INSIDE
Institution of Railway Operators member news, views and events
Issue 34 » May 2014
Learning Products » Membership » Corporate Members » Organisational Reach » Academic Programmes » Areas
Area Events listing on the back cover – visit www.railwayoperators.co.uk to book on events
Flooding Disruption Management Ben Rule, Operations Director, First Great Western, provides his views on Flooding Disruption Management The dramatic pictures of the shattered sea wall at Dawlish are instantly recognisable to those in the railway industry but also the general public. The severing of the Great Western Mainline by the power of the sea was one of the most visual aspects of a major crisis that struck the south and south west of England during the winter of 2013/14. It was a crisis that hit the railways hard. Dawlish was only one of many locations where the infrastructure was submerged, blocked or washed away.
Other significant locations were: • Bridgewater, where the Exeter to Bristol line was submerged under several metres of water on the Somerset Levels • Hinksey, where the Didcot to Oxford line was flooded when the Thames broke its banks • Maidenhead, where ground water flooded the ballast and failed track circuits over a 3 mile stretch of all four tracks of the Great Western Main line resulting in a massive 46,000 delay minutes • Botley on Wessex Route where the embankment collapsed and had to be completely re-constructed
The combination of these events and many other smaller issues meant that between December 2013 and April 2014 First Great Western experienced the most difficult period of service disruption for many years. Yet it could be argued that this period was a thoroughly positive experience for the rail industry and for First Great Western in particular. Customer advocacy scores for First Great Western improved during the disruption. Clearly in the eyes of the customer the weather related disruption was well handled. What went well and how can the industry makes sure these lessons are Continues over… applied consistently?
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Learning Products ContinueD from front cover
Learn From The Past First Great Western and Network Rail Western did start the winter with a head start in managing flooding incidents. The flooding in 2012, especially at Cowley Bridge near Exeter meant that the experience of managing flooding was fresh in the minds of both organisations. But recent experience of similar incidents was less important than the fact that both organisations had not lost the learning from those incidents. The learning, so painfully gained in 2012 was identified but more importantly applied. Improvements were made to infrastructure in a number of locations such as Flax Bourton (which flooded in 2012 but caused no issues in 2013). The importance of having sufficient reserve resources for critical functions such as Control and Customer Relations had been identified and acted upon. FGW had identified and trained a pool of managers who could provide meaningful support to the Control and this was invaluable in dealing with peak workload and longer term fatigue for key staff. Revised arrangements were put in place for planning and communicating short notice coach replacement services. This meant that emergency rail replacement services were much better organised in 2013 than in 2012. Perhaps even more significantly previous experience with storms affecting the Dawlish sea wall meant that Network Rail had invested in a dedicated computer model to predict the wave height at Dawlish and the likely effect on the sea wall. This very accurately predicted the problems at Dawlish and allowed the Control to make the necessary moves to balance the HST and DMU fleets either side of the sea wall before it was destroyed. Get the Structure Right For disruption of the scale and duration of that experienced this winter it simply isn’t possible to manage the problem using existing processes. It is essential to split the management of the incident from the day to day management of the railway. Clearly it is difficult to do this completely, but conversely it is not desirable for the operation of the rest of the railway to be compromised because people are focussed on crisis management. The Dawlish damage was very high profile and for journeys directly affected by the damage the effect was critical. However, Dawlish affected only a small proportion of First Great Western’s business. Once 2
the immediate crisis had been dealt with it was appropriate to set up a separate command structure to deal with the longer term consequences. The flooding at Maidenhead affected a much larger proportion of FGW services (initially a fifth of all trains needed to be cancelled). Nevertheless separating day to day management of the network from the process of identifying and implementing solutions was critical. It meant that sufficient attention was given to the remaining services while there was a clear focus on getting back to normal as quickly as possible. Membership of the command structure is also vital to success. To successfully deal with the issues raised by Dawlish, Bridgewater and Maidenhead it was necessary to draw on the full range of skills and experience in the organisation. The duration of these incidents meant that normal, short term contingency plans managed largely through the Control were never going to be adequate. The organisation needed to be able to develop tailored solutions in order to deliver the best result for customers. The First Great Western flood management group included representatives from all departments within the organisation and dedicated project management support was provided to allocate key resources, identify dependencies and track actions. Skilled Operators (and Engineers) Make a Difference First Great Western and Network Rail could not have managed the disruption caused by the Dawlish and the other flooding locations without thoroughly dedicated and experienced staff. In fact First Great Western celebrated the commitment and sacrifices made by the railway men and women in a publicity campaign that ran during and after the disruption. Quite rightly there was a focus on the engineers who worked tirelessly to rebuild the sea wall at Dawlish: the so called ‘Orange Army’. We also celebrated the commitment of the rolling stock engineers who worked to keep the fleet running even though the main HST maintenance depot was inaccessible from much of the network and much of the DMU fleet was isolated from its natural base in Exeter. There was less focus on the operators, but they (we!) also played a critical role in keeping the railway running. The constantly changing state of the
infrastructure meant that the train plan went through numerous variations over many weeks. A huge amount of effort went into ensuring that a plan was available every single day during the disruption. The Control teams bore the brunt of the short notice planning activity often having to completely recast the timetable in only a few hours. I was frequently amazed by the ability of the Control to create a workable and resourced train plan overnight and publish it so that frontline staff knew what they were expected to do. The Train Planning team focussed on creating the more considered plans to be implemented once the railway had reached some sort of steady state. There were several occasions when they had spent 48 hours crafting a plan only to find that there was new infrastructure damage and the whole thing had to be started again. Although it must have been hugely frustrating I never heard them complain. Operating knowledge played a key part in dealing with the flooding at Maidenhead. When groundwater levels rose to the point that track circuits had failed on all four lines at Maidenhead the number of trains that could be signalled through the area was cut to no more than 3 per hour on each affected line. This was the maximum numbers of paths that the standard temporary block working methodology (with handsignallers at each end of the affected area) could provide. A joint Network Rail and First Great Western team worked out how this could be increased to 5 trains per hour by taking a number of signals out of use and reintroducing (fixed distant) semaphore signals to the Great Western mainline. The methodology was also applied to deal with damaged signalling equipment at Bridgewater. Creating a novel method of working in less than 48 hours required skilled operating staff who were able to draw on a comprehensive understanding of how the railway works. It’s a Marathon Not a Sprint When it became clear what had happened at Dawlish it became obvious that the region’s railways were going to be affected for some considerable time. As the rain continued to fall and further damage was experienced there were times when many people wondered if it would ever get any better. In a way we were fortunate that the very visible damage at Dawlish happened early in the crisis, because the mantra ‘it’s
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Learning Products
