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!

Albino appoints new interim MD for Northern

Serco and ClogRail have appointed Ian Bevan as Northern's interim managing director.

Bevan is currently Finance Director.

The new interim Deputy MD will be Steve Butcher, who is currently Northern's Area Director East.

NedSeagoon was unavailable for comment.

London Midland falls foul of Harperson - Shocker

What on earth is going on over at London Midland?

Industry jungle drums suggest that Captain Permatan's second worst performing TOC (No1 South Eastern) is busy shedding staff.

Meanwhile, beleagured passengers actually trying to find out how the doomed franchise is operating its piss-poor train services have to negotiate a list of impertinent questions; including a request that they divulge their age and 'gender'.

Quite what that has to do with how trains are running is anyones guess.

Alas - the overactive web-monkey who designed the form has dropped a clanger.

In the Age of Change the options male and female are only appropriate to a question demanding details of a person's 'sex' - as any fule kno.

But a question on Gender must include at least the following options: Straight, Gay, Bi, Harperson or Permatan (below the rank of Captain).

Hopefully at least one p45 will be winging its way to the originator of this distasteful example of politically incorrect passenger profiling.

World's first "Social Media Train"?

Now this looks exciting.

The Social Media Train - Weds 10th February 2010 - 6:36pm - 9:41pm - The Penistone Line between Sheffield and Huddersfield

The world's first Social Media Train will depart Sheffield Station at 18:36 on Weds 10th February 2010.

Full details available here.

Eye wonders if there is a hashtag for this and whether passengers will be twittering en-route?

UPDATE: This, via twitter, from @technicalfault...

The hashtag is #smtrain

And I'll be on it.

Scotrail - 54 days and counting

Remember the YouTube hit United Breaks Guitars?

Now rail users are getting in on the act.

This sorry tale from Jamie Anderson - you can follow the full saga over at Jamie's blog



Don't get mad - get viral!

Eureka consultation - East Coast begs the question

More exciting news on the proposed East Coast "Eureka" timetable.

Regular readers will recollect that the new SLC2 timetable has provoked howls of indignation from other operators on the route, whose passengers will suffer extended journey times and piss-poor connections so that nationalised operator East Coast can get the timetable Lord Adonis wants.

But never let it be said that the Department doesn't listen to rail users.

DafT has instructed East Coast to undertake the consultation on the proposed timetable for the whole industry - a move, which in the words of one peeved operator, is akin to "giving your squiffy uncle the keys to the drinks cabinet".

No matter.

Obviously entrusting such a task to Passenger Focus, the body which has a statutory responsibility to represent all rail users, is just too risky.

After all they might come up with the wrong answer.

Eurostar starts spinning early...

This from PR Week...

The Eurostar Independent Review has appointed Bell Pottinger to help manage the publication of its findings this week.

Just how bad can it be?

New NR HQ to obliterate Milton Keynes - Official

Good news for those who hate concrete cows!

This from New Civil Engineer...

Network Rail has received planning permission to build its new eco-friendly national centre in Central Milton Keynes for 3,000 employees.

The 122km² building will be built on the site of a former hockey stadium...

Talk of a 500lb gorilla now appear somewhat conservative.

Lobby Fodder on PR puffery gone wrong

This from Lobby Fodder...

I thought your readers might be interested in this example of PR puffery gone wrong.

Many Westminster colleagues received an email today from Grand Central celebrating the score it received in the Autumn 2009 Passenger Survey, the results of which were published today.

Unfortunately GC's PR (the soi disant 'veteran' observer. Ed) appears to have suffered a keyboard malfunction, judging from the subject line in this email:

Unless of course this is a new front in the War of SLC2?

Eccles to join NR Board - but for how long?

Exciting news from Network Rail!

The company hopes to appoint two new non-Exec directors, subject of course to the pliant Members rubber stamping the appointments in July.

So who are these giants of corporate governance?

Why none other than ODA Chief Executive David Higgins and railwayman's railwayman Graham Eccles.

Eccles at least should bring some much needed board focus on the needs of train operators.

But what's this?

Is NR not keen to give the uber-operator too much visibility?

Study these pictures closely, contained in NR's email release announcing the appointments, and see if you can find Mr Eccles amongst the sea of Higgins...


Looks like Network Rail spin machine is already starting to airbrush the Silver Fox out of existence.

UPDATE: This from Steve Strong...

Eye is being a little unfair.

Obviously this is part of NR's determination to become economic and efficient.

If all NR non-Execs were called Higgins it would save a fortune on stationery costs.

