Network Rail Chief Executive Andrew Haines joins us to talk all things draft Rail Reform Bill. If you’ve been left with all sorts of questions after the Department for Transport’s recent announcement, watch this and you’ll be much clearer afterwards! We talk about: Is the Great British Railways (GBR) brand going to be the name of the new Integrated Rail Body or will it die as some have been suggesting? And indeed, will the Network Rail brand disappear too? What chance is there of getting this in...
Feb 28, 2024•48 min
The Department for Transport finally publishes the Rail Reform Bill, but is there any point to it? Nigel reviews the annual George Bradshaw address which saw two senior rail politicians go head-to-head. But who came out on top? Avanti West Coast are in the national news again thanks largely to ASLEF – but has the union overstepped the mark this time? And Richard has been in the firing line over his comments on the ‘Reversing Beeching’ plans. But, being Richard, he’s fighting back! Green Signals:...
Feb 22, 2024•55 min•Season 1Ep. 21
Richard talks about his visit to Wales & Borders with Nick Millington MBE, Route Director at Network Rail and finds out about lagoons, climate models and vegetation control. In particular Richard is amazed at the complex multi-agency approach to securing ecology licences and concludes, perhaps controversially, that it's time to let Network Rail self certify. After all, they can do it with safety critical matters so why not when it comes to clearing dying or dead Ash trees? Nigel and Rich...
Feb 15, 2024•44 min•Season 1Ep. 20
Richard Bowker visits Network Rail's Wales and Western region to spend the day with Route Director Nick Millington MBE. It's a fascinating day of learning about the challenges of weather resilience on Britain's railways, the devastating effects of climate change, the complexities of managing trees and vegetation on the lineside... and surprisingly, about dormice. How does Network Rail manage flood risk? How are trees on the railway managed? What rules are there to protect habitats ad...
Feb 13, 2024•28 min
Following Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s scrapping of HS2 Phase 2A, HS2 is branded ‘very poor value for money’ by the Public Accounts Committee… And... is Labour about to unveil its plans for its own vision of rail nationalisation, and is it back to the bad old days of curly sandwiches?
Feb 08, 2024•43 min•Season 1Ep. 19
Train strikes have hit the headlines frequently over the past three years as an increasingly bitter dispute between train drivers’ union ASLEF and the government and train operating companies continues. Our Big Interview guest is ASLEF General Secretary Mick Whelan. We find out how the rail strikes began in the first place and what has happened since… And, crucially, what it will take to end the long-running disruption to passengers.
Feb 06, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Season 1Ep. 18
Ministers seem unable to agree, either on transport decisions – or more embarrassingly – with each other at a Conservative Home conference. What is going on with LNER fares and ticketing? It’s now clear that its Simpler Fares trial is turning out to be anything but simple… Will HS2 now reduce capacity to Manchester? And is the wider world and mainstream media finally waking up to the true stupidity of Rishi Sunak’s scrapping of HS2 Phase 2a? Plus, a new Green Signals feature – positive and GOOD ...
Jan 31, 2024•55 min•Season 1Ep. 17
Why train ticket booking and rail fares in the UK are so confusing. With the help of fares expert The Man in Seat 61 Mark Smith, we demystify: LNER’s new Simpler Fares pilot The Great British Rail Sale Which? magazine’s report that railway ticket vending machines are twice as expensive as booking train tickets online How to buy the cheapest train tickets or get the best deal on train tickets We also cover: HS2 land safeguarding lifted north of Birmingham – has it struck a fatal blow to the high ...
Jan 24, 2024•55 min•Season 1Ep. 16
Has Harry Potter’s favourite train the ‘Hogwarts Express’ hit the buffers now that Jacobite steam train operator West Coast Railways has been derailed by the ORR? Has Labour leader Keir Starmer bottled it on HS2? Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper responds to Richard’s letter on HS2… except that he doesn’t… And ASLEF announces yet more strikes. But are they working, and is it time to really ‘take the gloves off’?
Jan 17, 2024•49 min•Season 1Ep. 15
It's been a week of severe weather disruption on the railway, news that HS2 land may not be sold before the next election, Tube strikes being called off, and the release of some disappointing train cancellation stats. On this week’s show… LNER’s #FreedomAllTheWay teaser campaign and advert HS2 land sell-off unlikely before the General Election and why mayors Andy Burnham and Andy Street are making a BIG mistake Pre-cancellation stats from train operators (translation: misleading stats!) Majo...
Jan 11, 2024•40 min•Season 1Ep. 14
The first of our new The Big Interview episodes, and we were so excited about it that we decided to invite two guests to join us! Director of the Rail Freight Group Maggie Simpson comes on to discuss freight strategy, including the effect of Rishi Sunak's decision to cancel HS2 Phase 2 and the "breach of trust" that it represents. And GB Railfreight Managing Director John Smith joins us for a fascinating and lively discussion about everything from HS2 to railfreight challenges and ...
Jan 09, 2024•1 hr 14 min•Season 1Ep. 13
The first of our new magazine-style episodes, where we focus on the big topical issues and what’s been happening on and around the railway over the festive period. Here’s what we delve into this time… The great Christmas getaway on the roads Rail disruption over the Christmas break Richard’s Monsal Trail video and an interesting fact about Dr Beeching Peter Townend tribute video success Storm damage and HSTs More cuts coming for TOC budgets New Year Honours Predicting what ‘rail hating Rishi’ mi...
