Vandals
sentenced
++


Members
of
a
graffiti
gang
who
repeatedly
sprayed
trains
at
Northern’s
Heaton
depot
in
Newcastle
have
been
sentenced,
although
the
trial
was
delayed
by
the
Covid
pandemic.
Adam
Smith,
28,
of
Hedgeley
Road
in
Hebburn,
was
described
as
the
‘ringleader’,
and
he
has
been
jailed
for
18
months
by
Newcastle
Crown
Court.
His
accomplices
were
Jordan
Shone,
26,
of
Lumley
Court
in
Hebburn,
Mark
Marshall,
28,
of
Greenbank
in
Jarrow
and
Colin
Bell,
47,
of
St
Vincent
Street
in
South
Shields.
They
all
received
suspended
sentences
between
nine
and
18
months
and
were
also
ordered
to
undertake
unpaid
work.
A
further
offender,
David
McGuire,
28,
of
Winskill
Road
in
Simonside,
South
Shields,
was
given
a
community
order
and
ordered
to
undertake
18
months’
unpaid
work.
The
five
all
pleaded
guilty
to
conspiracy
to
cause
criminal
damage
between
January
2018
and
June
2019.
Northern
said
it
welcomed
the
sentences,
and
that
the
damage
had
cost
thousands
of
pounds.

Passenger
landmark
++
More
than
100
million
journeys
have
been
made
on
the
Elizabeth
Line
since
the
central
section
opened
in
May
last
year.
Transport
for
London
said
the
number
of
passengers
had
reached
600,000
a
day,
and
that
the
new
route
is
‘on
track
to
break
even
by
the
end
of
the
2023/24
financial
year’.
TfL
also
said
it
will
introduce
‘the
final
version’
of
the
Elizabeth
Line
timetable
as
planned
on
21
May,
and
that
headways
between
Paddington
and
Whitechapel
will
then
be
shortened
to
2.5
mins
in
the
peaks.

Leaves
battle
++


The
Rail
Safety
and
Standards
Board
is
collaborating
with
the
University
of
Sheffield
to
use
artificial
intelligence
to
help
predict
slippery
rails.
The
new
project
is
investigating
how
more
detailed
information
on
local
conditions
can
be
used
to
tackle
the
seasonal
challenge
associated
with
‘leaves
on
the
line’.
Low
adhesion
track
is
a
serious
problem,
which
costs
£350
million
a
year
and
can
threaten
safety
if
a
train
fails
to
stop
as
intended.
The
RSSB
said
temperature,
humidity
and
the
presence
of
leaves
or
other
contaminants
can
all
affect
the
adhesion
between
wheels
and
rails.