Now that My Lord Adonis has caped new diesel trains here's an idea whose time may have come.
And with all the money going on electrification (£1.1bn) ACoRP and other supporters of the TramTrain had also better take note.
This just in from Lord Deltic of Pan in the Counties of Brunel and Stephenson...
Announcing the decision to embark on a programme of electrification the Prime Minister said:
“To build a better Britain, we must be bold, innovative and forward-looking and invest with confidence in our country’s transport infrastructure, jobs and industry. This electrification programme is vital to building a 21st century transport system.”
Given that this coming Monday (27 July) marks the 25th anniversary of the then Transport Secretary, Nicholas Ridley, announcing the go ahead for the East Coast Main Line Electrification, shouldn't that be 'backward looking'?
And who would have thought that Gordon Brown would prove to be heir to Margaret Thatcher!
Telegrammed by the Globetrotter
Shadow Transport Secretary, Theresa Villiers wastes no time in jumping onto the bandwagon following the Transport Select Committee’s report which “found massive failings in the way our railways are run”.
Into the in-box thunders an indignant statement which underlines that the report is “scathing about the way Labour has run the rail franchising system. The Government has failed to tackle the problems on our railways, creating a franchise system which resorts to pricing passengers off the railway to deal with overcrowding. Labour's approach has been so flawed as to contribute to not just one but two failures on the same line.”
Maybe someone should have a quiet word to remind the fragrant lady just who it was that introduced passenger franchising to the UK rail sector in the first place.
Or maybe sending out a press release at mid-day on a warm sunny Saturday just as the Parliamentary recess begins is all part of her cunning plan to ensure that no-one who remembers the facts will actually notice!
No matter..
All will be well, and all will be well and all manner of things shall be well, prophesied the saintly Lady Julian of Norwich.
Theresa obviously shares this view: "A future Conservative Government would prioritise value for money on our railways. We would put the interests of passengers first, lengthen rail franchises and reform Network Rail to ensure taxpayers and fare-payers alike get the most from our railways."
Eye just can’t wait…
Harry Patch, the last British survivor of the Kaiser's War on the Western Front, has died.
What a generation!
We will not forget.
Requiescat in pace et in amore.
Eye has waited and waited and waited.
And still no one has provided a new, improved, video mix of this song.
Here it is in all its glory.
And here something else to mix with it.
Please, someone, do the decent thing...
This from Tom Harris...
SO FAREWELL, then, John Ryan, creator of Captain Pugwash and Mary, Mungo and Midge, that weird 1970s attempt to glamorise living in a high rise flat.
The Fact Compiler mourns for his lost youth.
Welcome to Middlesbrough!
The Fact Compiler cannot decide whether it's the Railway Garden, or the Pacer, that is a greater symbol of neglect?
Telegrammed by our Independent Expert
The grass grows ever greener.
We know that Kent is famed as the "Garden of England", but looks like Network Rail staff are taking it a bit too literally at Canterbury West pictured yesterday.
How about some Canterbury Belles to set off the scene?
UPDATE: Lord Deltic of the Pan in the Counties of Brunel and Stephenson mischievously asks...
Shouldn't these signs be in braille as well?
A letter from Shadow Transport Minister, Stephen Hammond to Speaker Bercow:
Dear Mr Speaker,
I write to protest about the discourtesy shown to the House today by the Secretary of State for Transport.
This morning, merely two days after the House rose for the summer recess, Lord Adonis made a major announcement on the UK national rail network – with significant implications for public spending. The announcement to electrify the main rail route between London and Swansea was made on the morning BBC broadcast.
Today’s announcement was trailed by the Government back on 29 June. On that day the Prime Minister launched a document entitled Building Britain’s Future, which included a reference to plans for a major electrification programme. It is clear therefore that the plans were in place long before the House rose and could have easily been made to Parliament. Indeed, it seems that the only reason for making the announcement today is that it coincides with a Cabinet meeting in Cardiff.
Today’s events are in blatant disregard of your, and the previous Speaker’s, instructions to Ministers to make announcements to Parliament first.
This is regrettably the second time this has happened this month. On 1 July Lord Adonis announced the nationalisation of the National Express East Coast rail franchise not to Parliament but, again, on BBC Radio.
Ministers persistently disregard your instructions to respect the protocols of Parliament, and I would be grateful for your advice as to what can be done to ensure that Ministers respect your wishes.
