Freight line to Drax Power Station fully reopened

20th April 2020

Network Rail has been working since February both to repair a major freight route and to keep supplies going into Drax power station.

The line into Drax Power Station was inundated with flood water in February when the nearby River Aire burst its banks. With the Selby plant supplying five per cent of the UK’s electricity, it was vital to keep services moving while repair work was carried out. Engineers have been deployed on 24-hour-a-day shifts to maintain the constant safety reassurance required to keep freight trains running.

Although one of the two lines leading in and out of the power station, in Selby, Yorkshire, had to close due to the floods, engineers were able to keep one route open to allow vital freight services transporting sustainable biomass to keep the nation powered up during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The damaged line has now reopened following significant repair work by Network Rail. Deliveries were maintained while the work took place, with over 90 freight trains per week transporting sustainable biomass to the plant. This was made possible by the rail industry working together and the dedication of Network Rail, and their contractors CML (Construction Marine Limited), who took up shifts 24 hours a day to keep watch of the site and make sure that trains could use the line safely. A crucial job was monitoring the railway embankment for any further movement following the damage caused by floods.

Photo showing extent of flooding of railway line near Drax power plant.

Chris Gee, head of operations for Network Rail’s North and East Route, said: “This was an unprecedented operation to deal with an unprecedented situation.

“It’s never been more important for us to keep freight services running, so we pulled out all the stops to maintain this vital link while we conducted repair work at the same time. Our teams have worked non-stop to make sure that crucial deliveries of biomass have been able to run despite severe flooding, which has been incredibly important to keep the nation powered up.

“This has been a real team effort and shows the dedication of the rail industry to vital services moving during this national crisis.”

The emergency repair work cost £300,000 and included unconventional methods to make sure that the line could reopen as quickly as possible. This included using a team of divers to inspect structures which were underwater to check for damage, as well as flying drones and helicopters along the route to assess the extent of the damage. Significant repair work to the track needed to take place before it could reopen, such as replacing ballast, the stones, which support the track, after sections of it were washed away by flood water.

The team faced an additional challenge when they discovered that several Koi Carp from a nearby private residence were on the railway, when the pond they were in also flooded. Network Rail teams worked closely with the landowner to safely transport them home.

Network Rail is working on ways to improve resilience on the line, in a £2.5million investment, and are currently in the design stage of this project.

Another three Network Rail stations go blue for the NHS

20th April 2020

Three key Network Rail stations have turned blue to show their support for the NHS during the Covid-19 pandemic.

To coincide with the weekly tribute to NHS, care staff, health professionals and other key workers, the Network Rail managed stations of Birmingham New Street, Liverpool Lime Street, and Euston stations joined numerous other railway landmarks and buildings across the country as they bathed themselves in blue light – the colour of the NHS.

Euston station lit up blue for Clap For Carers.

Tim Shoveller, managing director for Network Rail’s North West and Central region, said: “It’s been great to join the rest of the railway industry to, quite literally, shine a light on the herculean effort being made by thousands of healthcare professionals working to save lives every day at this time of national crisis.

“We will continue to show how proud we are of the NHS and help in any way we can during the ongoing fight against the spread of Covid-19.”

At Euston the station frontage and historic Robert Stephenson and Captain Matthew Flinders statues were made blue, while messages were played on the media eye displays at the three station entrances at Birmingham New Street while staff Clapped for the NHS.

Signaller training school opened in just four weeks

20th April 2020

Network Rail recently appealed for retired signallers, or those who have moved to other careers in the railway industry, to volunteer to provide cover at signal boxes and control centres if some current signallers fall ill or need to self-isolate during the Covid-19 outbreak.

More than 200 signallers across Wales and the west responded to this call to arms. To retrain those volunteers, Network Rail has taken just four weeks to transform an old depot in Newport, South Wales, into a state-of-the-art training centre.

A little over a month ago the rooms at the Crindau depot in Newport were mothballed former testing workshops and meeting rooms, but they have now been converted into a temporary training facility that enables former signallers to refresh their training and get back to work on Britain’s railways.

Mark Langman, Network Rail’s managing director for Wales and Western, said: “It is a remarkable achievement that this fully functioning training suite for signallers has been completed in less than a month.

“Under normal circumstances we have enough signallers to keep trains running whatever happens, but these are not normal circumstances and without fully trained signallers it is possible that parts of the network would have to shut.

“I am delighted with the response from former signallers who are willing to return to the railway. Putting the right training and facilities in place means that we can get them back up to speed to help us keep moving essential freight goods, and passengers whose journeys are essential.

New technology helmets improve safety and aid social distancing

20th April 2020

Ground Control – one of the leading suppliers of vegetation control services to Network Rail, has deployed ‘game changing’ high-tech safety helmets for its operatives.

The company has purchased an initial batch of 40 of the £500 Protos Integral helmets for workers doing essential maintenance work near rail lines. Fitted with a Bluetooth wireless system, the helmets allow workers to communicate while using everyday noisy tools such as chainsaws, brushcutters and woodchippers.

“As a national vegetation management contractor, we deliver a range of essential frontline services in dangerous environments such as working next to rail lines,” said Peter Allen, arboriculture and rail services director at Ground Control. “Both the range and the quality of communication delivered by the Protos Integral helmet was excellent – it’s a genuine game changer. Operators using the system could hear the instructions from their supervisor instantly and acknowledge the test call of “train on” every time.”

“And as Bluetooth technology works on a closed system, there was no interference from external sources. Operatives are able to easily maintain safety distances with spoken words clear delivered in the built-in earmuff on the helmet, without having to shout above the noise of the equipment.”

The purchase of the Protos Integral helmets is the latest example of Ground Control’s industry- leading commitment to health and safety. Earlier this month it won the highly prestigious RoSPA ‘President’s Award’ for its decade-long achievements in worker safety.

“We’re planning to expand our use of the helmets and introduce them in other noisy or busy environments such as highways or construction sites, where a team need a dedicated mechanism of communications,” said Peter Allen. “In addition, they’ll also help our workers maintain the correct social distancing while on site. The Coronavirus pandemic continues to reinforce the importance of developing a safe working environment and establishing best practices.”

£46 million upgrade of line to Southend Victoria completed

20th April 2020

Network Rail has completed the installation of a new overhead wiring system on the Southend Victoria branch line in a £46 million upgrade to improve reliability for key workers currently using the line and in the long term when passengers return to work.

This is the first time the wiring system has been upgraded since it was installed in the 1950s, bringing this busy line up to 21st century standards.

More than 100km of new overhead wire has been installed between Southend Victoria and Shenfield, where the branch line joins with the new overhead line system on the main line, which means a new wiring system is in place from Southend to London. The new system adapts to temperature changes which is particularly important in hot weather, meaning fewer delays and cancellations and overall reliability improvements all year round.

Network Rail’s engineers sped up the extensive work programme by carrying out a nine-day closure and working on some weeknights. This meant that the work was completed two months earlier, with 11 fewer weeks of mid-week closures and six fewer weekend closures.

Ellie Burrows, Network Rail route director, Anglia, said: “This work was vital to bring the equipment up to 21st century standards which hugely improves reliability and brings the line up to the modern standards seen on other parts of the network.

“I’d like to thank our Southend passengers for their patience and support while we carried out this extensive work programme. I understand that this has been a difficult time for passengers, especially at the weekends, but I’m confident that these crucial improvements will support the growing number of people using the line for years to come.”