In The News: 18th June

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The rail-related story dominating a lot of the national newspapers today is the High Court ruling backing the Government’s decision to block Stagecoach from bidding for three rail franchises due to a row over pensions.

The i newspaper writes that Stagecoach sued the Department for Transport for disqualifying it from bidding for the East Midlands, South Eastern and West Coast franchises due to a pension liabilities dispute.

The Department for Transport says it strongly welcomes the decision, while Stagecoach says they are disappointed, but accept the decision and move on.

The wearing of face coverings is to become mandatory on public transport in Scotland according to an article in The Scotsman.

Industry sources have told the paper that passengers on trains will be compelled to comply to help reassure fellow travellers.

In England the wearing of face coverings became mandatory on public transport from Monday.

A public consultation on plans for the long-awaited Levenmouth rail link should begin within a few weeks.

That’s according to an article in the Dundee Courier that says the community will be asked for their view on various aspects of the £70 million project, due to open in 2023.

That includes the preferred options for two stations and a possible freight terminal at Cameron Bridge.

Eurostar is set to roll out facial recognition technology on services from London, meaning that passengers will be able to skip borders and ticket checks.

That’s according to an article in City A.M that writes the new technology, from biometric authentication firm Iproov, will allow passengers to make entirely contactless journeys through the deployment of a facial biometric corridor at St Pancras station.

It is planned to be in live operation by March 2021.

Take a look here for the latest rail industry news.

Photo credit: JessicaGirvan / Shutterstock.com

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