27th April 2012
In this issue:- Industry developments this week
- New rail services
- Other stories from the past three weeks
- Holding group sharecheck
Industry developments this week
The Transport Secretary has said it will be difficult to prevent an RPI+3% increase to rail fares in January 2013. Daily Telegraph
Network Rail has secured a 10 year extension to its deal to maintain High Speed 1 infrastructure. Transport Briefing
A London Underground train hit an obstruction on the Bakerloo line, causing severe delays. BBC News
ATOC called on the government to speed up changes to rail franchise arrangements. Transport Briefing
The government has ruled out any immediate extra money to help tackle cable theft on the railways. BBC News
New rail services
No updates this week
Other stories from the past three weeks
A letter from TSSA General Secretary Manuel Cortes revealed merger talks with the RMT have collapsed.
- Separately, TSSA told the Transport Select committee that operators had “no clue” about the severity of overcrowding on their trains. Financial Times
The DfT has been revealed to be planning to close some ticket offices at smaller stations as part of its plan to reduce railway costs. Railnews
The case for building High Speed 2 was undermined after the government admitted an error had inflated its economic case. Financial Times
The Independent ran an analysis of Keolis‘s attempts to win the West Coast main line franchise.
Southeastern is to be prosecuted after a passenger train allegedly overshot a station inEast Sussex by almost two-and-a-half miles. BBC News
Eurotunnel accused French railways of “effectively killing off rail freight” between the UK and continental Europe by imposing a new toll at a yard near Calais. Financial Times
A 68-year-old woman died of injuries in a head-on collision between two trains near Amsterdam. BBC News
Holding group sharecheck
Summary:
Stagecoach has said profits over the coming year will at least hold steady despite a slight slowdown in UK sales growth. Press Association
Shares in FirstGroup sank 14 per cent in late March after a warning by the transport company that margins in its UK bus business would fall by more than a third this year. Financial Times
- The group has sought to reassure investors after issuing the profit warning, which it said relatedto an “unacceptable” performance from its 8,000-vehicle UK bus business. Transport Briefing
National Express shares soared after it posted strong 2011 results, up 12% to £180m, despite a greatly reduced rail operation. The group moved from reporting losses to record profits in two years. Financial Times
Go-Ahead is to start making contributions to the Treasury’s funds from April after reporting strong growth in its rail division. Daily Telegraph
- Shares in the group rose by almost 5 per cent in late December after it raised full-year operating profit forecasts on the back of strong passenger growth at its rail franchises.
