Eye goes soft in Dead Tree Media - Shocker

A surprising encomium in the latest contribution to Passenger Transport published on the 16th November...

The next edition of Passenger Transport will be published on the 30th November.

Blogging hack succumbs to Dead Tree Media

The Fact Compiler is now writing a regular comment piece for Passenger Transport.

Here the article that appeared in the 31st October issue calling for a more representative RDG.

You can subscribe to Passenger Transport here...

EXPOSED: Thinly capitalised equity profiteer of worst kind!

Shocking news from Eye.

After four years of editing this blog for free The Fact Compiler has decided that it is time to accept advertising!

With well over 10,000 unique visitors a month using Railway Eye to catch up on the latest industry news and gossip you know it makes sense.

So a big favour requested of all readers - please click on the Passenger Transport ad on the right hand menu bar, so that we can continue to provide an unparalleled service of bile and invective to discerning railwaymen and women.

And whilst you're there, why not buy a subscription to Passenger Transport.

Did we mention that Railway Eye's first ad is from Passenger Transport? (Yes. More than once! I hope they're paying for this? Ed)

Remember. Vote early, vote often!

Ticket retail site tries to get in on Eye action

The Fact Compiler has received an excited missive from RedSpottedHankey's Blogger Community Developer, whatever that may be?

He writes:

I’m writing on behalf of redspottedhanky, who have included you in their list of the best train and railway blogs in the UK, which you can read here.

Woohoo!

The note continues:

We were wondering if you might be interested in an official redspottedhanky Blogger of Choice badge for the site?

Actually, probably not.

Any chance of RedSpottedSnotter buying some adspace on Eye instead?

January visitors to Railway Eye

In January Railway Eye received 40,696 visits from 13,767 unique visitors.

According to Google Analytics you viewed 52,690 splenetic utterances in total.

Thank you.

2010 Railway Eye stat porn

In 2010 Railway Eye was visited 372,966 times by 73,836 unique visitors.


Eye thanks all readers and contributors for their continued support throughout 2010.

UPDATE: This from The Archer...

That’s a 62% increase in visits since 2009 and 39% more unique visitors.

By my reckoning you’ll achieve your passenger journey equivalent of 1 billion hits in 2027 if you keep this up.

Villiers vignettes... apology accepted

Regular readers may recollect that Eye took the Saviour of the Jammy Dodger to task on Monday 12th July for misleading the House about rolling stock orders.

Clearly someone has been reading Eye, for lo and behold Cruella had to deliver this Ministerial Correction yesterday (19th July):

• Email me when Theresa Villiers speaks
• Most recent apperances
• Numerology
• Full profile ...

Theresa Villiers (Minister of State (Rail and Aviation), Transport; Chipping Barnet, Conservative)

I regret to inform the House that there was an inaccuracy in the answer I gave to parliamentary question 4042 on 7 July 2010, Hansard, column 265W, about what new rolling stock orders have been placed for each rail franchise since 2007.

The table was incomplete and omitted the order, placed in April 2009 by National Express East Anglia, for 120 new EMU vehicles.

The full table is reproduced below.

Franchise	Order date	Type	Vehicles
Southern	May-07	EMU	48
London Midland	Aug-07	EMU	148
London Midland	Dec-07	DMU	69
Chiltern Railway	Jan-08	DMU	8
Southern	Mar-08	EMU	44
Virgin West Coast	Sep-08	EMU	106
National Express East Anglia	Apr-09	EMU	120

Just fancy that!

UPDATE: This from Captain Deltic, the HLOS Vehicle Finder General...

There you are Theresa, doesn't that feel better?

Now what about the 8th June table you published?

Yes, the Table with the double counting I mentioned to Philip Hammond's SpAd at the time?

And has the civil servant responsible now been transferred to work on TramTrains?

How the media works...

This from The Journal...

IN PREPARATION for my meeting with Heidi Mottram, I searched on some railway industry internet forums to see what those in the sector thought of the woman who, until recently, headed Northern Rail, the provider of local rail services across the North.

