Interserve cleaning staff to vote on strike action amid union complaints of ‘culture of fear’ at Network Rail stations March 26, 2019 Interserve cleaning staff at Network Rail stations are preparing to vote on strike action after the firm allegedly imposed a “culture of fear,” according to the RMT union. The rail union said this morning it would ballot around 300 facilities management workers for strike action after it received complaints of bullying from its members. Read [...]
Hong Kong Horse Racing Tips: Turin Red set to Star for punters at Happy Valley March 19, 2019 WITH UK champion jockey Silvestre de Sousa’s short term Hong Kong contract coming to an end, you can guarantee his rides will be popular with his supporters at Happy Valley this afternoon. The locals can’t get enough of De Sousa who, with the exception of Zac Purton and Joao Moreira, is the only other jockey [...]
Government told to publish Govia’s profit cap amid concerns over taxpayers’ money February 26, 2019 The public spending watchdog has urged the government to publish details of Govia's profit cap, citing fears taxpayers' money is not being "adequately protected" after last year's rail chaos. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), chaired by MP Meg Hillier, said there was a lack of transparency around the profit rate that Govia earns from its [...]
Rail and bus firm Go Ahead upgrades full-year outlook despite drop in profits February 21, 2019 Profits at rail and bus operator the Go Ahead Group dropped by more than 50 per cent in the second half of last year due to the scrapping of its London Midland franchise and poor financial performance for Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR). However, although rail operating profit fell from £40.3m to £17.6m in the six months ending [...]
Passenger revenue growth at First Group slows as SWR strike action takes its toll February 19, 2019 Rail passenger revenue growth at transport operator the First Group slowed to just over four per cent to September last year, even as the firm reported a near 14 per cent uplift in revenue. First, which operates rail and bus services, said the slump in like-for-like passenger growth reflected "significant infrastructure challenges which resulted in disappointing [...]
Quit nostalgic navel-gazing and get excited for the future February 11, 2019 The thing about the 1970s – if you lived through them – is that they were for the most part dull and dour years, devoid of political and economic energy. And as for the fashion, don’t even go there. Yet there seems to be no shortage of fresh-faced tweets proclaiming those years to be something [...]
South Western commuters face more strike misery with fresh dates announced February 7, 2019 Fresh strikes are set to hit commuters on South Western Railway routes in February and March, a union warned today. The RMT union said it secured a fresh mandate for industrial action in a long-running dispute over a reduction in the number of guards on South Western trains. Read more: Ryanair profits slide as strike [...]
Rail operators suffer fall in dividends as Waterloo closure and strikes hit bottom line January 30, 2019 Rail operators’ dividends dropped by a quarter last year, with firms blaming strikes and a month-long platform closure at London Waterloo. Dividends totalled £300m for 2017-18, down 27 per cent on 2016-17, according to Office of Rail and Road (ORR) figures released today, as the station closure hit journey numbers. Read more: Passenger satisfaction falls [...]
Transport misery: Passenger satisfaction with Britain’s railways drops to 10-year low, says Transport Focus January 29, 2019 Passenger satisfaction with the UK's railways has fallen to a 10-year low, a new survey out today has found. Independent watchdog Transport Focus warned that overall satisfaction with services stood at 79 per cent, the lowest since 2008, according to its latest national passenger survey of 25,000 passengers. More than one in five passengers were [...]
DEBATE: Is transport secretary Chris Grayling right to blame the unions for rail fare hikes? January 4, 2019 Is transport secretary Chris Grayling right to blame the unions for rail fare hikes? Duncan Simpson, policy analyst at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, says YES. This week’s fare rise is, quite understandably, infuriating for many commuters. But passenger outrage is being misdirected. Huge progress has been made since privatisation: passenger numbers and overall satisfaction are up, and [...]