National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers (RMT)

Reuters: April 29

BERLIN - Germany's transport minister acknowledged on Tuesday that the long-delayed partial privatisation of rail operator Deutsche Bahn could be pushed back until next year because of turbulent markets.

Germany's ruling coalition overcame differences to seal an agreement on Monday that paves the way for the sale of a 24.9 percent stake in the state-owned railway by the end of the year.

Speaking on Deutschlandfunk radio, Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee expressed hope the sale could take place in November or December, but said the precise timing would ultimately depend on market conditions.

"We have to find the right time to sell these shares," he said. "If the market doesn't allow (a sale this year), then we may need to wait one, two or three months."

Germany has not seen a single initial public offering (IPO) this year because of turmoil on financial markets linked in part to the U.S. subprime crisis. The leading German DAX index has fallen 15 percent since the end of 2007.

The sale of Deutsche Bahn, a transport and logistics giant with revenues of 31 billion euros, would be the highlight of the German IPO calendar if the government can pull it off.

Tiefensee said investment banks valued the stake at between 5 and 8 billion euros, which would make it the biggest German IPO since the government raised 5.8 billion euros with the sale of Deutsche Post shares in November 2000.

"The Bahn is a very special company and it can't be compared to others," Tiefensee said. "It is a safe investment that promises long-term success, both in terms of profits and the value of the stock itself. I am sure investors will come."

GOVERNMENT INFLUENCE

But some analysts are sceptical about the sale given market conditions and the continued influence of the government.

Although Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives have said the sale will be a first step in the process of privatising the firm, Tiefensee, a Social Democrat (SPD), said he expected Deutsche Bahn workers to receive written guarantees that no further stake sales would take place.

"The IPO market is very difficult at the moment and no one can say whether the situation will improve by the end of the year," said Jochen Rothenbacher of Equinet in Frankfurt.

"With Deutsche Telekom and Deutsche Post it was clear from the beginning that the government would pull out over time, but with Deutsche Bahn that is not the case and that is a negative in terms of the attractiveness of the shares."

The sale is due to be signed off in cabinet this week and then parliamentary groups will discuss it ahead of a decision in the lower house of parliament before the summer break.

The sale of Germany's last major state-owned enterprise has stirred controversy for years with opponents claiming service will deteriorate and the firm's workers will suffer. To assuage fears, management agreed last week that there will not be any lay-offs for the next 15 years as a result of the privatisation.

Under the terms of the coalition agreement, 24.9 percent of Bahn's passenger transport, logistics and services businesses will be sold to private investors. The rail tracks, stations and energy supply unit will remain the property of the state.

Two thirds of the revenue from the sale will be reinvested in company infrastructure projects or go towards strengthening the firm's capital base. The rest will flow to federal coffers.

See also:

German rail sale could bring 8 bln euros-minister

Reuters: April 29 2008
Writing by Noah Barkin; editing by Rory Channing

BERLIN - The sale of a 24.9 percent government stake in German rail operator Deutsche Bahn could bring in revenues of up to 8 billion euros ($12.53 billion), Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee said on Tuesday.

Senior members of Germany's ruling coalition sealed an agreement late on Monday that paves the way for a partial privatisation of the rail operator by the end of the year, although Tiefensee said market conditions would determine the precise timing of the long-delayed sale.

"We have estimates from different investment banks ranging from 5 to 8 billion euros," Tiefensee told Deutschlandfunk radio. "Now we have to find the right time to sell these shares."

Tiefensee said the government hoped to push through the sale in November or December of this year.
"If the market doesn't allow this, then we may need to wait one, two or three months," he said.

Until now, most estimates of the value of the stake have been in the 5 to 6 billion euro range.

"The Bahn is a very special company and it can't be compared to others," Tiefensee said. "It is a safe investment that promises long-term success, both in terms of profits and the value of the stock itself. I am sure investors will come."

The sale is due to be signed off in cabinet this week and then parliamentary groups will discuss it ahead of a decision in the lower house of parliament before the summer break.

The issue of privatising Germany's last major state-owned enterprise has stirred controversy for years with opponents claiming service will deteriorate and Deutsche Bahn's workers will suffer.

Company management agreed last week with labour unions that there will not be any lay-offs for the next 15 years as a result of the privatisation.

Although Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives have said the sale will be a first step in the process of privatising the firm, Tiefensee, a Social Democrat (SPD), said he expected Deutsche Bahn workers to receive written guarantees that no further sales would take place.

Deutsche Bahn, one of the biggest transport companies in the world and Germany's largest employer, has annual revenues of around 30 billion euros and more than 220,000 staff.

See also:

German finance minister expects 6-8 bln euros proceeds from rail privatisation

Thomson Financial: 04.29.08

BERLIN, Germany (Thomson Financial) - German finance minister Peer Steinbrueck said he expects proceeds from the planned partial Initial Public Offering (IPO) of rail operator Deutsche Bahn AG. to come in at between six and eight billion euros.

He said first talks were conducted with potential buyers, without providing further details.

A committee of Germany's ruling coalition parties agreed late on Monday on the part privatisation of state-owned Deutsche Bahn. Up to 24.9 percent of the business handling passenger and cargo traffic as well as logistics will be sold via an IPO, while railway tracks and train stations will remain completely state-owned.

While details still need to be hammered out, the agreement sees proceeds equally being used for a capital increase of Deutsche Bahn, investments in the rail network and the federal government budget.

German transport minister Wolfgang Tiefensee earlier said he expect the partial Initial Public Offering (IPO) of German rail operator Deutsche Bahn. to be conducted in November or December this year.

If market conditions do not permit this point of time, 'one would maybe wait another two to three months,' he said.

See also:

German Government Agrees Private Purchases of Deutsche Bahn

Deutsche Welle: 01.05.2008

The Deutsche Bahn headquarters in Berlin: The German cabinet will allow private investors to buy into Deutsche Bahn

Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet has approved plans to let private investors take over just under one quarter of the operations of Deutsche Bahn, one of the world's biggest rail transport groups.

The government intends to proceed with the part-privatization of the national rail company, Deutsche Bahn [DB] in November or December. DB owns rail companies outside Germany and is also a major road transport operator within Germany.

The heads of the two parties in Merkel's coalition agreed Monday on selling off a stake in the passenger and freight services, while retaining the railtracks, stations, power generation and signaling in state hands.

Estimates on the value of the 24.9-per-cent stake in passenger and freight services run to around 6 billion euros [$9.5 billion].

The issue provoked months of debate within the broad coalition government, comprising Merkel's conservative Christian CDU/CSU bloc and its traditional rival, the Social Democrats [SPD].

The SPD conceded ground in the debate, backing away from a proposal to sell the DB stake as "people's shares."

Instead, the offering is expected to go to big institutions, with some shares being sold to rail employees.

Conservatives aim to double the stake

Chancellor Merkel with Deutsche Bahn CEO Hartmut Mehdorn

The CDU/CSU hopes to later double the stake sold off to 49.9 percent, but still intends to retain the 34,000-kilometre track network in state hands.

DB, which has 237,000 employees, has reached a pre-privatization accord with unions ruling out layoffs for the next 15 years.

Berlin says two thirds of the money raised in the flotation will be channeled back into modernizing the tracks, shabby stations and building sound-barriers to cut acoustic pollution next to tracks.

Details are to be set out in a future contract with DB.

Part of the remaining one third will end up in the general federal budget or be used to increase DB's general funds.

Posted on 11:44 PM | Permalink

Railway Gazette International: 30 Apr 2008
Andrew Grantham

RUSSIA -- The country's second biggest freight operator has announced an IPO and listing on the London Stock Exchange.

Globaltrans Chief Executive Sergey Maltsev told Andrew Grantham how he views the opportunities presented by market liberalisation.

'Whoever gets there first and has access to fin­ancing will be in the best position to b­e­come the market leader', says Globaltrans Chief Executive Sergey Maltsev, explaining why Russia's second-largest rail freight operator is seeking international investment to fund growth. He aims to position Globaltrans as 'the leader of the currently fragmented Russian rail market'.Sergey Maltsev, CEO of Globaltrans

Operating through subsidiaries New Forwarding Co and Sevtechnotrans, Globaltrans is second only to the First Freight Co subsidiary of state-owned Russian Railways. It provides rail transport, logistics and ancillary services for around 250 blue chip customers, focusing on high-margin traffic including ferrous metals, scrap and oil products. Operating profit for the 2007 calendar year was US$127·6m, up from US$76·8m in 2006. Assets at December 31 2007 totalled US$778m.

Announced on April 4, the London initial public offering of 29% of the outstanding shares is due to take place by the end of June. Proceeds of US$390m to US$509m will be used to fund a capital investment programme which includes the acquisition of additional rolling stock, and up to US$50m will be used to repay debt and for corporate purposes. Deutsche Bank is global co-ordinator for the offering, and joint book-runner with Morgan Stanley.

Relations with RZD

Maltsev is very positive about his 'fruitful and constructive' relationship with the state railway, which is obliged to provide access to the network for all certified operators. 'I don't see anything negative in the attitudes at present', he said. 'RZD is interested in getting me on the track, because it generates money for them.' Around 35% of the current wagon fleet is privately owned, and about 2 000 private operators are firmly integrated into the structure of the Russian rail industry. 'If you stop 35% of the blood, what would happen to the person?'

Globaltrans owns 18 locos and leases a 19th. These are used to operate services over distances of 250 to 500 km which 'don't interfere with RZD', while trains over longer distances are hauled by RZD.Russian freight train

The locos are also being used to train Globaltrans' own crews, as the company plans to have staff already in place for rapid expansion when the traction market is liberalised in 2010. Further loco acquisitions are planned; 'the situation is ripe for modernisation, and naturally we will do our best to be involved', says Maltsev

The sheer scale of Russian operations poses a problem for would-be locomotive operators. Locos can end up huge distances from home, presenting problems for smaller players who lack depots in appropriate locations. Because of this, loco ownership requires 'stable routes and stable cargo flows', explains Head of Investor Relations Priit Pedaja.

The company is currently piloting the use of electronic documentation which will keep track of wagons, and help to minimise empty return workings. 'This was our idea initially', explains Maltsev. At first RZD was 'not very receptive', but when First Freight Co was established as a stand-alone business able to compete effectively with private operators, it realised it would need a large network of agents if it was to function in a traditional way. Rather than do this, FFC is working with Globaltrans on the development of the electronic system.

Globaltrans has also expressed interest in acquiring 21 wagon maintenance depots which are to be privatised, and it envisages long-term contracts with RZD for agreed volumes of work.

Expanding market

Globaltrans now has around 50% of the ferrous metals business in Russia, and is prioritising the sector as it currently generates the highest margins. This will change as demand alters, and the company's market share and main traffic will be a function of customer demand. When China changed from being an importer to an exporter of metals, Globaltrans was quick to reposition its services to suit the revised flows.

