In The News | 11th March 2021 | Latest Rail News

Click here to listen to the latest rail news on Thursday, 11th March 2021

The latest rail news on Thursday, 11th March 2021

Scotland’s transport minister has signalled his intention to place the nation’s main railway operator under public control.

An article in The Times (Scotland) says Michael Matheson has told MSPs on the rural economy and connectivity committee that he wants to create an integrated system when the existing ScotRail franchise ended in March next year.

At present Network Rail is responsible for infrastructure, while Abellio runs the ScotRail services. The Caledonian Sleeper is overseen by Serco in a contract which runs until 2030.

Balfour Beatty is increasing its share buyback scheme to £150 million in an attempt to perk up its share price and has reinstated the dividend after paying back £19 million in furlough support.

That is according to an article in The Times that writes that the construction company, which is one of the main beneficiaries of contracts such as HS2, has reported that, while not getting through the pandemic unscathed, it ended 2020 with a bigger cash pile at £581 million than it started the year with.

Merseyrail has solidified its reputation as one of the most punctual train operators in the UK by breaking a national performance record.

The Liverpool City Region train operator completed an entire 28-day period with 99 per cent of its trains arriving on time or within 5 minutes (Public Performance Measure – PPM) – a first for the UK rail industry.

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Finally, and young people have seen their mental health deteriorate the most since the pandemic began, according to new research from Network Rail and national mental health charity, Chasing the Stigma.

Almost three quarters of 18-24-year-olds (69%) say that COVID-19 has had a negative impact on their mental health compared to 28% of over 65s, while nearly half of Brits (48%) agreed that their mental health has taken a hit since the pandemic began.

The research was carried out as part of Network Rail’s new There is Always Hope campaign aimed at encouraging those struggling with their mental health to seek help before they reach crisis point.

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Photo credit: Network Rail

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