a marathon not a sprint’ was being used almost from the start. It meant that we were careful not to over deploy our human resources at the start of the disruption. We made sure that we had a manpower plan in place to cover for several weeks of disruption. This included drawing in resource from elsewhere including other First Group companies, Network Rail and FGW HQ staff. We worked closely with suppliers to ensure that they were also planning for the long term including coach companies, and our customer relations partner. One group of people who were placed under particular pressure during the disruption were the managers of the key rail to road interchange stations. Exeter St David’s, Tiverton Parkway, and Plymouth were crucial to the delivery of our alternative services. Introduction of extensive road services made the station operation much more complex and there was significant pressure to deliver to a really high standard to meet customer expectations. Significant numbers of additional staff were allocated to these stations and these staff had to be trained, rostered, and supervised. The pressure on station managers was significant and unrelenting for several weeks. We identified the risk and made a specific request for our sister First Group TOCs to provide experienced station managers who could provide respite cover allowing key staff to take a break from the frontline. Delight the Customer Despite the hard work involved for many staff the disruption was often an interesting change from the daily routine and even an exciting challenge. For our customers the change to the train service was inevitably going to mean some cancelled plans, earlier starts, later finishes and longer journeys. I think our greatest success in dealing with the flooding this winter was the way in which we worked to delight our customers. First Great Western managed to increase its rate of customer advocacy over the period of the disruption. Our customers are more likely to advocate our service now than they were before the disruption started. This is huge achievement which was achieved by: • Listening to customer feedback. We paid special attention to the messages we were receiving through feedback channels. Our Twitter site was manned 24 hours per day. We integrated our
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customer relations team into our command structure so that we could respond to key themes that were emerging. We listened carefully to key stakeholders and customer groups such as TravelWatch South West and Passenger Focus. By providing a dedicated point of contact for key stakeholders we were able to act quickly on their comments and ideas and use them to get feedback on our draft plans. Customer feedback resulted in additional coach services such as the fast Bodmin to Tiverton service and the introduction of later services from Paddington to Exeter. • Demonstrating that we understood the effect on the customer. We recognised the effect of the disruption on customers by making significant discounts on ticket prices. Fares via Dawlish were reduced by 25%. Season ticket holders received refunds on affected days. We waived the £10 administration charge for refunds and we made sure that anyone who was unable to purchase an advance ticket due to problems with the timetable would be able to claim back the difference in ticket price. These decisions showed that we understood that our customers were being inconvenienced by our inability to deliver our normal service. We were also able to avoid distracting and potentially damaging media suggestions that we were not being fair to customers who were being disrupted. • Making little gestures. Possibly the most popular thing we did during the disruption was to provide free refreshments to customers at interchange locations and elsewhere. It is amazing how much good will a free cup of tea and a biscuit can gain you. We gave out over 30,000 cups of tea during the disruption period. We even managed to keep our local retail tenants happy by involving them in the process. In many cases customers were offered free refreshments from the local café through a deal with the owners. Of course free refreshments are even more effective when they are delivered with a smile even though it is still raining. Somehow our frontline staff seemed to smile even more through the adversity than they do on a normal day! Use it as a Springboard What First Great Western and Network Rail managed to achieve during the
Semaphore distant signal on the GWML. Flooding can be seen in the cess and in the four foot in the distance. The distant signal was used to warn the driver that he was approaching the end of an extended block section of about 3 miles in length.
flooding was impressive and the fact that our customers are more likely to advocate us now shows that we must have done something right. But before we get too carried away we must remember that we still failed to deliver our core product to our customers. There are a number of issues that we need to get better at dealing with. For example the process for creating and uploading amended timetables is still too cumbersome. We were often unable to provide an accurate timetable on our website quickly enough to meet customer needs. It is important that we act quickly to identify improvements to key processes while our experiences are still fresh. However, in my view, the real challenge is to transfer what we have learned over the past few months to our delivery in normal circumstances. We spent three months finding every opportunity to delight customers. We listened more carefully to what our customers had to say and we acted more quickly on their ideas and their feedback. We created new infrastructure at least ten times faster than we would have done normally. We were more innovative, more flexible and more determined than we had been in the past. Different parts of the industry worked more collaboratively. What we must strive to do now is to transfer these behaviours, this thinking and these ideas to our day to day operation of the railway. Ben is a lead speaker at the IRO Conference on June 13th 2014. Places are going quickly so if you want to take part in this learning event either visit our website www.railwayoperators. co.uk and click on the banner heading or telephone the office on 03333 440523. 3
Membership
Australia – future plans Darren King is an IRO Fellow on a mission to find more operators to include in the IRO association. During recent work projects in Australia, Darren made contact with two up-and-coming rail professionals in the shape of Jennifer Aiton and Richard Singleton. Having explained how the IRO worked in the UK, the two became enthusiastic about having the benefits of IRO membership across the geographically dispersed railway communities in Australia. Jennifer Aiton
They worked up a proposal for the UK IRO to consider. What if we allowed free membership for a limited period of time to help get a critical mass of people to take the IRO forward? Jen and Rick have already established supportive groups in New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia and Queensland. They have managed to secure free exhibition space at a prestigious conference on Railway Excellence in Adelaide in May and have their own stand, presence on the website and promotional materials so we wish them luck and wait for the membership to roll in!
Jennifer graduated with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering with Honours and a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Western Australia in 2013. During her studies, she undertook an undergraduate position at the Public Transport Authority of the Government of Western Australia, working on strategic planning and demand analysis, and won the 2013 Railway Technical Society of Australasia (RTSA) Student Railway Thesis Award for her dissertation on demand-side performance improvements for services along Perth’s busiest railway lines. Jennifer is now in her second year of the PTA graduate program, working in rail service planning and looks forward to attending the Conference on Railway Excellence (CORE) in Adelaide in May to represent the IRO and present a paper on smart-card demand modelling. This year, Jennifer is on the RTSA WA committee and is also completing a Master of Transport at Monash University.
Richard Singleton Rick is currently a consultant with URS in rail operations and strategic planning and has seven years’ experience in the rail industry. He started his career as a rolling stock graduate engineer with Sydney trains, later taking on a project planning role on their $7bn fleet acquisition. Rick has spent the last three years optimising passenger rail systems across Australia. He has examined capacity, punctuality, passenger service quality and rail infrastructure needs in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and most recently beautiful, sunny Perth.
Darren is working with the IRO in the UK to undertake a review and an approach to rail organisation in Australia and to re contextualise one of our core texts – The Operators’ Handbook, to allow a more international perspective on some of the principles there-in. We are undertaking a review of corporate organisations and where the IRO could fit in the Australian context.
Northern Territory Queensland Western Australia South Australia
New South Wales
Find out more online… www.railwayoperators.co.uk/australia 4
Victoria
Tasmania
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Membership
IRO 3,000th member During October 2013, Isaac Evans a 23 year old First Capital Connect (FCC) employee signed up for free membership of the IRO through the company’s corporate membership scheme. To Isaac it was just a further step in his personal development which had already seen him be the youngest recruit on FCC’s Kings Cross depot for driver training at 21. Unbeknown to Isaac when he applied and first appeared on the IRO’s radar the team got together and cheered. They had been waiting to see who would apply for that particular membership number – the 3000th member milestone!
Liz Walker, from the Stafford team called Isaac to let him know and he appeared in Rail News in November 2013. Since Isaac joined he has gone on to study on the IRO’s academic programme. The IRO has continued to grow, some six months later with around 500 new members and the team is waiting for member 4000 with bated breath!
Do you know anyone who you could recommend IRO membership to?
Growth in Membership & Engagement Against a backdrop of falling numbers for membership organisations in the UK, we have grown significantly over the last three years.