'In Russia we are living through a construction boom', says Chief Financial Officer Alexander Shenets, 'and we cannot miss that market.' The government has announced its intention to cease subsiding electricity production, a change which Maltsev expects to make the coal market more competitive and potentially lucrative as generators seek to control costs.

Maltsev is particularly keen to reduce empty working, and Globatrans is thinking about introducing intermodal services between the Far East and the Urals in an effort to avoid empty runs.

Globaltrans also operates in Ukraine, and carries 500 000 tonnes of iron ore a month in Kazakhstan. 'We will look anywhere with 1 520 mm gauge', says Maltsev, adding that 'Uzbekistan could be interesting.' However, it is important that appropriate bilateral agreements are in place when working in other countries, otherwise 'we cannot say whether our rolling stock will come back.'

Much of the rolling stock in Russia is nearing the end of its useful life, and replacement will require massive investment which the government hopes will come from private sources. 'The government is pushing private businesses to buy rolling stock', says Maltsev. 'I believe RZD should focus on infrastructure, which will need a lot of resources.' He cautions that the regulatory framework needs to be updated. 'There are still lots of issues around financing to be settled,' but he is confident this will be achieved by 2010.

Around 82% of Globaltrans' fleet of 21 000 wagons are owned or leased through finance leases, with the remainder under operating leases. Globaltrans will use the money to be raised in London to fund the acquisition of at least 5 000 more wagons, including dedicated container vehicles and flat wagons which are in great demand.

How far might the fleet grow? 'It depends on the shareholders and the macroeconomic situation,' says Maltev, 'but in my dreams at night I see 50 000 or 60 000 wagons!'

Vast distances and extreme weather mean that rail is the main mode of freight transport in Russia, with a 93% market share of non-pipeline traffic. 'The roads are not good', said Priit Pedaja of Globaltrans, 'and even as they improve, how many trucks would it take to replace a train over 4 000 km?' Globaltrans provides transport, logistics and ancillary services for 250 blue chip customers, focusing on high-margin traffic including ferrous metals, scrap and oil products.

Posted on 2:16 PM | Permalink

The Scotsman: 29 April 2008
By Anita Chang in Jinan and Guo Shipeng

A HIGH-SPEED passenger train jumped the rails and slammed into another train in eastern China yesterday, killing at least 70 people and injuring more than 400 in China's worst train accident in a decade.

The death toll could rise, with 70 in critical condition after the pre-dawn crash in a rural part of Shandong province, the official Xinhua news agency said.

It said a total of 420 people had been hurt. No foreigners were among the dead. Injured survivors included the Chinese national sailing coach, four French nationals and a three-year-old boy.

Xinhua said that one of the trains might have been travelling much faster than the speed limit and authorities blamed human error.

"Although investigations are continuing, some investigators said that (the train] was travelling at 82mph before the accident, far in excess of the speed limit of 50mph," it added.

Xinhua said that two high-ranking railway officials in Shandong had been sacked immediately.

The crash just before the May Day long weekend holiday happened when a train travelling from Beijing to Qingdao – site of the sailing competition during the Olympics in August – derailed and hit a second passenger train. Nine of the first train's carriages were knocked into a ditch, Wang Yongping, a spokesman for the railway ministry said.

The second train, on its way from Yantai in Shandong to Xuzhou in eastern Jiangsu province was derailed, although it stayed upright.

One passenger, a 39-year-old woman described escaping the wreckage with her 13-year-old daughter through a crack in the floor of the carriage.

"We were still sleeping when the accident occurred. I suddenly woke up when I felt the train stopped with a jolt. It started off again, but soon toppled"

"Most passengers were still asleep, but some were standing in the aisle waiting to get off at the Zibo railway station," another passenger told the news agency.

"I suddenly felt the train, like a roller-coaster, topple ... to one side and all the way to the other side. When it finally went off the tracks, many people fell on me," she said.

The woman, who was on the train from Bejing, was injured when the train toppled into farmland beside the track.

She said villagers used farm tools to smash train windows to pull out trapped passengers.

"I saw a girl who was trying to help her boyfriend out of the train, but he was dead," she added.

A coach of China's sailing team, Hu Weidong, was seriously injured, Dr Zhang Jun said. "There were grave injuries to his neck and spine, which we fear could cause paralysis," Dr Zhang told Xinhua.

Dr Zhang said a three-year-old boy, Liu Jinhang, was probably the youngest injured, but was in stable condition after being treated for a broken arm.

It was the second major railway accident in Shandong this year. In January, 18 people died when a train slammed into a group of about 100 workers carrying out track maintenance near the city of Anqiu.

Liu Zhijun, the railway minister had arrived at the site and president Hu Jintao had dispatched vice premier Zhang Dejiang to the scene, Xinhua said.

"The city government of Zibo has sent a 1,500-member strong team to help and console the victims' families," Xinhua said, adding that railways spokesman Wang Yongping had expressed deep condolences for victims.

BILLIONS IN INVESTMENT

CHINA has invested about £50 billion in its railways in the past few years and is expanding the system to accommodate what is the world's densest passenger and freight network.

As it stands, China's railways can barely keep pace with the country's breakneck economic growth, or with the hundreds of millions of workers who are flocking from the countryside to booming cities.

State television said the railway line, built in 1897, was due to be retired for all but goods trains in favour of a high-speed link to be ready in time to carry passengers from Beijing to Qingdao for the Olympic sailing events.

The local Qilu Evening News said the railway had begun a new timetable yesterday.

Posted on 7:51 AM | Permalink

RMT: April 27 2008

TRADE UNIONS are by far the best vehicle to win better safety at work, specialist transport union RMT says on the eve of Monday’s Workers’ Memorial Day

Worldwide, hundreds of thousands die in workplace "accidents". Millions die of occupational diseases. Every year. Union organisation is the only remedy. Prevention is the only cure.

As workers around Britain and the world prepare to gather at events to 'remember the dead and fight for the living', RMT says that Britain's new corporate manslaughter law still lets killer bosses off the hook - and that unions remain workers' best friend.

"After the Southall, Ladbroke Grove, Hatfield and Potters Bar rail crashes that killed 49, 20 years after the Piper Alpha rig disaster saw 167 workers die, five years after four of our members were killed by a runaway trolley at Tebay, profit is still being put ahead of safety," RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today.

"Since Tebay there have been at least another 13 runaways of privately operated rail vehicles, all of which could have claimed more lives, and the industry is dragging its heels on the secondary protection we need to stop them.

"After the Greyrigg crash last year the industry asserted that it was down to a local problem, yet an investigation into Network Rail's inspection regime nationwide revealed that our members have been carrying "inadequate" management systems.

"The trade union movement has fought for years for a corporate manslaughter law that would finally make individual bosses shoulder responsibility for the needless deaths their negligence causes.

"After a decade of supposedly Labour government the law we have finally will not deliver justice because it won't put killer bosses in the dock, and slapping fines on corporations is simply not enough.

"We will continue to fight for an end to the privatisation that puts profit ahead of safety and for better legal protection for all, but the fact remains that organised workers enjoy safer workplaces than those who are not in trade unions.

"The message has to be: if you want to be safer at work, join the union and fight alongside your workmates to make your boss take safety seriously," Bob Crow said.

ends

For details of all Workers Memorial Day events, visit the Hazards website at http://www.hazards.org/wmd/index.htm

Posted on 9:45 PM | Permalink

RMT: April 27 2008

BRITAIN’S BIGGEST rail union has welcomed the opening of direct rail services between Wrexham and London, scheduled to start tomorrow (Monday) morning.

RMT also paid tribute to the "tireless efforts" of Wrexham RMT branch secretary Dave Bithell, whose campaigning over many years has helped bring about Wrexham's rail renaissance.

The move follows the investment of more than £900,000 by the Welsh Assembly government in a new rail depot in the town, for which Wrexham RMT has campaigned for many years, and which general secretary Bob Crow urged AMs to back.

"The start of direct rail services is great news for Wrexham, for Wales and for the rail industry," Bob Crow said today.

"As well as the welcome creation of 50 new jobs it will also ease congestion at busy interchanges in Birmingham and London, and it is good for the environment because it will encourage people onto trains and out of cars.

"Our members at Wrexham RMT, and particularly branch secretary Dave Bithell, have campaigned for this for years, and I know they will be delighted," Bob Crow said.

Posted on 9:44 PM | Permalink

Railnews: 28th April 2008

A NEWLY-opened locomotive maintenance and repair depot in Cambridgeshire witnessed a loco naming which paid tribute to the work of a training body set up to equip people with operating skills.

IRO’s Chris Daughton takes delivery of a replica nameplate from John Smith (left) and Iain Coucher (right).

The ceremony to name a new Class 66 locomotive at March, Cambs, celebrated the arrival of five of the locos to First GBRf.

It also marked the company’s appreciation of the work of the IRO – the Institution of Railway Operators.

The locomotive naming on Friday 18 April coincided with the formal opening of First GBRf’s March depot, conducted by Iain Coucher, chief executive of Network Rail.

First GBRf, working in partnership with Network Rail, has brought a considerable amount of rail employment back to the March area following many years of decline.

Now the depot, which First GBRf started operating in conjunction with Electro-Motive Services International Ltd (EMSI) in 2007, has created further new jobs in the town.

Unveiling the nameplate on locomotive 66728, Iain Coucher said: “It’s a great privilege to name this train in honour of the great work of the IRO. The Institution shows our industry at its best – working together in the interests of furthering skills and best practice for the railway.”

John Smith, managing director at First GBRf, said: “The IRO is doing much valuable work to increase the level of professionalism across the rail industry. At First GBRf we have enjoyed record growth within the coal market and the five new Class 66s locomotives will be used to support the commencement of new contracts with Drax Power, Alcan and British Energy.”

Chris Daughton, IRO chief executive, added: “First GBRf remains committed to encouraging and furthering staff development and we are pleased to be fostering an ongoing relationship with them.”

Locomotive 66728 forms part of First GBRf’s multi-million pound order of five new Class 66s, leased from Porter-brook, to support the company’s rapidly expanding stake in the UK coal market.

Posted on 8:55 PM | Permalink

Kent News: April 26 2008

Eurostar has launched an investigation into a journey that left passengers waiting 11 hours to get from London to Paris.

More than 600 passengers found their journey disrupted by delays caused by “technical problems” on Friday evening and Saturday morning.


They left St Pancras at 9.05pm for what should have been a two-hour journey, but were forced to swap trains in Lille.


They spent an hour and a half in Lille before the journey continued, but the train then broke down to the north of Paris.


It was three hours before they were able to board a third train and they finally got to their destination shortly after 9am local time.


The company has launched an internal investigation into the events.


A Eurostar spokesman said: “We apologise profusely to our travellers for the unacceptable delay, inconvenience and frustration that they have suffered.


