#Railnatter

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#Railnatter Episode 223: West Yorkshire mass transit (reviewing the consultation plans) Jul 24, 2024

Show notes

Back in Episode 49, we looked at the broad plans for mass transit across West Yorkshire, centred on Leeds. Now, mayor Tracy Brabin has launched the consultation for the first two proposed routes, between Leeds and Bradford and from central Leeds southwards.

Are these proposals any good? Are they ambitious enough? Will they achieve sufficient modal shift? Let's take a look together.

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#Railnatter Episode 222: A high speed rail network for the UK and Ireland Jul 17, 2024

Show notes

Okay, so I've been teasing this for a while now, and at last it is here... We are going to spend this week's episode talking about what a FINISHED high speed rail network for the UK and Ireland would look like. Not shared lines, but dedicated high speed lines built from new.

How does HS2 fit in? How might it link with HS1? What about Greengauge 21s "X" network? Scotland? You better believe that there will be much in the way of maps and CAD! All comments welcome... This won't be the last of these episodes, I would guess.

#Railnatter Episode 221: The 2024 General Election Special Edition No. 2 Jul 10, 2024

Show notes

Everyone voted! The Conservative Party are toast! Labour got fewer votes than in 2019 and the era of two party politics in the UK is over...

But what does this mean for transport and railways? What do we think of the government appointments that are pertinent to transport? This one will mostly be a Q&A!

#Railnatter Episode 220: The 2024 General Election Special Edition No. 1 Jun 26, 2024

Show notes

Well, with only a week left to go before the UK 2024 general election, which of the relevant* parties' manifestos is best for transport? We'll get them up side by side and have a close look at what is promised, how it compares to previous years and what it all might mean for the future.

Transport is only one part of the picture, though - the most important stance of any party is its position on social issues, in particular on issues for the most vulnerable groups in society. Why? Because these tell us what is in the heart of the party and the lens through which it will see all other issues. So we'll end by looking at the stance of the parties on one of the most important issues of the day: trans rights. And the result will tell us all we need to know about which party will be best for the country's future.

*The Scottish Greens, SNP and Plaid are relevant, sadly there's no time to include them. Meanwhile, if it's blue, it sucks.

#Railnatter Episode 219: A short word or two on early railways Jun 19, 2024

Show notes

It's a short one, and I'm off on wanderings for the first time in a while... I'm sharing some thoughts on early railways and the need to push back on the oversimplified narratives associated with the Stockton and Darlington Railway and 1825 as a false date of the "start" of railways.

#Railnatter Episode 218: What four years of rail reform has delivered Jun 12, 2024

Show notes

With the election approaching, we do a page-turn of the Public Accounts Committee's report into rail reform in Britain, as published back in May.

Six years have passed since the DfT said the railway needed reform, and four years have passed since initiating that reform programme, via its white paper (we've been through the ill-fated Williams-Shapps Plan For Rail already) in 2021. We were supposed to have Great British Railways by March 2024. No such organisation has appeared.

The reason it didn't tells us a lot about the challenges that the next government will face in changing the rail industry for the better - whether radically or incrementally.

You can download the report here: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/127/public-accounts-committee/news/201745/rail-reform-noone-in-government-putting-needs-of-passengers-and-taxpayers-first-pac-reports/

#Railnatter Episode 217: Everything we can say about Haxby station Jun 05, 2024

Show notes

Okay, a cheeky local one this week, amongst some news... Haxby station is looking increasingly likely to appear in the next few years, so let's talk about if it is in the right place, what the wider railway network around York ought to look like, some of the timetable challenges of achieving that, and why it is being designed to look so awful again when the HUB station designs are now formally part of Network Rail's design guidelines.

Also: THE NEWS.

#Railnatter Episode 216: What to do about rail in the West Midlands May 29, 2024

Show notes

We're jumping back in time to October 2022, and flicking through Network Rail's strategic advice for the West Midlands and the urban area around Birmingham. Lots to learn from this one - there will be diagrams and pictures and thoughts galore!

#Railnatter Episode 215: How to tip trains over on purpose (with equations) May 15, 2024

Show notes

It's a proper techy one this week, and we're talking all things CANT or SUPERELEVATION. What is it? Why do we need it? Why don't we need it? All your questions, answered. Oh, and dust off your GCSE mechanics because we will be doing some MATHS with EQUATIONS.

#Railnatter Episode 214: Finishing The Borders Railway (with maps and routes) May 08, 2024

Show notes

This one has been in the pipeline a while... Should we reopen the full Waverley Route from Tweedbank south to Carlisle? No! We shouldn't!

I'll explain precisely how we shouldn't, using maps, showing the route that any new Borders Main Line should take, and explaining how and why you'd choose between the two available options. I might even tell you how much it would cost!

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