IRO Membership has seen an unprecedented increase of 70% over the last two years.
So what is it that people are seeing that makes them want to take part and associate with us? It turns out that the greatest membership benefit is that of free association with the widest range of people within your profession. That is why we are pleased to note that we have grown our membership in all directions at once: in front line roles, internationally, across all members of membership and into new rail organisations.
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Growth in membership has continued in 2014 with our current membership level approaching 3500 members in April 2014.
The increased uptake in membership would mean nothing in itself unless there was a commensurate increase in people getting involved within the IRO network. We are seeing more people attending the events, following our councils on Twitter, joining our LinkedIn group and just as importantly using the umbrella of the IRO to make their own connections.
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Membership
If you want to get ahead get a hat! In January we sent out around 2000 IRO Beanie hats to all our Affiliate, Associate and Full Members to ensure that all our members were aware of the upgrade process. We have simplified this process – no more lengthy application forms. To upgrade now, members simply have to notify us that they wish to upgrade by clicking on the green “Renew/Upgrade Now” button in their personal area on the website. Then upload an annotated CV and either provide a copy of your personal learning record or use the on line CPD record in your personal area. When this is done click the “Upgrade info ready to check” button. Your information will be downloaded from the website and submitted to the next membership panel for assessment. This has proved to be a very effective campaign and we are still getting members contacting us wishing to upgrade. Liz Walker has recently taken over Membership so if you have any queries about membership upgrade please contact Liz at membership@ railwayoperators.co.uk or give her a call at the office on 03333 440523 ext 202.
Eugene Egan On a very sad note, the Secretary of the Irish Branch of the IRO – Eugene Egan passed away on Wednesday 26 February 2014 following a short illness. Eugene had been Secretary to the IRO Irish Branch for the past 3 years and had just completed 40 years loyal service to Iarnród Éireann. Eugene’s recent position within Iarnród Éireann was as a Safety Auditor in the RU Safety Department. He will be dearly missed by his friends and colleagues within the IRO.
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Corporate Members
New Corporate Members The Institution of Railway Operators is very pleased to welcome five new Corporate Members. Edinburgh Trams, GB Railfreight, Serco Middle East, Transnet Freight Rail and Volker Rail. The IRO serves our Corporate Members through responsive provision to need, access to good practice industry groups and forums and assistance to improve take up of industry benefits. We provide continuous professional development, courses, publications, events, accreditations and mentoring as the means to helping or Corporate Members get the right outcomes. We count our success by the positive effects we have through working on the knowledge and skills agendas of the railway businesses. We asked a selection of our corporate members to speak about their reasons for joining the IRO. The results were put into
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a brochure - available from our website as a download. In it Johannes Makhusha of Transnet Freight Rail JHB wrote:
“We have created partnerships with international training institutes and universities such as the Institution of Railway Operators, Glasgow Caledonian University and the University of Johannesburg to offer education that is world-class and that can assist us in building the necessary competencies for our organisation. The Railway Operations Management programme is our flagship programme. The relationship between IRO, GCU, UJ and Transnet Freight Rail is extremely important.”
Our current Corporate Members are: » ACoRP » Arriva Trains Wales » ATOC » c2c » Chiltern Railways » CrossCountry » DB Schenker » East Midlands Trains » Edinburgh Trams » First Capital Connect » First Great Western » First Hull Trains » First ScotRail » First TransPennine Express » Freightliner » GB Railfreight » Grand Central » GreaterAnglia » Heathrow Express » Heritage Railway Assoc. » Iarnród Éireann » London Midland » LOROL » Merseyrail » Network Rail » Northern » Serco » Serco Middle East » Southeastern » Southern » South West Trains » Translink » Transport for London » Virgin Trains » Volker Rail
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Corporate Members
Stakeholder Survey Corporate Member support for the Institution of Railway Operators (IRO) is critical to its mission. Therefore ensuring that the IRO is delivering what our corporate members need and want is essential. During 2013 market research was conducted to ask them for their views. Questionnaires were sent to corporate member TOC/FOC/IMC organisations at MD, Operations/Production Director and HR Director level. Within Network Rail surveys were sent to central staff and within the ten Routes, MDs and their HR supports as well as some General Managers. In addition the ORR, RSSB, two Passenger Transport Executives, Transport Scotland and the Department for Transport were also approached. All but one of the organisations surveyed replied to us and that gives us a 95% confidence level that we have meaningful feedback that we can use in our business planning. The questionnaires were designed to establish: • Awareness of the IRO • Perceptions of the IRO including the academic programmes
The feedback was analysed and the following IRO developments were the majority requirements: • The IRO should seek Chartered status • Mentoring • The IRO should run learning conferences • The IRO should develop a vocational qualification framework for operations • The IRO should create cross-company communities of professionals • The IRO should have a job/career advertisement section • Distance learning courses
Thank you to all those who completed our surveys. During 2014, it is our intention to survey individual members. We want to do this in as convenient a form as possible for you. We are obviously fully compliant with the Data Protection Act and additionally we have become a corporate member of the Market Research Association to ensure that you can have confidence in our ethics and processes. We would really appreciate your participation in these survey exercises which will help us to understand what you value so we can provide more of it!
• IRO run open programmes where stakeholders’ employees attend alongside other companies • Accredited modules run in house by stakeholders’ trainers • Training stakeholders’ internal trainers
• How they wanted to get more value from the association with the IRO • What they wanted from us next
The survey led directly into the business strategy process and consequently the IRO Plan. The IRO Plan, launched by the Board in September 2013, is built on the clear feedback of the industry. There are six key elements setting out the big picture for the Institution’s growth. Each of these are supported by a practical plan ensuring that you see results soon. (eg the mentor scheme, the conferences and the investment in learning products.) We want to be the best Institution our members could wish for, both as a career partner and as a leader in building the profession.
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Organisational Reach
The IRO Board The IRO is pleased to welcome new members to the board. Steve Cocliff, MD VolkerRail, John Smith MD GB Railfreight, Ruud Haket, Chief Operating Officer at Keolis, Alex Hynes, MD Northern Rail, David Simpson, Rail Consultant and Chris Burchell, currently Southern’s managing director, soon to be Head of UK Trains, Arriva.
Who’s Who An introduction to our board members… Chair Jo Kaye MIRO Network Rail
Steve Cocliff Managing Director, VolkerRail
John Doyle MIRO General Manager, Jubilee Line, London Underground
David Franks FIRO CEO, Irish Rail
Ruud Haket Chief Operating Officer, Keolis
Neil Henry MIRO Network Rail Steve Cocliff, Managing Director VolkerRail Group. Steve is a Civil Engineer and has worked in a number of sectors including Nuclear, Civil Engineering, Building, Utilities and Rail. Steve said:
Mark Hopwood FIRO Managing Director, First Great Western
Alex Hynes MIRO Managing Director, Northern Rail
Tim Shoveller FIRO Managing Director, South West Trains
David Simpson FIRO Rail Consultant
John Smith Managing Director, GB Railfreight
Chris Burchell FIRO Head of UK Trains, Arriva
For more infomation on our board members visit… www.railwayoperators.co.uk/about/board-of-directors/
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‘One reason why I joined the Institution of Railway Operators is because I see it as a very influential and forward thinking body within the rail industry. Its members represent a significant core of professionals who manage operations and run services on a nationally and strategically important part of the infrastructure both here and abroad. It is the aspiration of the Institution to make railway operations, in all of its facets, more effective, efficient and safe and I sincerely hope that I will be able to contribute to the major challenges facing our industry at a time of significant economic uncertainty.’
