Click here to listen to the latest rail news on Tuesday, 2nd March 2021
The latest rail news on Tuesday, 2nd March 2021
The North’s leaders have agreed a final preferred route for Northern Powerhouse Rail and called on the Government to be ambitious when publishing its rail investment plan for the region.
Transport for the North has formally written to Government with its official plan for badly-needed rail investment over the coming decades, which could create more than 70,000 new jobs in the North.
Leaders agree that now is not the time to scale back on ambition and say Government should commit to the full, transformational vision for both Northern Powerhouse Rail and HS2. They say both will define the North’s economic future for the rest of this century, boosting jobs and growth.
It comes ahead of publication of the Government’s Integrated Rail Plan, anticipated later this month.
Tens of thousands of railway staff are being trained in understanding disabled passengers’ needs, according to the rail regulator.
An article on ITV.com says that by the end of the year nearly 30,000 staff will have received training on issues such as effective communication and how to support disabled people wanting to travel, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) said.
The ORR is monitoring the progress of train operators and Network Rail in relation to accessible travel.
Network Rail has established a new team to help become a more efficient and dependable partner within the rail industry, and bring an increased focus on efficient delivery of major projects and investment.
Part of wider organisational changes, the launch of the Rail Investment Centre of Excellence aims to give the company a more seamless view of rail investment through to capital delivery, and provide confidence that benefits will be delivered for passengers and freight users more efficiently.
This new structure also means the Open for Business programme will be able to transition to ‘business as usual’ one year ahead of schedule, having completed the milestones set out by the Hansford review.
Finally, and the February edition of RailDirector magazine is now available online, and the best news is you can read it for free.
The magazine continues to go from strength to strength with the latest edition featuring an exclusive interview with Sir John Armitt CBE, Chair of the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), amongst other high-profile industry leaders.
He spoke to RailDirector shortly after the release of NIC’s Rail Needs Assessment report, which will inform the government’s forthcoming Integrated Rail Plan.
Photo credit: Network Rail
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