The contest to provide competing services through the Channel Tunnel is warming up. A new contender has been announced, led by a long-standing critic of HS2. Gemini Trains has applied to the Office of Rail and Road for an open access licence to operate between London and Paris, with other routes planned to follow. Gemini has also applied for access rights to the Temple Mills Eurostar depot in east London, which is already at the centre of a dispute with another international open access contender. Trains started running through the Channel Tunnel in 1994, and the route became open access in 2010 as a result of a chnage in general EU policy affecting international routes. Although Deutsche Bahn expressed an interest in the same year, there have been no competing services through the Tunnel so far. More recently interest in competing with Eurostar has been revived, and the latest indication had come from Virgin Trains earlier this month. Virgin did not deny reports that it is seeking to raise £700 million for potential routes between London and cities like Paris and Brussels. Spanish Evolyn has also unveiled a proposal to start services linking London and Paris, using Alstom rolling stock. Gemini is being led by its chair Lord Tony Berkeley, who has been a critic of HS2 for many years. He said: ‘Our team has real strength, depth, vision and dynamism and is superbly placed to offer customers choice on what is currently a monopoly route.’ His colleague, CEO Adrian Quine, added: ‘The high-speed line connecting London and the continent through the Channel Tunnel is one of the great rail routes. With a whole new generation now choosing trains over planes, there is a great opportunity to bring real entrepreneurial flair and dynamism with competitive fares to Europe's premier route.’ The owners of the HS1 concession, London St Pancras Highspeed, signed a memorandum of understanding with Eurotunnel’s parent company Getlink last month, in what was being described as a ‘landmark partnership’ intended to increase the growth of cross-Channel traffic, possibly adding services to Germany and Switzerland. The number of international passengers through St Pancras could be tripled. Readers’ comments When will operators go to more destinations in France to compete with Eurostar? There are so many other destinations to go to, for example the mountains, the Mediterranean, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy, where you can reduce the use of the plane. It’s easy to do this. Also we need more trains to connect with European services from all over the UK. With joined up thinking on electrification projects, this would be achievable. Hugo, Berkshire Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

Research published by passenger watchdog London TravelWatch reveals that paper tickets on some modes of transport in the capital can cost 200 per cent more than their digital equivalents. The watchdog published a report called Left out Londoners two years ago, and it has taken a fresh look at progress since then, concluding that there is a mixed picture, highlighting both good practice and continuing barriers for passengers who do not use digital methods or are disadvantaged in some way. It said one of its ‘most concerning findings was the disparity between the cost of “tapping in and out” at the ticket barriers compared with the cost of buying a paper ticket, with the paper ticket sometimes costing around 200 per cent more. It continued that ‘This represents a clear and expensive barrier for those relying on making cash payments, or people who have simply chosen to buy a ticket at the machine leaving them at a huge disadvantage.’ There has been a disparity between cash fares and the Oyster smartcard tariff on the Underground for more than 20 years. Since Oyster cards were introduced in 2003 they have always offered cheaper fares than paying cash, and ticket offices were closed at Underground stations after contactless bank cards had been added to the system, reducing the proportion of non-digital payments to 3 per cent or less. On buses, meanwhile, it is no longer possible to pay with cash. LTW added that it has ‘long stressed the importance of having staff at stations, and our new research highlighted that when staff are present, they provide crucial help to passengers. This is especially important for people who are more likely to be digitally excluded or disadvantaged, such as older people and disabled people as staff can offer support, advice and assistance. ‘However, we found that the level of support varies between stations, with some offering more help and assistance than others. This can be confusing for passengers who rely on extra support.’ London TravelWatch CEO Michael Roberts said: ‘The results of our research show that many passengers still face barriers, particularly when it comes to pricing, support, and navigating the transport system. It is simply unfair that those paying with cash – or who choose to use the ticket machines – are forced to pay so much more, and might struggle to find the cheapest option for travel. This is also likely to affect some of those most impacted by the ongoing cost of living crisis. ‘It is important to remove as many barriers to transport as possible, and accessibility should be at the heart of decision making. We are calling on Transport for London, transport operators and the Department for Transport to commit to addressing these issues that are leaving Londoners behind.’ Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

