133 December 2018 NEWSHelping ensure a sustainable future for UK rail freight www.rfg.org.uk

Transpennine upgrade: Freight sidelined again

Disappointment as freight will not be included P.2 in £2.9bn Transpennine rail upgrade plans RFG sets out tests for successful railway Rail Freight Group (RFG) has voiced its With our members, we put together a 20-30 reform concerns and frustration over news that year traffic projection and passed it to DfT the upgrade and electrification of the last May. We have confidence in the market Transpennine route will not include pro- and that traffic will run to the quantity we vision for freight trains. project. It now looks like all of that is going to have to continue to go onto the M62 to The route is widely accepted to be crucial to get across the Pennines.” the ongoing economic development of the region and shifting goods from the already Mike told The Guardian that currently only congested M6 motorway. half a dozen or so trains travel on the route each day, mainly outside the passenger In interviews with the Yorkshire Post and service times, while 48 was perfectly possi- The Guardian newspapers RFG’s North of ble running six days a week. He added that P.3 England Representative Mike Hogg voiced ‘significant investments’ had been made by PD Ports celebrates his concerns. the major ports at Liverpool, in the Humber 4th anniversary of rail and in the North East for the handling and terminal “We are very disappointed and dissatisfied transfer to rail and that demand was only with the recommendation,” he told the York- going to rise. • shire Post. “We cannot see the rationale.

RFG welcomes new boss

to its Christmas Lunch Article on page 5.

P.10 DB Cargo unveils new cargo tracking app

Xmas Lunch photo gallery inside on P6-8. P.12 RFG’s 2019 Events Calendar unveiled RFG News Dec 2018

Executive Director’s Update: Maggie Simpson email your comments to [email protected] demand for passenger trains still dominates thinking, and with 2019 already Government decisions often made at Ministerial level, the set to be a ability to leverage freight can be frustrating. The Williams Review, which is currently underway, will have busy year to look at these kinds of challenges, not just for freight but right across the railway. How can structure incentivise the By Maggie Simpson, Director General, right behaviours, and ensure that those with the incentives Rail Freight Group (RFG) also have the authority to act and deliver? RFG has had some initial meetings with the review team, and published a position Recently I met with the new Rail paper on freight outcomes (article below) and we will continue Minister Andrew Jones for an intro- to provide input to the review. ductory discussion on rail freight. Andrew was previous- ly a transport minister with responsibility for road freight, There is also a Call for Evidence open for submissions and so has some knowledge of the topic and we had a good I would encourage you to submit your thoughts on how the discussion on the opportunities for rail freight growth, structure of the railway can support freight growth (page 4). and on the need for positive messages about the success of our sector. As well as the Williams Review, Andrew Haines the new CEO at Network Rail is undertaking his own 100-day review of the In my experience, politicians from all parties are almost organisation, from which he will no doubt make some changes always strongly supportive of a growth in rail freight, under- to how the business operates. Andrew was kind enough to standing the environmental and economic benefits of using be our Guest of Honour at the Christmas lunch and made an rail. The debate on Brexit, as intransigent as it is, has also excellent speech showing his support for our sector. We will brought home the importance of freight, of ports and of trans- look forward to working with him and the Network Rail team port links in a way never before seen. This has been reflected over the coming months, and watching to ensure that freight in many of the meetings that RFG has had this year, and in users remain at the forefront of their thinking. the support we get. This edition of RFG News is our last for 2018, and I would like The challenge for the rail freight sector is perhaps therefore in to thank you all for subscribing, and for your support of our converting that high level of support into the right decisions and activities over the last 12 months. 2019 already looks to be choices when it comes to investment and services. Here there another busy year, and we look forward to seeing you at one is growing frustration for freight operators, with issues such of our events in the months ahead. as the North Transpennine upgrade, where freight has been removed from the development remit, and West Coast where In the meantime, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, and there are still no answers on how freight will be affected by best wishes for a prosperous and successful new year. • the addition of HS2 trains. The political necessity of satisfying

RFG sets out tests for successful railway reform Rail Freight Group (RFG) has published a position paper ‘Rail Freight Outcomes in Rail Review’ that sets out the key freight asks of the Williams Rail Review, announced by Government last month.

Rail freight delivers economic and environmental benefits worth £1.7bn to the UK each year and is forecast to grow further in coming year. Customers of rail freight, who include industrial, retail and logistics companies see rail as a funda- mental part of their supply chains and want to ensure that they can grow their rail presence and their businesses.