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Membership
IRO Members’ Annual Lunch - was a sellout! 180 members and guests attended the Annual Lunch at a prestigious city centre location in Manchester on Friday 4th April 2014. Attendance was up by 25% on the last regional event in 2012 and 5% on the London event of 2013. The feedback from the event was excellent. As the IRO rather unusually places its speakers prior to the lunch there is always a good amount of time to mix after the meal has ended. People reported that not only had it been an enjoyable event but also that it had some practical business outcomes such as renewed or new business connections. David Sidebottom the Acting Chief Executive of Passenger Focus was the guest speaker at the Annual Lunch and he gave a most informative talk about how passengers, being the major shareholder in the railway, needed to be at the heart of the future franchising process. As a result of Passenger Focus presenting to government, passenger satisfaction has been introduced as a key target. The Passenger Focus vision is to ensure that operators, funders and regulators of transport systems ‘put passengers first’ The Passenger Focus mission is to get the best deal for passengers. With a strong emphasis on evidence-based campaigning and research, they ensure that they know what is happening on the ground. They use their knowledge to influence decisions on behalf of passengers and work with the industry, passenger groups and national and local government to secure journey improvements.
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Membership
New Honorary Fellow joins the IRO Dr Malcolm Reed CBE has been awarded Honorary Fellow of the IRO he was presented with his certificate by Jo Kaye at the Annual Lunch. Dr Reed is a history graduate from Oxford University where he also undertook his PhD in economic history. He spent 17 years with Strathclyde Regional Council and became their Assistant Chief Executive in 1990. He was Director General of Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) from 1997 to 2005 during which time he was the Duty Holder for the Glasgow Subway. He served as the first Chief Executive of Transport Scotland from 2005 to 2009 during which time he was involved in the development of such schemes as the Stirling, Alloa and Kincardine link, the Airdrie to Bathgate reopening and the Borders rail route. He has served on the Advisory Committee of RSSB and was Deputy Chair of the Railway Heritage Committee and a Council Member of the Institute of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland. Currently he is an Advisory Panel Member of the Railway Heritage Trust, a Fellow of both CILT and of the CIHT and he is at present an advisor to Virgin Trains. Dr Reed has been an essential catalyst in establishing in the political world, the role of rail in Scotland and securing its future. This has been of immense and farreaching strategic significance, not only to Strathclyde, but to Scotland as a whole. He was instrumental in ensuring the politicians and officials of Strathclyde Passenger Transport Authority understood the key railway issues at a period when cuts in rail funding were threatened. Innovative solutions were jointly found to intractable problems, unlocking economies leading to new investment. When Dr Reed was DGM of SPT, SPT retained considerable involvement in heavy rail (as well as being the owners and operators of the Glasgow Subway), such that SPT were co-signatories to the initial ScotRail franchise along with OPRAF and then worked closely with ScotRail in the development and delivery of services in Strathclyde. Dr Reed led SPT’s part in these developments which
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included the procurement of new Class 334 electric units and enhanced revenue protection arrangements. Dr Reed’s appointment to Transport Scotland broadly coincided with the transfer of responsibility for the ScotRail franchise to the Scottish Government, a responsibility delivered through Transport Scotland. As CE of Transport Scotland Dr Reed was at the forefront of the development of several significant rail schemes as outlined above, which attracted national attention in the UK. Dr Reed has a remarkable knowledge of railway operations and appreciates the importance of that discipline in delivering performance and financial contracts. Despite his senior positions at both SPT and TS, his involvement in rail matters has been considerable with a particular interest in timetabling and planning matters. He was namely involved in discussions with InterCity operators about services to and from Scotland.
With this background, he has been a supporter of the aims of the IRO, and it is significant that as CE of Transport Scotland, Dr Reed underwrote the three-day courses which have been and continue to be delivered by the IRO to Transport Scotland. The seventeenth was delivered in 2013.
More pictures and a video are available on the website at www. railwayoperators.co.uk/2014/04/ iro-annual-lunch-manchester-2014photovideo-review/. See how many people you know. This was a sold out event – don’t get caught out next year! Reserve the date for next years Annual Members’ Lunch and miniconference – Friday April 17th 2015.
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Learning Products
The IRO offers short courses and bespoke training. Owing to its unique organisational competence, the IRO is increasingly popular as a provider for short learning programmes. Here we look at two of those which have run in recent months.
Transport Scotland Two three-day short courses were delivered for employees of Transport Scotland during September and October 2013. The courses were delivered to newly appointed staff to provide knowledge and an understanding of railway operational fundamental principles including infrastructure, traction types, approaches to train planning, performance management and the inter-relationships within the industry and with government.
The short programme consisted of a mix of classroom based presentations with participative exercises which were supplemented with practical visits to rail installations such as Glasgow Central Station, a driver simulator, Power Signal Box and customer services centre.
Feedback at the close of the programme was 100% positive in terms of learning uptake.
Operational Planning Principles and Practice Weekend Course 12 delegates attended a weekend course offered by the Institution of Railway Operators. The Operational Planning – Principles and Practice course was held during November 2013 in Manchester at the offices of First TransPennine Express (FTPE). During a packed weekend the delegates from a variety of backgrounds and areas of the industry learnt more about this important skill set. The course, led by IRO Tutor and Ops Planning Consultant William Barter (pictured right) and FTPE’s Timetable Strategy Manager David Langton (pictured left) guided students through the building blocks of planning the railway. The topics covered included the fundamentals of why timetables are required, the effect that the type of signalling can have on the headway and number of trains that can be run, the planning rules that result from these constraints and debates on how to define capacity. Also covered were track access agreements and the commercial requirements that also define how the timetable looks. The course examined in detail resourcing, how train crew diagrams and rosters are compiled and the need for rolling stock to be available and used efficiently in terms of stabling, fueling and maintenance. As part of the classroom course delegates carried out planning exercises that gradually built up in complexity, and were able to put into practice the skills learned over the weekend. The course gives an excellent grounding in the core principles associated with the planning and delivery of train services, with specific focus on the rail network itself, timetable construction,
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network capacity and access and how these principles need to be applied to ensure services meet commercial and performance requirements. All students who studied said they would recommend the course to others. To register your interest in the next Operational Planning – Principles and Practice course email… learning@railwayoperators.co.uk or call 03333 440523.
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Learning Products
Re-Launch of the Mentor Scheme As you will have read earlier, we spent part of 2013 asking our Corporate Members what they would like to see from us next. Mentoring was high on the list of things the industry wanted to see from the IRO. Over the New Year Members and Fellows of the IRO received an invitation to take part in a re-launch of the mentor scheme which begun so successfully in the South East Area. We had a phenomenal response and we now have a superb establishment of mentors ready and waiting for action.
