PROGRESS on the project to construct the 81st Collett ‘Grange’ – No. 6880 Betton Grange – continues at Tyseley and Llangollen, with a view to having the 4-6-0 in traffic next year. Work on the loco at Tyseley Locomotive Works is running slightly behind the original schedule, but the rebuild of

One in three rail services run late in the UK. Photo: Gareth Fuller/PA Wire Tougher rail performance measurements show fewer than two-thirds of scheduled stops at stations were made “on time” during the 12 months to the end of June. A passenger watchdog described the figure of 64.7% as “not

Analysis Sim Harris TRANSPORT secretary Grant Shapps has come under fire from opposition politicians and unions for saying that franchised operators should be ‘paid when they run trains on time’. He was being interviewed in the wake of an ORR announcement yesterday that a new punctuality measurement will no longer allow

THERE have been protests in north east England after a report claimed that Hitachi has been ruled out of the three-way contest to build a £500 million fleet for Tyne & Wear Metro.The other contenders are CAF and Stadler, and the source of the claims says ‘insiders’ at Nexus have

A VETERAN train which was built by British Rail around 40 years ago is to play a key part in research into alternative power sources. Porterbrook is leasing a redundant diesel High Speed Intercity 125 set to the University of Birmingham, where it will be used to step up an

Secret knife scanners on trial at London stationA TRIAL of secret knife scanners is underway at a National Rail station in east London. It has been revealed that the trial of the equipment, which can detect knives under clothing as much as three metres away, began on Monday at Stratford,

This year, a ground-breaking five-year landmark project to restore a Union Pacific Railroad Big Boy 4-8-8-4 to working order was accomplished, with No. 4014 making a star-studded appearance at the 150th anniversary of the linking the USA’s two coasts by rail. The world has waited six decades to see a

Robert Gambrill provides a tribute to Peter Rampton – a man who spent a lifetime saving locomotives and reviving railways, but who remained an enigma to many. Peter John Rampton, born in 1934, passed away on July 3, 2019. His name is well known in narrow gauge circles in connection

THE uncertain future of Island Line has been secured by a new rolling stock deal as well as a Network Rail commitment to renew the pier at Ryde, which carries the line into the town. The investment will total £26 million.The five two-car Class 484 sets will be D-Trains from

UK’s oldest train fleet to be replaced. The UK’s oldest train fleet is to be replaced through a £26 million investment into the Isle of Wight’s railway, the Government has announced. Former London Underground trains built more than 80 years ago will stop serving passengers on the 8.5-mile Island Line