The paper highlights the conditions that need to be met if the review is to work for the freight sector, which include placing freight customers at the heart of the industry, and ensuring that any new structures actively support a growth of rail freight.

Maggie Simpson, Director General, RFG, said: “The Wil- liams Review is fundamental to the future of UK rail and of all those who use the network. Our position paper sets out a framework for assessing potential options for structural reform to consider how the needs of freight customers will be addressed.” Click here to download the position paper. 2 Details on new Rail News in brief: Sector Deal released • HMRC has shared The details of a Rail Sector Deal between the the second letter it has industry and the Government have now been sent to traders with actions published. that can be taken now to prepare for any poten- The Rail Sector Deal looks to build on the strong tial no-deal exit from the partnership working between the rail sector and EU. The letter asks busi- the government to increase the efficiency of how nesses that trade with the technology is used and to exploit the opportuni- EU, and are not already ties of those new technologies when looking to registered for customs, to increase capacity and improve the overall cus- prepare by registering for tomer experience for passengers and freight a UK Economic Operator users alike. Registration and Identi- fication (EORI) number Please see page 16 for more on the Deal. and decide whether they will use a customs agent. Click here to download the Industrial Strate- Click here for the details. gy document. • PD Ports has launched a new bespoke Chartered Management Degree Apprenticeship (CMDA) with Teesside University to support the development of future leaders for the port and logistics operator. This is the second degree programme it has collabo- rated on with the university.

• DB Cargo UK was recently named Rail Freight Operator of the Year at the Global Freight Awards 2018 in . Its Head of Innovation and Strategy Kathryn Oldale received the award on the company’s behalf and said: “This is a huge ac- colade for DB Cargo UK and is recognition of all the continued hard work PD Ports has added two Scottish services at and commitment of all our Teesport, the latest arriving at the port in the last Teesport’s £3m rail employees. month following “overwhelming popularity” of the first. This second service opens up further Terminal is 4! Fargo Systems has opportunities to connect importers and export- • announced it has won a PD Ports is celebrating the fourth anniversa- ers with the north of the UK. ry of the opening of its Teesport Intermodal new deal with iPort Rail, supplying market-leading Rail Terminal. Frans Calje, PD Ports’ CEO, said: “With an logistics software for the increasing need for intermodal transport in the state-of-the-art rail termi- Seeing considerable growth in containers year- UK, the rail terminal has grown in popularity and nal. It is implementing Far- on-year, PD Ports launched the £3m terminal on we’ve invested our time into establishing further go’s successful CYMAN 15 November 2014, offering services to Felix- connections to support our customers’ supply platform, a comprehensive stowe and Southampton, expanding the port’s chains. Now we are the leading rail hub in the container and yard man- hinterland connectivity. north for European and global exporters and agement software solution importers trading with the North. Four years on, the ports group said using rail to and TOPS (Transport Or- der Planning System) for move goods around the county continues to be He added: “As we continue our efforts to grow all its terminal operations. important in order to help alleviate the over-bur- Teesport’s rail platform, we’re looking forward dened UK road network and chronic HGV driv- to seeing the progress Network Rail alongside er shortage whilst helping customers reduce Tees Valley Combined Authority make in cre- carbon emissions and cut costs in their supply ating easier access for rail freight towards the chains. South concentrating on the gauge clearance issues currently faced between Eaglescliffe and Demand for rail has grown and to support this Northallerton.” 3 RFG News Dec 2018 sures • High Speed 2 and other major projects Rail Review • a railway that is able to offer good value • spending decisions made through the fares for passengers, while keeping costs Spending Review 2019 announces down for taxpayers • improved industrial relations, to reduce The gathered evidence will inform the re- Call for Evidence disruption and improve reliability for pas- view and will be considered alongside oth- sengers er evidence received. The review’s find- The Williams Rail Review has issued a • a rail sector with the agility to respond to ings and recommendations is expected to Call for Evidence to the rail freight sec- future challenges and opportunities be published in a government white paper tor, seeking input to support the overall in autumn 2019, with reform of the sector Rail Review, led by independent chair The review will look at the whole rail in- to begin in 2020. Keith Williams. dustry, including: • increasing integration between track and Written evidence should be submitted by The review was established to recom- train 18 January 2019. However the evidence mend the most appropriate frameworks to • how to improve transport services across portal will remain open until the end of support the delivery of the government’s UK regions and devolved nations, includ- May 2019 and all responses will be re- overall vision for the railway. It is now invit- ing exploring options for devolution of rail viewed by the team. ing written contributions to inform its work powers on any or all of the review principles. • improving value for money for passen- In the later phases of the review we will gers and taxpayers use the evidence portal to seek input on These are: more specific questions. • commercial models for the provision of It is also worth noting the following topics rail services that prioritise the interests of that are not considered by the review and You can contact the Rail Review team passengers and taxpayers this call for evidence: and feed in evidence at any time using the • rail industry structures that promote clear • public investment decisions made email [email protected]. accountability and effective joint working through existing franchise agreements for both passengers and the freight sector • railway funding 2019-2024 commitments Written evidence can be submitted online • a system that is financially sustainable (Control Period 6) here. and able to address long-term cost pres-

