RAILDATE 2025.02.28

Your free weekly guide to what's happening and what's new.

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Raildate is a collaboration between the editor and a number of contributors. Please think about supplying links that you spot. The contact email address is: raildate.co.uk@gmail.com

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There are sections on:

• UK Rail News
• International Rail News
• Other Transport Modes
• The Weekly Poser (and the answer to last week's poser)

UK Rail News

East

• Greater Anglia erects blue plaque in honour of Dorothy Wadham at Ingatestone station
• Network Rail and Greater Anglia accused of ‘that will do’ attitude to design
• Flying Scotsman arrived on Nene Valley Railway
• Greater Anglia is named Train Operator of the Year
• Restoration of “lost loco” Newstead
• Cambridge South station opening pushed back
• West Runton to get extra Sunday train service from December

East Midlands

• Contactless fare trail in East Midlands

London

• TfL to increase Tube, Overground, Elizabeth line and train fares this week - full list of new prices
• Mayor of London eyes Great Northern and Southeastern rail takeover
• The story behind Clapham Junction’s disused platform 8
• What are the salaries for Tube and bus drivers working for TfL as Elizabeth Line cancels strikes?
• A prize worth pursuing: has Elizabeth line shown what rail investment can achieve?
• Mind the gap for wheelchair users on the Elizabeth line
• Elizabeth line strikes called off after drivers get new pay offer

Midlands

• Midlands Connect announces plans to reinstate rail link between Coventry and Leicester
• 140 extra trains a week for Worcester stations under Midlands Rail Hub plans

North East

• New footbridge installed at Darlington
• New carriage washing machine for Tyne & Wear metro
• 50t footbridge installed through roof of Darlington station as part of £140M upgrade
• Latest Northumberland Line station to open in coming weeks

Scotland

• WCML blocked by flooding and landslip north of Lockerbie
• Funds confirmed for Borders Railway extension study
• Refurbishment of Awe viaduct near Taynuilt completed
• Cairngorm Funicular to reopen at the end of February
• Plans to extend Borders Route to Carlisle

South

• Council footbridge at Havant to be replaced in £11.5m project
• Network Rail stands by plan to close Wareham Level Crossing
• Grand Central Waterside Line

South East

• Network Rail to hold monthly public events for Oxford station upgrade
• Network Rail 'out of comfort zone' with road closure
• Thameslink offer schools free tickets as part of Rail200
• Call to protect pigeons nesting under rail bridge
• Parking changes due at 42 railway stations
• C2C and District Line see severe delays due to 'police incident' at Dagenham East
• Blast from the Past! Southeastern revives the iconic Network SouthEast livery
• Network Rail fined for staff fatality at Surbiton on 2021
• Network Rail fined £3.41m following death of Surbiton track worker

Wales

• Johnston railway station named as United Kingdom crime hotspot
• Bicycle carrying 153 units introduced on the Central Wales Line
• Cardiff Valleys lines blocked by flooding
• Refurbished cycle train launched on Heart of Wales line

West

• Cheltenham will see ‘massive’ rail boom under Midlands Rail Hub plan

National

• Major West Coast main line overhaul to shut Europe’s busiest track for weeks at a time
• Britain’s most beautiful lost railway lines

International Rail News

Australia

• Clayton Equipment to build hybrid locos for Queensland sugar cane railway

Canada

• CPKC derailment near Moose Jaw

China

• Taiyuan opens second metro line

Europe

• Long term plans for train services from St Pancras to Germany and Switzerland
• St Pancras and Channel tunnel plan rail routes to Germany and Switzerland

France

• SNCF starts procurement of new overnight coaches

Germany

• The First Stadler TINA Tram Arrives in Rostock for Testing

Italy

• Stadler trams begin entering service in Milano

Kenya

• Kenya to take over Chinese built line by the year end

New Zealand

• Level crossing replacement in Auckland

Sweden

• Nordisk Bergteknik secures large contract for Swedish rail project

Switzerland

• DLM Modern steam traction
• Job losses confirmed at SBB Cargo

Tanzania

• Great rail journeys: last call for the slow train across Tanzania

USA

• Alstom secures $25m deal for NJ Transit Multilevel II Truck overhauls
• MTA Metro North to order electric & battery bi-mode locos

Air

• Expanding Gatwick as well as Heathrow would benefit consumers, says CAA
• Room for both Heathrow and Gatwick to expand, says airport boss
• Minister ‘sets path’ to allow Gatwick to open second runway

Other Transport Modes

Bus

• First Bristol to London motor coaches anniversary
• First Bus Solent More bus strikes overpay and conditions dispute

Marine

• Agreement signed for new Red Funnel high speed ferries
• ‘Losing hope with every day that passes’: torment of the ships’ crews abandoned at sea

Credits

Thank you to this week's contributors.

• Bill King
• John Oliver
• Matthew Shaw
• Mike Price
• Neil Kearns
• Paul Tambini
• Richard Buckby
• Richard Maund

The Weekly Poser: Where is this?

A diesel Blue Pullman unit at a station that has been completely transformed since. Where is it?

Please send your answers to raildate.co.uk@gmail.com

Last week's Where is this?

Something important is yet to be built. [Early 20th century 1" map]. Where/what is it?

Answer: Immingham Dock and the Grimsby & Immingham Electric Railway. Congratulations are due to the following for their correct answers: Phil Deaves, Dave Goodyear, Richard Whitbread, Colin Penfold, Tony Fox, Paul Hopper, Mike Rogers, Richard Maund, Peter Tisdale, John Lacy, Andrew Twynham, Paul Tambini, Chris Neale, John Nuttall, Blair Robinson, Michael Willsher, David Sharp, Gérard van Teeffelen, Simon Wass, Andrew Treves, Tony Hall, Bryn Pitcher, Neil Spencer, Bernard Gudgin, Ian Lowe, Richard Weller, Chris Gibbard, Jim Allwood.

A large number of the answers identified Grimsby without mentioning the thing that was missing (Immingham) but it would be overly harsh to dissallow them.

The Great Central Railway had huge ambitions under the dynamic leadership of Sir Edward Watkin. The London Extension was built to Marylebone at considerable expense, at Berne Gauge standards in preparation for Channel Tunnel services. The company as owner of Grimsby Docks was simultaneously instrumental in getting Immingham Docks built (1906-12).

An electric tramway was built from Grimsby to bring in dock workers. It was one of Britain’s most heavily patronised tramways throughout its life but suffered numerous indignities after Nationalisation. On-street running in Grimsby ended in 1956 at a time when it conveyed a million passengers per annum, and full closure took place within five years. The picture below was taken on the last day of service 1st July 1961.

Image credit: Jack Faithfull. RCTS Collection.

SMALL PRINT

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©  Matthew Shaw 2025