Public invited to have its say on the West Midlands Travel Plan

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People have the chance to have their say on the future of public transport in the West Midlands.

Centro is inviting businesses and the public to give their views on the Local Transport Plan (LTP) at a number of exhibitions around the Midlands in the New Year.

The LTP has been unveiled by transport authority Centro working in partnership with the seven West Midlands district councils.

It is a blueprint to improve the region’s transport system over the next 15 years and has been launched to help underpin economic regeneration and the creation of vital new jobs.

Centro chairman Councillor Angus Adams said: “The LTP details our transport priorities for the next 15 years and we want to hear what the public and business communities think.

“It sets out how transport plays its part in improving the quality of life of the region, supporting and enabling economic growth and generating new jobs

“I would urge anyone with an interest in the future of public transport in this region to let us know what they think.”

The exhibitions are:

Monday 10th January – Network West Midlands Exhibition Bus, By Lady Godiva, Broadgate, Coventry city centre (2pm-5pm)
Tuesday 11th January – Committee Rooms, Birmingham Council House, Victoria Square (3pm-7pm)
Saturday 15th January – Network West Midlands Exhibition Bus, Park Street, Walsall town centre (11am-3pm)
Tuesday 18th January – Dudley Council Plus, Castle Street, Dudley (3pm-6pm)
Thursday 27th January – LIFT Building, Venture way, Brierley Hill (4pm-7pm)

You can also give your views at www.westmidlandsltp.gov.uk/formalconsultation

They will be considered and used to shape the final version of the LTP which can then be viewed on the website from 1st April 2011.

Heathrow Express offers more Help for Heroes

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Heathrow Express has increased their Armed Forces discount to 50% off.

The HM Forces discount has risen by 16% for adult express class tickets and 10% of these sales will be donated to the Help for Heroes charity.

Richard Robinson, Heathrow Express Managing Director, said: “We have always offered a discount for the Armed Forces to show our support for this country’s service personnel.  In the return to work after the summer and in the run up to Christmas, charity giving is often brought to the attention of the public, so we have picked this last quarter of 2010 to make significant enhancements to our assistance for Help for Heroes.

“We have increased the discount to 50% and implemented a 10% donation to Help for Heroes to show our appreciation of the Armed Forces.”

Toll roads are no answer to congestion, says campaign group

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The M6 Toll in the West Midlands has been a costly failure and the Government should not rely on them to solve transport problems, according to a new report released today by Campaign for Better Transport.

Earlier this year Transport Secretary Philip Hammond signalled an interest in using tolls to pay for future road building schemes, most of which are expected to be halted after the October spending review. However, this report shows the 27-mile toll motorway has failed to provide any significant congestion relief for the original M6 and the price, which has been increased significantly year on year, is bad value for drivers who use the toll.

Despite the toll now charging motorists £5 on weekdays, 2.5 times the initial cost, the report shows that operator Midland Expressway Ltd, a subsidiary of the international infrastructure group Macquarie, is losing tens of millions every year and has written down the value of the road to below its cost. Meanwhile, M6 congestion is now so bad that the Government is considering spending another £500m on it to deal with the problems the toll road was supposed to solve.

Richard George, Campaign for Better Transport’s Roads and Climate Campaigner, said:

“The research shows that the toll road has failed to cut congestion on the original M6 and has made big losses for its operator. With Government coffers running empty, it is no surprise that politicians are looking at toll roads as a way to deliver funds for new road building projects. But our research shows that private toll roads such as the M6 Toll don’t help motorists or the surrounding area, and don’t make money for investors either.

“Instead, the Government needs to spend scarce public funds on maintaining the roads we have and giving people good alternatives to car use.”

NSW Government confirms that no property will be taken for Western Express

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The NSW Government has confirmed that no acquisition of Leamington Avenue properties will be required as part of the Western Express project.

Minister for Transport John Robertson said the Government had moved swiftly to provide certainty for local residents.

“Design work was urgently undertaken by Transport NSW which has established there is no engineering or design basis for acquiring any of these properties,” he said.

“This work was accelerated to help ease the concerns of local residents.