How freight delivers for Christmas

Network Rail has published a breakdown of rail freight’s contribution to this Christmas, with help from Russell Logistics and Malcolm Logistics. Among the figures are:

• 13.5m bottles of spirits from Scotland to England • 850,000 selection boxes from England to Scotland • 30 trailer loads of toys from Germany to the UK • 2.6m bottles of cognac from France to Scotland • 350,000 bottles of wine from France to Scotland • 5.3m bottles of spirits from Scotland to France Click here for more detail.

key points of entry into the UK, as traders will only have to make UK to remain in the customs declarations and pay import duties when they arrive at Common Transit their final destination. Convention after Brexit Backing Northern The UK is set to remain in the Common Transit Convention (CTC) after Brexit, ensuring simplified cross-border trade Powerhouse Rail for UK businesses exporting their goods. The CTC is used Northern Powerhouse Rail has opened a new survey to gath- for moving goods between the EU member states, the EFTA er views from across the sector on Northern Powerhouse countries (Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland) Rail and the impact an improved rail infrastructure will have as well as Turkey, Macedonia and Serbia. on businesses.

The UK is currently a member of the CTC while it is in the EU, The survey will inform a report that will be presented to the Sec- and has successfully negotiated membership in its own right after retary of State for Transport highlighting the urgent need for Brexit. This would apply to any new trading relationship with the investment in transport infrastructure in the North of England, EU or in the unlikely event of a no deal. with a view to launching our bespoke campaign ‘We Back North- ern Powerhouse Rail’. Membership of the CTC will help ensure that trade moves freely between the UK and CTC members after the UK leaves the EU. Click here to go through to the online survey. It will provide cashflow benefits to traders and aid trade flow at 4 Continued for front page. inely transformed its approach to safety and that is a long-lasting tribute.” RFG was delighted to welcome Andrew Haines OBE, the new chief executive of Network Rail, as its guest of honour He added: “It’s been a tough year for many people who work for its annual Christmas Lunch. in our industry and there have been too many times where we have lost focus on our end users, both freight customers and Addressing around 800 RFG members and their guests at the passengers. We have demonstrated in too many cases that we Royal Lancaster Hotel on 12 December, he praised a dynam- have not stepped up our ability to manage change when our cus- ic and resilient sector and acknowledged rail freight provided tomers need us to. We have a model that is overcomplicated around £2bn of economic benefits each year. He particularly paid and as a consequence too many of us have been found wanting. tribute to his predecessor Mark Carne and said he had left be- And most worrying we risk becoming an industry of victims. Too hind a very positive legacy for the future amid a changing sector. many people are satisfied explaining why things go wrong and not showing the level of resolve they need to fixing them. That Andrew Haines took over as CEO of Network Rail this autumn is my fundamental message. I want Network Rail to be synony- from heading up the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). His back- mous with an organisation that performs, is open and dynamic, is ground is in rail however and he was MD of the Rail Division for dependable as a partner and delivers more for less.” First Group and prior to that he was MD of South West Trains. Finally, he said he thoroughly supported the appointment of Keith He said he was delighted to be back in rail and looked forward Williams, also from the air sector, in his role to undertake a Rail to working with the freight sector. “Ten years is a long time and Review and said he was someone of great integrity and practical a lot has changed in that time,” he said. “Ten years ago the big experience. challenge was how do we accommodate all of the coal that need- ed to be transported across the country and as we all know it’s In rounding up the challenges of 2018, RFG Director General, quite a different situation at present. But equally there are very Maggie Simpson, said that the freight sector had seen a positive significant flows that we had not even dreamed of at that stage. year despite challenges elsewhere in the railway. “There can be Freight is a vital part of the economy, delivering close to £2bn in no doubt that the railways are again in difficult times,” she said. economic benefits. “Indeed, they have hardly been out of the headlines this year, with timetabling and performance issues across the passenger “There have been significant changes over the past 10 years but network, cost overruns on Crossrail and a franchise system ar- at the same time many of the old issues remain. So I’ve tried to guably on the verge of collapse. These issues are not of freight’s spend a lot of my time over the past three or four months get- making, but the railways are a system and when there is trouble ting out and about talking to customers, stakeholders and local in one area it inevitably affects us all. Despite all this, I think the government about their issues and needs. I’ve had a lot of feed- rail freight industry has actually had rather a good year. We’ve back and I’m grateful because it’s important that we listen and seen a renewed confidence and demand for growth across the we learn.” sector.”

