The East Anglia branch officers are very eager to know the views of branch members who have been to the
consultations on the guided busway. Please contact branch secretary Nick Dibben
nick.dibben@ukgateway.net with any useful information that you
learned, and your views on how the branch should approach the busway project: should Railfuture actively campaign
against it or work with the council to get the best realistic benefits for rail, e.g. Chesterton Interchange
station.
Snippets readers in the west of the branch area, who are eager to stop the guided busway, may be interested in how
the Luton-Dunstable Translink busway schema is continuing to stall. They can tune into BBC 3 Counties Radio breakfast
show on Thursday 17th July after 8am to hear the latest news about it.
Shareholders in GB Railways PLC (parent on Anglia Railways) can attend the 2003 AGM on Thursday 21st August, in the
offices of Investec Henderson Crosthwaite at 2 Gresham Street, London EC2 V7QP.
Railfuture launched the National Railcard International Survey at Waterloo Station on Wednesday 16th July 2003.
Railfuture central is eager to know how much media coverage it attracts. If you have see any report in a national or local
newspaper/magazine or heard/saw any report on TV/Radio, please inform Peter Lawrence on
[peter.lawrence@paston.co.uk].
Paul Salveson (Transport Research and Information Network) is the third confirmed speaker at Railfuture's
User Conference on 1st November 2003. The others are Theo Steel (FGE) and Chris Austin (SRA).
The branch was unsuccessful in its request to stage the 2004 Railfuture AGM. It will now be held in
Newcastle-on-Tyne on 8th May 2004.
The next issue of Snippets will have a report from the Rail Passengers Committee for Eastern England meeting that was
held in Peterborough on 15th July. For your diaries, the next RPC EE meeting is on Tuesday 2nd December 2003 at the Pearl
Continental Hotel, Norwich. This is also the venue for the next Railfuture branch meeting on 20th September.
RAIL COMPANIES
First Group gets back in race for Greater [East] Anglia bid by buying GB Railways PLC
In Snippets 119 it was hinted that First Group were so eager to get the lucrative Greater Anglia franchise that
they might consider buying a stake in one of the bidding TOCs, with Anglia's parent being the likely company.
On 16th July, in a deal likely to please many supporters of First Great Eastern, it was announced that First Group
had reached agreement with the directors of GB Railways PLC to buy 100% of the company. It will initially pay 250
pence cash for each GB Railways share - total £22 million, against First's value of £1,000 million. First also
agreed deferred payments of another 200p and 50p respectively if the group wins the Greater Anglia and both the
Northern and Wales and Borders franchises. Shareholders could potentially get 500p, for shares trading at only
40p two years in 2001. Although the directors, who hold 35% of the shares, have agreed, it will require the
support of other shareholders for the sale to go through.
Observers consider the takeover - in which GB Railways' entire management team will stay with the company run as a
subsidiary of First Group - will make GB's bid for Greater Anglia franchise the "best of both worlds" and
a forgone conclusion. The Strategic Rail Authority has given its consent to the acquisition and says it will have no
bearing on the outcome, since GB will be putting the bid together, not First. FGE's web-site says: "The deal will
bring together the region's two best performing rail operators and match the performance and financial strengths of
FGE with the innovation and customer friendliness of Anglia."
FirstGroup Chief Executive Moir Lockhead said "This acquisition will make an excellent fit with our current
rail businesses, re-opening new opportunities in East Anglia and Wales, giving us access to the East Coast Main
Line and introducing us to the rail freight market." Jeremy Long, GB Chief Executive, said: "[it] is beneficial
to shareholders, stakeholders and employees with GB Railways becoming a separate wholly-owned subsidiary within
FirstGroup. This allows the existing teams to continue to lead our three established operations: Anglia Railways,
Hull Trains and GB Railfreight. We look forward to building on the reputation, culture and expertise which GB
Railways and FirstGroup have established."
GB report: http://www.gbrailways.com/downloads/announcement-16.07.03.pdf
Guardian storyhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,3604,998836,00.html.
GUIDED BUSWAY
Cambs County Council public consultations are well attended
Many people have visited the county council's public consultations on their plans to turn the St.Ives line into a concrete
guided busway. The highest attendances (over 200 people) have been in Histon and Impington, which are closest to Cambridge and
likely to see a considerable increase in car traffic as people drive to the busway stops. The villagers have also been angered
by plans to purchase the rear part of gardens to build bus stops. The two parish councils are still deciding their official
stance, having opposed the busway previously, but being told by the County Council now that the busway is a done deal.
Branch secretary Nick Dibben gave a presentation to St.Ives town council in 9th July, which was well received. There is a
great deal of concern about the scheme and the Town Council are not very keen at all. There will be another meeting at the
end of July when Cambs County Council are expected to give a presentation to the town council and its district and county
councillors. The town council will also be seeking the views of Godmanchester and Huntingdon town councils.