The scheme will run in most parts of the UK through the good offices of the IRO Area Councils from June onwards. Designed to be a free service for members, the scheme will include quality improvement measures such as volunteer training and other CPD for the mentors and mentee evaluations overseen by the IRO Mentor Panel.
New On-Line Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Oering In response to a majority request from corporate members through the 2013 survey, a new suite of learning approaches is being created. Introducing Steve Ball, the IRO Learning Products Manager, who will be creating the all-new online CPD offering for rail operations in the coming months.
The work is well underway and will be developed alongside a select number of pilot organisations. If you are interested in your organisation being involved in the pilot please let Steve know at steve@railwayoperators.co.uk
Communities of Practice As part of the IRO’s development offering and in direct response to our Corporate Members feedback we will be establishing Communities of Practice. Communities of Practice will identify, discuss and capture good practices, principles and techniques in railway operations.
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If you are a stakeholder interested in working in or impacted by developments you would like to share with others then please get in touch with Fiona at the IRO
by email to: ceo@railwayoperators.co.uk
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Areas
Government Funding is now available for part-time students! The BSc programme in Railway Operations Management is now listed on the academic student finance framework meaning that you can now study with the IRO on the same terms as full time students. For the first time in October 2013 two students pioneered this government student loan funding for the IRO programme. Francis Oppong Odames certificate student and Georges Wandji Mbonkwi a returning learner taking the degree are now helping advise other potential students to get great professional development in a timescale to suit them.
Georges successfully completed the diploma programme and receiving a student loan has allowed him to study further with the IRO by undertaking the two year degree course.
found on the IRO website www.railwayoperators.co.uk/ learning-development/academiccourses or from the IRO team on: 03333 440523.
The funding available to UK students to pay tuition fees is based on place of residence, household income, the course being studied and previous study. More information on student finance can be
A summary guide can also be found in the latest Railway Operators Management Qualifications brochure.
In October 2013, 43 Certificate, 38 Diploma and 30 Degree students enrolled on the 2014 academic Railway Operators Management courses.
Students awarded qualifications by GCU Twenty six students were awarded their qualifications by Glasgow Caledonian University on 25th November 2013. Well done to you all on your dedication and commitment to your professional learning. Certificate: Christopher Berriman First Capital Connect, Alae El-Damanawi Tubelines, John Eves Transport for London, Christopher Grainger Transport for London, Dominic Morgan First Capital Connect, Lee Potter First Capital Connect, Sandeep Sidhu First Capital Connect, Emma Newman First Capital Connect, Andrew Sidgwick First Capital Connect, David Simpson Translink, John Wilson Network Rail. Diploma: Darren Bowe Irish Rail, Matthew Bromley Chiltern Railways, Alan Brownings Southern Railway, Joseph Buchanan Irish Rail, Christopher Burke Virgin Trains, Frank Cappelli Irish Rail, Daniel Carney Irish Rail, Gavin Collins Irish Rail, Stuart Ferguson First TransPennine Express, Zoe Fithern First Great Western, Paul Harris Southern Railway, Dean Hayman Network Rail, Stewart Langridge Freightliner, Bronagh McAteer Translink, John O’Connor Irish Rail.
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Areas
Area Councils Change in Leadership Our seven area councils are key to the operation of the IRO working all around the country putting on presentations, debates, visits and social gatherings for those involved in the railway. There have been some recent changes in Chairman of three of our Area Councils
Colin Robey
Mike Christelow
Lawrie Hall
Nick Edwards
Chris Loder
Glen Merryman
Midlands
South West and Wales
South East
Colin Robey has stepped down as Chair but remains an active council member. The new Chair is Mike Christelow
Lawrie Hall has stepped down as Chair but remains an active council member. The new Chair is Nick Edwards
Chris Loder has stepped down as Chair and Glen Merryman has taken over as the new Chair
We would like to thank all of our three outgoing Chairmen, Colin, Lawrie and Chris for their outstanding contribution as Chairman of their Area Councils and their leadership has been greatly appreciated.
The most recent of the meetings took place at the IRO’s course launch held at Glasgow Caledonian University’s London campus on Saturday 5th October 2013. Besides a rather full agenda of their own, the Area Councils were able to address around 120 new students and explain the learning support available to them in their local area.
The work continues on Saturday May 17th when these committed rail professionals will once again meet to determine how to build value into the membership experience
The Area Councils are now meeting as a collective twice a year in order to share best practice and help steer the direction of the IRO from a membership perspective.
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Areas
North East Area
Signaller Training Centre Visit IRO members in the North East visited a functioning Signaller Training Centre operated by Network Rail in Leeds city centre. The visit included the opportunity for members to have a ‘hands on’ experience of signalling trains on both Absolute Block and NX (Entry/Exit) Panel simulators (with all the bells and whistles). A member of the Network Rail workforce development team was on hand for the duration of the event to run the simulators and answer questions from members regarding the design and operation of signalling systems. Those present gained an insight into how Network Rail moves trains around the Railway using a variety of signalling systems. They also gained perspective of the procedures and demands placed on Signallers while working a shift in a Signal Box. Alex Paddon North East Area Council
North East Area
‘Railway Investment in the North’ Graham Botham, the Principal Strategic Planner for the London North East and East Midlands Route at Network Rail provided a talk on how railway investment is identified, funded and how large a role it plays in the economic success of the UK. Graham provided a thoroughly interesting talk about how strategic and considerate the enhancement plans are for the railways of Britain. The strategy takes into account a large variety of influencing factors, which included a 20 year look ahead, the economic needs of the country, and the energy strategy. The example given of the Northern Hub and TransPennine electrification was fascinating as Graham talked through how the programme was developed, what we can expect to see and why the work is being delivered in the order we will see it.