Andrew joined the lunch, having previously attended the 30th She highlighted key successful projects including: new inter- anniversary service of the 1988 Clapham Junction disaster and modal services at London Gateway, a second daily service from he said so much had been done in the sector since the tragic in- Teesport to Scotland, the opening of iPort in Doncaster; a new cident. “It was for me a deeply powerful reminder that we cannot terminal at Hitchen and Tytherington quarry; the Felixstowe take safety for granted in our sector,” he said. branch upgrade; and DB Cargo UK completing its £6m Wolver- hampton Steel Terminal. Further paying tribute to the efforts of Mark Carne in regard to safety, he said: “Under Mark’s leadership Network Rail has genu- Thank you to everyone who attended this year’s RFG Christmas Lunch. As always it was a fantastic sell-out event that provided members and their guests an excellent opportunity to catch up with old friends, make new business connections, and celebrate the rail freight sector. On the day the champagne raffle raised more than £5,100 for Shelter, the housing and homelessness charity, the RFG’s chosen Christmas charity.

Congratulations to the winners of 2018 Xmas Lunch champagne raffle: Mark James, DP World Southampton David Thomas, Kuehne + Nagel Sven Hotker, X-Press Spares Ltd (Germany) Guy Peasley, GB Stewart Kenworthy, Ricardo Rail Neil Pickwell, Port of Boston David Renner, Beacon Rail Leasing (Germany) Brian Reed, Cooper Specialist Handling Derek Knox, Forth Ports Andy Saunders, Network Rail Photo gallery over the page. 5 Christmas Lunch 2018 photo gallery A huge thank you to everyone who attended and supported us on the day

6 7 8

DB Cargo UK unveils new tracking system

DB Cargo UK has launched a new service that enables customers to view their rail freight deliveries in real time via an online tracking sys- tem.

The new web-based portal allows customers to see the number and type of wagons on their service, as well as exactly what progress the loco is making at any given time. Respon- sive to all mobile devices the portal is easy to use and can be accessed on the go.

The UK’s largest operator said the system is the product of collaboration with some of DB Cargo UK’s existing partners including , British Steel, Tarmac and Puma Energy. freight sector,” he added. to seeing the future developments Head of Sales Roger Neary said: which will further enhance its capa- “This is a very exciting initiative that Malcolm Miller, Supply Chain Oper- bility.” will set us aside from our competitors. ations Manager at British Steel add- It has been designed by customers, ed: “Modern supply chains require Samuel Roberts, Commercial Manag- for customers and will give them accurate and timely information. The er at Mendip Rail, added: “The collab- much greater visibility of the services new customer portal from DB Cargo oration between Mendip Rail and DB that DB Cargo UK operates for them. provides customer specific updates Cargo UK through the design process for all our planned rail paths. Moving has been very successful in produc- “This is the first step in a process forward this will allow us to further ing a system that gives us access towards delivering a customer experi- optimise resources to support our to the information we as a business ence that is second-to-none in the rail business requirements. I look forward need in real-time. •

Are you interested in advertising your business in RFG News? Rail Freight Group has made the decision to open up the newsletter to advertising for the first time in the Group’s history. This is follow- ing interest from a number of members in further promoting their businesses, services and events in the form of traditional display advertising.

RFG News is a digital-only publication and is created as an A4 down- loadable PDF that is housed on the RFG website in its own section.