“The project engineers can now take the time needed to continue their work in preparation for construction of the City Relief Line as part of the Western Express project.

“The Western Express is a critical infrastructure project that will improve public transport for hundreds of thousands of commuters every day.

“It will significantly speed up journey times for passengers travelling to and from Western Sydney, increase capacity for passengers on the Western Line by 5,000 seats an hour and ease congestion for services right across the CityRail network as they enter and leave the Sydney CBD.”

Member for Marrickville Carmel Tebbutt welcomed the decision.

“I know that this has been a concerning time for many residents and I am pleased that the Government has moved swiftly to provide certainty for local residents,” said Ms Tebbutt.

Transport NSW will now carry out further alignment investigations for the new underground City Relief Line. This will include design, engineering, survey and geotechnical drilling work in the Eveleigh area.

“I’ve asked Transport NSW to come up with an option that focuses on using publicly owned land at Eveleigh for the dive tunnels as part of the relief line,” Mr Robertson said.

“This detailed design work is likely to take some months.

“Once a preferred alignment has been identified it will be incorporated into a project application and Environmental Assessment for the Western Express Project.”

A Preliminary Environmental Assessment into the project would be placed on public exhibition in mid 2011, with the full Environmental Assessment displayed in mid 2012 – in line with the project timetable outlined in the Government’s Metropolitan Transport Plan.

ABB equipment to upgrade Network Rail’s Southern Region distribution system

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ABB has won a contract from Network Rail to design, manufacture and supply 15 modular medium voltage (MV) switchboards in housings, based on its ZX1.2 gas insulated switchgear, for the current Southern DC traction power supply enhancement project.

The new modules, to be installed at strategic locations across the Southern Region network, will form part of wider substation works which will increase the power available to the 750 V DC traction power supply, enabling longer and more frequent trains to run in the future.

The ABB contract will commence with the East Grinstead Line, which diverts off the Brighton Main Line at South Croydon, and is an important commuter route.   The main element in the modules is ABB’s ZX1.2 metal-clad gas insulated MV switchgear, which has technical acceptance from ENA (the Energy Networks Association) and full Product Approval from Network Rail for use at 33 kV for ratings up to 31.5 kA and 2000 A.

ABB is supplying a complete package including the Low Voltage (LV) AC switchboard and battery backup system. As an integral part of this packaged approach, ABB is carrying out the detailed design and integration of the equipment within the housing, as well as manufacturing and installing the switchgear and performing the FAT (factory acceptance test) at the housing manufacturer ready for the completed substation to be delivered to site.

Malcolm Cork, Market Manager for Medium Voltage Products in the UK said ‘This latest order continues our long standing relationship with Network Rail in providing traction power supply equipment, in particular the power upgrade contracts going back to 2004 when we supplied and installed a large number of modular substations for the very successful Southern Region Power Supply Upgrade (SRPSU) project. Our dedicated rail project management and engineering resource was a key factor during Network Rail’s evaluation phase, and the ABB team clearly demonstrated the expertise and experience they will bring to the project.

‘The technical capability of the ZX1.2 medium voltage switchgear makes it ideally suited for this type of rail project, and as an example of its flexibility we are carrying out some small improvements to further optimize its installed footprint to make even better use of the space available within the container.‘

Stourbridge Shuttle tops half a million passengers

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More than half a million passenger journeys have been made on London Midland’s operation between Stourbridge Junction and Stourbridge Town since conventional trains were replaced by innovative railcars, built by Parry People Movers Ltd, in mid-2009.  The 500,000th passenger trip was made on Tuesday 17th August.

The new railcars enabled an increase in service frequency and now there are departures in each direction every 10 minutes for most of the day (Monday to Saturday – a lower frequency service operates on Sunday) which is a principal reason for increased attractiveness of the service.  Comparison of passenger numbers that for the period end-June to mid-August patronage has risen by 20% between 2009 and 2010.

One of several innovations brought to the rail network by the London Midland franchise, the new era on the Stourbridge Town branch line has seen the introduction of environmentally-friendly lightweight railcars equipped with flywheel energy storage that ‘regenerates’ energy lost in braking to add to the energy and carbon savings achieved by the branch operation.