“We are offering everyone on board a full cash refund on both legs of their return tickets and in addition a free return ticket for future use.”

See also:

The EUROSTAR incident was totally predictable!

SUD-Rail: April 24, 2008

SUD-Rail Federation of Railworkers Unions
17 boulevard de la liberation - 93200 - Saint Denis
Tel 01 42 43 35 75 - Fax 01 42 43 36 67
federation-sudrail@wanadoo.fr
www.sudrail.org

The EUROSTAR incident was predicted in the [SNCF] ‘Roads and Bridges’ report in November 2003 (into the near miss at Villeneuve Marshalling Yard on September 20, 2003). It therefore represents a real setback for the new SNCF President. The SUD-Rail union is demanding Mr. PEPY takes full responsibility for this incident, which is simply the next logical step in a long string of well-known incidents, which each year cause dozens of trains to fail on the mainline.

SUD-Rail believes this incident is the result of a political choice. Since 2003 SNCF bosses have been unable to implement operational practices called for by rail users as a result of recommendations and conclusions from ‘Roads and Bridges’. SNCF were required to modernise rail safety procedures so that users will not left abandoned for hours on the main line.

The disruption recorded during the EUROSTAR incident on the night of 18-19 April 2008 is the result of reductions in training, staffing and resources on the ground and reflects no more no less the options deliberately chosen by the management.

The problem of troubleshooting has direct consequences for transfers and evacuation of passengers, whatever type of rail traffic is concerned (VFE [high-speed trains], Transilien [Paris regional trains] and TER [provincial trains]).

SUD-Rail representatives at various forums within the company for a number of years now have been demanding modernisation of:
-- Mainline safety procedures
-- Equipment
-- Appropriate stress training for staff at greatest risk.

A train driver may have to manage up to 2,400 passengers on his/her own, for example in the Greater Paris region. The immediate re-training of EUROSTAR Drivers already announced reflects the urgency of the matter, but this absolutely must be extended to all train drivers on the national network.

In 2006 SUD-Rail won an expert enquiry on troubleshooting procedures for train drivers on the mainline. This expert enquiry, carried out by SNCF, demonstrated serious inconsistencies, including seeking unprecedented reductions in the level of training of train crews and equipment budgets.

Apart from the creation of "driving support centres", which is proving to be a real step backwards, recommendations have not been followed up from near-accidents at Villeneuve Marshalling Yard and Cormeilles in Parisis.

SUD-Rail says: “Neither the act of establishing these centres nor the recommendations of ‘Roads and Bridges’ prevented either the events at EUROSTAR, nor the increasing number of incidents across the network (for SNCF and other private operators).”

“SNCF Drivers are legally responsible for the professional execution of their duties and require the company to deliver effective training (both initial and development) and to make appropriate technical means available for the complex situations they encounter out on the mainline.”

“Accordingly, SUD-Rail is demanding a proper investigation by the BEA-TT (Land Transport Accident Investigation Bureau) and that responsibilities should be established at the highest level to prevent such scenarios from happening again on the network.”

“Measures must be taken to improve the reliability of rail transport for a high quality public transport service.”

St Denis, April 24, 2008, 17.00 hrs

Posted on 10:17 PM | Permalink

The Economic Times: 25 Apr, 2008

NEW DELHI: The dramatic turn-around of the Indian Railways may have earned laurels for Rail Minister Lalu Prasad but his hankering for Public Private Partnership (PPP) in the department has few takers.

The latest not to find in favour of PPP is a British rail team currently here to attend an India-UK Seminar on Railways.

The 12-member team, led by British railway minister Tom Harris and comprising representatives of British rail companies, on Friday said PPP in Indian Railways is not advisable. These senior members of the Railway Industry Association (RIA) of Britain said they would like to work with the Indian Railways "but definitely not based on PPP".

"PPP is based on a set of performance contracts that include measures of the time and cost of work done, but more importantly of the results or outcomes of that work," Jonathan Beckitt of the CMS Camerson McKenna, a leading British Railway infrastructure provider told delegates at the seminar on Friday.

The British rail companies have shown interest in providing solutions in areas like passenger information and passenger interface besides sharing advanced methods of measuring track and train performance.

The British delegation is here ahead of the Indian Railways inviting bids for joint ventures with private companies for locomotives, signalling systems and coaches for the dedicated freight corridor project soon. British Companies are keen to partner Indian companies for possible joint ventures.

According to Beckitt, British companies are keen to partner Indian Railways in areas like passenger information, passenger interface, track and train performance and signalling and track equipment. They are also looking at forging tie-ups with Indian companies to participate in the dedicated freight corridor project.

"But not in the form of PPP," said Beckitt.

PPP found focus in the Railways Minister's budget speech with him declaring that neither favours blind privatisation of the Railways nor is PPP a compulsion.

The minister suggested that the Indian Railways are seeking partnership with the private sector on terms that are in the interest of the Railways and their customers.

See also:

It’s India calling for British railway firms

Economy Bureau: April 26, 2008

New Delhi, Apr 25 Indian Railways, which hopes to upgrade infrastructure and expand capacities in a big way, may just find a new technology partner in the UK.

A 12-member delegation from the British railways industry led by the minister for railways, Tom Harris, is now in India. The team has evinced interest in working with Indian Railways.

“The British railways industry is looking forward to forging partnerships with the Indian railways sector and has much to offer to by way of technology and expertise in this area,” Harris said on Friday at a seminar on Railways: Towards Building Greater Partnership, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the UK Trade and Investment.

British railway Companies are especially keen on working in projects, such as dedicated freight corridor, station modernisation, signalling, rolling stock and passenger services. “The British railways industry offers a great deal of expertise in various areas of interest to Indian Railways like engineering and technology, reducing carbon emissions, passenger comfort and safety,” the British minister added.

Apart from members of the UK industry body, Railway Industry Association, rolling stock and rail equipment manufacturers, such as Unipart Rail, Bombardier Transportation Ltd, Balfour Beatty Rail Projects and Invensys Rail Systems, are part of the delegation.

The delegation is also holding a number of meetings with the railway ministry to discuss these issues further.

Indian railways, which has a massive Plan size of Rs 2,51,000 crore for the Eleventh Plan period, is looking at major project, such as modernisation of its track and signalling systems, rolling stock modernisation, construction of the dedicated freight corridors and station upgrade, much of which will be done through the public private partnership route.

See also:

UK offers expertise in expansion of Indian Railways

The Hindu: April 25, 2008

New Delhi (PTI): Impressed by the turnaround of Indian Railways, Britain on Friday evinced interest on expansion of Asia's largest rail network and offered expertise for its signalling system and track electrification.

It said it wanted to join hands in various ongoing projects given the similarities of challengies and "capacity constraints" faced by both rail networks.

"Today, following the financial turnaround of India's railways in recent years and the exceptional opportunities for growth, I hope that we can build on that collaboration so that the UK can continue to contribute to the development of one of your most vital national assets; the rail network," British Railways Minister Tom Harris told a seminar organised by the Indian Railways here.

He said he was "very impressed by the turnaround from massive deficiency to massive profit" and at the same time not increasing fares.

Offering British expertise in signalling system and track electrification, he said there were opportunities for Britain to make contribution in expansion and upgradation of the network.

"We can join hands in the ongoing projects here," Harris said.

Britain is currently extending expertise to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation in rolling stocks and designing stations.

Drawing a parallel with British Railways, he said "a lot of challenges are similar to both of us and we both are facing capacity constraints".

See also:

Indian Railways inspires UK minister

NewsByte: 25 April, 2008
By AMIT AGNIHOTRI

New Delhi, April 25: It’s a kind of role reversal. The Indian Railways, which developed as a legacy of the British Raj, is now inspiring awe from the UK railways minister himself.

"The most remarkable thing about the Indian railways is the financial turnaround it has achieved over the past few years. Given the size of the IR operations, this is amazing," UK railways minister Tom Harris told this newspaper.

Indian railways minister Lalu Prasad Yadav said while presenting the Rail Budget 2008-09, that the railways achieved a cash surplus of around Rs 25,000 crores by end of financial year 2007-08.

Keen to get a share in the pie of the growing Indian Railways, which has many large-scale projects planned, the UK railways minister is pushing the envelope for the private British rail companies who want to do business here. "We are facing the same challenges as the Indian Railways in enhancing carrying capacity, improving infrastructure, develop strategic freight network, making the railway stations more passenger friendly and accessible for disadvantaged. Hence a lot of scope for working together," said Mr Harris, who met the minister of state for Indian Railways R. Velu.

According to Jeremy Candfield, director general, railways industry association, UK, the British rail companies have expertise in project management, rolling stock engineering design, signalling and electrification, which can be of interest for the Indian railways.

"Just as the Indian railways has recognised that substantial investment in the rail network is vital, our railways must do so to manage the significant growth of passenger and freight volumes now being experienced," said Mr Harris.

While Indian railways minister highlighted many growth areas like new trains, coach and wagon factories, dedicated freight corridor, and enhancing passenger amenities in the Rail Budget 2008-09 citing future demands he stated that the Indian Railways is eyeing investments worth Pounds Sterling 28.5 billion through sizeable public private partnerships over the next five years.

The UK railways minister said the number of passenger train kilometres in UK has risen by 20 per cent.

Posted on 2:47 PM | Permalink

Transport Briefing: 22/04/08

Plans to develop an affordable model for running Britain's community rail lines have been dealt a blow after the company responsible for running passenger trains on the Dartmoor Railway chose to shut down services and put the business up for sale.

Since 2004 the line has been operated by Ealing Community Transport, a not-for-profit company which is involved in a range of transport initiatives across the country, and which has built up the Dartmoor and Weardale Railway services with support from local communities and councils. However, the organisation has now withdrawn its support for what was Britain's first independent community railway.

In a statement ECT said: "We believe that the government's community rail strategy will provide increased opportunities for small scale community focused rail operations. However, it has proved increasingly difficult for ECT to provide the necessary management focus and investment. Accordingly, following a thorough review of our rail business, ECT has decided to focus on its core activities of providing high quality, environmental and community transport services. ECT is therefore seeking new ownership and investment for its rail business. We believe that they have a great future and we already have a number of parties interested in taking on the challenge and opportunity."

Although the Dartmoor Railway is not part of the National Rail network and provides a heritage service to its three stations, it has provided an insight into alternative funding and operational approaches to running lines serving local communities. The Dartmoor line has its own team of engineers and proposals to restore through services to Plymouth via Tavistock have suggested that the Dartmoor Railway, rather than Network Rail, should be responsible for infrastructure north of St Budeaux in order to keep costs down. Transport Scotland is reportedly considering a similar arrangement to minimise costs for the Waverley line reopening project in the Scottish Borders.