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But simply investing only works if you are enabling the movement of enough people, and generally this will be people to/from their places of work. A really exciting example was provided which demonstrated the huge success of the Manchester tram system. Overall the talk provided a rare insight into the complexities and influences that the improving rail network delivers. Emrys Warriner North East Area Council
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North East Area
IEP Project talk 11th March 2014 Jon Colley IEP Project Manager gave an extremely interesting and informative talk on the IEP (Intercity Express Programme) project. The illustrated talk described in detail the project which would improve the Great Western Main Line (GWML) and East Coast Main Line (ECML) operations significantly. Hand in hand with the electrification of the GWML to South Wales and the re-signalling of both routes will be the introduction of a fleet of new trains drawing from the expertise of Japanese train builder Hitachi. Hitachi have experience with the renowned Shinkansen ultra high speed trains in their home country and with the 395 stock on HS1 in UK conditions, which makes them an ideal supplier for such an important project. The new trains, apart from a few early deliveries, will be constructed and tested in County Durham at a new facility being built at Newton Aycliffe near Darlington. Many suppliers from the UK and Europe are contracted to supply components to Newton Aycliffe. Acceptance testing will involve running on a test track at Melton, and on the ECML. Trains will be multiple units formed in sets of five or nine 26 metre long carriages. Some trains will be built exploiting bimodal traction systems, thus enabling through-working from electrified to non-electrified routes, and changeover between modes will be carried out at
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line speed. Multiple unit working will be possible. Not all trains will be bi-modal, but there will be examples of both standard lengths in straight electric and dual power although the GWML will only operate 5 car bi-modal trains, in the current plan. One of the revolutionary features will be an on-board generator on the electric sets. This would maintain essential services (air conditioning, lights etc.) if the overhead power was lost but could even provide sufficient power to move the train to a suitable place where passengers could be detrained safely, albeit at low speed. This may remove the need to maintain a contract for standby locomotives, and is expected to reduce passenger inconvenience considerably. 57 new trains will be introduced on the GWML and 65 for the ECML with a total of 866 new carriages altogether. The trains will incorporate a wide range of technical improvements to make the customer experience better, and ultimately could provide c.8 million more seats per annum on East Coast. Passenger features and interior ambience has been extensively assessed by panels of customer groups. Leg room has been improved by innovative design despite including more seats in vehicles. Introduction of the new trains will
commence in 2014 entering service three years later on the GWML. Full service on the GWML will be completed by 2018. Full ECML service is due to be completed in 2020. A train service delivery contract by Agility Trains will be introduced covering 27 years. This will be a significant departure for both Train Operators. Agility Trains will be the train service provider responsible for maintaining and servicing the two fleets. The contract with the operator requires an agreed number of trains to be delivered daily for the train service. Agility Trains is 70% owned by Hitachi, John Laing having a 24% share, and MetLife 6%. New depots will be required, some existing depots will transfer and extensive staff training and redeployment will be necessary. The scope of the project was explained in great detail. The new concept of Train Service Provider being applied to this project will require a culture change, but is expected to reap considerable benefits to the Operator and the passenger, with the new trains expecting to deliver high standards of comfort, reliability and service. David Monk-Steel North East Area Council
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Areas
North West & North Wales Area
Study Trip to Northern Ireland The North West and North Wales Area repeated its successes of recent years by organising a 3-day Study Tour between 11th and the13th October. This time the visit was to the compact Northern Ireland Railways system. Thanks to the help and planning of Hilton Parr (Head of Rail Customer Services/ Chair of IRO Ireland) and his team an excellent, very busy weekend was enjoyed by all. In fact more than one member remarked that it was the best Study Tour to date. For the North West the initial planning was undertaken by Roy Chapman, Area Secretary, whilst Tom Cox (the organizer of all the Tours to date) took over and completed the planning to his usual excellent standard. Throughout the weekend the IRO party was well looked after by Hilton and particularly by Gerard Holly (Senior Customer Services Supervisor, NIR), who ensured the programme went to plan (and like any good railwayman, modified the plan as necessary to meet contingencies). The group stayed in the City Centre in the historic Cathedral Quarter, there followed a very busy three days. Saturday was the ‘out and about’ the system day, including; • A tour of Belfast Central Signal Cabin; • A visit to the new Adelaide Train and Signalling Simulators and operating training facility; • A tour of Adelaide Maintenance Depot and a chance to have a closer look at some of the new Class 3000 and 4000 trains.
• A tour of the new Portadown Station and Signal Cabin
Tony O’Hanlan – Signalling Traffic Supervisor
On the Sunday the group travelled to Cultra to visit the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum and on the Monday travelled to Londonderry.
John Thompson – Mechanical Eng
Special thanks go to those at NIR who facilitated the trip and visits, including Hilton Parr (Head of Rail Customer Services/ Chair of IRO Ireland) Gerard Holly (Senior Customer Services Supervisor, NIR),
Pat Hunt – Station Supervisor Portadown A full write up of this event can be found on the NW Area News and Reviews: http://www.railwayoperators. co.uk/2013/10/the-iro-nwnw-areastudy-trip-to-northern-ireland-11-to13-october-2013/ Roy Chapman North West & North Wales Area Council
North West & North Wales Area
How to keep the railway running and stay out of gaol Presentation by Clive Fletcher-Wood OBE Hon FIRO that was held on the 8th January 2014 Members of the IRO are no doubt aware that the current safety record for UK rail is the best which it has ever been. Nevertheless, in the last two years a Network Rail signaller has been fined
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£1,750 and a Merseyrail guard imprisoned for manslaughter as a result of their actions at work. Companies have seen the penalties applied under the Health & Safety at Work Act steadily increase. Clive Fletcher-Wood has been personally involved in most of the inquiries, inquests and court cases which have followed the
(mercifully few) fatal railway accidents since rail privatisation. Clive is uniquely placed to describe not only what the law says but how it has been applied and how the application of the law has changed in response to public opinion. Clive summarised the legal position for both companies and individuals under Continues over…
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the Health & Safety at Work Act and the law governing both corporate and individual manslaughter. There has been a change in public mood from a view that “accidents will happen” to a view that accidents have an underlying cause and therefore someone must be responsible and should be held to account. As a result, there is greater public pressure for prosecutions. Clive quoted Sir Michael Bishop of bmi as saying after the Kegworth air crash “If you think that safety is expensive, try having an accident.” The corporate impact of an accident can threaten a
company’s survival. Clive’s advice for staying out of gaol included not only implementing a safe approach to work (“embedded safety”) but ensuring that you are able to produce written evidence to demonstrate this. This evidence includes keeping a record of decisions especially decisions not to change something. Clive’s advice in respect of individuals was that companies should not allow them to be interviewed alone by investigators. Individuals in safety-critical roles should not be rostered to work on the day of an interview. Individuals called as witnesses in legal proceedings should tell the truth. They should be briefed on what to expect
from the legal process and be cautioned against speaking about areas outside their immediate expertise. This was a fascinating talk from Clive which combined practical advice arising from a detailed insight into recent railway accidents and the legal proceedings which followed them. Iain King North West & North Wales Area Council
North West & North Wales Area
Integrated planning of infrastructure enhancements with bubbles Paul Sutherland, Route Planning Manager, LNW Route, Network Rail, gave an interesting presentation on changing the way we plan and deliver engineering work. Paul Sutherland, Route Planning Manager, LNW Route, Network Rail, provided a fascinating insight into a topic impacting everyone involved in rail operations. The rail industry needs a cost-effective way to deliver the planned enhancements in CP5 whilst minimising disruption to passengers and freight customers. Planning with bubbles is providing a way of doing so. Network Rail’s strategic themes for CP5 include the biggest investment in the rail network since Victorian times, providing reliable timetables and increase customer focus. Paul showed how an integrated approach to planning infrastructure enhancements helps Network Rail to deliver against these objectives. Everyone wants a better rail network but agreeing the best time for enhancement work is never easy. For example whilst August is traditionally seen as a quieter time, on the LNW Route is peak holiday passenger travel and freight flows of imported Chinese Christmas goods are carried in containers from Felixstowe to the north. The challenge is to make the best possible use of the time available for enhancements and minimise the disruption to passenger and freight rail operators.
