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Car commuters urged to ‘take a fresh look’ at the train
Transport for the North (TfN) says there are more reasons than ever to consider the train as an alternative means of travel.
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TransPennine Express (TPE)
TransPennine Express is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that operates the TransPennine Express franchise. It runs regional and intercity rail services between the major cities of Northern England and Scotland.
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New high performing rail timetable announced for Manchester rail network
For rail services in and around Manchester, a new timetable has been approved to start in December 2022, mainly focusing on improving rail service performance to provide a reliable passenger journey.
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TransPennine Express announces new rail services for Northumberland
From December 2021, TransPennine Express will launch a new service between Newcastle and Edinburgh calling at several key stations in Northumberland.
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ORR to review safety and passenger impacts of Hitachi Rail Class 800 and 385 disruption
Following the disruption caused by the discovery of cracks on Hitachi Class 800 and 385 series trains in May 2021, ORR is set to undertake a review of the impact of the incident on safety and passengers.
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FirstGroup signs NRCs for South Western Railway and TransPennine Express
FirstGroup has agreed with the Department for Transport two National Rail Contracts for the SWR and TPE train operating companies, with a primary term of two years.
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UK rail industry and Hitachi Rail agree service recovery plan
With oversight from the UK's Office of Rail and Road, Hitachi Rail, train operators and the government have agreed a service recovery plan to safely reintroduce more Class 800 Series and 385 Series trainsets into passenger service after cracks were found on some trains.
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UK government calls for action plan following Class 800 train cracking and subsequent disruption
The UK Rail Minister has requested a comprehensive plan from Hitachi to identify the extent of cracking found on some Class 800 Series trains, and has asked the rail industry to urgently set out a strategy to resolve prolonged passenger and network disruption.
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Setting a new benchmark for passenger connectivity with 5G mmWave technology
FirstGroup have successfully completed a trial of the ‘rail 5G’ gigabit track to train solution on the Isle of Wight, paving the way for full commercial deployment on Britain’s busiest railway. For Global Railway Review, Simon Holmes, FirstGroup’s Head of Engineering Digital Communications and Managing Director of Evo-rail (a FirstGroup…
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ORR publishes 2020-2021 Q3 statistics for UK passenger rail performance
ORR's statistics show that the punctuality of all 23 UK operators improved in Q3 of 2020-2021 when compared to 2019-2020, but a total of 11 per cent fewer trains were scheduled.
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New consultation launched to improve Manchester’s railways
While the public are being asked to stay at home, the rail industry is using this opportunity to plan improvements around Manchester ready for when passengers return in much greater numbers.
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DfT and FirstGroup reach agreement on future of SWR and Avanti
The agreement with DfT has outlined that FirstGroup will not be required pay a pre-existing franchise agreement termination sum for Avanti, but must pay a contribution of £33.2 million for SWR.
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Network Rail overhauls OLE on West Coast Main Line to improve journeys
Network Rail's £3.4 million Great North Rail Project upgrade will make overhead line equipment (OLE) more resilient on the West Coast Main Line between Preston and Carlisle.
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All train operators in Britain now recognise the Sunflower scheme
All train operators in Britain and Network Rail are now signed up to the Sunflower scheme, designed to enable people with non-visible disabilities to discreetly let others know that they might require a little more time, support or assistance when travelling.
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Northern appoints new Managing Director under public ownership
Following the UK government taking over operation of the Northern franchise, a new Managing Director, Nick Donovan, has been appointed.
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TransPennine Express set performance recovery target by Transport for the North
Following the worst performance figures in the UK in late 2019, TransPennine Express must now deliver a service that restores passenger trust.