Wednesday 23 May 2012
RAIL FUTURE IN YORK ASSURED
- Region & Route:
Important plans which cement York’s future as a railway city have been given the go ahead by the city council.
Network Rail will develop a new rail operating centre and workforce development centre on land close to York station.
Phil Verster, Route Managing Director for Network Rail’s London North Eastern (LNE) route, said: “This decision is great news for York and the railway. These operating and training facilities will allow us to deliver a modern, efficient railway while at the same time maintaining York’s position as a proud rail city. The centres will retain jobs in the city and, over time, see all of our rail operations for the LNE route consolidated on this site.
“The operating centre is the largest of just 14 proposed centres across Britain and will bring the expertise and technology we need to operate the route into a single location. Meanwhile the investment in modern training facilities will make sure our rail employees remain among the best in the world.
“As well as bringing future employment benefits which are vital for economic growth and prosperity in York we hope that the location of these new facilities on the edge of the York Central development site could act as a catalyst for further investment in the area."
Cllr James Alexander, Labour leader of City of York Council, said: “This is the second significant planning application to be approved by the council in a matter of weeks, and is another big step forward for York.
“The city has a strong railway heritage and the new Rail Operating Centre is going to help secure existing jobs and expertise in our city, as well as generating opportunities for further growth. I’ve supported these plans from the start, which further underlines Network Rail’s continuing commitment to York and we’re looking forward working closely with Network Rail to support their work in the city.”
The intention is that the rail operating centre (ROC) will eventually control all rail operations on the east coast. The workforce development centre will consolidate training services already provided to rail employees at a number of locations around the route into a single, purpose-built facility. Around 500 jobs will be spread over the two facilities when fully operational.
Notes to editors
The land identified for development is known as the engineer’s triangle and lies between York station and Holgate bridge.
The development will require the relocation of the current turning facility which is used by some charters. The final location for the new facility has yet to be decided. The engineers turning triangle will not be removed until it is replaced by a new facility in York
Operations strategy
Network Rail plans to consolidate all signalling and control activity into 14 modern rail operating centres over the next 15-30 years.
Six new ROCs would be built to supplement the eight locations already identified. They will have the latest technology and tools to better manage and control the network.
There are significant benefits for Network Rail and the broader industry including passengers, freight users and train operators including:
- Less delay – better technology will help restore normal service much quicker following disruption
- More flexibility and capacity – more reliable performance and better train regulation
- Reduced operating costs. A more affordable railway with more passengers will help create a sustainable future for the network.
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We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.
Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.
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