The Cambridge Evening News has published several letters about the busway, all critical (as always). Attention has been
drawn to the recent Wensleydale line reopening, and the far greater economic viability of a microfranchised rail service
along the St.Ives line.
Railfuture members in the area are encouraged to visit the remaining exhibitions, and fill in their forms.
RAIL FRANCHISES
Extensions on the cards for National Express' Central and GN franchises
According to the SRA web-site on 8th July it entered Heads of Terms negotiations for a two-year extension to the
Central Trains franchise and that it has also stated negotiations with National Express for a similar extension
to the Great Northern franchise (the remnant of WAGN).
RAIL ROUTES
Alistair Darling offers olive branch to East West Rail supporters when announcing massive road schemes
When Alistair Darling announced to the House of Commons his approval for many major roads building projects, he did give
East-West rail a brief mention, noting that the SRA were looking at the proposals for new services between Oxford and Bedford.
It's not much, but it's a start!
The only positive side to the roads plan for the branch area is that there is nothing very much for the A47 between
Peterborough and Norwich.
RAIL MARKETING
GNER get into trouble for misleading scenic pictures in adverts
GNER has had to correct a "misleading" newspaper advert featuring beautiful scenery visible from its train windows,
which was actually the cliffs of Stepper Point on the North Cornish coast - 300 miles from GNER's nearest service
at King's Cross. The picture has now been replaced with one featuring Loch Insch near Aviemore in Scotland.
RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE
Dates announced for 8-week long closure of Ipswich Tunnel to support containers form Felixstowe
From 11th July to 5th September 2004 Stoke Tunnel at Ipswich will be shut to all traffic while the track is lowered to
allow passage for 9'6" containers from Felixstowe docks. The line between Ipswich and Manningtree will be closed, allowing
Network Rail to carry out other maintenance work at the same time.
During this period there will be a direct train service between Norwich and London Liverpool Street via Cambridge in the
morning and evening peaks only. The Cambridge-Norwich class 170 trains will be strengthened to 3-cars for the off-peak,
allowing passengers to change at Ely or Cambridge for journeys to London.
Anglia service notes: http://www.angliarailways.co.uk/latest-information/service-updates.asp.
PRESERVED RAILWAYS
Mid-Norfolk Railway makes progress on northern extension with level crossing work
Work on level crossings had already caused the temporary closure of two roads in Dereham. On 5th and 6th July the Mid-Norfolk
Railway’s northern extension project saw the closure of the Neatherd Road crossing to motorists for track renewal and road
resurfacing.
Plans to rebuild Southwold to Halesworth railway line deferred by council
Southwold Town Council has deferred a decision on a £6.5m proposal by the Southwold Railway Society to rebuild a railway line
from Southwold to Halesworth so that locals concerned about the scheme can have their say.
The plans, which are in their early stages, include a new station being built by the boating lake on Southwold seafront,
another station at Blythburgh, and tunnels under the A12 and A145.
WEBSITES
Rail unions launch joint "Save Mail on Rail" campaign web-site
The main rail and post trades unions have set-up website to promote their campaign to save mail on rail. The
http://www.savemailonrail.org.uk web-site is an example of the
rail unions working positively for real rail issues that affects the whole country, not just their 500 members
who could lose their jobs.
Makeover for Strategic Rail authority's web-site
The SRA has recently given its http://www.sra.gov.uk web-site a makeover to
promote its "Britain's railways - properly delivered" branding. The main improvement is that a list of recent
news items and publications are shown on the home page.
CrossRail revamps its web-site in marketing exercise - and gets single yellow light too!
Crossrail has revamped its http://www.crossrail.co.uk website to promote its new slogan 'Crossing the
capital - Connecting the UK'. It includes brochures, various maps of the route options and artists impressions of the possible new trains and
stations plus photos including ongoing construction work at Moor House. A new section 'What They Say About Us' lists the support Crossrail has
received across business, local, regional and national government.
Only weeks after the web-site revamp, it announced on its news page that Transport Secretary Alistair Darling
announced that "Crosslink had been given the green light", although it is more accurately a single yellow, since
it merely promises extensive consultation.
BBC featured opening of the private (community) Wensleydale Railway
Various branch members are shareholders in the Wensleydale Railway, which ran its first passenger trains on Friday
4th July. They have yet to relaunch their http://www.wensleydalerailway.com
web-site, which previously campaigned for funds, and are currently pointing to a BBCi feature about all aspects of
the railway, including timetables for the daily service. The opening was also featured on BBC breakfast news,
national BBC-1 lunchtime news, Radio 4 news bulletins at 7am, 8am and others.
Unlike heritage railways, this community railway is offering 1/3 off fares with a Young person, Family, Senior
or Disabled person railcard. However, National Rail Enquiries web-site does not have details of their service
since they are not a member of the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC).
BBCi reports: http://www.bbc.co.uk/northyorkshire/uncovered/2003/05/13/wensleydale/index.shtml
BBC TV news report (Video!): http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/video/39244000/rm/_39244096_railway13_bocquet_vi.ram.
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