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Paul has introduced a planning process which considers both the work planned for CP5 and the customers who will be affected. Planning begins with a map of the Route on which all the planned enhancements for CP5 have been plotted. Enhancements are grouped into “bubbles” based on an area of railway geography where a major enhancement project can be identified. The process then examines the other CP5 work and traffic flows, maximising the work which can be done during a single period of disruption and avoiding digging up the same piece of railway twice in a control period. An industry access planning tool is used to model the financial impact of different planning options on the different stakeholders with the objective to identify the most commercially efficient access strategy and a clear understanding of the trade-offs. Decisions made during the planning process and the reasons for them are recorded resulting in a plan to which all stakeholders can agree because they understand the impact of the alternatives on themselves and others. Iain King North West & North Wales Area Council
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Areas
Midlands Area
Lord Tony Berkeley – “A voice for freight” An appreciative audience filled the East Midlands Trains’ Customer Service Academy in Derby to hear Lord Tony Berkeley speak on April 10 2014. Lord Berkeley, Chairman of the Rail Freight Group and Director of European Rail Freight Association, continued our theme of “Delivering a sustainable and future-proof railway for CP5 and beyond” with a fascinating insight presenting a voice for freight. Lord Berkeley began by illustrating how the rail freight business is evolving, with new markets coming to rail (such as biomass) whilst efficiency is improving with a significant increase in milliongross-tonne-miles (MGTM) compared with train numbers run between 2005-06 and 2012-13. Even more dramatic are the forecasts for growth by 2033/4, with intermodal volumes expected to reach around 45mt (million tonnes) for domestic traffic and over 60mt for international traffic by 2034, compared with around 7 and 20 million tonnes respectively at the moment. These expectations present major challenges for the industry, which needs to deliver increased capacity, greater efficiency and better cost competitiveness. More needs to be invested in equipment and terminals and greater electrification capability is essential. Crucially, freight on rail needs to be an integrated part of freight logistics and the end-to-end journey. Lord Berkeley went on to illustrate some of these aspects in more detail with examples such as Bacon Factory curve (a.k.a. the Ipswich Chord) being commissioned in March and allowing
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Felixstowe-Peterborough services to avoid reversal and/or loco change at Ipswich. Amongst many key points raised, two subtle but significant changes are foreseen for the future. Firstly, incremental increases in capacity will diminish as opportunities are realised and completed, meaning ‘mega-projects’ will be much more common. Secondly, rail freight needs to be fully integrated into freight logistics, with the “last mile” being factored into the overall transit arrangements in line with the aspirations of the LaMiLo project. Lord Berkeley went on to highlight the importance of HS2 to freight, as it will provide extra capacity on the parallel WCML, but there are substantial challenges with capacity both in Phase 1 (path availability at Lichfield with freight expected to double) and north of Warrington in Phase 2. HS2 freight won’t fit without some major enhancements. On a related note, rail to and from the continent via HS1 and the channel tunnel is still hampered by access charges, a lack of independent regulation and a minefield of legal challenges by the European Commission against both the UK and French Governments.
over 10m lorry journeys per annum from the road network by 2034. This presentation sparked a robust and wide-ranging debate amongst those present, with an audience that clearly enjoyed the event and took much interest from it. IRO Midlands would like to thank Lord Tony Berkeley for the presentation, East Midlands Trains for hosting the event and all those who attended an excellent event. Midlands Area News Letter The Midlands Area have just launched the IRO Midlands Area newsletter. A copy of this can be seen on the website http://www.railwayoperators. co.uk/2014/04/iro-midlands-newsapril-2014/ We hope to produce this every month (well, nearly every month!) and would love to get your feedback and suggestions. Please email m.chairman@ railwayoperators.co.uk with your thoughts. Mike Christelow Chairman Midlands Area Council
In concluding, Lord Berkeley argued that the future of freight in the UK is intermodal. If the rail industry stands-up effectively to the challenge, the future for freight on rail is an optimistic one which amongst other benefits would remove
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South West & South Wales Area
Reading Train Care Depot Visit On the afternoon of 15th October John Murphy, First Great Western’s Fleet Manager for London & Thames Valley welcomed 11 IRO South West & Wales Area members to the new Reading Train Care Depot. The depot, which Volker Fitzpatrick began constructing in November 2011, has been built to the west of Reading station to free up the depot’s previous location for new rail routes to increase rail transport capacity. Built with enhancements to allow for future stabling and servicing of electric trains, the new depot provides capacity for 147 vehicles. The £150M depot was officially opened by Patrick McLoughlin, Secretary of State for Transport on 18th July 2013. The IRO delegates were given an overview of the new facility, that included the challenges of operating
two sites simultaneously; workforce and maintenance migration and introduction of new facilities with minimal impact on service delivery and an overview of the L&TV Fleet and its operation. This was followed by a tour of the Train Care Depot including the Depot Control Office where all movements on the depot are controlled and the maintenance shed where First Great Western’s fleet of 165, 166 and 150/0 units are serviced and maintained. The IRO would like to thank John Murphy and the First Great Western Team at the Reading Train Care Depot for facilitating this interesting and rare opportunity
to experience the operation of a train maintenance facility. Martin Bonnington South West & South Wales Area Council
South West & South Wales Area
CrossCountry Trains Simulator Experience & East Midlands Integrated Control Centre Members of the IRO South West & Wales Area were offered a chance to visit the CrossCountry Trains Driving Simulator in Derby on 6th February. The visit was very informative and allowed delegates to see how drivers are put through their paces! The Simulator centre contains two Voyager simulators with three routes available to test drivers: Bristol Temple Meads to Gloucester; Coventry to Wolverhampton and Edinburgh to Torness. This allows all drivers to be tested on a route they currently, or will sign. The cabs themselves contain everything a Voyager does. There are a number of scenarios each driver can be put through to see how they react and how to deal with anything unusual they may encounter. Each delegate was given the opportunity to take the controls, facing events such as a horse on the line, a freak snowfall, a signal not displaying correctly, and a broken windscreen. Following the visit to the simulator delegates had the option to
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visit the East Midlands Railway Operating Centre. The first part of the visit was to look at the signalling floor, which controls the Midland Mainline from Sharnbrook; the area formerly controlled by Trent Junction; the rebuilt Nottingham station; Robin Hood Line to Mansfield Woodhouse and the start of the East Nottinghamshire lines to Lincoln and Skegness. There will be a greater area to be added to the latter workstation upon resignalling. The Robin Hood Line desk also has control of the tramway over level crossings that are shared with Network Rail. The next part of the visit included another simulator experience, this time in the Trent Junction simulator, which controls from Loughborough to Attenborough, Long Eaton and just South of Toton. This also has control of a number of level crossings, and these are simulated as well, with touch screen controls representing
everything the signaller sees. To complete the visit delegates visited the East Midlands Trains/ Network Rail Devon & Cornwall Railways control floor and learnt of the remote monitoring equipment of points and cable troughing to prevent cable theft. It is interesting to see how the areas signalling has changed over the recent period, and how traffic patterns have changed. Martin Bonnington South West & South Wales Area Council
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Areas
South East Area
Multi-Purpose Vehicle Depot Visit Following on from the South Western Railway MPV talk on Monday 27th January, Chris Loder, Head of Business Projects, kindly invited a group of IRO members to visit one of the key bases of MPV operations, Effingham Junction. Chris began by showing us around the facilities provided for MPV operators which have been refurbished to provide a clean, comfortable environment for the South West Trains drivers who are now diagrammed on MPV operations. Whilst we were there, works were ongoing to renew the five road shed (formerly seven roads for Class 455s and steam before that). Chris pointed to progress so far such as replacement of external windows and the next part of the project, overhaul to the roof of the building. Chris also pointed out the new diesel storage facility which enables more diesel to be stored on site, reducing the need for
daily deliveries. Chris also highlighted the movement of water provision which now enables driver diagram efficiencies to be made as MPV units can be filled with water once inside the depot. Attention then turned to the reason for the works being undertaken on the shed; the MPVs themselves. There were three units on the depot at the time of our visit. One of which was being prepared to assist with de-icing duties. Chris told us about the dual role the units have with track clearance during leaf fall and de-icing of the third rail. Although these activities cannot be carried out at the same time,
the benefit of the units being able to undertake both activities is that it is easy to switch between the two. Chris also alluded to the MPVs being used for other purposes during the summer months but stressed that at the moment they were all just ideas. Although quiet due to the time of year it was easy to imagine the depot being a hive of activity in the leaf fall season as productivity increases and the benefit the MPVs offer is realised by drivers and passengers alike. Glen Merryman Chairman South East Area Council
South East Area
Abellio Greater Anglia Driver Simulator Visit Abellio Greater Anglia’s Training Manager Stewart BelďŹ eld gave a lucky 14 IRO Members an introduction to their impressive Stratford Academy, and the systems that they use for training drivers and assessing drivers periodically. The importance of the simulators for practising driving in unusual but probable situations on the railway was demonstrated once we were let loose. The route we drove saw some pretty freak conditions, everything from signal failures to cows on the line and bird strikes! The Stratford Academy allowed us to experience its Class 315 and Class 170 simulators, as well as the stateof-the-art Class 379, giving those on the visit a wide range of driving experiences. After we had all had a go, or two, or three, we were then invited to ask any questions we had regarding the training of drivers, with IROSE Council Member (and trip organiser) Rob Mawby also imparting his knowledge, as a former Abellio Greater Anglia Driver Manager. It was pleasing to see so many IRO members there from many different areas of the industry and different levels of experience.
