy and facilitate the process whereby all safety of the line incidents are being managed appropriately. During incidents with significant business operational impact you will assume the role of Gold Command and contribute to the development and maintenance of up to date operational and safety policies and procedures, relating to train service delivery, control of operations and control personnel.

An important aspect of this role is to support our mobility-impaired customers wishing to travel on any future Elizabeth line service and provide alternative transport arrangements where necessary.

Duty Control Manager As an MTR Crossrail Duty Control Manager you will share a leading role in the operational control room, ensuring the delivery of our best possible train plan, including management of resources to customers in accordance with the MTR Crossrail Concession Agreement.

You will be responsible for managing the real time performance of all operational services in a safe and efficient manner. It will be vital that you liaise with the relevant stakeholders and ensure the best possible operation of our train service to the benefit of our customers.

You will also commit to the delivery of high quality, timely information to customers particularly during disruption.

Our Operations Team are currently recruiting for a number of crucial roles in supporting the development and management of our drivers to enable us to provide operational excellence across our Elizabeth line services.

Senior Driver Manager

Driver Team Leader

You will be working closely with the Area Depot Manager (East) and the Driver Team Managers on a day-to-day basis.

As a Driver Team Leader your primary responsibility will be the coaching and instructing of our Trainee and qualified Drivers.

The successful candidate will have good knowledge of train crew operations, and be capable of improving levels of driver team safety and performance. The primary purpose of the role will be to help deliver and drive our KPIs and lead on all people management matters relating to our growing and diverse team. The role will help foster our company culture whereby we inspire, empower and develop our people.

You will be expected to contribute to improving train performance, achieving industry leading safety levels, delivering exceptional customer service and embracing new technologies. This role will require shift work and a minimum of two years full train Driver competence and a thorough knowledge of operational rules and regulations is essential.

Driver Team Manager As a Driver Team Manager you will be responsible for delivering the reliable operation of the train plan, improving train performance and achieving customer satisfaction targets.

You will be leading our Drivers in operational safety, carrying out competence assessments of Drivers, ensuring that Drivers are utilised efficiently and looking after their welfare.

Driver Instructor Your responsibilities will include coaching and instructing our trainee drivers on route knowledge, traction and rules to attain their competence. You will also be expected to pro-actively encourage the development of Non-Technical Skills and Personal Protection Strategies. The role will require shift work and a minimum of two years train driving experience.

You must have full Train Driver competence for a minimum of a five year period and thorough knowledge of operational rules and regulations.

For more information and to apply please visit our website www.mtrcrossrail.co.uk /vacancies

www.mtrcrossrail.co.uk

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CAREERS

RAILSTAFF JULY 2017

www.trsstaffing.com

www.riqc.co.uk

Global Scale. Local Focus.

– Exciting career opportunities to work on HS2 Projects – Environmental Manager

Contracts Manager – Assistant

Birmingham £320 per day

Birmingham £220 per day

Value Engineer

Engagement Advisor

Birmingham, Manchester £250 - £320 per day

Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester £220 per day

Senior Transport Assessment Manager Birmingham £400 per day

RIQC Requirement for Lead Auditor RIQC Limited is an independent certification body, originally accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) as the only internationally accredited certification body specifically established for the railway industry.

RIQC Limited is seeking experienced Lead Auditors. The individual should have some experience within a railway sector background and experience in auditing to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS18001 standards (ISO 50001 & ISO 55001 would be ideal but not essential). In this role, you will be expected to advise directors & colleagues on QHSE latest developments and best practice, promote and develop business opportunities, maintain accurate and up-to-date customer records, contribute to the tendering, evaluation and negotiation process for the award of contracts and agreements.

Quality Engineer Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds £320 per day

NR/HE Integration Manager

Environment Interfaces Advisor

Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester £320 per day

Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester £220 per day

TRS Staffing Solutions are international engineering recruitment specialists.