Each year we produce six issues of RFGN that goes out to around 1,000 people comprised of our members and key stakeholders signed up through our website with a double-opt in process. Our readers are made up of senior decision makers in the rail freight sector and are mostly managing director, director or senior manager level.

RFG is offering currently offering full page and half page positions. Details of the current advertising packages are available on request and places are based on a first-come, first-served basis.

Please email [email protected] if you are interested. •

10 RFG News Dec 2018

500 not out! Victa Railfreight and not a one size fits all, off the shelf package.” Chris Swan, Tarmac’s Head of Rail said: “These courses really reaches training milestone help us enhance the safety of our rail operation as they are tailor made for businesses, locations and activity in the construction Victa Railfreight reached a significant milestone in Novem- industry. ber when it delivered its Rail Safety Awareness training to the 500th candidate from the construction logistics industry. “The feedback from the Tarmac teams have been how much they have helped with understanding and knowledge in this area. The The 500th was Liam Maltby of Tarmac (pictured below) and the Victa and Mentor teams are to be congratulated on its achieve- course took place at Tarmac’s Newmarket site. ments on the continued success of the course,” he added. Rob McKittrick, Victa’s Operations Support Manager, said: “This Victa won a contract in 2016 with a consortium of rail users from is a huge achievement, so a special thanks to all involved and the construction industry to train around 800 staff at terminals, especially to Collette Ranford, Victa’s Operations Development railheads and loading points on a derivative of the Victa Rail Manager, who has created this programme with passion and en- Safety Awareness courses. These courses included key risks ergy from the very outset. We are developing people that work identified by the industry around rail operations within construc- every day within a railway safety critical role. It is vital that the tion sites including interfaces, the loading and unloading of trains training we deliver is relevant to the work place of the participants and specific wagon features to enhance the understanding of their staff involved in rail activities at these locations.

Victa began the courses in December 2016. By the end of 2018 over 525 construction staff will have attended the courses. There will have been over 120 RSA courses by the New Year for cus- tomers from Liverpool Peel Ports, Aggregate Industries, Associ- ated British Ports, Tarmac Cement, VTG, Cemex, UKRL and the Port of Tilbury.

Simon Blake of Aggregate Industries said: “Not only is the course content excellent, but we appear to have cracked the challenge of making it sustainable by acting collaboratively.”

Victa is now working with the same construction consortium to deliver a course covering higher level responsibilities for manag- ers/operators of private rail infrastructure. As well as these cours- es, several spin-off programmes covering subjects such as “A Beginners Overview of Rail Freight”, “Effective Communications” and the “Role of the Designated Person” have been developed to meet specific customer requirements, again made relevant to the tasks the candidates undertake.

Other courses relevant to the rail freight and logistics sector will be added to the Victa portfolio over the next twelve months. Victa has strengthened its training team to meet the increasing de- mand for and range of its courses. •

11 RFG Events 2019: Attend our events and help support the rail freight sector

5 February - RFG Members’ Party Truckles, Central London On 5 February RFG will be hosting its popular Members’ Party at Truckles, Central London.

6 March - Scottish Conference RFG’s Scottish conference will be held on Wednesday 6 March. Venue and full details will be announced in due course.

1 May - Spring Group Meeting The RFG’s Spring Group Meeting will be held on 1 May. There will also be a dinner on the previous evening of 30 April. Full details to be announced in due course.

18 June - Multimodal Group Meeting Multimodal Birmingham NEC RFG is delighted to again be hosting its regular Group Meeting at the Multimodal 2019 exhibition. Now in its 13th year, Multimodal is the UK and Ireland’s premier freight transport, logistics and supply chain management event.

12 September - RFG Awards Dinner 2019 De Vere Latimer Estate, Chesham, Bucks. The RFG Awards Dinner will be held on 12 September 2019. The RFG awards are kindly sponsored by Burges Salmon LLP and GB Railfreight (GBRf).

6 November - AGM and Autumn Group Meeting Venue and full details will be announced in due course. Please contact Phillippa O’Shea at [email protected] to book your place.

11 December - Christmas Lunch The Royal Lancaster London, Central London The RFG Xmas Lunch will be held on 11 December 2019 at the Royal Lancaster London Hotel.