Yours ever,
Stephen Hammond
The Fact Compiler doesn't want to be overly pedantic but actually The Times had the announcement first, on Wednesday night.
Via Twitter...
I am spending plenty of times on our trains today. At Cabinet discussed historic announcement on electrification of various lines.
Does the reference to 'our trains' suggest that others may soon go the way of NXEC?
This just in from a Mr Saltaire...
I wondered if Eye readers might appreciate a quick and dirty breakdown of what today's announcement means in rolling stock terms?
This taken from the Departments 'The Case for Electrification' published today:
The following has appeared on the WNXX forum, with a bowler tip to Driver Potter...
I think Roger Ford of Modern Railways Magazine has personally done a lot to get electrification back on to the political agenda.
Roger is very good at presenting hard facts well and his repeated articles, along with the electrification petition etc, have culminated in today's announcement.
It would be nice for him to get some recognition for sticking his head above the parapet and stating the bloody obvious.
Arise, Sir Roger?
Or even better Lord Catenary of Welwyn!
Would someone like to nominate Captain Deltic as a 'People's Peer'?
Oh dear.
It looks like the Boys in Blue have been over zealous on the Underground again.
This from Tuesday's Grauniad...
A woman is to challenge the Metropolitan police in the high court, claiming she was handcuffed, detained and threatened with arrest for filming officers on her mobile phone.
As Harriet assured us "If you've done nothing wrong you have nothing to fear."
Quite so.
And, evidently, just because you're innocent doesn't mean you're not guilty.
Not so much rowing back, more the full 60 knot reversal!
Theresa Villiers (Shadow Secretary of State for Transport)
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when his Department plans to begin the pre-qualification process for invitations to tender for the Inter-City East Coast franchise.
Chris Mole (Parliamentary Under-Secretary)
In the event that a state company takes on responsibility for the inter city east coast services later this year, the Department for Transport will consult on a new franchise specification with a view to issuing an invitation to tender in the summer of 2010.
"In the event"!?!
Why, suddenly, has an element of doubt crept into the proceedings?
UPDATE: This from The Archer...
As DafT are supremely confident that they can enforce Cross Default it's possible that NatEx have waved the white flag.
So expect an announcement soon on the date of their exit from East Coast.
And perhaps if they play ball DafT will let them keep the other two until 2011.
This just in from Rich...
As a reader for a while, I've been avidly following the Railway Garden Competition, and thought readers might be interested in an update on Chester's bid for glory.
The pictures below were taken last Saturday.
Not much further to go and platform 4 will be totally screened from the elements.
It's a cruel wind that sometimes blows in from the Dee...
Update: This from Bushy...
One of my sources tells me the ORR is taking a great interest in Network Rail's burgeoning 'nursery and garden' business, being rather unimpressed with the excessive growth of weeds and other vegetation.
Maybe one of their directors should offer to appear on Gardener's Question Time?
Telegrammed by our Independent Expert
According to the 7.30am headlines on Radio Four this morning:
"The government is to spend £1bn electrifying the West Coast Main Line to Cardiff".
Come to think of it, perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad idea to spend an additional £1bn on the WCML.
Dear Lord Adonis
Thank you for the promise to electrify various bits of the network.
Would it be possible to avoid the mistakes of the past and not do it on the cheap?
To stop this sort of thing happening:
(LNE) At 0858 OLE sections 34 & 36 on the Down Slow and Down Fast lines at Biggleswade tripped with the driver of 1N03, HB, 0830 London Kings Cross - Newcastle Central, in section on the Down Fast line reporting a loss of line light, with the driver requested to examine the pantograph. The traction current on the Down Slow line was reset at 0909. A Mobile Operations Manager and OLE staff were sent to site. The line was examined by 1P12, EG, 0822 London Kings Cross - Peterborough, with the driver reporting a dropper below the contact wire on the Down Fast line near Tempsford CCTV LC. All Down direction services were diverted to the Down Slow line with service reduction implemented. At 1025 staff on site reporting being unable to find anything foul of the contact wire. 1N03 was authorised to go forward, after the pantograph was confirmed as undamaged, and was instructed to examine the OLE for the remainder of the section. NWR at 1041 after 1N03 had completed the examination with nothing amiss found.
TRUST 269559 IQGU = 2 part cancelled = 61 trains = 818 mins.
Fault No.331607. CCIL 455997.
Many thanks.
Yours sincerely
The Fact Compiler
***NR bosses have seen off a challenge to change the company's controversial bonus scheme***
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