South East Areat Council members at the Golden Whistles Awards in January 2014.
Glen Merryman Chairman South East Area Council
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South East Area
St Pancras International Station Visit Network Rail (High Speed)’s Operations Delivery Manager at St Pancras International, Brian Lynch, gave 16 IRO members a fascinating backstage tour of London’s International station. An introduction started with Brian giving those on the visit an appreciation of the challenges of running not just a 24-hour station, but also one which deals with huge volumes of commuter, high-speed commuter, airport, long-distance, and international passengers from 4 different train operators. We were shown around the station operations of: Network Rail, East Midlands Trains, Eurostar, First Capital Connect, Southeastern High Speed and how they all need to interact, whilst keeping their own customers at the forefront of what they do. The logistical challenge in providing all of this; keeping their 4 customers happy, all the retailers, as well as the added complication that
most of the station is owned by a pension fund; was quite apparent and is one I’m sure none of us envy – especially given further restrictions imposed by English Heritage! All this seamlessly goes on beneath the imposingly beautiful station canopy and in the shadow of the impressive St Pancras Renaissance Hotel. After seeing what goes on behind the scenes and the immense pressures involved, it is clear to see what a fantastic job Brian’s team and everyone involved in running a train service at St Pancras International do. Glen Merryman Chairman South East Area Council
Irish Area
Welcome to our new members
New library
Dublin meeting
The Irish Area council would like to welcome all the new members that have recently joined the IRO. The Area has seen an impressive increase in membership since January 2014 with 173 new members signing up with the IRO this year. This equates to a 92% growth in members.
On 18th April, Good Friday turned out to be very good for the employees of Iarnród Éireann, where the start of their Railway Operators’ library arrived in a consignment personally delivered by Kim Moore.
Fiona Tordoff, CEO, has been to Dublin to discuss further developments with Jim Meade Director Railway Undertaking, Ciaran Masterson Director of HR and David Franks CEO at Iarnród Éireann and is scheduled to meet up with Ian Campbell Head of Operations Translink, in Belfast to take these ideas forward.
Hilton Parr Irish Area Chairman
Kim works part time at the Stafford Office and was revisiting old haunts in Dublin with her young family and agreed to act as a personal courier. Ciaran Masterson, Director of HR at Iarnród Éireann, will be setting up the library for use by Iarnród Éireann employees. People who would like to borrow books should contact Ciaran Masterson. Happy reading!
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Areas
Scottish Area
Go on, take a dip! The Scottish Area meets every alternative month starting each year in February. Our venues are kindly sponsored by Network Rail and First Scotrail. We have a varied menu of meeting subjects with the occasional visit to sites of interest. The Scottish Council are undertaking a review of the meeting structure in Scotland identifying how we can enhance the learning experience and focus on what the membership, both corporate and individual want to gain from their involvement with the IRO in Scotland. We are indebted to First Scotrail in supporting this process and the Council
hope to launch the new look meetings in September. We actively support members who wish to expand their knowledge within the educational programme by sponsoring places at external events such as the Scottish Rail Conference. The IRO and the Scottish Area is here for you to use to network and engage with a wide and knowledgeable group of people willing and able to enhance your understanding of railway operations in its widest context. Go on, take a dip! Jim Douglas Chair, Scottish Area, IRO
What’s On in your Area 13 June 2014: IRO Conference Operations Learning from 2013/14 Extreme Weather Visit our website at http://www. railwayoperators.co.uk/whats-on/ for further details on how to book, or contact the office on 03333 440523
Irish Area
15 Jul 2014: Visit to the National Railway Museum, York
is an ideal day out for the family, with lots to do for young and old alike.
Join us on this visit to the National Railway Museum for an interactive experience of signalling through the years, hosted by Phil Graham.
Time 09:00 to 16:00
For details contact David Monk-Steel at northeast@railwayoperators.co.uk
For details contact Hilton Parr at i.chairman@railwayoperators.co.uk
North West Area
Scottish Area
Ardwick Depot and Driver Simulator
For details contact Jim Douglas at s.events@railwayoperators.co.uk
26 Jul 2014: Family Social Event
North East Area 10 Jun 2014: Visit to a driving simulator 26 Jun 2014: Visit to Doncaster Power Signal Box on the East Coast Main Line followed by a social evening in Doncaster. 8 Jul 2014: Visit to Neville Hill Depot, Leeds
25 Jun 2014: Visit to First TPE
The North West and North Wales Area council are organising a trip to Liverpool. For details contact Tricia Meade at nw.events@railwayoperators.co.uk
Midlands Area
For details contact Julia Stanyard at midlands@railwayoperators.co.uk
South West Area For details contact Martin Bonnington at sw.events@railwayoperators.co.uk
South East Area 9 Jun 2014: Depot visit Find out more about how the Willesden TMD operates on a daily basis and the challenges it faces as LOROL increases their Class 378 trains from four carriages to five carriages by April 2015. Time 16:00-19:00. Contact: Rob Mawby at se.events@railwayoperators.co.uk For details contact Jonathan Leithead at se.events@railwayoperators.co.uk
14 Jun 2014: Summer Family Day 2014 Join us on a visit to the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway, for a fun day exploring this thriving heritage railway. The Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway
More details of area events are listed on the website at www.railwayoperators.co.uk/whats-on/
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