Click here to listen to the latest rail news on Wednesday, 5th May 2021
The latest rail news on Wednesday, 5th May 2021
The type of ScotRail train involved in the fatal Stonehaven derailment should be withdrawn from service because of their lack of crashworthiness a rail engineer has urged.
That is according to an article in The Scotsman that says Gareth Dennis said the “High Speed Trains”, which are based on A 50-year-old design, should no longer operate because of the lack of protection they offered in a crash compared to more modern trains, including for drivers.
The paper says an interim report by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch into the tragedy near Stonehaven said its main areas of investigation included the “crashworthiness of rail vehicles in high energy accidents”.
Mr Dennis told the paper he hoped Transport Scotland would now plan for an earlier replacement of the HSTs than the current 2030 target date.
Network Rail has completed essential upgrades to the railway between Euston, the Midlands, North West and Scotland over the early May bank holiday.
Between Saturday 1 and Monday 3 May, teams carried out vital work on the railway to improve passenger and freight services on the West Coast main line – the Backbone of Britain.
Work to recover a derailed engineering train and repair damage to the track and signalling equipment continued overnight, with services expected to resume this afternoon.
Network Rail workers have been on site since the early hours of Tuesday morning, when an engineering train derailed at Church Fenton, causing disruption between Leeds and York.
The line between Church Fenton and Micklefield closed so essential investigations could take place safely, meaning trains have been cancelled, delayed, or diverted throughout the day, with bus replacement services in operation for some routes.
Finally, and archaeologists working to prepare the UK for HS2 have begun unlocking almost 900 years of history at St Mary’s Church in Stoke Mandeville, Buckinghamshire.
The Old St Mary’s Church was built in 1080AD, shortly after the Norman conquest that transformed Saxon England. Renovated in the 13th, 14th and 17th centuries, it played a central role in the community, furnished with a variety of extensions and the construction of a brick bell tower.
The site sits on the line of the new HS2 route and is being carefully removed by a team from LP-Archaeology, working with HS2’s enabling works contractor, Fusion-JV.
Photo credit: Network Rail
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