The branch line service has operated at over 99% service reliability since the start of 2010.

John Parry, chairman of Parry People Movers Ltd, said: “We are looking forward to seeing our vehicles continue to serve people travelling to and from Stourbridge.  A new maintenance depot – now at the planning stage – should help improve reliability still further, and also represents a statement of confidence by the rail industry in the future of our ‘lightweight rail’ concept, which we hope to see implemented around the country to provide new transport links.”

London Midland engineering director Mac Mackintosh said: “This reflects the continuing hard work, skill and innovation of engineers at London Midland and Parry People Movers. It’s great news for passengers in Stourbridge. The Shuttle has clocked up a tremendous amount of passenger journeys and reliability is very high.”

Landmark Newport Station combines iconic design with engineering excellence

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Newport train station redevelopment, opening on the 13 September, represents a step change in transport design with a featherweight plastic covering that is a hundred times lighter than glass and requires a fraction of the steel and concrete support of a normal structure. With Atkins as principal consultant, the combination of iconic design and engineering excellence has produced arguably one of the most remarkable new rail stations in the UK.

Atkins’ contract covered two terminal buildings, accommodation blocks, connecting bridge and external works, with provision of civil & structural engineering, building services engineering, landscape architecture, rail, telecoms and pedestrian flow expertise. The station architecture was subcontracted to Grimshaw.

The design embraces the divide between the two distinct halves of the city, caused by the bisecting railway tracks. Passenger facilities, ticket offices and platform access are split equally between the two concourses either side of the tracks. All elements are situated within terminal buildings constructed of structural steelwork and covered in continuous ETFE (Ethylene TetraFluoroEthylene) cushions with aluminium-clad spirals.

The spiral design mirrors the route passengers take within the station and helps to ease traffic flow by guiding customers from ground level up to the connecting bridge and back down onto the platforms. The additional structures which make up the station are separated from the main public areas and contained within simple brick clad structures which plug into the spiral forms.

According to Atkins’ project manager, Brad James: “In line with Network Rail’s aspirations a key priority for Atkins’ design team was minimising the buildings operational energy demands which led to us utilising natural ventilation on the concourse and installing low power lighting in some areas. Another key challenge was responding to the station’s unique architectural concept and geometry. This meant Atkins’ technical teams working hand in glove with Grimshaw’s architects to distil a complex series of engineering problems into straightforward practical solutions. The result is a station that we believe will become a real focus of attention both for its design quality and its ease of use for the passenger.”

Chris Crombie, Associate at Grimshaw, said: “To address the shortcomings facing suburban stations such as small ticket offices, cramped stairs and bridges, the ticket office in Newport Station is meshed with the connecting bridge, creating a large, welcoming ticket office space and ensuring that the bridge is fully engaged with the station.”

A key element of the build was the construction of the main bridge which was lifted into position during track possessions over the Christmas period. The bridge was installed in four sections all of which were pre-assembled with the ETFE cushions, Kalzip aluminium sheets and glass prior to being lifted, reducing the extent of work subsequently required over the tracks. Due to the time critical nature of the 56 hour Christmas possession Atkins modelled all possible sequences of combinations for the installation of the bridge elements to give the contractor maximum flexibility.

AECOM strengthens rail business with Tritech Rail

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AECOM announced that it has acquired the trading interests of Tritech Rail – a UK-based market leader in rail services specialising in areas from infrastructure surveying and design to electrification.

With headquarters in Wigan, Lancashire, the firm was founded in 1999 as a permanent-way engineering consultancy and has now grown into a multiskilled civil engineering consultancy. High-profile recent projects include East London line (surveying and management); Victoria Line upgrade, London (design); Thameslink programme, London and South East (design optioneering ); Etches Park traincare facility, Derbyshire (survey and track design); Ayrshire platform extensions, Scotland ( permanent way and overhead line electrification design support) and surveying for the Dublin Area Rapid Transit railway in the Republic of Ireland

“We are delighted that Tritech Rail has now become part of our business,” says David Watters, managing director of AECOM’s Transportation business in Europe. “We are particularly delighted that we are now able to offer clients a broader range of services including: infrastructure surveying and design (permanent way and electrification), route clearance and structure gauging analysis, project and technical support from feasibility through to commissioning.”

