Hendy - Railway Hero?

This from the BBC's Tom Edwards...

@BBCTomEdwards: Peter Hendy very proud he has been awarded the "beer drinker of the year" by Parliamentary Beer Group 

That is all!

Apart from good effort, of course

Oyster to be valid on National Rail someday soon - Official

This from the BBC...

London commuters will be able to use pay-as-you-go Oyster cards on the city's suburban overland rail network by early next year, officials said.

The devil's in the detail - still no start date.

UPDATE: This from John Bull over at London Reconnections...

Official announcement is likely to happen next week - which is conveniently AFTER Mayor's Question time (tomorrow).

Means Boris doesn't have to answer awkward questions from his betters (Shawcross, Pidgeon etc.) on why he completely bottled it in the negotiations and allowed the TOCs to force Oyster Extension Permits on him.

London Midland News

This just in from our man at the back...

As this franchise lurches from one crisis to another, the RMT is calling for strike action at the ex Silverlink depots as the management finally get to grips with the various Spanish Practices that have been taking place.

However, now they have done that, the management have introduced some ridiculous payment structures to tempt traincrew into working overtime and rest days to keep them out of the do-do as they failed to recruit enough staff to service the new timetable.

Drivers now have a guaranteed minimum of 11hours payment for working a no duty day and guards have 10 hours. Both supposedly temporary arrangements but wait for the unions to call the 'custom and practice' argument to make it permanent.

In the meantime the station staff who aren't treated with the same kid gloves are left to get on with it, i.e. lump it.

Sundays remain voluntary for the time being.

UPDATE: An 'anonymous' reader mails the following implausible tale...

Rumours around Euston that Richard Branson has been offered a blank cheque if he takes over the Midland franchise.

But he wants a name change to Virgin Suburban, and wants to see the Overground banished from Euston.

I can't say if that's true, but it's hardly unexpected.

Though I'm not sure what TfL will make of Beardie's demands regarding the Overground.

Make of this what you will.

UPDATE: Sim Harris writes:

Interesting that the notion of no Overground at Euston has been revived, even in the context of Beardie taking over LM.

Actually, it was on the TfL "maybe" list as recently as late 2007.

The argument is that Overground (i.e. Watford DC) delivers people to a terminus where the Underground is already woefully overcrowded in the morning peak.

Serious consideration has been given to diverting the Watfords via Primrose Hill (Opportunity missed! Ed) and then taking them along the North London Railway to feed people down into the City - perhaps at Dalston Junction when the ELR is opened?

I don't believe the idea is dead, either.

On the rocks

Now that the dust is settling following BoJo's shock announcement last week that TranSys' Oyster Card contract is to be terminated, perhaps it is time to ask a question or two.

When the contract with TranSys was originally signed Bob "the rebuilder" Kiley was the man in charge at TfL.

Despite expanding vast amounts of energy (and public money) on unsuccessful attempts to stop the PPP, little attention appears to have been paid to those areas that TfL did have direct control over - eg the TranSys contract.

So why was there no breakpoint written into the original contract?

Perhaps something that vodka Bob overlooked between visits to the offy?

Oyster in BBQ Sauce

The TranSys' summer BBQ was an unusually subdued affair last Wednesday (23rd July) .

In previous years the Smartcard PFI Contractor has been besieged by TfL staff begging to attend the annual shindig.

However, this year even those with much sought after tickets pleaded prior engagements of the 'underwater knitting' variety.

Regular visitors to Railway Eye may recollect that there have been a number of issues in recent weeks with Oyster card readers.

Surely TfL bosses weren't small minded enough to suggest that staff attending the do might find it "career limiting"?

Careless talk costs...

PPPs are not exactly flavour of the month in London following the high profile collapse of Metronet .

Recent failures of TfL's Oyster Card ticketing system may see PFIs going the same way.

Twice in the last two weeks London Underground has had to open the 'gateline' owing to large numbers of valid Oyster cards being rejected by the system.

The expensive glitches have driven TfL to distraction, so in true "Partnership" style they have named and shamed the PFI contractors responsible for the system.

"We believe that (the latest) problem, resulted from incorrect data being sent out by our contractor, Transys," TfL said.

Voice of London and TfL mouth-piece Tony Travers was more forthright in the Guardian: "Transys just need to get a grip, sort it out and make sure that it doesn't happen again" he said.

However, TfL's continued insistence on publically shafting its contractors at every opportunity is likely to cost London dear. Private sector bids for Infracos BCV & SSL, the soon to be disaggregated former Metronet companies, will no doubt reflect the reputational risks of working for TfL.

Hendy goes with the bendy

Telegrammed by The General Manager
Have you noticed Peter Hendy's extraordinary re-invention of himself as a right-wing gent?

In the latest Transit he claims to have "cast off the cloak of revolutionary socialism". No doubt he will soon be owning up to his mum's title and that his brother is a noted silk (John Hendy QC).

Is there nothing our boy won't do for the rich boys and toffs who now run City Hall?

But will it be enough to save him?

Probably not.