As a result of the decision by ECT to cease operations, the buffets at Meldon and Okehampton together with the shop at Okehampton are now closed and staff have been made redundant. According to the Friends of Dartmoor Railway two prospective purchasers have been going through a due diligence process. Train services on the Weardale Railway, which is part owned by a trust and local authorities as well as ECT, are continuing.

Earlier this month E&HCT- a joint venture between ECT and another social enterprise, HCT - won a four-year contract from the Olympic Delivery Authority to provide drivers, buses, vehicle maintenance, route planning and timetabling to support the increasing number of workers employed on the 2012 Games sites in east London.

Posted on 7:17 AM | Permalink

Business News: Apr 25, 2008

Berlin - Germany's political leaders are to try to hammer out an agreement Monday on a controversial plan to sell shares in the nation's railway company, Deutsche Bahn AG, with the sale shaping up to be one of Europe's biggest stock market listings this year.

Despite a plunge in the number of companies making their share market debut as a result of the global financial crisis, Deutsche Bahn chief Hartmut Medhorn is hopeful that he can launch the partial sell off of Europe's largest rail company later this year.

'We have to grab the chance,' said Medhorn releasing Deutsche Bahn's results last month with analysts expecting the privatization to generate about six billion euros (9.5 billion dollars).

The German daily Financial Times Deutschland reported last week that Berlin-based Deutsche Bahn has already begun drawing up a prospectus for the company's possible initial public offering as well as creating facilities for potential investors to examine its books.

However, financial analysts are rather sceptical about the sale especially as only a relatively small parcel of shares are likely to go up for sale.

Deutsche Bahn shares are 'still not attractive' for investors Franz-Josef Leven from the German Share Institute (DAI) told German radio Deutschlandfunk.

The push to privatize Deutsche Bahn cleared a major hurdle this week when the Social Democrats (SPD) formally signed off on a compromise selloff deal, paving the way to an agreement on partially privatizing what is one of the world's largest transport companies.

Under the plan drawn up by the SPD, the junior members of Merkel's grand coalition, private investors will be able to buy up to 24.9 per cent of Deutsche Bahn's passenger and logistics operations.

But while this fell short of the 49.9 per cent that Merkel and leaders of her conservative bloc had been arguing for, senior members of her party have indicated that 24.9 per cent could end up being the first tranche of shares sold off in Deutsche Bahn.

However, after coming under fire from business and economists about her government's failure to press on with economic reform, Merkel needs the rail sell off to demonstrate her commitment to a makeover of Europe's biggest economy.

In reaching a deal, the SPD has also backed off a proposal that the Deutsche Bahn stock should be sold as part of a people's share action, which could open the door for the bulk of the IPO finding its way into the hands of big institutions.

'Something is better than nothing,' said Werner Schnappauf, the chief of the German Federation of Industry (BDI) after the SPD leadership moved to override deep opposition within its influential leftwing faction to privatizing Deutsche Bahn and head off calls for a special party conference to vote on the issue.

But Germany's private investors' association (DSW) has sharply criticized the privatization plan saying that 24.9 per cent of the company was too small to be put up for sale.

'Who spends the money will also want to have a say in the company,' DSW chief Carsten Heise told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Under the SPD privatization plan, the government would retain 75.1 per cent of Deutsche Bahn's passenger and freight operations, which includes about 140,000 employees.

What is more, Berlin is to retain a 100-per-cent control of Deutsche Bahn's railway stations as well as its 34,000 kilometres of track network and energy supplier operations.

With the sale of shares in Germany's giant telecoms group Deutsche Telekom AG having taken stockholders on a rollercoaster ride since they were listed on the stock market more than a decade ago, Germans have reacted lukewarmly to the planned sell Deutsche Bahn sell off.

A poll published last week by German state television ZDF found that 58 per cent of people were opposed to the sell off the Bahn's passenger and freight operations.

Almost half said they thought rail passengers would be disadvantaged by privatization with Deutsche Bahn.

The ambitious partial selling off of Deutsche Bahn would be the culmination of a 14-year battle to turn around the financial fortunes of the once loss-making rail operator.

But the rail privatization push has followed a rocky path with former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's government having failed in its plan announced in 2004 to sell off shares in the rail company between 2006 and 2008.

The build-up to this month's scheduled decision on the sale of shares in Deutsche Bahn came after the group announced that profit that last year rose 2.1 per cent to 1.72 billion euros (2.72 billion dollars).

Deutsche Bahn forecast a rise in sales of about 5 per cent in 2008 after saying 2007 sales jumped by 4.2 per cent to 31.3 billion euros.

Posted on 7:14 AM | Permalink

Reuters: Apr 24, 2008

FRANKFURT - German state-owned railway Deutsche Bahn is considering buying travel and shipping group TUI AG to merge the Hapag-Lloyd container shipping unit with its logistics unit, the Financial Times Deutschland reported on Thursday.

The newspaper said the acquisition would help keep Hapag-Lloyd -- which TUI has said it will sell or merge this year amid shareholder pressure to do so -- in German hands.

The FTD, without citing any sources, said that until now only top level management at both companies was familiar with the plans.

A Deutsche Bahn spokesman said: "This is nonsense."

A TUI spokesman declined to comment.

TUI shares fell 0.6 percent by 0716 GMT, lagging a 0.2 percent dip in Germany's blue-chip index .GDAXI.

The newspaper reported that a key role in the takeover scenario is being played by Juergen Krumnow, who is TUI's supervisory board chairman and also sits on the supervisory board of Deutsche Bahn.

Deutsche Bahn buying TUI would prevent a split up of the shipping and tourism company, the newspaper said, adding that TUI's travel business TUI Travel would mesh well with Deutsche Bahn's portfolio.

Earlier this month, Deutsche Bahn, one of the world's biggest transport groups, saw its path to partial privatisation cleared when the co-governing Social Democrats (SPD) resolved a tortuous debate on the terms.

SPD Chairman Kurt Beck said party leaders had agreed to a slimmed-down privatisation of Deutsche Bahn's rolling stock and logistics, cutting the upper limit of the flotation to 24.9 percent from a previous 49.9 percent.

Posted on 7:03 AM | Permalink

RMT: April 23 2008

MEMBERSHIP OF National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers passed the 80,000 mark today as the transfer of engagements of the Offshore Industry Liaison Committee into RMT was officially approved by the Certification Officer.

OILC's 2,500-plus members voted to become RMT's offshore branch by a four-to-one margin in a postal ballot held in February, after the move was recommended by its annual conference in Aberdeen last October.

The merger, which will be launched formally on May Day, had already been endorsed by a special general meeting of RMT, held in Doncaster last March, and was backed by the entire OILC executive.

RMT membership has already grown by nearly 40 per cent since 2002, when it stood at 57,000, and the addition of more than 2,500 more offshore members - the union already organises offshore divers and catering staff - propels it past the 80,000 mark for the first time since 1993.

"Together we will be stronger, and that means more industrial clout for the benefit of all our members," said RMT general secretary Bob Crow today.

"This is a golden opportunity to step up organising in an industry in which billions are made yet there is too little regard to health and safety and employers are quick to victimise workers who dare to organise for better conditions and pay," Bob Crow said.

"Joining forces with a union built on grass-roots involvement and which fights for workers' rights can do nothing but good in a sector that is notoriously difficult to organise," said outgoing OILC general secretary Jake Molloy, who becomes lead officer for the new RMT offshore branch.

"Together we will have the resources and the experience to organise for better safety and to win better pay and conditions and job security for offshore workers."

ends

Notes to editors: In February's OILC ballot 807 members (79.6 per cent) voted for the transfer of engagements, and 207 (20.4 per cent) against.

OILC organises offshore engineering, drilling, construction and support workers, and was set up following the 1988 Piper Alpha disaster, which claimed 167 lives.

RMT, Britain's fastest growing union, already organises divers and catering workers in the offshore industry, as well as across the rail, road transport and maritime sectors, and recently won its more than 900 North Sea divers and support staff a 45 per cent pay rise after a ten-day, all-out strike.

Posted on 2:36 PM | Permalink

The Times: April 24, 2008
Ben Webster, Transport Correspondent

Passengers will lose out from a decision by train companies to stop giving refunds for tickets bought in advance and to double the fee for changes to journey times.

The move is part of what the companies are calling a simplification of rail fares into three main types, which they claim will be easier to understand. More than a million leaflets will be distributed at stations from today explaining the changes but they fail to mention that many passengers will be worse off under the new national refunds policy.

First Great Western, Virgin, East Midlands Trains and TransPennine Express are among the companies that currently offer refunds on some advance tickets but will cease to do so. The no-refund policy comes into force today for tickets bought for travel from May 18.

The leaflets also fail to mention that the fee for changing journey times for return tickets bought in advance is doubling on many routes from £10 to £20, plus any difference in the price of the new journey. Train companies will make millions of pounds in extra profits because many people will throw away their tickets rather than try to change them.

The Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) defended the new policy by saying that it was simply adopting a practice used by airlines but the passenger wathcdog Passenger Focus said that it was unfair to refuse refunds to passengers who were forced to book up to three months in advance to get affordable tickets. Anthony Smith, the watchdog’s chief executive, said that people often had very good reasons, such as bereavements, for changing travel plans.

“It is a real pity that the train companies have harmonised by going in the direction of harsher policies rather than enshrining good practice,” he said. “There should be some flexibility because of the degree to which people have to book in advance to get a cheap ticket. For a lot of tickets, it won’t be worth paying the fee to make the change. If a passenger has a good case, we are urging companies to be fair and give people a refund minus a reasonable administration fee.”

Barry Doe, a fares analyst, said that companies should give refunds when passengers produced a medical certificate giving the reason for not travelling. Some passengers will benefit from a new agreement by all companies to give railcard discounts on all standard class advance tickets. In another benefit, all advance ticket holders will also be allowed to change their tickets right up until the time of travel. Some companies, including Virgin, currently require changes to be made by 6pm the day before travel.

The new ticket types will be advance, off-peak and anytime. Advance tickets will replace the various other names for such tickets, including leisure advance, business advance, value advance and apex. From September 7, tickets bought on the day of travel will be either anytime or off-peak. Anytime fares, which can be used on any train, will replace open singles and returns. Off-peak tickets can be bought at any time but they carry restrictions on the time or day of travel.

The saver ticket, which is price-capped by the Government, will be reclassified as off-peak. This may make it easier for ministers to abolish the saver because they would be able to claim that, while prices were no longer protected, some level off-peak discount would still be offered. On some routes, where there are two off-peak fares, the cheaper ones will be called super off-peak. Existing names for these tickets, such as supersaver and pricebuster, will be abolished.

David Mapp, ATOC’s commercial director, said that companies would have different policies when peak restrictions applied. “This is about renaming and rebranding, not about changing travel restrictions or price levels. We have considered common time restrictions but the trouble is that the pattern of demand and the type of train service varies on different routes.”

