Landslip
repaired


Network
Rail
says
old
mine
workings
were
found
during
engineering
work
to
repair
a
landslip
between
Knottingley
and
Pontefract
Monkhill.
The
line
has
now
reopened,
following
seven
weeks
of
round-the-clock
work
to
rebuild
the
embankment
after
it
slipped
in
early
March.
More
than
2,000
tonnes
of
stone
were
installed
along
with
a
new
30-metre
retaining
wall,
and
60
metres
of
track
was
also
removed
and
replaced.
Wet
weather
was
thought
to
have
been
the
cause
of
the
slip,
but
minor
voids
were
discovered
beneath
the
railway
embankment
that
are
thought
to
be
connected
with
old
mines.
Network
Rail
said
this
meant
that
the
work
took
longer
and
was
more
complex.

New
contract
in
Wales


The
Global
Centre
of
Rail
Excellence
in
South
Wales
has
welcomed
CAF
as
the
latest
international
railway
manufacturer
to
sign
up
to
using
its
testing
and
innovation
services.
The
deal
will
see
GCRE
assist
CAF
with
testing
of
rolling
stock
and
digital
signalling.
CAF
was
recently
announced
as
the
supplier
of
ten
tri-mode
trains
for
LNER,
and
the
partnership
will
also
allow
CAF
to
use
GCRE
for
fleet
maintenance
as
well
as
staff
training
and
development. 

Bargain
bookings


Avanti
West
Coast
has
extended
its
‘Superfare’
tickets
to
more
destinations,
after
the
discounts
were
introduced
a
year
ago.
Avanti
said
that
since
then
more
than
50,000
of
the
tickets
have
been
sold.
They
allow
passengers
to
choose
morning,
afternoon
or
evening
travel
on
a
named
date,
although
the
precise
train
is
allocated
by
the
operator
about
24
hours
before
departure.
Stations
in
the
scheme
now
include
Rugby,
Coventry,
Nuneaton,
Birmingham
International
and
Wolverhampton,
from
where
passengers
can
travel
to
London
for
a
single
fare
of
£9. Milton
Keynes
Central, Oxenholme
Lake
District,
Penrith
and
Carlisle
have
also
been
added
to
the
offer.

Transpennine
tunnels
upgrade


Engineering
consultants
COWI
have
been
awarded
a
design
contract
by
Network
Rail
for
the
Transpennine
Route
Upgrade
between
Stalybridge
and
Huddersfield.
Three
tunnels
are
being
upgraded
in
this
section
–
Stalybridge,
Scout
and
Standedge.
The
work
will
include
enlarging
the
clearance
in
each
tunnel
for
W12
gauge
and
electrification
by
lowering
and
relaying
the
track.