UPDATE: This from NR's Internet Rapid Rebuttal Unit...

This is what happens when I don't check releases before they go out.

Rest assured it was put right in minutes of the email going out and the website version is correct.

Of course it's not a surfeit of Higginses we have at Network Rail, but of Eccleses.

Graham, of course, joins his brother Richard who is our head of route planning

UPDATE: This from Driver Potter...

Right, I want to make things clear at the outset that I'm only asking because I don't want to look an idiot later on.

The Missing Eccles isn't the same as The Famous Eccles, is he?



Eye is sure NR's Eccles will be paying a similar amount of attention to times written down on a piece of paper...

IEP lobbying explained

This just in from Jumbo...

Overheard on the Derby train: A man telling his travelling companions that he is shortly to meet Captain Deltic and convince him that the bi-mode extravaganza will save the world.

Shome mishtake shurely?

UPDATE: This from Captain Deltic...

How intriguing.

I am indeed going to Ashford Depot tomorrow on a technical visit to find out how the Hitachi Class 395 fleet and the Class 465 re-powering is going and an SET update has been promised over a working lunch.

If Jumbo will provide details of the train I will ask which of those present was on it and actually admitting to talking to me.

They must be coming up to retirement.

UPDATE: Jumbo responds...

I thought that the IEP only had one supporter.

UPDATE: More from Captain Deltic...

Having fallen off his chair laughing the Captain gets his breath back and points out that Jumbo is being very naughty.

So which train from Euston to Rugby was it?

UPDATE: This from our International Correspondent...

What perfect symmetry.

Uncloaking industry secrets by ear-wigging over-talkative and indiscreet rolling stock engineers in the First Class end of anything leaving Derby was an intelligence gathering technique pioneered in the early 80s by one Captain Deltic, in between bouts of car-park watching (a practice now known more colloquially as 'Dogging').

Of course he was just a junior subaltern in those days.

UPDATE: Captain Deltic reminisces...

It was on a train to Derby that a foursome of Department of Transport civil servants were talking about closing the WCML north of Preston.

They didn't seem to notice that I was taking notes.

A minor stir, denials and a witch hunt ensued following publication.

Odd that while DfT is daft, we never referred to DoT as dotty.

It must have been the age of deference. Or perhaps in those dim and distant days the civil service had higher standards of competence.

UPDATE: Further cryptic details from Jumbo...

Definitely a train to Derby, well Sheffield to be strictly correct.

And a clue, it was not the noble Lord but another recently ennobled person, well gonged actually...

Peak Rail - dissent will not be tolerated

Good to see that freedom of speech is alive and well at Peak Rail.

As may be seen from this interesting email marking the demise of the Peak Rail discussion forum on Google Groups...

From:
To: Peak Group
Sent: Tuesday, February 02, 2010 7:21 PM
Subject: {Peak Rail topic:551} Closure of this Discussion Group

Dear All,

Today, I mistakenly let a posting through the moderation process which would have normally been moderated out.

This was caused by me not reading to the end of the post when using my Blackberry. It was a human error. I have been instructed by Jackie and Roger to reframe from moderating any further emails to this group and to "shut it down until further notice".

I would like to take this opportunity to aploligise for allowing such an inaccurate post to be published. This is therefore the last post to the 'Google Group'. I hope you, like me, found the open and transparent debate both enjoyable and informative.

With Best Wishes,

What wickedness could the offending post have contained?

Merely this:

To return to the original topic, what is the state of completion of the various stages of the legal framework we will need to connect with NetworkRail and operate into Matlock? The December Bulletin Board firmly stated that preparation work would begin in January.

From an examination of the site it appears that a shoulder of rock on the old quarry site will need to be removed. Has the permission of the landowner been obtained?

I have obtained a copy of the letter sent by NetworkRail to our M.P. in December. He seems to have sent out a number of copies. This sets out the list of outstanding agreements which they require to have completed; it has the potential to be a complicated affair which will require a lot of hard detailed work to get through. It will not be solved by a meeting or a few letters.

NetworkRail make it plain that they will have costs which they expect to recover from us. Is there an estimate of these costs and is the money to hand?

How deeply shocking!

Surely the letter from Network Rail to Patrick McLoughlin MP is not that contentious?

NR to McLoughlin 14-12-09

Eye readers are invited to draw their own conclusions.

NRM news - Pridmore to Join A1 Trust

Eye hears that Jon Pridmore is to leave the National Railway Museum on the 11th of April 2010.

Jon will be joining the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust as their ‘Mobile Operations Manager’.

Eye wonders how you can be a MoM with a fleet of just one kettle?