To book your place at any of the RFG’s excellent events throughout the year, please email Phillippa O’Shea at [email protected] or visit our website www.rfg.org.uk/events for more details and to book. RFG OPINION

Rail freight: a year in review

By Yvonne Mulder, Project Manager, Rail Freight Group

Rail freight has had a positive 12 months, with invest- for new business, and we have seen welcome investment ment in services and terminals enabling additional traf- from both operators and customers. fic volumes as well as attracting new customers. This has been particularly noticeable as the railways in gen- There are too many projects to mention in detail, but particu- eral have not been in a good place, with timetabling lar mention must go to all those who are working to establish issues and passenger disruption hitting the headlines. new terminals, and we have been pleased to see the open- ing of iPort in Doncaster, planning consent for the new facility Rail freight has navigated this well, but any change in overall at Mossend, and other schemes progressing in construction sentiment can and will impact on our sector. So, as always, and in the planning system. Without these terminals, rail Rail Freight Group has been working to ensure that the very freight will be constrained in its ability to grow. particular needs of rail freight are not overlooked when con- sidering changes to the way that the railways operate. We have also been pleased with progress on network en- hancements for freight over the year and look forward to the Most recently, Government has announced its plans for a schemes at Felixstowe and Buxton completing early next fundamental review of the railways, led by independent chair year, along with other important projects. Keith Williams. We have met with colleagues across Gov- The rail freight sector has recognised that we need to keep ernment and the industry to discuss how freight is represent- making the case for rail freight and to promote its benefits to ed in this review as we know that passenger traffic tends to politicians and statutory bodies as well as to the general pub- dominate the discussions. lic. Rail Delivery Group has recently published ‘Rail Freight: working for Britain’ which explains the many economic and In the meantime, the Office of Rail and Road continued work environmental advantages. on the Periodic Review of Network Rail for 2018 with draft determination issued before the summer. There has been It demonstrates, for instance, that rail freight delivers £1.7bn good progress in embedding the Freight and National Pas- of economic benefit to Britain, including increasing produc- senger Operator (FNPO) route in Network Rail, although the tivity by lowering the cost of transporting goods and reducing supporting governance is yet to be fully in place. road congestion. With each train removing 76 HGVs from the roads, research has calculated that the use of rail freight The market for rail freight has remained buoyant, and traffic results in eight million fewer lorry journeys on Britain’s roads levels have been stable. Freight operators continue to press each year.

Importantly, the benefits of rail freight are spread throughout the country. More than 60% of the activity is focused in former industrial heartlands in Yorkshire, the Humber, the North West, Scot- land and the Midlands, with more than 87% out- side London and the South East.

We look forward to continued growth in 2019.

13 GUEST ARTICLE

The Exceptional Contribution Award supporting exceptional ambitions

The EWS Educational Trust is seeking applications the sale of English Welsh and Scottish Railways. for grants from people with close family ties to the rail freight industry who are about to start or who are work- CASE STUDY: Thomas O’Shea [pictured] ing on something outstanding to benefit others and who Exceptional Contribution Award would welcome ‘significant’ financial support to help them succeed. Thomas knew of the Exceptional Contribution Award having previously received funding from the Trust towards his MSc The Exceptional Contribution Award was created by the in Geophysics from University College London in 2011. EWS Educational Trust to help unlock the potential of people who are working towards the development of something truly Thomas, whose relative connection, Jonathan, previously extraordinary for the greater good. worked for DB cargo, is now undertaking his PhD research in Complex Geographic Systems Analysis at the University The ideal applicant is likely to be involved in, but not limited of Bristol, with Kyoto and Vrije University Amsterdam sup- to, the fields of medical, scientific or engineering advance- porting in an advisory capacity. ment and is anticipated to be in doctorate or post-doctoral research Thomas’s research is an inter-disciplinary project working closely across the departments of Geography and Engineer- The level of grant potentially available would be significant- ing. He started his PhD in 2017 and will take 4 years to com- ly higher than the usual grants maximum. The Exceptional plete. Contribution award will go to just one or two people each year. The purpose of Thomas’s research is to develop a new sci- entific model with a view to providing a freely available tool The main qualifying criterion is that the applicant must have for improved understanding and identification of the ways in a close family, or a direct link to the UK’s pre-or post-privati- which human behaviour determines the outcome of natural sation rail freight industry. This link is a parent, step-parent, disasters, and vice-versa, in a simple yet accurate format. grandparent, spouse, partner or civil partner who worked or works for a UK rail freight company. His research is in response to the large-scale flooding that occurred in the north of England in December 2015 and the These include, for example, Colas Railfreight, DB Cargo lack of national capability in deploying effective flood incident (UK), DB Schenker, DRS, Freightliner, GB Railfreight, or management during such events. Flooding is viewed as the even former companies such as ’s freight organ- hazard from which the UK is most ‘at risk’. isations, for example, , , , Transrail, , English Welsh and As well as receiving funding from the Trust, he also received Scottish Railways and so on. a one-off stipend with the European Space Agency. It is only through the support of the Trust that he can undertake this Staff working for rail freight-based supply chain companies significant piece of research. should check with the Trust if their company qualifies. He said: “There is very little to no funding available for sci- Anyone meeting the criteria who believes they qualify and ence and academia at large, due to financial cuts to these would like to be considered for an Exceptional Contribution sectors. The Trust’s funding takes on an essential role in pro- Award should get in touch with the Trust through its website: moting my own and other’s exceptional developments at the www.ewseducationaltrust.co.uk very forefront of scientific research.

