Latest Rail News

Network Rail slammed over ‘near miss’

Baildon landslip Network Rail track

Network Rail has been rapped over a dangerous incident in which three trains travelled across an unsupported area of track last year.

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has released its report into the incident last June in which nobody was injured. A similar incident occurred in 2012 – but no…

Aecom wins Singapore station design

Singapore HSR

Aecom, in collaboration with architect Farrells is to design the Singapore terminus for the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high speed rail after winning the contract with the Land Transport Authority.

The railway platforms are below ground, but the design will use skylights in the above-ground roof to bring natural light into the station.…

Big names to speak at UK Transport

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Bosses of the UK’s biggest clients are lining up to speak at the new UK Transport event to share their passion for  and insight into infrastructure investment.

Leaders of Network Rail, Highways England, Heathrow Airport, Crossrail 2, Transport for West Midlands and High Speed 2 are already confirmed for the new…

New engineering trains to save Network Rail millions

Tandem tamping combined dynamic track stabiliser tampers

Network Rail has introduced so-called “formation flying” engineering trains which will save an estimated £250,000 per week in costs by allowing trains to run at higher speeds once engineering is complete.

Network Rail said that passenger journeys could often be disrupted in the week after major track upgrades as trains must…

Call for design rethink after MTR firebombing

MTR East Tsim Sha Tsui Station firebomb attack

In the wake of the firebomb attack on the Hong Kong subway system last week, a leading fire expert has called for a rethink on fire design on metro systems.

The firebomb was dropped by a lone passenger on the train at around 7pm on the Hong Kong subway operator MTR’s…

Elevating Infrastructure | Making the case

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“High quality infrastructure drives economic growth, boosts productivity and raises living standards.”

“That is why we placed infrastructure at the heart of the Autumn Statement.” That is chief secretary to the Treasury David Gauke’s opening sentence in the introduction to an analysis published alongside the government’s National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline…

Elevating infrastructure | Devolution

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Devolution: so what’s actually happening across the UK?

The May government’s “modern industrial strategy”, published in January, has placed infrastructure at the heart of Britain’s drive to increase its global competitiveness. Alongside the government’s plans to increase the nation’s science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) skills and tackle barriers to innovation,…

Elevating infrastructure | Road and rail

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What lies ahead for road and rail funding?

As infrastructure is elevated at a political level, there is a step change in funding for two of civil engineering’s biggest sectors, roads and rail, as the focus shifts and lessons are learnt. We are in the middle of the two major five…

Bouygues JV wins major Paris metro contract

Paris metro sign crop

Bouygues and geotechnical and civils firm Soletanche Bachy, part of Vinci Group, have won an £830M contract to build part of the Grand Paris Express metro line.

The contract, awarded by the project’s developer La Société du Grand Paris, is for the Villejuif to Créteil segment. The two firms in the…

Complex ground conditions could hike HS2 cost

HS2 High Speed Rail

Complicated piling and ground stabilisation works could add up to £750M to High Speed 2 (HS2) costs if the route goes through a salt mining area of Cheshire, a report commissioned by a group opposed to the line has warned.

The report published by consultant TerraConsult on behalf of campaign group…