We recruit for major national and international projects for leading national rail organisations, main contractors and consultancies.

Candidates shall need to possess the following key skills, attributes and experience: An established and confident Lead Auditor with at least 3-years’ auditing experience.

Ideally 3-years’ experience within the rail sector.

Experienced in the delivery of management system audits to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001.

Excellent interpersonal, organisational skills and time management with a professional level of accuracy and attention to detail. A high level of presentation and report writing capability with good judgement, analytical and decision making attributes.

Confident communicating assertively at all levels within an organisation.

Flexible including working away from home, occasional nights away and prepared to be trained for other audit areas (i.e. ISO 50001 & ISO 55001).

Able to lead a team and work alone.

• • • • • • •

RIQC welcomes applications from individuals seeking permanent employment and associate engagement.

Please email your CV to jonathan.miles@trsstaffing.com or if you’d prefer to discuss any roles call +44 (0)20 7419 5800

Search RailwayPeople.com for 1000s of exciting new opportunities online

Update your CV and profile today

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Please contact RIQC Limited: Tel: 01332 221422 Email: steve.kelly@riqc.co.uk

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Our people are our strength

Qualified Train Driver

Manchester, Preston, Liverpool, York, Newcastle, Hull Salary: £48,440 plus excellent benefits including final salary pension, free travel on TPE services and discounted travel with other train operating companies.

First TransPennine Express is a dedicated intercity rail service linking key cities and major towns in the North of England and Scotland. We carry up to 80,000 customers every day – and we aim to give them the very best customer service experience. We’re investing more than £500million in our business: new trains, better facilities, refurbishments and employee training.

We’re really excited about the future - more than £1bn is currently being invested in improving the railways in the North of England, which will allow hundreds more trains to run each day and space for millions more passengers. These upgrades will help us play a key role in the creation of the Northern Powerhouse by improving transport and connectivity between our key Northern cities.

With all this happening, First TransPennine Express is a great place to be.

We are looking for professional Qualified Train Drivers to help us deliver operational excellence across our extensive intercity network.

First TransPennine Express prides itself on its reputation for great customer service, achieved through our dedicated and professional teams. To join our Driver team you’ll need to have an enthusiastic and flexible approach to work, you take safety and customer service seriously, recognising their value in rail. You’re considered as being level headed and reliable and hold an excellent safety record and are diligent in strictly following rules and regulations.

As a Qualified Driver for First TransPennine Express, you’ll be responsible for the safe and timely transportation of our customers. Your greatest strengths will lie in your concentration and quick decision-making based upon your in-depth rules and regulation knowledge. You will enjoy working in a structured environment, adhering to set rules and procedures. However, driving a train is not

your only responsibility; you are also required to commit to your continuous personal development and provide great customer service to our customers.

Please be aware that due to health and safety commitments applicants are required to live within a reasonable commuting distance of the depot you are applying for or be willing relocate in line with this commuting range, prior to commencing into the role.

As well as receiving a competitive salary you’ll also benefit from a final salary pension scheme, generous holiday allowance and free travel for you and your family on First TransPennine Express services, in addition to the larger First Group rail and bus company benefits.

First TransPennine Express is committed to the safety of its customers and employees. Please be aware that candidates who are successful at shortlisting will be required to

• • • •

Carry out Qualified Driver assessments.

Attend an interview with the Driver Management team which includes an assessment of your behaviours and rules knowledge.

Complete a safety critical medical to the new driver licencing standard and includes a drugs and alcohol screening.

Have your Safety of the Line history checked – it is important you upload your ‘Transfer of Safety Information’ as soon as possible; otherwise we cannot consider you for the role.

To Apply Please visit www.firstgroupcareers.com and you’ll need to complete an application form and upload a completed Safety of the Line Transfer of Information.

Our webchat and webform – tpexpress.co.uk Telephone – 0345 600 1671 Twitter – @tpeassist or our Facebook page – TPExpressTrains

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