The deadline for Exceptional Contribution applications “Without the Trust’s generous support there is no way my is 31 March 2019. research could happen. I hope that there will be a point at which they will see the product of their essential support and All EWS Educational Trust grants are funded from money do- understand the huge benefits it will have for people across nated to the Trust when it was set up back in 2009 following the world.” 14 RFG SPONSOR PARTNERS 2018

The Rail Freight Group (RFG) would like to thank each of its Sponsor Partners for 2018. These companies come from within the core RFG membership and have chosen to provide additional support for the group’s activities and events throughout the year. Together they represent a wide range of key stakeholders and RFG would like to sincerely thank all of them for their commitment to the group and ongoing support to the UK rail freight sector. Planning Update - Burges Salmon Dec 2018

will put even more pressure on the increasingly squeezed Planning Update capacity and infrastructure.

By Elizabeth Dunn, Partner and Rail still largely relies on analogue technology and this is Stephen Humphreys, Senior Associate, Burges Salmon. despite the important benefits that digital technologies can bring to ensure that all operations run faster, more safely, In this issue we reflect on the year’s developments for the and on time. Technological improvements are at the cen- Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects regime and tre of the Rail Sector Deal and it aims to ensure that the look forward at the future for rail and other infrastructure. UK guarantees its position as a world leader in rail tech- nology. The deal will help companies to drive innovation, Reflection on 2018 for NSIPs invest in research and development, provide the neces- It has been a particularly progressive year for NSIPs, sary skills needed for the workforce and look beyond the showing real delivery and a surge in applications on the UK to global markets. regime’s 10th birthday this year. Currently, there are over 20 Development Consent Order applications making their Building on the 5-year Control Periods, Network Rail and way through the pipeline; with quite a few more registered HS2 Ltd will detail a 5-year plan and longer-term roadmap with the Planning Inspectorate and expected to be sub- of Digital Railway interventions. This is intended to drive mitted for consideration in 2019. There are a number of productivity, supporting the sector to deliver significant re- applications which continue to focus on the delivery of vi- ductions in the cost of digital signalling, which is intended tally important rail freight interchanges and we will keep to increase the overall capacity and reliability of the net- you updated on their progress over the coming months. work and improve passenger experience. We have seen two more National Policy Statements It is also worth mentioning that the Government intends to (NPS) being progressed this year, including one for the spend £48 billion over the next five years on maintaining development of new airports and one for a geological dis- and upgrading the existing rail network. This is a record posal facility. In addition, there has been extensive con- investment but needs to be focussed on the interests of sultation on the NPS for new nuclear development which all those who use the railway network. In addition, the Rail is being developed after 2025. The NPSs set the need for Review, which is led by Keith Williams, will scrutinise the a specific type of development and they are endorsed by whole structure of the rail industry and provide advice on Parliament to set the framework for a relevant planning where to make strategic changes and investments (with application. Their purpose is to bring greater certainty to the inevitable interactions between passenger and freight the NSIP application process and they offer developers services). certainty on the approach to be taken towards an appli- cation. This coupled with the statutory timeframe for the Next year application process makes it clear from the outset what is If certainty is what is needed to ensure the ongoing deliv- required from an applicant. ery and predictability of new developments and funding then we are in short reserves of it at the moment. Every- one will be hoping that the political dust settles in time for “The railways now carry £30bn key commitments to continue and for them to be deliv- of goods annually and the cur- ered. How 2019 unfolds may be become clearer in the rent and continued growth for next few weeks or we could see more vacillation which the sector will put even more stalls progress in the shorter or even longer term. What pressure on the increasingly we all want though is for investment and development to squeezed capacity and infra- continue which builds on the successes of 2018. • structure.”

