Stephen Head

Today, Universal Signalling welcomed Baggy Shanker MP (Derby South) to its new office at the Rail Technical Centre in Derby, as part of RIA's Rail Fellowship Programme. Founded three years ago, Universal Signalling was established to bring low-cost, rapid-fitment signalling to market with a particular focus on secondary, rural, and branch lines. Commenting on the visit, Baggy Shanker MP said: “SMEs have a hugely important role to play in generating jobs in our communities and boosting our local economies. It was a pleasure to visit Universal Signalling’s new office and learn more about their efforts to drive forwards rail innovation, helping to secure long term benefits for Derby, and across the supply chain.” 🔗Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eZ_34g4s #RailFellowshipProgramme #RailIndustry #UKRail #DerbyRail

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East West Railway Company (EWR) Connection Stages 2 and 3 (CS2 and CS3) are being re-baselined after the Department for Transport (DfT), United Kingdom (DfT) spent nearly double its forecast on the project last year. Revealed in the National Infrastructure and Services Transformation Authority’s (Nista’s) annual report 2024/25, the DfT spent £175.3M on CS2 and CS3 over the 2024/25 financial year against a forecast of £90.2M. This represents a 94.3% overspend. EWR is a new rail line between Oxford and Cambridge which has already had trains completing a test runs on its first section, Oxford to Milton Keynes, with services set to commence this year. Construction of the further sections to Bedford (CS2) and then on to Cambridge (CS3) are yet to fully commence as they have not yet received a development consent order (DCO) to proceed. In its latest assessment, Nista’s rating of CS2 and CS3 remained at Amber on the confidence assessment grading. This means: “Successful delivery appears feasible but significant issues already exist, requiring management attention. These appear resolvable at this stage and, if addressed promptly, should not present a cost/schedule overrun.” However, the annual review also reveals that the project is currently being re-baselined following recommitment from the government to the programme, a route update announcement in 2023 and a public consultation launched in late 2024. As part of the Spring Budget in 2025, chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves recommitted to the delivery of works on the Marston Vale Line, which will form the majority of EWR CS2. These works will enable the service between Oxford and Bedford to commence by the end of the decade, the Nista report stated. For now, the report states the expected date of completion for CS2 and CS3 is still at November 2030 and the current baseline expected budget is £3.97bn. A joint venture of Mott MacDonald and WSP was appointed in February to design CS2 and CS3 sections of EWR.

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