I soon found an article on the “gossip” website Railway Eye, instructively headed: “Northumbrian Water’s gain, the railway’s loss.”...

Soon into our meeting, I tell Mottram about the glowing praise in the article.

She’s read it.

Just fancy that!

March visitors

In March Railway Eye received 32,001 visits from 8,552 unique visitors.

According to Google Analytics you viewed 43,223 splenetic utterances in total.

Thank you.

Fact Compiler and Hammond fall out - Shocker

It would appear that The Fact Compiler's contribution to last night's Rail Debate was not universally welcomed.


Grin!

Eye breaks into mainstream media - Official

Fame at last!

Whilst your Nigel Harrises, Roger Fords and Christian Wolmars swan around the broadcast media the team behind Railway Eye have achieved true fame in no less a mighty organ than the Western Gazette: (who? Ed)

Since The Western Gazette reported UK Railtours' refusal to stop its train at Sherborne, company owner John Farrow has reiterated his argument on popular the internet blog Railway Eye. (this is almost gibberish are you sure you want to run this? Ed)

To view Eye's original story click here.

Meanwhile your humble scribblers are off to celebrate our fabulous new found fame with a very large... (no you're not - you're all fired. Ed)

Important Industry Survey - Vote early, vote often!

The publishers of Rail Business Intelligence are conducting a survey.

Please log on, tune in, turn off, etc...

But do click the button saying you read Railway Eye!

Remember - vote early, vote often!

2009 Railway Eye stat porn

In 2009 Railway Eye was visited 230,284 times by 53,152 unique visitors.


Top 100 corporate readership sources:

1. network rail
2. go-ahead-group uk
3. manchester metropolitan university
4. w s atkins
5. national express group plc
6. university of cambridge
7. oxford university
8. hsbc bank plc uk
9. east midlands trains
10. emap plc
11. hitachi europe ltd
12. norfolk county council
13. merseyrail electrics 2002 ltd
14. university of liverpool
15. pnn
16. denton wilde sapte
17. westinghouse rail system ltd.
18. london transport users committee
19. parsons brinckerhoff
20. west yorkshire public transport exec-1
21. the tube lines
22. hitachi europe ltd
23. scott wilson
24. abbey national treasury services
25. ipc media ltd
26. scottish water
27. south west trains ltd
28. university of exeter
29. science museum
30. pricewaterhousecoopers
31. english welsh and scottish railways
32. deutsche bank
33. arriva plc
34. lancashire county council
35. virgin trains
36. leicester city council
37. crossrail london networks
38. ove arup & partners
39. london 2012 ltd
40. university of durham
41. serco group plc
42. university of wales bangor
43. british broadcasting corporation
44. ashurst morris crisp
45. university of southampton
46. freightliner limited
47. centro birmingham
48. university of leeds
49. h bauer publishing ltd
50. south bank polytechnic
51. trainline.com ltd
52. competition commission
53. interfleet technology ltd
54. railcare (formally alstom)
55. houses of parliament
56. nottingham city council
57. central trains limited
58. university of bath
59. telegraph group limited
60. city of nottingham council
61. passenger focus
62. south east trains
63. university of york
64. aston martin lagonda limited
65. british airports authority
66. northern rail ltd (york)
67. the university of plymouth
68. andrews & arnold ltd
69. university college london
70. nspcc
71. commission for equality & human rights
72. lloydstsb cmf
73. hoare govett services
74. bbc broadcasting dataservices ltd
75. the university of bristol
76. greater london authority
77. amoco corporation
78. associated newspapers ltd
79. first group
80. haberdashers askes school
81. fords of winsford
82. laing orourke plc
83. london school of economics and political science
84. european court of justice
85. imperial college london
86. queen mary and westfield college
87. research in motion uk limited
88. university of wales aberystwyth
89. loughborough university
90. north lincolnshire council
91. university of central lancashire
92. royal bank of canada trust corporation limited
93. sheffield hallam university
94. city university
95. apple computer inc.
96. british sky broadcasting ltd.
97. university of sussex
98. ford motor company
99. research machines plc
100. leeds city council

N.B. The vast majority of readers do not have their own servers.

