Click here to listen to the latest rail news on Wednesday, 22nd June 2022
InTheNews: The latest rail news on Wednesday, 22nd June 2022
The UK is facing a second day of travel disruption, with just 60 per cent of trains due to be running.
That’s according to an article in the i newspaper that says rail workers from the RMT union, along with London Underground, staged the largest rail strike for several decades on Tuesday.
Strikes are not scheduled for Wednesday, but train services are expected to be down around 40 per cent due to the knock-on effect of missing overnight staff.
Workers are calling for better pay and an end to compulsory redundancy; RMT wants a pay rise of seven per cent, while employers have so far offered three per cent.
An article in the Evening Standard says deputy prime minister Dominic Raab said that strikes by rail unions would not “win” pay demands of at least seven per cent as it would plunge Britain into a “vicious cycle” of spiralling inflation.
In other news, the organisation responsible for light rail safety in the UK is all set to press ahead with its vital work thanks to continued government funding.
The Department for Transport has confirmed a £3.3 million package of support for the Light Rail Safety and Standards Board (LRSSB) that will help it to drive a wide range of projects over the next three years.
Welcoming the new financial agreement, Carl Williams, LRSSB Chief Executive, said: “This continued funding will enable us to accelerate our ambitious delivery programme in a number of key areas.”
HS2’s designers have reduced the length of wall structures for the railway at Streethay from 1.6 kilometres to 420 metres, meaning 80 per cent less concrete will be needed, supporting HS2’s ambition to cut carbon on the project.
This will save around 70,000 cubic metres of concrete, the equivalent to 6,700 concrete mixer lorry loads. In total, around 420,000 tonnes of carbon has been saved in this area of the project.
0113 2082620
info@railbusinessdaily.com
15 Mariner Court, Wakefield WF4 3FL