Posted on 1:20 PM | Permalink

Press Association: 23-04-08

Transport group Arriva has spooked investors after revealing it had seen "substantial" hikes in fuel prices since the beginning of the year.

The Sunderland-based group, which runs more than 6,500 buses in the UK, has a hedging policy protecting it from a "material" hit this year - but was silent over the potential impact on 2009's figures.

Its shares fell almost 5% as travel and transport stocks such as rival FirstGroup and budget airline easyJet were hit by oil prices surging towards 120 US dollars a barrel.

This came despite Arriva's comments on a "positive" outlook for 2008, and a "robust" balance sheet offering prospects of more investor returns following last year's dividend hike.

Arriva's policy is to hedge fuel costs up to 15 months in advance, leaving it exposed to the higher prices in the second half of next year. It has around 90% of its fuel consumption protected in 2008 at rates similar to last year, although only 50% is covered in 2009.

Last month the group posted a 7% increase in annual operating profits to £128 million, although the figure was impacted by fuel prices and the cost of bidding for three rail franchises.

In the latest update Arriva said revenues had grown more than 60% in the first three months of 2008 after further expansion of its European business and the recently-started CrossCountry rail franchise.

CrossCountry is the UK's most extensive franchise - stretching from Aberdeen to Penzance - and increased passenger revenues by 8.3% in the first three months of the year.

In January the firm hit passengers with a 4.8% increase in peak fares, with off-peak tickets rising by an average 7% - well above the rail industry average of 5.4%.

The group, which has around 40,000 employees in 10 countries, has also boosted revenues with acquisitions such as Heathrow-based bus and coach firm Tellings Golden Miller in January.

Posted on 3:28 PM | Permalink

RMT Circular No: IR/105/08 April 18, 2008

Dear colleague,
Further to previous circulars on the above matter, a meeting has been held between your union and management to discuss further the harmonisation process and to inform the company of the rejection of their proposals by our members.

It was also made clear to management that this union’s aspirations on harmonisation remains as it has been from the strategy which was adopted by the Special Engineering Grades Conference in 2006 and then endorsed by the General Grades Committee. A report of the discussions held between your union and management was given to the GGC this week and the following decision has been taken:

“That we note the resolution from our Bristol Rail Branch and instruct the G.S. to write to the branch thanking them for their views, which will considered further at the appropriate time.

Further, we note the report from the AGS. The G.S. is instructed to inform the company that we are now in dispute on this issue and to ballot all our members employed by Network Rail in the grades of Infrastructure Maintainers, Supervisory Staff, Technical Grades and Administrative staff for strike action and/or action short of strike action.

Finally, we agree to meet with the Chairs and Secretaries of our Area Councils on Wednesday 23rd April to brief them on this matter. Branches and Regional Councils to be informed.”

I will of course keep you fully informed about the timetable for the ballot and all other developments in this matter.

Yours sincerely,

Bob Crow
General Secretary

Posted on 8:37 AM | Permalink

RMT: April 21 2008

THE AWFUL reality of suicides under Tube trains is deeply traumatising to train drivers and all staff who have to deal with the consequences, London Underground’s biggest union says today.

On the day that the comedy film Three and Out is premiered, RMT emphasised that every death under a train was the cause of massive anguish to all those involved - drivers, platform staff and the cleaners who have to clean blood and human tissue from trains.

"Drivers unlucky enough to experience the awful reality of a suicide or accidental death under their train are quite rightly offered counselling and help to get them back to work, but there are some who never recover," RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today.

"The credibility of this film rests on a Tube driver believing there is a three-and-out policy with massive compensation, which our members know is complete nonsense, so the whole thing is really a bit thin.

"The producers say they have handled difficult issues sensitively, but that is certainly not the case with the film's posters, which are plastered all over the Tube and which suggest that there is such a policy," Bob Crow said.

Posted on 8:25 AM | Permalink

Thomson Financial News: 04.21.08

FRANKFURT - The Social Democrats Party's board and counsel on Monday approved a political compromise hammered out by party leader Kurt Beck on the privatisation of rail operator Deutsche Bahn AG., long disputed within the party.

The compromise sets a 24.9 percent ceiling for the sell-off of a stake of a holding comprising Deutsche Bahn's logistics, rail cargo and passenger train operations. Previously, a 49.9 percent stake in the holding was to be opened up to investors. A second holding comprising the company's rail network and train stations will remain state-owned, unchanged from previous plans.

The compromise was brokered by Beck on April 14 with conservative bloc CDU/CSU. The two parties form Germany's federal government.

See also:

Social Democrats back German railway privatization

The Local: 21 Apr 08

Germany's center-left Social Democrats agreed on Monday to a partial privatization of the country's national railway operator Deutsche Bahn.

Party leaders approved a plan to transform the Deutsche Bahn into a publicly owned holding company with no more than 24.9 percent participation from private investors. Seventy-seven SPD members of the leadership council voted in favour of the proposal, 22 were opposed and two abstained. Backing for the plan was unexpectedly high, with anticipated fierce opposition from the party's left largely failing to materialize amid calls to support SPD chairman Kurt Beck.

Social Democratic approval was an important step toward rail privatization, a major goal for German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her conservative Christian Democrats. The two parties, partners in Germany's ruling coalition, will meet in committee on April 28 to hammer out the details between their two plans.

"The Social Democratic position is clear. Now the ball is in the Christian Democrats' court," Secretary General Hubertus Heil said.

German Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee, also a Social Democrat, said he was "very satisfied" with Monday's agreement.

The rail infrastructure - including train stations and 34,000 kilometres (21,127 miles) of track - would remain in public hands under the Social Democratic plan, developed in a policy group led by SPD chief Beck. But private companies could invest in subsidiaries to run freight and passenger traffic.

Merkel's Christian Democrats criticized the proposal for limiting private participation to 24.9 percent - a ceiling Heil and other Social Democrat leaders called 'non-negotiable' while they remain in the junior partner in Merkel's governing coalition.

Christian Democratic parliamentary group leader Volker Kauder called the 24.9-percent figure "an initial step" in an interview with public broadcaster ARD, saying that to allow up to 49 percent private investment would be more appropriate.

See also:

German railway privatization clears another hurdle

Monsters & Critics: Apr 21, 2008

Berlin - The privatization of Germany's railway company, Deutsche Bahn AG, cleared another major hurdle Monday after Social Democratic Party (SPD) leaders agreed to a controversial plan to sell-off shares in Europe's biggest rail group.

The move by the SPD national executive to sign off on party chief Kurt Beck's proposal to allow private investors to buy up to 24.9 per cent of Deutsche Bahn's passenger and logistics operations came despite stiff opposition from the SPD's influential leftwing faction.

'The 24.9 per cent is not negotiable,' said SPD general secretary Hubertus Heil following the executive's meeting in Berlin, ruling out a special party conference to consider the rail privatization and insisting that Monday's vote brought to an end the party debate about the sell-off.

While Berlin's popular SPD mayor Klaus Wowereit has rejected the planned sell-off of shares in the railway company in the run-up to Monday's meeting, the party's Bavarian branch has called for more debate on the implications on the privatization.

Party officials said that while 77 members of the SPD executive voted for the privatization plan, 25 voted against it and two abstained.

Analysts say the planned partial privatization should generate about six billion euros (9.5 billion dollars) with Heil stressing the SPD saw the sell-off as helping to mobilize capital for the railway.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrat-led conservative bloc has signalled support for the privatization plan drawn up the SPD, which is the junior member of Merkel's ruling coalition.

This is despite the compromise unveiled last week by Beck falling short of the 49.9 per cent that Merkel and her supporters have argued for.

Coalition leaders are due to meet next Monday to hammer out details of the privatization with Deutsche Bahn chief Hartmut Medhorn hoping that the partial sell-off of the Berlin-based rail company will launched later this year.

However, with the SPD having announced its rail privatization model, Heil challenged Merkel's party to set out details of how it envisages the railway company should be sold off.

While welcoming the Beck plan, senior members of Merkel's party have indicated that they see it as representing possibly the sale of the first tranche of shares in the railway company.

But the SPD executive rejected Monday any plans to sell off the stock in Deutsche Bahn as part of a so-called people's share action.

The party sees the shares being sold to both private investors and institutional investors.

Analysts have criticised the SPD privatization model as resulting in only a small parcel of shares being sold off. This could result in the stock ended up principally in the hands of big institutional investors, some analysts say.

Under the SPD plan, the state would have a 75.1-per-cent stake of Deutsche Bahn's passenger and freight operations, which together includes about 140,000 employees.

However, the partial privatization means that Berlin would retain a 100-per-cent control of the rail company's railway stations as well as its 34,000 kilometres of track network and energy supplier operations.

Posted on 12:03 AM | Permalink

RMT: April 18 2008

SUBSTANTIAL PROGRESS has been made towards settling the Metronet dispute tonight, after the Tube’s biggest union received written confirmation from Transport for London of assurances given by the Mayor of London.

The development follows RMT's decision to call a 48-hour strike in the dispute over outsourcing of work and over pension rights and travel facilities.

"We now have in writing undertakings that when the Metronet contracts are taken back in-house by TfL there will be no outsourcing, and that all Metronet staff will be entitled to join the TfL pension fund and enjoy the same travel facilities as other TfL employees," RMT general secretary Bob Crow said tonight.

"That marks substantial progress, and tonight's developments will be placed before the RMT executive on Monday, but on the basis of the written assurances received tonight I will be recommending that the dispute be ended.

"It is difficult to understand why these assurances could not have been given without us having to name strike dates.

"Our members are to be congratulated for the stand they have taken against the creation of a two-tier workforce and for their determination not to be made to pay the price for the collapse of the PPP and the greed of Metronet's shareholders," Bob Crow said.

Posted on 9:38 AM | Permalink

Daily Telegraph: 21/04/2008
By Alistair Osborne, Business Editor

Chris Bolt is planning to step down as chairman of the Office of Rail Regulation when his five-year term ends in July 2009.

Chris Bolt has no plans to continue in his non-executive post for a second term

Mr Bolt, who heads the 11-strong board, has told colleagues that he has no plans to continue in his £107,583 non-executive post for a second term, partly because of his other commitments.

He is also PPP arbiter for the London Underground public-private partnership, heading a small team that was this week asked to give guidance on the costs that maintenance group Tube Lines could incur in the second 7½ years of its contract.

His ongoing involvement as regulator for the other Tube maintenance company Metronet, which collapsed into administration last June, is unclear.

Under Mr Bolt, the ORR board, whose chief executive is Bill Emery, has adopted a much lower profile stance than the one taken by the former rail regulator Tom Winsor.

Its softly-softly approach has brought criticism from some rail operators, however, unhappy that the ORR has not been tough enough with Network Rail.
advertisement

After the New Year engineering overruns that disrupted thousands of passengers on the West Coast Main Line, Virgin Trains called for a full-blown investigation into the regulator's monitoring of Network Rail.

