The drivers’ union ASLEF has taken new action in its continuing pay dispute, by calling an overtime ban from 3 to 8 July. The ban will affect most National Rail operators in England, and it follows the latest ballot of the union’s members, who voted last week to continue strikes and other industrial action. In most cases fewer than 10 per cent of those who voted opposed more action. ASLEF general secretary Mick Whelan said: ‘Once again we find ourselves with no alternative but to take this action. We have continually come to the negotiating table in good faith, seeking to resolve the dispute. Sadly, it is clear from the actions of both the train operating companies and the government that they do not want an end to the dispute. Their goals appear to be to continue industrial strife and to do down our industry. ‘We don't want to inconvenience the public. We just want to see our members paid fairly during a cost of living crisis when inflation is running at above 10 per cent, and to not see our terms and conditions taken away. ‘It's time for the government and the companies to think again and look for a resolution.’

The King¹s first birthday honours list has included several people in the railway industry. The executive director of Transport for West Midlands Anne Shaw has received an OBE, in recognition of the key part she played in planning transport during the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. There is an MBE for Southeastern’s general manager for the operator’s North area, Sonia Maulson. She has more than 30 years of railway service, which includes being the first female train driver at Southeastern's Grove Park depot in Lewisham. More recently she has helped to manage the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on Southeastern, and also made an ‘enormous contribution’ during the mourning for the late Queen last September. Merseyrail’s community involvement manager Sally Ralston has received a British Empire Medal for her services to the community. She was nominated for her work leading the community engagement programme at Merseyrail, which over the years has raised nearly to £1 million for local charities and other community organisations. Alison Hanscomb of GWR, who was station manager at Slough for 11 years before taking on a new post last month, has received a British Empire Medal for meritorious service. In 2017 she welcomed Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh to Slough when GWR recreated Queen Victoria’s historic first Royal train journey to London Paddington in 1842. Alison also helped oversee the plans as GWR welcomed thousands of people travelling to Windsor for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding in 2018, and last year she played a major part during Queen Elizabeth’s funeral. Six Transport for London staff have also been included in the King’s list. They are Monica Cooney (MBE), Winsome Hull (BEM), Howard Smith (OBE) and Christian Van der Nest (OBE), as well as former employees Gareth Powell (OBE) and Sharon Young (MBE). Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: ‘In a year where the eyes of the world have once more been on London, their expertise and hard work have helped ensure the smooth running of the capital for Londoners and visitors to our city.’

Fares on ScotRail will rise by 4.8 per cent on 3 July, having been frozen since January last year. The prices of season tickets and flexi-passes will not be going up, however. In addition, ScotRaiil, which was renationalised last year, is planning to abolish peak time fares for six months, in a pilot scheme. The unions and opposition politicians have criticised the increase, although it is less than March’s rise in England and Wales, which was 5.9 per cent. Transport secretary Mairi McAllan said: ‘The Scottish Government rightly made the decision to freeze fares as part of its response to the cost-of-living crisis. While this has now remained in place for around 18 months, it is simply no longer sustainable. ‘From 3 July 2023, ScotRail fares will increase by 4.8 per cent, compared to 5.9 per cent fares rise across the rest of Great Britain, current RPI of 8.7 per cent and the August 2022 RPI rate of 12.3 per cent. ‘This fares rise does not include season tickets and flexi-passes which will remain frozen at current prices, ensuring those who use rail frequently are not discouraged from continuing to do so. ‘We know that any increase is unwelcome for passengers, therefore we have kept the rise as low as possible to maintain the attractiveness and affordability of rail as a travel option. We aim to continue this approach with the peaks fares removal pilot from October this year.’ Labour's transport spokesman Alex Rowley described the rise as ‘eye-watering’, and he warned that it ‘will hit the lowest paid workers hardest’. He continued: ‘Our railways are already unreliable and overpriced, and now these punitive fare hikes will drive even more people off trains.’

