“Having spent over two decades in the UK railway industry, I’ve never seen a situation this dire. Slow CP7 spending is hitting suppliers which forces layoffs. The industry is losing skilled professionals at an alarming rate, with engineers, site managers, and experienced rail workers moving to other sectors due...

In February, Rail Minister Lord Peter Hendy described how GBRX has been established to deliver one of the five priorities that Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander has set for the Shadow GBR (Great British Railways) organisation which are: Integration between operators and Network Rail to ‘rip out duplication’...

 Sir Andrew Haines, chief executive of Network Rail, has announced he will retire from the company in October 2025. “It has been a privilege to lead Network Rail through a time of such change and transformation for Britain’s railways, and I am proud of the progress that we have made...

In 1841 Edward Alfred Cowper, a founder member of the IMechE, devised a warning signal for trains on foggy days. This had a detonating compound packed into a small circular container and was fastened to the rails by lead clips. By 1844 such fog signals were in widespread use...

The Initiate possession protection initiative is an excellent example of the need to consider an activity’s overall process to determine how it can best be managed both safely and efficiently. Prior to retiring in 2009, I was involved with various possession management initiatives when it became apparent that work in...

Climate change and the increased risk of storm damage and high wind strength is just one of the challenging issues that Britain’s railways need to manage. Studies show a decline in days with minimal wind, indicating an increase in windy conditions. Research also suggests climate change will likely lead...

Artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities have rapidly accelerated in recent years. Historically, the rail industry has been slow to adopt new ways of working, but several railway companies have started to explore and implement AI for some activities. Today, all railway companies have the potential, and the opportunity, to harness...

Fletcher Moorland has provided engineering services for nearly 80 years. With a wealth of experience in electrical and electro-mechanical engineering, the company works with major companies in the automotive, power generation, logistics, and manufacturing industries, and has worked in Rail for more than three decades. Rail Engineer sat down with...

Operating as an independent subsidiary of Network Rail, NCB Rail Assurance is the UK railway’s leading infrastructure assessment and certification body. Rail Engineer has spoken to Managing Director Sam Brunker on a number of occasions. Here, he brings us up to date with the organisation’s subtle rebranding, its expanded...

Located north of Birmingham airport, HS2’s Delta Junction is a 1.5km triangular junction that will enable trains to travel between London and Birmingham, Birmingham and Manchester, as well as directly between London and Manchester. After leaving Interchange station at Solihull, northbound trains will curve westwards on a spur into Birmingham’s...

Network Rail is responsible for maintaining and improving thousands of bridges and viaducts across the UK rail network. Its work ensures they remain safe, operational, and resilient against environmental conditions, aging, and increasing train loads. Rail Engineer takes a whistle-stop tour of the work that took place to maintain,...

Between 14 November 2024 and 24 January 2025, East West Rail (EWR) ran a third non-statutory consultation on the proposal for a new rail route between Oxford and Cambridge with a link to Milton Keynes. EWR is a proposal to effectively re-establish a potentially strategic route between the two major...