Responding to Mr Bolt's admission that he took Network Rail's assurances at "face value" that it could finish the work with a single day's extension, Virgin Trains chief executive Tony Collins said: "I don't think taking it at face value is right.

"When Network Rail is supposed to give you 18 months' notice of possessions and then comes to you, on a very tight time scale, and basically says 'trust me', that would spark off a lot of questions."

Roger Ford, the industry editor of Modern Railways, memorably criticised the ORR's performance in evidence to the House of Commons Transport Committee.

"To draw a parallel," he said, "I think they're standing there up to their knees in oil-soaked guillemots wondering why the tanker hit the rocks, when they should have been up on the headland firing off rockets to warn it before it happened."

Mr Bolt has always maintained that it is not the regulator's job to micro-manage Network Rail.

The ORR subsequently hit the rail infrastructure company with a record £14m fine for the New Year chaos.

Mr Bolt has also not hidden his frustrations with the growing involvement of government ministers in the running of the railways.

In January, in a speech to social and economic think-tank Politeia, he said: "The need for franchise award, monitoring and enforcement to be free from political influence is essential if private companies are to continue to participate in providing train services through franchise agreements.

"And the history of the nationalised industries does not suggest that civil servants are well placed to take major investment decisions."

Mr Bolt declined to comment.

Posted on 8:28 AM | Permalink

Belga: 19/04/08

The rail unions are threatening a 24 hour strike on 30 April just before the extended holiday weekend in Belgium.

The strike action would start Wednesday evening at 10 pm and end on Thursday (1 May, which is a holiday) at 10 pm.

The trade unions complain that there is a discrepancy between what the management promises and what the workers actually get.

"The management proposed giving the workers a wage increase of €250 gross per year for the next three years. This is actually only 1% of the smallest barometer at Belgian Rail," say representatives of the unions.

According to the unions the personnel is being asked to make a lot of concessions regarding flexibility and productivity, but in exchange are getting very little back from the management.

Posted on 2:14 PM | Permalink

Sunday Times: April 20, 2008
Dominic O’Connell

Four peers are planning to throw a spanner this week into government plans to sell London & Continental Railways, owner of Eurostar and the high-speed rail link to the Channel Tunnel. They will try to reverse a crucial piece of enabling legislation that sets the terms for the sale.

Ministers want the key asset, the new rail link from London to the tunnel, to be outside the remit of the Office of Rail Regulation, which has responsibility for regulating the rest of the UK rail network. The regulator sets prices every five years for access to lines and allows, in theory, open access to the network.

Instead, the line will be regulated directly by the Department for Transport.

The four – Lord Bradshaw, the Liberal Democrat transport spokesman; Lord Hanningfield, Conservative transport spokesman; Labour peer Lord Berkeley and crossbencher Lord Tenby – will propose the amendments at the third reading of the bill on Wednesday. If they succeed, the legislation will go back to the Commons, which could delay the planned sale of London & Continental and substantial property assets on the new route. It is being broken up and sold after completion of the line.

Bradshaw said the government’s aim appeared to be to increase the proceeds from the sale by ensuring it controlled the charges for access to the link, and which trains ran on it.

Posted on 9:14 AM | Permalink

Sunday Times: April 20, 2008
Dean Nelson in Delhi

RAIL enthusiasts with a sense of adventure and 23 days to spare will be able to travel by train from London to Dhaka, the Bangladeshi capital, when a new link opens later this year.

The 7,000-mile Trans-Asia railway will follow one of the old Silk Roads through Istanbul, Tehran, Lahore and Delhi.

It is already being described by train buffs as “the world’s greatest railway journey” and will be longer than the Trans-Siberian railway, which spans 5,772 miles.

Under a United Nations-sponsored scheme, Pakistan and Iran will link up their lines in the coming months to join the sub-continent’s track to that of Europe for the first time.

The UN said the link would open up new trade routes within Asia and give the former Soviet republics of central Asia rail access to Iran’s strategic sea port at Bandar Abbas on the Gulf.

The route was extended when the Calcutta to Dhaka line reopened earlier this month, more than 40 years after it was blocked during the Indo-Pakistan war of 1965.

Last week, senior Indian officials met their Iranian counterparts in Tehran to discuss progress. India has already earmarked £90m to extend its vast rail network towards its border with Burma. From there just 218 miles of missing track stands in the way of an overland rail journey from London to Singapore.

An intrepid traveller will soon be able to leave London for Brussels, Cologne, Vienna, Bucharest, Istanbul, Tehran, Quetta, Lahore, Amritsar, Delhi and Calcutta before reaching the end of the line in Dhaka.

The prospect has caused excitement among Britain’s rail enthusiasts. Mark Smith, whose website Seat61.com promotes rail adventures around the world, was planning his first London to Dhaka itinerary.

His trip incorporates the Eurostar to Brussels, breakfast in Vienna and onward trains to Istanbul, where travellers must take the ferry across the Bosporus linking Europe with Asia. The ferry will eventually be replaced by an underground tunnel, but for now passengers will be able to enjoy views of the Aya Sofya and Topkapi Palace.

Smith’s journey continues with a Turkish express train to Lake Van, close to the Iraqi and Iranian borders, where passengers switch to another ferry to get to the Tehran-bound express, which is described as surprisingly modern.

Iranian engineers have extended their network through Kerman to the Pakistan border, where travellers will switch to a Pakistani train before continuing their journey to Quetta.

China, a big supporter of the project, is spending billions on extending rail lines to its Burmese border.

Trans-Asia railway sources said the only barrier to eventually connecting London to Yunnan province and Singapore was Burma’s military regime, whose poor human rights record means that no foreign funding is available to rebuild its railways.

Smith, who always books seat 61, said the journey offered a return to romantic overland adventure, despite some security concerns on the Iran-Pakistan border.

“If you have the time, a taste for adventure and can arrange the necessary tickets and visas, this promises to be a truly epic overland journey,” he said.

Posted on 12:22 AM | Permalink

Financial Times: Apr 19, 2004
By Daniel Dombey in Brussels

Britain dispenses less state aid as a proportion of gross domestic product than any other European Union country, according to a European Commission report due to be unveiled tomorrow.

But the significance of the Commission's survey for the year 2002 is tempered by its omission of a €37.5bn (£26bn) bailout scheme for Network Rail, the rail infrastructure operator.

The Commission believes that recent EU jurisprudence means the Network Rail package does not qualify as state aid, even though the official UK state aid total for 2002 was a tenth of the size of the Network Rail bailout, at about €3.7bn

The figures for the entire Union show that subsidies are falling overall, but at a slower pace than in the late 1990s, despite a promise by EU leaders in 2001 to crack down on state aid.

The French government has since clashed with Brussels over aid packages to companies such as Alstom, the engineering group, Bull, the computer manufacturer, and Electricite' de France.

Some Commission officials fear that plans hatched by Germany, France and the UK for a new "super-commissioner" to boost competitiveness could further inhibit Brussels' battle against subsidies, since Paris and Berlin have both argued that the Commission should be more understanding when dealing with bail-out schemes.

The Commission "state aid scoreboard" says total state aid by the 15 member states was €49bn in 2002, a fall of about €1bn from the year before. But, in a break with previous years, the report omits aid to the rail sector, one of the biggest sources of national subsidies. It traditionally also fails to include subsidies granted by the EU itself.

The reduction in state aid in the 1990s was faster than the current rate of decline, largely because of reduced subsidies to regions in Germany and Italy. The overall volume of comparable aid fell from €67bn in 1997 to €52bn in 1999.

In 2002, Germany granted the most aid, €13bn, followed by France, €10bn and Italy, €6bn.

According to a draft of the report, Denmark granted proportionately the most aid, at almost 0.9 per cent of gross domestic product, and the UK the lowest, since Britain's €3.7bn of officially notified aid represented only 0.24 per cent of GDP.

However, the report commends Denmark, since it says almost all of its aid is "horizontal", rather than dedicated to specific companies or sectors.

It adds that aid for research and development has risen sharply in both the UK and Italy. However, Germany and France both granted far more, €1.6bn and €1.1bn respectively.

Posted on 12:56 PM | Permalink

RMT: April 18 2008

Company fails to provide uniquivocal written guarantees

Maintenance firm Metronet went into administration in July 2007

RMT's 2,500 members at failed privateer Metronet will strike for 48 hours from 10:30am on Monday April 28 after failing to win unequivocal written guarantees on outsourcing, pensions and travel facilities.

The union has been seeking guarantees that when Metronet contracts are transferred to TfL, none of its 2,500 Metronet members will be transferred to other employers, and that all will be allowed to join the TfL pension scheme and receive the same travel facilities as other TfL employees.

Members voted by a margin of more than four to one to strike.

"Despite weeks of detailed talks and positive discussions with the mayor we have still not won the unequivocal written guarantees we are seeking to protect our members' interests," RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today.

"What we have received has been hedged, qualified and ambiguous, and the RMT executive was left with no choice but to set strike dates.

"Even at this stage the solution to this dispute remains a simple letter away, but we have been adamant throughout this whole sorry affair that our members will not be made to pay for the collapse of the PPP and the shameful behaviour of Metronet's shareholders.

"The shareholders who walked away from Metronet's corpse are being rewarded with fat PFI contracts, yet the people who have stuck with the job of improving the Tube are supposed to accept uncertainty over their jobs, pensions and conditions. That is not on.

"We have already made it clear that the collapse of Metronet should not be used as a Trojan horse for a two-tier workforce," Bob Crow said.

ends

See also:

London faces Tube strike on eve of mayoral vote

AFP: 18-04-08

LONDON (AFP) — A transport union is set to unleash travel chaos on London on the eve of the city's May 1 mayoral elections with a two-day strike on the Underground train network.

Some 2,500 workers are to stage a 48-hour strike from April 28, the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) said, in a spat linked to the collapse of maintenance firm Metronet.

The planned industrial action would likely cripple Underground services in the British capital and come as the campaigns for the London Assembly and mayoral elections hit their peak.

Maintenance staff voted by four to one for strike action.

"Despite weeks of detailed talks and positive discussions with the mayor, we have still not won an unequivocal, written guarantee we are seeking to protect our members' interests," said RMT general secretary Bob Crow.

The strike was called after the union said it failed to receive written guarantees on outsourcing, pensions and travel facilities of 2,500 workers formerly employed by Metronet.

The RMT's three-day strike in September nearly paralysed the network and left millions of commuters facing a gruelling ordeal simply to get to work.

In the mayoral vote, incumbent Ken Livingstone, from the Labour Party, is facing a strong challenge from Conservative candidate Boris Johnson, with polls either putting Johnson ahead or the pair neck and neck.

London's burdened transport network has been one of the main battlegrounds in the campaign.