The current success rate for DCOs is noticeably and im- pressively high, with 94% of all applications submitted to the relevant Secretary of State having been granted con- sent to date. We expect and hope that this clear success story continues well into 2019.

Investments in Rail – the Rail Sector Deal As 2018 draws to a close, the Government is looking to the future to build resilience into the rail sector. On Friday 7 December, the Government and rail industry agreed a plan to the increase the efficiency of the UK’s railways by increasing its capabilities with a particular focus on better use of technology. Contact: The Rail Sector Deal will build on the strong partnership Elizabeth Dunn, Partner between the rail sector and the Government intended to [email protected] exploit the opportunities that new technologies can offer and comes at a crucial time for the sector as the volume of freight moved by rail has increased by almost a third in Stephen Humphreys, Associate recent years. The railways now carry £30bn of goods an- [email protected] nually and the current and continued growth for the sector www.burges-salmon.com

16 European News Dec 2018

News in brief:

• The number of active ILU-Code users (used to identify intermodal loading units throughout Europe) in use has risen to 1,000. Thanks to the trust of the sector and the revision of the European stand- ard EN 13044 more than 350,000 EU loading units marked with an ILU-Code identifier are used every Photo: Thies Rätzke day on road, rail, inland waterways and in short sea shipping. shipping containers. Initially, the construction of a transfer station for testing purposes at a HHLA HHLA announces • Davies Turner is upgrad- terminal in Hamburg and the development of a ing its fixed-day weekly transport capsule for standard shipping contain- Hyperloop JV rail import service from ers are planned. Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) China. Since the intro- duction of the service two and the US-based research and develop- Angela Titzrath: “With the Hyperloop transport years ago, MCC contain- ment company Hyperloop Transportation system, HHLA is pursuing the goal of develop- ers have been carried by Technologies (HTT) are working together ing an additional component of efficient logistic rail from Wuhan across on a new high speed freight intermodal con- mobility solutions in Germany. As gateway to mainland China, Kazakh- cept. the future, we want to employ innovative ap- stan, Belarus and into proaches to make a contribution towards reliev- Warsaw in Poland. On Angela Titzrath, Chairwoman of HHLA’s Execu- ing the strain on the transport infrastructure in arrival, consignments for tive Board, and Dirk Ahlborn, founder and CEO and around the Port of Hamburg and to use the UK were transshipped to of HTT, announced the tie-up at a joint event on capacities of our terminal facilities in an even a local bonded warehouse 5 December. The goal is to develop and later more efficient way.” • market a Hyperloop transport system for for a NCTS / T1 bond to be issued, then trucked via Dover port to Davies Turner’s Dartford hub. Hutchison Ports BEST, a member of • DB Cargo is making Hutchison Ports, changes to its Manage- has launched a ment Board. Pierre Tim- new weekly inter- mermans, has become national rail ser- Board Member for Sales vice that connects and Marketing beginning 1 Barcelona with April 2019. He was CEO of Lyon (France). It Czech rail freight operator hopes to increase AWT, CEO of the PSA In- frequency in line ternational container port with demand. group, and board mem- ber and head of contract logistics at Frans Maas. Marek Staszek, current CEO of DB Cargo Polska, will move to the Manage- ment Board on 1 February 2019. Staszek’s previous Contact the RFG Team: positions have included CFO at PCC Rail S.A. Maggie Simpson, Director General, 07737 007 957 and CEO at PTKiGK in Phillippa O’Shea, Administration Manager, 07931 763 081 Rybnik. Michael Ansling- Yvonne Mulder, Project Manager, 07887 767 666 er, the current Member of James Falkner, Media Officer, 07753 271 110 the Management Board Robin Smith, Welsh Representative, 07968 488 905 for Production, will take on , Scottish Representative, 07917 877 399 David Spaven new responsibilities at the Mike Hogg, North of England Representative, 07833 402 804 DB Group. RFG News is published by the Rail Freight Group, 7 Bury Place, London, WC1A. Tel: 020 3116 0007 [email protected]. www.rfg.org.uk. RFG welcomes comments, letters and short articles. Opinions expressed in these articles are of the author only. RFG News is published primarily for online distribution but we will continue to send hard copies to those readers who request them.

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