Drivers belonging to ASLEF have voted by a large majority to continue strikes and other industrial action at the English train operators. In most cases fewer than 10 per cent of those who voted opposed more action in the continuing pay dispute. On Island Line, all 10 ASLEF drivers voted in favour of further strikes. The ballot results have come just after ASLEF members in Scotland rejected a pay offer from ScotRail, although the RMT has accepted it. ASLEF general secretary Mick Whelan said: ‘Once again our members have decided, and made it clear that we are in this for the long haul. ‘Train drivers are sick to the back teeth of their employers and the government failing to negotiate in good faith, and blaming drivers for their inability to manage services and the rail industry effectively. ‘ASLEF members, the key workers who kept our country moving through the pandemic, are simply asking for a fair deal on pay so that they can afford to keep up with their outgoings in this government-made cost of living crisis. ‘We have always said we are prepared to come to the table but the government and the train companies need to understand that this dispute won’t be resolved by trying to bully our members into accepting worse terms and conditions.’ The Rail Delivery Group and the Department for Transport have yet to comment.

Transport secretary Mark Harper has appointed Keith Smithson and Joanna Davinson as new non-executive directors of HS2 Ltd. The Department for Transport said Keith and Joanna will work alongside HS2 Ltd’s chair Sir Jonathan Thompson, to ‘provide oversight and accountability’ and ‘ensuring costs are controlled’ and the project completed ‘in the most effective way for taxpayers’. HS2 continues to be the focus of speculation about the future of London Euston as the city centre terminus. Work on the site has been paused for two years while the costs of building onwards from Old Oak Common are reviewed. Joanna Davinson is a civil servant who has served as the executive director of the Central Digital and Data Office at the Cabinet Office, while Keith Smithson comes from the financial sector. He has already held several executive positions at organisations like HSBC, Paragon Banking Group and accountants KPMG.  Transport secretary Mark Harper said: ‘I’m delighted to make these updates to the board today and welcome Joanna and Keith to the team. ‘They bring with them a wealth of experience and I’m confident the right people are in place to robustly grip costs, hold HS2 Ltd to account and drive forward this revolutionary project.’ Deputy chair Elaine Holt and the government’s special director Ian King have been reappointed for a further four years. Dame Judith Hackitt and Stephen Hughes have also been reappointed as non-executive directors for a further three years. Mel Ewell and Roger Mountford left the Board recently as non-executive directors having completed full terms on the HS2 board.

Members of the drivers’ union ASLEF have rejected a pay offer from ScotRail. The vote has followed a decision by members of the RMT to accept a similar offer, which includes a pay rise worth 5 per cent. ASLEF called for pay talks to restart in the wake of its members’ vote, in which 51.6 per cent opposed settlement. ScotRail service delivery director David Simpson said: ‘It is incredibly disappointing that ASLEF members have voted against this offer. The offer was a strong one, which gives drivers a well-deserved pay rise while also delivering good value for the taxpayer. We remain committed to working with ASLEF to agree a pay deal for our drivers.’ ASLEF’s organiser in Scotland Kevin Lindsay said: ‘Like other workers, our members are experiencing the impact of rocketing food, fuel and energy costs. ’But we also know the important service Scotland's train drivers provide and that's why we are calling for pay talks with ScotRail to begin again immediately so we can take forward meaningful discussion on fair pay.’

Rail minister Huw Merriman is launching Rail Day at King’s Cross station in London this morning. The event marks the start of Better Transport Week, which is being promoted by the Campaign for Better Transport. It aims to promote the wide range of benefits of public transport, shared mobility, walking and cycling and to encourage more people to travel sustainably. Huw Merriman said: ‘It’s great to be waving the flag for rail – one of the greenest forms of transport – and kickstarting Better Transport Week. As a Government, we recognise our railways will be key to unlocking a more sustainable transport network which is why, amongst many initiatives, we’ve electrified more than 1,200 miles of track in the past decade alone.   ‘Over the past 50 years, Campaign for Better Transport has been doing a fantastic job at shining a valuable spotlight on the green transport options already out there and promoting the wide range of benefits of public transport, walking and cycling brings. Here’s to the next 50.’