See also:

Ken Livingstone ‘bribed Tube staff to call off strike before poll’

The Times: April 21, 2008
Ben Webster, Transport Correspondent

Boris Johnson accused Ken Livingstone last night of using millions of pounds of public money to bribe Tube maintenance staff into calling off a 48-hour strike that would have paralysed all lines just before the mayoral election on May 1.

More than 2,500 staff employed by Metronet, which collapsed last year, will receive free annual season tickets worth almost £1,800 each for themselves and their partners in a deal approved by Mr Livingstone.

The deal, which also includes the right to join Transport for London’s generous pension scheme, will be funded by passengers and London council tax payers.

The strike would have disrupted the journeys of the three million daily Tube passengers and been highly embarrassing for Mr Livingstone.

Mr Johnson said: “This is an election bribe to keep the unions sweet a fortnight before the election.” The Conservative mayoral candidate called on Mr Livingstone to explain his involvement in the discussions on Friday with the Rail, Maritime and Transport union.

He added: “Did Mr Livingstone order his transport adviser to stop the strikes no matter what the cost? If so, this will be yet another breach of the election rules.”

A spokesman for Mr Livingstone said: “The mayor remains responsible for the government of London until the election. He, therefore, is in constant contact with TfL, which he chairs, and was naturally kept fully informed of every stage of negotiations with the RMT.”

Bob Crow, general secretary of the RMT, said late on Friday that he would recommend to his executive that the strike be called off.

Posted on 2:53 PM | Permalink

RMT: April 18 2008

GWYNETH DUNWOODY was a good friend of transport workers and a great champion of publicly owned transport, RMT says today following the death of the Crewe and Nantwich MP and long-standing chair of the House of Commons Transport Select Committee.

"Transport workers have lost a good and true friend in Gwyneth Dunwoody," said general secretary Bob Crow

"Gwyneth was a straight-talking, no-nonsense and fearless individual whose powerful and principled leadership of the Transport Select Committee helped to expose the utter failure of transport privatisation.

"Gwyneth was her own woman who would always look you in the eye, and regardless of differences she had an unswerving loyalty to the Labour movement," Bob Crow said.

Posted on 2:43 PM | Permalink

RMT: April 17 2008

BRITAIN’S BIGGEST rail union is to ballot some 5,000 signallers and other key operational staff over pay and conditions after rejecting a “cynical” offer of an additional 0.1 per cent on the first year of a two-year deal.

RMT members had already rejected the company's original offer of 4.8 per cent this year and RPI plus 0.5 per cent next year on the grounds that the second-year element would not protect members against the rising cost of living, with key costs rising far faster than the official inflation rate.

The union has informed the company that it is now in dispute, and will be balloting members for strike action and for action short of a strike. The union has also told the company that it wants a common anniversary date for all operations and infrastructure workers.

"The cynical offer of an extra tenth of one per cent in year one on condition that we do not ballot our members simply fails to address our members' concerns over the second year of the offer," RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today.

"Our members' verdict on the original offer was quite clear and we warned Network Rail that should it fail to table an acceptable offer on the second year of the deal we would ballot for industrial action.

"With housing costs, utility bills, pensions and food bills rising far faster than the official inflation rate the failure to improve the second-year means our members are looking at a real-terms pay cut and after consulting our reps we have told the company we are in dispute.

"We have also told the company that we want a return to a common anniversary date for all operational and maintenance and infrastructure workers," Bob Crow said.

ends

Notes to editors: Network Rail's original offer, of 4.8 per cent this year and RPI plus 0.5 per cent in 2009, was rejected by RMT members by a margin of two to one. The company had been informed that they year one element was acceptable but that the year 2 element was not.

The company's offer of an extra 0.1 per cent in year one, bringing it to 4.9 per cent but conditional on the union not balloting for industrial action, would leave the second-year element unchanged.

See also:

Rail staff to be balloted over pay

Press Association: 17 April 2008

Thousands of railway signal workers are to be balloted for strikes after union leaders attacked Network Rail for increasing a rejected pay offer by just 0.1%.

The Rail Maritime and Transport union said 5,000 signallers and other operational staff will vote on whether to launch a campaign of industrial action.

The workers have already rejected a two-year pay offer of 4.8% this year, and the rate of inflation plus 0.5% next year, which NR increased by 0.1%, said the RMT.

General secretary Bob Crow said: "The cynical offer of an extra tenth of one per cent in year one on condition that we do not ballot our members simply fails to address our members' concerns over the second year of the offer.

"Our members' verdict on the original offer was quite clear and we warned Network Rail that should it fail to table an acceptable offer on the second year of the deal we would ballot for industrial action.

"With housing costs, utility bills, pensions and food bills rising far faster than the official inflation rate the failure to improve the second year means our members are looking at a real-terms pay cut and after consulting our reps we have told the company we are in dispute.

"We have also told the company that we want a return to a common anniversary date for all operational and maintenance and infrastructure workers."

Meanwhile, last-ditch talks were being held to try to avert a dispute with thousands of NR maintenance staff in a separate row over pay.

The RMT announced earlier that its members had rejected a pay and conditions offer by a "landslide" margin of more than 100 to one.

Around 6,600 workers voted against a proposed single set of terms and conditions for maintenance staff, with just 56 in favour.

Posted on 2:02 PM | Permalink

RMT: April 17 2008

Inquiry should be into £17 million wasted on tendering, says union.

THE EU has no business launching an inquiry into Scotland's subsidy for Caledonian MacBrayne's lifeline ferry services, maritime union RMT said today.

The union today condemned the SNP for engineering a Brussels inquiry which could only undermine public service and make it easier for privateers to pocket public money.

"At the end of the day it should be no business of the European Union what or how much subsidy is paid by Scottish taxpayers to maintain their own lifeline ferry services," RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today.

"If there is an inquiry it should a Scottish inquiry into why £17 million of Scottish taxpayers' money has been wasted on a tendering process in the first place.

"That process was unnecessary, wasteful and damaging and the money should have been invested in building even better ferry services for the island communities.

"The SNP opposed CalMac tendering when they were in opposition and had the chance to scrap it and affirm that CalMac should remain a public asset, yet one of its first U-turns once it got elected was deciding meekly to go along with it.

"Only last week we had another U-turn on its policy of public ownership of Scotland's railways with their murky decision to extend the First Group's franchise before Audit Scotland had a chance to finish its report on its performance

"Now we have an EU inquiry prompted by an SNP MEP and immediately applauded by privateer operators who would like nothing better than to pocket public subsidies that are quite properly going to a publicly owned and controlled ferry company.

"We will be seeking an urgent meeting with the Scottish transport minister, not least because this latest attack on CalMac threatens to undermine the jobs, pensions and conditions of the people who provide the island communities' lifeline ferry services," Bob Crow said.

Posted on 1:47 PM | Permalink

Financial Times: April 17 2008
By Paul Betts

The French state railway operator, SNCF, had a good year in 2007. It made a profit of €1bn and for the first time is paying a dividend to its government shareholder.

Its ebullient new chairman, Guillaume Pepy, has announced ambitious plans. He has just written to his 160,000 employees, telling them he wants the company to become one of the top five logistic and freight transport groups in the world and the undisputed leader of high speed rail travel, and to develop an innovative public service concept for commuters.

All this suggests the dawn of a new golden era for French railways. Yet bright as the future may look, these grand plans could all be derailed if the government does not act quickly to repair a whole series of structural flaws in the current rail system.

The Cour des Comptes, the government audit office, has just exposed in a hard-hitting report how the railway reforms launched a decade ago had failed to live up to their promises and now risk seriously damaging the entire system. In short, the government of the time decided to split the railways into two separate companies – the old SNCF in charge of running the trains and the commercial side of the business; and a new company RFF in charge of the infrastructure and tracks.

In the process, it transferred the railway’s €22bn of debts to the new RFF entity rather than simply taking on the debt itself. This is what the Germans did in 1994 when the government absorbed the €35m debts of the Deutsche Bahn. But France was in the midst of its campaign to qualify for the new European single currency and the last thing it wanted was to increase indebtedness.

Thus, while the commercial SNCF business managed to move into the black, the network company has seen its losses and debts mount. RFF lost last year €800m and its debts are now topping €40bn. This is not only the result of large debt interest charges but also the cost of financing all the high-speed railway lines that are today the country’s pride and joy.

The audit office also notes that, under these huge financial constraints and the obligation to fund new high speed tracks, much of the traditional network has been degraded due to insufficient maintenance. It says 46 per cent of the network urgently needs upgrading. On large stretches of the network, trains are forced to travel at low speeds because of the state of the tracks.

The reform of the system needs to be reconsidered. First and foremost, the audit office suggests, the state should absorb a large part of RFF’s debt to unshackle the network company and let it conduct the necessary modernisation and maintenance of the tracks. It also argues for closure of low-density railway lines. And perhaps the state should reconsider the wisdom of splitting the commercial and infrastructure operations into two separate companies since the system is clearly not working in its current state. After all, this was one of the lessons learnt in the disastrous privatisation of Britain’s railways where operators were split from the tracks.

The government, struggling to fill its depleted state coffers, has clearly no intention of absorbing even a small part of RFF’s debts. Instead it is proposing to allow the infrastructure company to charge higher tariffs to SNCF and any other users. That will put pressure once again on SNCF’s finances and simply redistribute the losses of a structurally unviable system.

Free market fans

Some things will never change – and that is the French exception. At a time when most countries are losing confidence in the free market system, more and more French citizens are being converted to its merits.

This is pretty surprising given that, barely three years ago France was the only country where the majority of citizens polled by GlobeScan opposed the idea of the free market system. The majority of French still do, according to the latest poll, but their numbers are shrinking. Indeed, 5 per cent more French citizens – or 41 per cent of the population – believe free markets are best for the future of the world economy.

Turkey has emerged as the country with the greatest aversion to the free market, with only 34 per cent of those polled in favour of the system, compared with 47 per cent in 2005. Support for the free market has also fallen significantly in China (down 9 per cent), Britain (down 7 per cent) and Brazil (down 7 per cent). Elsewhere, including the US and Germany, it has also fallen but by more modest amounts.

That said, in countries such as Britain, the US and Germany, the majority still supports the free market. But in all these countries free market supporters are showing increasing enthusiasm for a strong, more regulated market system. Even more interesting, the poll was conducted just before the current banking meltdown, suggesting that the free enterprise system was already beginning to lose the trust of citizens – except, of course, in France.

Posted on 12:28 PM | Permalink

Financial Times: April 16 2008
By Robert Wright, Transport Correspondent

The first Russian railway company to float on the London Stock Exchange is to seek a higher-than-expected price when it lists in the next few months, it announced Wednesday.

At an announced price range of $11.50 to $15.00 for each global depositary receipt – equivalent to a single share – Globaltrans’ market capitalisation will be between $1.34bn (£679m) and $1.75bn. The transaction will raise between $390m and $509m, with about half going to existing shareholders and the remainder providing fresh capital.