Top 20 referring sites...

1. google
2. wnxxforum.com
3. newsnow.co.uk
4. railforums.co.uk
5. rail-magazine.com
6. londonreconnections.blogspot.com
7. wimbledonparkdepot.spaces.live.com
8. tomharris.org.uk
9. twitter.com
10. boriswatch.co.uk
11. railchat.co.uk
12. facebook.com
13. theticketcollector.wordpress.com
14. polishrail.wordpress.com
15. christianwolmar.co.uk
16. firstgreatwestern.info
17. englishrail.wordpress.com
18. northernrailways.co.uk
19. districtdave.proboards.com
20. paulbigland.fotopic.net

Eye thanks all readers and contributors for their continued support throughout 2009.

UPDATE: This from Driver Potter...

*In best Mike Smash voice*:

"And in at number seven it's Driver Potter. Third rail-mungous, mate."

It's my pleasure to support, old thing.

All the best for 2010. Peace!

UPDATE: This from Chionanthus Virginicus (et uxor)

Thanks for your "in depth" probing in 2009.

Look forward to seeing if IEP can be killed in 2010!

Best Wishes for 2010 to you and to the Eye's family of compilers...

UPDATE: This from our man in the Four Foot...

My entry for the railway gardens and pointless sign competition - only in America!


Happy new year from Our Man in the 4'!

UPDATE: This from our International Correspondent...

Our Man in the Four Foot is slightly out on his geography about the train coming into collision with the roadsign.

To save anyone coming out from Behind the Water Tower with the correcting fluid, it is actually in Poland.

Szczesliwego Nowego Roku!

November visitors

In November Railway Eye received 30,574 visits from 12,461 unique visitors.

According to Google Analytics you viewed 43,900 splenetic utterances in total.

Thank you.

October thank you

In October Railway Eye received 25,677 visits from 8,376 unique visitors.

Apparently you viewed 36,717 splenetic utterances in total.

Since the site launched on the 13th May 2008 (or there abouts) Railway Eye has received 215,847 visits from 48,586 unique visitors.

Thank you.

Results of Eye's latest exciting survey

Obviously Railway Eye is now required reading within DafT's sprawling empire.

Or so it would appear from Eye's latest exciting survey (eyes right).

As usual, Eye's powerful analytical software has identified the source of the single vote, cast in favour of DfT specifying new High Speed lines...

Welcome Sir David and thank you for taking part.

Most exciting Eye survey - ever!

In May Railway Eye received 16,724 visits from 4,766 unique visitors.

Apparently you viewed 24,954 splenetic utterances in total.

So what?

So it's time to to announce the Eye's most exciting survey, ever! Click here to take part... (It'll take 30 secs - honest. Many thanks)

UPDATE: Very many thanks. Survey now complete. Normal service will resume shortly...

Awaiting the call

Telegrammed by our Independent Expert
'Weak and ineffective'.

That's how the report by Price Waterhouse Coopers, leaked to the Gruaniad this morning, describes the non-executive board members of Network Rail.

Perhaps time, therefore, that NR reappraised the selection process for its Public Members, and ended the process of repudiating applications from knowledgeable Railway Eyers, such as the Independent Expert and Captain Deltic.


If called upon we're happy to serve...

UPDATE: This from the Pink 'Un today (Tuesday 3rd March)...

Decision-making could be more effective if the number of members were reduced to about 30, if some were paid to improve attendance and if more secretarial and analytical support were provided, to help members to follow the company’s performance in more detail.

Well if there's cash in it we're even more interested!

Listening government

Where Railway Eye goes, ministers are sure to follow.

Within hours of our Independent Expert posting that rail fares need to fall because of deflation, what happens?

Ministers let it be known that "rail fares will be allowed to fall in line with deflation".

In the land of the one-eyed the blogger is king!

Lookalike Vll

This from a Mr Lazarus.

What a cultured lot you are....