Jan 03, 2024•48 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Getting into the festive spirit this time with our Christmas Special! Richard Bowker and Nigel Harris answer the questions listeners and viewers have been sending in over the past couple of weeks - and they really were about anything and everything on the railway! Q1 - Was privatisation a total disaster? Q2 - What might the impact of AI be on the rail industry? Q3 - In the last 30 years, who would you say has made the greatest contribution to the railway? Q4 - Can the railway community be part o...
Dec 20, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 11
It’s another busy episode with plenty to talk about… and this time, we’ve gone ‘on location’ too! Richard Bowker reports from Siemens Mobility’s HQ in Chippenham, where he attended a very special event on December 12 which marked 35 years since the notorious Clapham rail accident in which 35 people died and a further 69 suffered life-changing injuries. It was a tragic disaster that led to fundamental changes in railway safety management. Then we return to Scotland for part 2 of our exploration o...
Dec 14, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 10
In this special extra episode of Green Signals, we remember the life of rail elder statesman Peter Norman Townend who died on October 18th at the grand old age of 98. A railwayman whose career began in 1941 at the age of 16, as a premium apprentice for the London & North Eastern Railway at Doncaster ‘Plant’ – as its headquarters was known locally – Peter was undoubtedly best-known for his time as Shedmaster at ‘Top Shed’ at London’s King’s Cross during the last great days of steam, in the la...
Dec 11, 2023•55 min•Season 1Ep. 1
This time, we’re heading north of the border with special guest Alex Hynes (Managing Director, Scotland’s Railway) to find out why they seem to keep getting it right on railways in Scotland when the rest of the UK struggles. We talk alignment of track and train, the Sleeper, and rolling stock. Richard Bowker puts his cynical accountant’s hat on to question the gamble Scotland has taken to scrap Peak fares for a six-month trial period. And we find out how Scotland is responding to one of its bigg...
Dec 06, 2023•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 9
As the country braces for more rail strikes in early December, we decided that Green Signals should focus some time this week on understanding how and why we've got to where we have with industrial relations. What are the strikes on the railway all about? What should the Government be doing to put an end to them? We are joined by Graham Eccles, former Co-Chair of the Virgin Rail Group and one of the most experienced industrial relations specialists the railway has ever produced. Graham tells...
Nov 29, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Network Rail Chairman Peter, Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill joins us for his first media interview about Railway 200... and it's a good one! Peter tells us all about the plans for celebrating the bicentenary of the birth of the modern railway in 2025 and how he wants all of you to get involved. But beyond that, he also discusses the wider importance of the railway and why it is so vital that we take this opportunity to celebrate its origins both to inspire the next generation of railway workers...
Nov 22, 2023•56 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Reflecting on our recent appearance at the Transport Select Committee, in this episode of Green Signals we are delighted to be joined by Andrew McNaughton. Not only did Andrew give evidence with us at the TSC recently, he was HS2's Technical Director and one of its first two employees back in 2009. There is no-one better to talk to in detail about why HS2 was designed the way it was (and, perhaps more importantly, why it wasn't designed differently)! Andrew brilliantly describes reasons ...
Nov 15, 2023•1 hr 15 min•Season 1Ep. 6
MD Mark Hopwood lifts the veil at Great Western. In this episode of Green Signals we are delighted to welcome to the show Mark Hopwood CBE, the Managing Director of Great Western. Mark is a career railwayman but is widely and properly recognised as one of the most visionary railway leaders of his generation. His ‘can do’ attitude backed by years of experience with a passion for delivering for his customers has enabled Great Western to deliver outstanding results, year after year.Mark himself acc...
Nov 08, 2023•1 hr 11 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Some 700,000 respondents objected to the DfT and train companies proposals to close some 1000 ticket offices. Transport Focus rejected all the proposals. The result is a humiliating climbdown and U Turn for the Government. On this week's Green Signals, we welcome THE expert when it comes to Fares & Ticketing Policy, Mark Smith aka the Man in Seat 61. Mark is a career railwayman but he was also head of the Fares & Ticketing team at the DfT. There is literally no-one with more experien...
Nov 01, 2023•55 min•Season 1Ep. 4
In the light of the decision on HS2, we look at the West Coast Route Modernisation of 1997 - 2009 and discuss how close it came to being binned and how bold decisions got it done. We also consider whether the same environment exists today - and draw some depressing conclusions. Nigel and Richard also launch a new feature on great railway journeys they have made and with surprising selections for their first choices! We also touch briefly on a growing problem in the Heritage Railway sector and as...
Oct 25, 2023•53 min•Season 1Ep. 3
In this episode, Nigel and Richard discuss the top 10 myths about HS2 and explain why so many people have misunderstood what HS2 delivers for the country - and why we are in trouble now that so much of it appears to have been cancelled. There's also a bit about Richard's new role as Hon. President of the Class 40 Preservation Society and why without volunteers, the heritage rail sector in the UK wouldn't exist.
Oct 18, 2023•57 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Welcome to Green Signals, the essential new railway podcast for anyone interested in railways: what they are for, how they work, and why we need them more than ever. In this Trailer, Nigel and Richard reveal their first meeting on a Virgin Trains press trip to Italy, discuss the relative merits of Blackburn and Burnley and most importantly, consider whether the decision to scrap the northern section of HS2 to Manchester was a really, really bad idea. Or far worse than that.
Oct 10, 2023•21 min•Season 1Ep. 1