New figures show that the demand for railway services is getting closer to levels recorded before the Covid pandemic, and could be about to overtake them. The latest quarterly figures from the Office of Rail and Road for the three months to December 2024 show that passenger numbers grew by 7 per cent in the last quarter year-on-year, and that revenue was up by 8 per cent over the same period. There were 446 million journeys, compared with 417 million journeys made in the same quarter in the previous year in 2023. There were 1.7 billion journeys in the 12 months to December 2024, which was a 9 per cent increase on the 1.6 billion over the 12 months to December 2023. Total passenger revenue in the latest quarter was £2.9 billion. This is an 8 per cent increase on the £2.7 billion in the previous year, when adjusted for inflation. A total of 16.2 billion passenger kilometres were travelled in the latest quarter. This was a 7 per cent increase on the 15.1 billion kilometres in the previous year. Meanwhile, the Department for Transport said passenger journeys in the week ending Sunday 2 March 2025 were 91 per cent of those observed in the equivalent week in 2019. In the current publishing period, weekly average usage figures have been between 81 and to 98 per cent of the same week before the pandemic, compared to 71 to 90 per cent in the last publishing period. These figures exclude the Elizabeth Line, where ‘updated adjustment factors’ are outstanding. Railway Industry Association chief executive Darren Caplan said: ‘These figures by the ORR provide further, sustained evidence, of a return to rail post-pandemic. ‘Even in tough economic times, with a restructure in the offing, rail has a bright future. The Government clearly needs to continue to invest in it as the numbers using rail grow and more capacity will be needed.’ Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

Arriva is making a fresh application to run open access services, in spite of discouraging indications from the Department for Transport, which has highlighted possible path shortages. Arriva Group is notifying Network Rail today that it is submitting an open access application to the Office of Rail and Road to run direct services between Cleethorpes, Grimsby, Habrough, Scunthorpe and London. Grand Central already serves the section between London King’s Cross and Doncaster, but the route onwards to Cleethorpes would be new territory. Arriva said local people in north Lincolnshire have been campaigning for the restoration of direct trains to London which last ran over 30 years ago. Arriva is proposing to run four return servuces each day, which would provide more than 775,000 seats a year. Arriva’s UK Trains division interim managing director Amanda Furlong said: ‘Arriva wants to make travelling by train as accessible as possible and this proposal will offer a much-needed, direct connection between major Lincolnshire towns and the capital, providing significant connectivity benefits for communities and businesses and driving long-term economic growth for the region.’ The ORR is currently considering a number of open access applications, including one from Virgin for at least 35 trains a day from London Euston to destinations in north west England and Scotland, but the DfT has warned that capacity is limited on the West Coast Main Line. Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

More than a hundred trains have been cancelled or delayed after a fire in an electrical substation near London Heathrow Airport left the terminals in darkness. About 150 homes in Hayes have been evacuated and nearly 5000 are without power. More than 1000 flights have been diverted. London Fire Brigade said it has now brought the fire under control, and that 70 firefighters had been called to the scene. The effects of the power cut have disrupted train services in west London. Elizabeth Line trains are not running between Hayes & Harlington and the airport, and Transport for London said: ‘Please do not travel to Heathrow Airport as it is expected to remain closed all day.’ Heathrow Express services have been halved to every 30 minutes, and although trains are carrying passengers out of the airport the operator is not allowing anyone to travel to the airport from London Paddington. However, Piccadilly Line trains are reported to be running, although again passengers have been warned not to travel to any airport terminal station. An investigation has been started into the cause of the blaze in a transformer, which also affected back-up systems. Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