Unless of course Tornado isn't the limit of the A1 Truss's operational aspirations.

Jon will be celebrating his new job over drinks in York on the preceding Thursday.

As a service to the citizens of York here is a photo of the man himself.


You may wish to lock up your daughters.

Adonis to strip FuCC of franchise in April?

Poor old FuCC.

Her Majesty's Daily Telegraph has now joined the legion calling for First to be stripped of the franchise:

The Government could do this as early as April because of a "break clause" allowing the Department for Transport to remove the company for poor performance after four years.

Eye thinks not.

Our resident legal expert, Hugh Fee, points out that the 10th April termination date referred to in the contract was dependent on performance between April 07 - April 08.

So whilst the Noble Lord might huff and puff he still can't bring FuCC's house down.

UPDATE: This from Thameslink Tommy...

Poor Neal Lawson don't you mean.

The guys only been in the job two weeks and he's already been roasted by the High Speed Evangelist.

Your readers might be interested to know that the shortfall in FuCC's driver establishment had its origins in the obsession with driving out costs championed by a previous MD.

Obviously the elimination of "spare drivers" was seen as an easy target.

Older hands knew that this wasn't wise but in the aggressive management climate that existed at the time no one felt brave enough to say so.

So as drivers left, no replacements were recruited and over time cancellations due to "driver shortages" became more and more frequent.

Hopefully driver spare ratios are being maintained over at East Coast?

IEP to become Tram-train! Official, no really!

Ixion - Railway Eye's resident louche traction and rolling stock engineer has just spotted this table in the InterCity East Coast franchise consultation document.

Table 5.1 SET Train configurations
			Seating capacity
	Type	Formation	Total	First	Standard
HST replacement	Bi-mode	Full	630	132	498
Class 365 replacement	Electric	Half	331	27	304
Class 313 replacement	Electric*	Third	250		250
Tram-train	Bi-mode	Quarter	150		150
Class 180 replacement	Bi-mode	Half	273	27	246
IC225 replacement	Electric	Full	688	132	556
Spares	Bi-mode	Full	630	132	498
*Dual voltage

It casts shocking new light on DfT Rail's aim of gaining economies of scale by maximising the range of applications for the Super Express Train...

UPDATE: This from Underground Ernest...

Can we get a variant to replace our Piccadilly line stock?

UPDATE: This from our man at 222 Marylebone Road...

Surely, if DfT is seeking economies of scale and IEP is seen as a Class 365 replacement, the new Thameslink stock would be a logical application for an ultra-high density variant?

With that massive acceleration 30 trains an hour would be possible... probably...

Tories commit to Crossrail and HS2

This from New Civil Engineer...

Shadow chancellor George Osborne has today pledged that his party will build London’s £15.9bn Crossrail scheme and start work on a north-south high speed rail line should they win the next General Election.

As today's announcement signalled the third change in Tory economic policy in almost as many days, Eye wonders how long this particular commitment will last.

DfT lacks leadership - Official

Exciting news from the Department for Transport!

This from the 2009 DfT staff survey:

9. Leadership & Change Management
B40 I feel that DFT as a whole is well managed 49%
B41 Senior Managers in DFT are sufficiently visible 53%
B42 I believe the actions of senior managers are consistent with DFT's values 47%
B43 I believe senior management has a clear vision for the future of DFT 40%
B44 Overall, I have confidence in the decisions made by DFT's senior managers 42%
B45 I feel that change is managed well in DFT 25%
B46 When changes are made in DFT they are usually for the better 22%

Indeed!

UPDATE: This from Leo Pink...

Do we have the score for the statement

I believe St**rt B*k*r has at least three ingenious solutions to every conceivable railway problem?

Man loses shirt off back for rail tickets! - Official!

This from News:Lite...

Man tattooed with train logo... for free rail tickets

Story here.

ORR seeks to improve data available to industry

This from the ORR...

The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) today launches a project aimed at improving the data it makes available to the rail industry.

The regulator is keen to shed light on how data can be most effectively disseminated to the rail industry, and is seeking views through a range of interviews and an online survey. Information emerging from the research will inform the future delivery and scope of ORR’s data.

ORR chief executive Bill Emery said: “The study will help us better understand how we can best deliver rail data and statistics to the rail industry and interested public.

“It is vital that the rail sector has ready access to reliable and useful information so that it can continue to improve standards of service, safety and efficiency for rail users.”

To take part in the online survey, which runs until 15 February 2010, click here.

How the media works - Broadcast news

With a bowler tip to Obnoxio...