In The News | 17th February 2023 | Latest Rail News

Click here to listen to the latest rail news on Friday, 17th February 2023

InTheNews: The latest rail news on Friday, 17th February 2023

Rail workers are to stage a series of fresh strikes in the long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions.

An article on City AM says members of the Rail, Martime and Transport union (RMT) will walk out on March 16, 18 and 30, and April 1, at 14 train operators.

The union’s members at Network Rail will strike on March 16 and will then launch a ban on overtime.

Thousands of train passengers will suffer major disruption this weekend due to no direct services running between London and Scotland while Network Rail carries out engineering work on two major routes simultaneously.

An article in The Herald said Network Rail said a “congested work programme” means it must close sections of both the East Coast and West Coast main lines on Saturday and Sunday.

Watchdog Transport Focus said: “this situation should not happen”.

Journeys between London and Scotland will be significantly slower than usual and require at least one change.

Great Western Railway says it has completed the purchase of a number of assets from emission-free battery and hybrid trains manufacturer Vivarail, which entered administration last December.

GWR has agreed contracts to buy intellectual property, rolling stock and equipment relating to the development of high-performance battery and FastCharge technology designed to support wider introduction of battery-powered trains on the UK’s rail network.

The deal secures the future of planned trials of the technology in a real-world environment, which GWR was supporting between West Ealing and Greenford.

Click here for more details.

A £750,000 upgrade of a railway station aimed at improving facilities for passengers has been completed.

An article on the BBC website says the scheme at Hattersley station in Tameside includes a new waiting area, grab rails and audio descriptions for visually-impaired customers.

Plans for the station on the Manchester to Glossop line were approved in 2020.

Photo credit: GWR

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