Ian Rawlinson, director of Tritech Rail said, “This is a fantastic day for the company.  Joining forces with AECOM unites two market leaders in rail consultancy and specialist technical services. The synergies between the businesses will bring real benefits to our clients and we look forward to driving innovation and value through all aspects within the rail marketplace.”

The Tritech Rail deal continues AECOM’s growth and investment in its rail consultancy business which included in May this year the acquisition of INOCSA Ingenieria. With headquarters in Spain and a strong presence in Romania and Bosnia, INOCSA extends AECOM’s footprint and expertise in transportation – especially high-speed rail. The firm, which provides services in architecture, design, engineering, programme management and urban planning, has more than 550 employees with offices across Europe and Latin America.

California’s Transbay Transit Center groundbreaking ceremony

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The California High-Speed Rail Authority participated in the groundbreaking ceremony for the multi-model Transbay Transit Center. The fully re-designed station, when complete will be the first in the nation to meet the design specifications for a high-speed train system.

“We are all committed to building a world-class high-speed rail system and this groundbreaking signals another step in the process of making that system a reality. We’re pleased that the Transbay Joint Powers Authority has made the future development of a high-speed rail system a centerpiece of its planning for this multi-model transit center. Projects like these if done right have the potential to truly transform a city and reinvent the way Californians travel – making it faster, cheaper, more convenient and better for the environment,” said Authority Chairman Curt Pringle.

While the California High-Speed Rail Authority is not yet in the construction phase, the Transbay Joint Powers Authority’s groundbreaking is a significant step supporting the development of the statewide high-speed rail system.

The Authority has evaluated a station at Transbay for both Altamont and Pacheco alternatives that are currently under consideration and is working to complete the necessary program level and project-level environmental analyses. This state of the art station is a significant step toward getting ready for high- speed rail in the future and bringing jobs to the region.

In 2009 in a show of confidence in California’s high-speed rail project, the federal government awarded California $2.25 billion in funding for high-speed intercity passenger rail – the largest award of any state.

Level Crossing Incident Sudbury, Suffolk – Update 08:15

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The recovery operation and investigation into the collision on a level crossing near Sudbury yesterday, Tuesday 17 August, continues today.

“Following yesterday’s rescue operation, our main task today will be to gather physical and technical evidence,” said Deputy Chief Constable Paul Crowther, from the scene.

“We were unable to access the train cab last night, but once the train has been secured today, we will be able to do that.

“Also overnight, we have been planning how best to facilitate the recovery operation and a 130 tonne crane is being brought to the site later today.  We are mindful of the impact this incident has had on the local community, who have been very supportive throughout.”

A train struck a large sewage tanker carrying “sludge”, at an unmanned level crossing near Sudbury, Suffolk on Tuesday, 17 August.

There were 21 casualties in total. A 58-year-old man sustained life-threatening injuries, and he is described this morning as serious, but stable.

A further five people – three men and two women – remained in hospital overnight at Colchester General. Their injuries consisted of broken ribs, back pain, chest pain and heavy bruising.

One has so far been discharged and the other four are expected to be discharged tomorrow.

One other person also remained overnight at West Suffolk Hospital.

BTP was alerted to the collision at 5.37pm on 17 August and officers attended alongside Suffolk Police and the other emergency services.  A BTP officer remained at the location overnight to preserve the scene.

Following the collision the train involved remained upright, but the first carriage derailed.

The train, the 1731 National Express East Anglia service, was travelling between Sudbury and Marks Tey with around 20 passengers on board.

All casualties were treated at Colchester General, Addenbrooke and West Suffolk hospitals.  The train driver was taken to Colchester General Hospital suffering a back injury, where he remains

A 38-year-old man from Cambridgeshire was arrested by Suffolk Police on suspicion of dangerous driving following the collision and the lorry was removed from the line shortly after midnight last night.

The investigation will continue this morning and following its completion the site will be handed back to Network Rail, however the movement of the train will pose a significant engineering challenge.

Anyone who witnessed the incident is asked to call British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40.

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