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20th Century Heritage, 21st Century Safety
In August 1968, the last scheduled British Railways steam train ran on the British railway network. By then, the heritage movement had already started,...
Hitachi Rail’s approach to the Digital Railway
Digital affects almost every facet of UK rail activity. It has been transforming rolling stock, maintenance, and passengers’ journeys for almost a decade. Industry...
Re-doubling Aberdeen to Inverurie – halfway there
The 18-mile long Aberdeenshire canal, from Aberdeen docks to Inverurie, opened in 1805. It was not a commercial success, so its...
Swift doors for Crossrail depot
Transport for London (TfL)’s new Operations, Maintenance and Control (OMC) depot for the Elizabeth line at Old Oak Common, West London...
Hydroflex – the next iteration of the Flex concept
When researching an article for the Class 769 Flex, there were lots of ideas discussed about how the concept could be extended for other...
Bi-Mode Good, Tri-Mode Better
A previous article in Rail Engineer (issue 157, November 2017) outlined plans for bi-mode fleets on UK railways. This article briefly described Porterbrook Leasing’s...
Depot equipment trends
A train maintenance engineer will be familiar with sending out a clean train with all its water tanks full, and a day or so...
Velaro Novo: Siemens’ new approach to high-speed travel
In much the same way that Network Rail has a dedicated train for inspecting the railway, the HST-based New Measurement Train, German state railway...
Recent acquisition takes Kier forward
When Kier, a leading infrastructure services, buildings and developments and housing group, bought McNicholas last July, the company’s chief executive Haydn Mursell said it...
Signalling procurement enters the Digital Age
As the advent of the digital railway gathers pace, so the procurement of systems associated with it will need to adapt. It might prove...
Advanced solutions to obstacle detection
When asked what the safest type of level crossing is, invariably the answer from any educated rail engineer will be “a closed one”. Of...
Upgrading the continental connection
Another ERTMS announcement has recently emerged, this time concerning the London to Paris and Brussels high-speed routes through the Channel Tunnel. At a meeting...
Digital delusion: A lesson from not-so-long ago
When the nationalised railway was split up in 1994, former British Rail engineers now working for Railtrack faced an interesting time. While railway engineering...
The benefits of adopting new technologies
The latest developments in technology have proven capable of some remarkable achievements across all walks of life. For example, not so long ago, mastering...
Steventon Bridge demolition: Local voice rejects proposed 10 months of disturbance
You might have heard recently that Network Rail has been denied planning permission to demolish and construct a new overbridge at Steventon in Oxfordshire....
Ethical engineering
Professional registration is an important milestone for any technician or engineer. Awarded by licensed bodies, professional registration is based on knowledge, competence and commitment....