MPs on the Commons Transport Committee are calling for transport to be made more accessible for people with disabilities, saying that accessibility for disabled people must be recognised as a human right rather than ‘nice to have’. Failures should be seen as discrimination, not merely as a customer service problem, and a change of approach is needed by operators, regulators and enforcers. A new report is spelling out the gaps in provision, from accounts of wheelchair users left on planes for hours, to taxi drivers refusing lifts to people because they have an assistance dog, and street clutter causing obstructions. The Committee considered 825 responses to a survey, finding that 67 per cent of disabled people, or those who assist them, encounter problems ‘always’ or ‘most of the time’, with only 1.7 per cent saying they never experienced problemss when travelling. A further 50.8 per cent said that they would decide against making a journey at least once a month because they expected to face difficulties. The report makes several recommendations, including the need to reform regulations, legal duties and enforcement bodies, because at the moment the position is far too fragmented and complex. The law should work in theory but the reality is very different, and a review of all relevant legislation and the powers and resources of enforcement bodies is needed, for all transport modes. It said this review should assess whether a single enforcement body would be more effective. Committee xhair Ruth Cadbury said: ‘It should be a source of national embarrassment that our country’s transport services effectively treat disabled people as second class citizens, denying them access to jobs, leisure, support networks and essential services – denying them their rights. ‘This inquiry worked on the premise that people are disabled by barriers in society, not by their condition or difference, and that services should be designed to enable disabled people to travel independently, not reliant on others. After all, services that work for disabled people also work better for everyone. ‘And yet, those who have been let down and want redress or compensation face a spaghetti junction of complaints processes that either fob them off or lead them on a road to nowhere. Even when complaints are resolved, lessons aren’t learnt, changes aren’t put in place, and it’s tempting to think that the small and occasional penalties for failure are accepted by providers as a mere cost of doing business.   ‘Failures must go from being an everyday occurrence to vanishingly rare. In its reforms to transport services over this Parliament, the Government must ensure people with access needs no longer go unseen, unheard and unacknowledged. This should be underpinned with a new inclusive transport strategy, backed by long-term funding. ‘We would like to thank the many charities, experts, campaigners – including disabled people who have lived with inadequate services – for giving evidence to this Committee and its predecessor before the general election. We look forward to working constructively with the Government and tracking its progress over the coming years.’ Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

Network Rail has discovered that 23 per cent of people in Britain don’t know that fly-tipping is illegal, according to the results of a new survey of 2,000 people. Fly-tipping is classed as a form of vandalism because it is not only unsightly but can also delay trains or even cause accidents. The new figures have been released to mark Gobal Recycling Day, and they vary according to the age of those who responded to the survey, which was carried out by One Poll last month. The youngest respondents were the least well-informed, with 46 per cent of Generation Z – adults born since 1996 – unaware that fly-tipping is a criminal offence. That figure falls to 18 per cent for people born between 1965 and 1980, and to 8 per cent for people born in 1964 or earlier. The research also suggests that more than one in five people (22 per cent) do not believe fly-tipping damages the environment. Despite their reputation as the most environmentally-friendly generation, 42 per cent of Generation Z wrongly believe this, compared with 1 in 10 (or 11 per cent) of people born before 1965. Network Rail has unveiled a demonstration pile of mattresses, white goods and other electrical items at London King’s Cross station today, because such things are among those most commonly dumped on railway property. Waste can attract rats that chew on cables, leading to signal failures and even accidents, while metal cans and foil can affect signalling by damaging the cables. Tipping is also a source of pollution, a potential danger to public health and a hazard to wildlife. The Kent route has recorded 316 reports of fly-tipping from members of the public over the four years to 31 March last year, while the Southern region as a whole has logged 797 incidents during the same period. Altogether, there were almost 4,000 reports on the network nationwide. One in five people (22 per cent) have seen someone fly-tipping and a quarter (23 per cent) had witnessed it on or near a railway. Yet only a third (36 per cent) of such people had reported the incident to their local council, Crimestoppers, or a transport authority. Network Rail cleans up the rubbish, and works with British Transport Police to identify and prosecute the people who dump it. It also tries to prevent dumping in the first place by keeping an eye on problem areas with CCTV and strengthening the fencing at such ‘hotspots’. It also uses tyre-puncturing ‘nobblers’ at gates which lead to railway land. Paul Langley is Network Rail’s head of security, crime and resilience in the Southern region. He said: ‘We’re committed to running a safe, reliable and efficient railway and we work extremely hard throughout the year cleaning up after fly-tippers, and we urge everyone to report any incidents of fly-tipping on the railway.’ Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