The Victorian railway viaduct which spans the Thames south of Oxford has reopened a day earlier than planned, after weeks of major reconstruction was completed. Engineers have had to rebuild the south abutment of Nuneham Viaduct, which was built in 1856 and showed dangerous signs of movement in early April, closing the busy line between Oxford and Didcot Parkway. All through traffic had to stop, including 40 freight trains a day, which were diverted. Passengers had to use replacement buses, while Chiltern Railways services between Oxford and London via Bicester have been much busier. The first passenger train across the bridge this morning was a shuttle service from Didcot Parkway to Oxford. Network Rail said about 800 people have worked nearly 60,000 hours since the first week of April. In the past week, the 150-tonne bridge has been lowered on to the new abutment so that the tracks and cables could be reinstated. The work has been described as complex and challenging, requiring some heavy engineering. Twenty-four steel piles, each 15m long, were driven into the river bed, and another eight were driven up to 20m into the embankment.A 750-tonne crane was used and 4,500 tonnes of material was removed, to be replaced by another 5,500 tonnes for the new embankment. The job isn’t quite over. Engineers will remain at the site for another 12 weeks to finish the work completely. Network Rail capital delivery director Stuart Calvert said: ‘We’re extremely pleased to be able to reopen the railway through Nuneham ahead of schedule.  ‘A complex and challenging repair like this would normally take two to three years to complete, but thanks to the hard work and dedication of our talented teams of engineers, and industry experts, this major project has been turned around in just under ten weeks. ‘Once again, I would like to thank our passengers, freight customers, local community and our industry partners for their patience, understanding and support whilst we carried out this work, which will protect this important rail link for generations to come.’

Travelcards ++ Consumer watchdog London TravelWatch is opposing suggestions that TfL should scrap Day Travelcards in a bid to boost revenue. LTW said scrapping the cards during a cost-of-living squeeze ‘will make things more challenging and expensive’ for many passengers. First results ++ FirstGroup has reported adjusted operating profit of £154.4 million for the last financial year, as compared with £226.8 million a year earlier. First has launched open access operator Lumo, and has gained a new National Rail contract for Great Western Railway until June 2025, with an option for the DfT to extend it to June 2028. The South Western Railway contract, in which First has an interest of 70 per cent, has also been extended, to May 2025. However, First has now lost TransPennine Express, which was renationalised on 28 May this year, while the future of Avanti West Coast remains uncertain. Commissioner confirmed ++ Transport for London has confirmed that Andy Lord has been appointed as transport commissioner, after a period as interim commissioner, following the departure of Andy Byford last October. Andy Lord joined TfL in November 2019 as managing director of London Underground and became chief operating officer for all TfL operations last year.

Passengers return ++ The number of journeys made on London Underground is back to 90 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, according to Transport for London. A total of 91 million journeys were made on the system in April, compared with 101 million in April 2019. Travel on the Docklands Light Railway, London Overground, trams and buses has also increased. Fraud ++ ScotRail is appointing 42 Revenue Protection Officers in a bid to reduce fraudulent travel, which is estimated to cost around £2 million a year.  A pilot scheme using new ticket validation machines has also been taking place over the last few weeks at stations such as Edinburgh, Glasgow Central, Glasgow Queen Street, Croy, High Street (Glasgow), Rutherglen, and Paisley Canal. The devices are designed to alert staff if an invalid ticket is presented. Resignation ++ Scottish transport minister Kevin Stewart has resigned, only three months since he had been appointed. In a letter to the First Minister Humza Yousaf, Mr Stewart explains that he has had ‘ bouts of poor mental health, with a low ebb in early December of last year.  Over the last week or so I have once again been feeling unwell and I feel that I can no longer put in the hours required to serve both my constituents and hold ministerial office, whilst also trying to maintain good mental health. I do hope that you understand.’ Mr Stewart is not stepping down from his post as MSP for Aberdeen Central.