The Northumberland Line connecting Ashington and Newcastle gained a third station this morning, when Newsham opened to passengers. A local councillor has predicted that the demand will be so great that Northern will have to lengthen its trains. Trains are now calling at Newsham every half hour, and the journey time to Newcastle is 22 minutes. The station should have opened with the 29km line in December, but the site was described as ‘complex’. It includes a new road bridge, which alone cost £30 million. The first two stations to open were Ashington and Seaton Delaval, and three more are still under construction. Councillor Daniel Carr, who represents the South Blyth ward for the Conservatives, told the BBC: ‘It was promised all those years ago and finally it's here. ‘I think the station will be used even more than Blyth Bebside which will hopefully open later this year. ‘These kind of transport hubs are really needed and I think we'll see a reduction in the number of cars leaving Blyth. I think Northern will need to put on extra coaches.’ Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

The RMT has called off industrial action on Avanti West Coast, which had involved train managers and threatened to disrupt services on Sundays until May. The dispute had been about payments for rest day working. Nine out of ten members voted, and 86.5 per cent accepted a proposed settlement. Rates for rest day working are increasing to time plus a quarter, and time plus a half for Saturdays and Sundays. Minimum shift payments go up from six hours to seven and a half, and there will a fairer ‘Order of Call’ process, meaning that train managers will have priority for rest day and spare shifts before senior managers step in. The settlement will be backdated to 10 February. The uniion said AWC has also promised to review the effect of the changes before the December 2025 timetable starts, and make ‘further improvements if needed’. The RMT’s new general secretary Eddie Dempsey said: ‘Our members have stood firm, taking significant industrial action, and have won a deal that delivers real improvements to pay, and working conditions. ‘This result shows through a strong industrial campaign and robust negotiation we can and do win improvements at work for our members.’ Avanti said: ‘We’ve worked together to find a resolution that is right for our train managers as well as the company and are now looking forward to continuing to grow our business. ‘This is a significant step in the right direction providing certainty for both colleagues and customers, as we head into what is traditionally one of our busier periods as leisure travel increases during the spring and summer.’ Do you have a comment on this story? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.

Questions unanswered The private sector lobby group Rail Partners will close its doors in a week from now, and has published a final paper which looks at devolution, entitled Great Local Railways. The DfT has launched a consultation about Great British Railways which runs until April, and Rail Partners chief executive Andy Bagnall said: ‘The consultation seeks to address some of the questions about the future of the sector, but there remain some challenging questions about how the railway will be organised. For example, it does not explain how the Department for Transport Operator, and later Great British Railways, will deliver essential growth, to secure the railway’s financial future.’ Open access Research from Virgin Group claims that most consumers welcome competition on the railways and think there are benefits from having nationalised and private operators working alongside each other. In a survey of 2,000 passengers, 70 per cent agreed that people travelling by train should have a choice of operators, while 67 per cent think that passengers would benefit from such a choice. A third of those questioned favoured complete nationalisation. Virgin has applied for track access rights for several routes from London Euston, but the Department for Transport has declined to support the proposal, pointing to congestion on the West Coast Main Line. Midlands survey Nearly three quarters of people surveyed in Kings Norton believe Midlands Rail Hub will help fulfil the Government’s policy of encouraging growth. Polling carried out in Redditch and Kings Norton by Censuswide for Midlands Connect, showed 58 per cent of respondents agree the 5.8 million extra seats are required, and 46 per cent believe the proposed upgrades at Kings Norton station are ‘necessary’. When asked, 50 per cent of those taking part also welcomed the extra trains. Fuel trials ScotRail has revealed that it has been using Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil as an alternative to diesel fuel in one of its Class 156 units. The trial, at Corkerhill depot, began on 19 February and will run for 12 weeks, with the co-operation of the unit’s owner Angel Trains and Crown Oil. If the trial is successful, HVO could offer a step towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions on railways in Scotland by acting as a ‘transition fuel’ while carbon-neutral fuels such green hydrogen become more available. Bats and birds Dozens of bird and bat boxes have been installed at nine TransPennine Express stations to provide additional habitats for native wildlife. A total of 50 boxes have been installed on buildings, walls and trees at stations for bats and birds at Yarm, Northallerton, Thirsk, Hull, Cleethorpes, Grimsby Town, Barnetby, Scunthorpe and Stalybridge. Different types of boxes have been used to encourage various species, including a variety of bats as well as birds such as robins, blackbirds, wrens, wagtails, swallows and swifts. Do you have a comment on any of these stories? Please click here  to send an email to Platform at Railnews. Moderated comments will be published on this site, and may also be used in the next print edition.