When it announced plans to list this month, there were indications the company would seek a market capitalisation of about $1.3bn.

Sergey Maltsev, Globaltrans’ chief executive, said he looked forward to meeting potential investors during the company’s planned roadshow and introducing them to the Russian rail freight sector: “We will present our strategy to them and explain our success in targeting high margin sectors of the business.”

Globaltrans, which made operating profit of $128m in 2007, is the largest of scores of new private rail freight companies that have sprung up in Russia during the past five years in response to liberalisation measures.

They can own their own wagons, haul trains with their own locomotives over short distances on the Russian State Railways network and request Russian State Railways to haul their trains over longer distances.

The company is the latest of a series of Russian companies to have sought listings in London. London’s markets are deeper and more liquid than those in Russia but they have fewer burdensome listing requirements than US exchanges.

After the float and the capital raising, there will be a free float of about 29 per cent of the shares in Globaltrans, which is currently 70 per cent owned by N-Trans, Russia’s largest transport company.

The company’s remaining shares are held by Globaltrans’ management.

Mr Maltsev said Globaltrans would use the proceeds of the offering to make further investments in its rolling stock. The company owns 21,000 wagons and 19 locomotives.

Deutsche Bank is Global co-ordinator for the offering and joint book-runner along with Morgan Stanley.

Posted on 1:55 PM | Permalink

RMT: April 15 2008

Downgrading of remedial action to defects poses threat to staff and passengers

THE DOWNGRADING of remedial action to track defects as part of a trial of a newultra-sonic track-testing regime poses a serious safety risk to rail staff and passengers, the industry's biggest union says today.

RMT has asked the railways inspectorate to investigate the 12-month trial, already under way in northeast England, in which Network Rail has selectively downgraded the response to some defect types discovered by the high-speed ultra-sonic testing train.

The trial's lower standards will see some rail defects that would otherwise be clamped and replaced on a strictly prescribed timescale left unprotected and replaced over longer periods.

The inspectorate is already investigating evidence gathered by the union that the ultra-sonic train misses some track defects altogether and should not be relied upon to the exclusion of other inspection methods.

"This trial amounts to a lowering of safety standards that will see defective rails simply left to deteriorate even further, and RMT believes that poses unacceptable risks for our members and rail passengers," general secretary Bob Crow said today.

"There is also no explanation in any of the briefing materials that explains the reasoning behind the trial, so we can only assume that it is being done to save money.

"It was failure to replace defective rails that caused the Hatfield crash and the deaths of four people, and our fear is that Network Rail has failed to learn those lessons.

"Network Rail has failed to consult RMT over the trial, and it has even by-passed the Ultra-Sonic Working Party that was set up to discuss safety-critical issues.

"We already have a thick dossier of defects, some of them very serious, which were missed by the ultrasonic testing train but picked up by other inspection methods.

"Ultra-sonic staff are also being pressurised to comply with these lower standards, and we give Network Rail fair warning that any attempt to discipline our members for upholding safety standards will be met with a ballot for strike action," Bob Crow said.

Posted on 2:31 PM | Permalink

Reuters: April 14 2008

BERLIN - Germany's Social Democrat (SPD) leaders have agreed on a plan to partly privatise rail operator Deutsche Bahn, SPD sources said on Monday, which also found some support among their conservative coalition partners.

Protesters wearing giant masks of the Social Democratic Party leader Kurt Beck, left, and Hartmut Mehdorn, head of Deutsche Bahn, during a protest Monday in Berlin against the privatization of the rail operator. (Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters )

For months the coalition of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) and the SPD have clashed over plans to list Germany's last big state-owned firm, which had a turnover of more than 31 billion euros last year.

But some conservatives suggested the latest plans -- which overcame deep differences within the SPD -- might be acceptable to them, too.

After night-time talks, SPD leaders agreed on a model that would allow private investors to buy up to 24.9 percent of a planned holding company for Deutsche Bahn's passenger and logistics units, SPD party sources said.

Under the model, which both privatisation critics and supporters inside the party backed, the state would maintain 75.1 percent in passenger and freight transport, and 100 percent in the tracks system, the sources said.

Left-wing SPD officials criticised an earlier proposal that would have privatised up to 49.9 percent, saying they were worried about private investors' influence on the company.

Deutsche Bahn's board had hoped to achieve a partial listing this year but analysts have said the coalition would probably have to agree by April 28 to achieve that deadline.

COMPROMISE
Merkel and other leading conservatives favour a privatisation of up to 49.9 percent of the passenger and goods section and it is unclear whether she will favour this plan.

But Deutsche Bahn expert Hans-Peter Friedrich, a member of the Christian Social Union (CSU), sister party to Merkel's CDU, said the SPD compromise could start a partial privatisation.

"We can talk about such an idea," Friedrich told Germany's Deutschlandfunk radio, adding the privatisation could be assessed after a few years when further steps could be taken.

SPD officials will debate the new proposal in a working group later on Monday and present it to party officials next week. The coalition could discuss it in two weeks' time.

Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee, a Social Democrat, told Handelsblatt daily in an interview the listing should not be allowed to fail.

"In view of the problems caused by strong growth in goods freight in Germany as a transit country, I can only warn against allowing the privatisation to be put off," he said.

(Reporting by Holger Hansen, Writing by Kerstin Gehmlich; Editing by Quentin Webb)

See also:

Beck Wins Support for Streamlined Deutsche Bahn Initial Public Offering

Bloomberg: April 14
By Andreas Cremer and Brian Parkin

German Social Democratic Party Chairman Kurt Beck proposed a slimmed-down public offering of Deutsche Bahn AG, winning over party critics and paving the way to a possible deal with his Christian Democrat coalition allies.

Beck, whose popularity touched record lows in recent polls, won the backing of regional and local Social Democratic Party leaders for a plan to sell no more than 24.9 percent of the state-owned railway's passenger and freight operations.

"What's important to us is that the economic, ecological and political preconditions for a successful railway are bundled in a single model'' for a share sale, Beck told reporters in Berlin today as he announced his proposals.

Germany's decade-old plan to sell a stake in the railway came unstuck last year after the Social Democrats balked at ceding too much influence in the country's last big federal asset to investors. Many Social Democrats say that private investors would put profit before rail services.

"The 24.9 percent could be a first tranche that could be realized before the end of this legislative term,'' Ronald Pofalla, general secretary of Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, told N24 television today. The Christian Democrats favor selling about half of Deutsche Bahn's shares.

"We're on good course'' to reach an agreement with the Christian Democrats on selling shares in Deutsche Bahn, Ralf Stegner, Social Democrat leader in Schleswig-Holstein state, said in an interview. "This model is a good basis for negotiations'' with Merkel's party on April 28.

'People's Shares'

Under the new plan, which would keep stations and Deutsche Bahn's track under government control, Beck abandoned his goal to exclude regional passenger services from any share sale. The move may make the project "palatable'' to party critics who last October proposed to sell Deutsche Bahn's shares as non- voting stock or "people's shares,'' according to Stegner.

"This is a proposal we can talk about,'' Hans-Peter Friedrich, a lawmaker from the Christian Social Union, the Bavarian sister party of Merkel's Christian Democrats and the third member of the ruling coalition, told German Radio. Friedrich has repeatedly rejected a sale of a people's share, calling instead for greater corporate investment.

Germany can sell up to 49 percent of Deutsche Bahn without changing constitutional rules on the provision of nationwide rail services. Deutsche Bahn Chief Executive Hartmut Mehdorn is seeking cash to expand services before the European Union opens its borders to competition for passenger services in 2010. He said March 31 that a share sale is still possible as early as September.

Premise for Talks

Beck said he phoned Mehdorn today and that he, like the Transnet rail union, endorsed the proposal as a premise for talks on the share sale.

A sale of the state-owned railway's stock would ensure further increases in profit that last year rose 2.1 percent to 1.72 billion euros ($2.72 billion) from 1.68 billion euros in 2007. Commerzbank AG, in a study released in March last year, said a sale of just under half the company would yield a maximum 6.2 billion euros.

Social Democratic Party critics of Beck's new plan remain.

"Make no mistake, this is a part-privatization and I'm fundamentally against'' it, Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit told N24 television.

See also:

Berlin nears deal to sell shares in Deutsche Bahn

International Herald Tribune: April 14, 2008
By Judy Dempsey

Protesters wearing giant masks of the Social Democratic Party leader Kurt Beck, left, and Hartmut Mehdorn, head of Deutsche Bahn, during a protest Monday in Berlin against the privatization of the rail operator. (Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters )
BERLIN: Following months of disagreement inside the government, Germany's coalition of conservative and Social Democrats appeared close to a deal Monday to sell a quarter of Deutsche Bahn, one of the largest rail networks in Europe, to private investors.

But the compromise has already been assailed by those who say it does not go far enough and those who say it should not take place at all.

Deutsche Bahn itself is pushing the equity sale to raise an estimated €2.5 billion or more that would help it to expand services before the European Union opens its borders to competition for passenger services in 2010.

The breakthrough came after Kurt Beck, leader of the Social Democrats, who has shifted back and forth over the Deutsche Bahn share sale, presented a proposal that he said would ensure the state would continue to play a role in protecting the railroads and guarantee services to the public, while at the same time raising the funds needed for modernization.

Beck proposed that private investors would be allowed own up to 24.9 percent of the company and its cargo division. Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc and the Deutsche Bahn management had originally proposed that 49.9 percent of the company be allotted to private investors but they were unable to reach an agreement with the Social Democrats. The government can sell up to that amount without changing constitutional rules on the provision of nationwide rail services.

Beck, who last year proposed a voucher system as one method of privatization, had come under fire from the left wing of his party for supporting the partial sell-off of the railroads, and from Social Democrat ministers in the cabinet who have supported a partial sell-off.

The left wing maintains that Deutsche Bahn is a national asset that should not be sold to the private sector. The public, too, generally believes that any degree of privatization would lead to a reduction of services. Bahn fuer Alle, a group of 15 organizations that is trying to stop any privatization of the railroads, said Monday that Beck's plan would lead to a deterioration of services, job losses and higher fares.

But the transport minister of Schleswig-Holsteins, Dietrich Austermann who is a member of Merkel's Christian Democratic Union, said the current proposal would raise an inadequate amount of money. "I can only say it would be better to have no reform than a lazy compromise," he told Deutsche-Presse Agentur. He said Deutsche Bahn requires over €10 billion for modernization, well above the amount that would be earned from the partial sell off of the network.

Under Beck's plan, the track network would be folded into a wholly owned Deutsche Bahn subsidiary that would allocate a €2.5 billion guarantee to cover line maintenance, the company said.

Merkel had argued that the privatization of Deutsche Bahn was necessary to attract capital for investment but also to make the network more competitive as it sought to gain more market share in the freight business across Europe.

Deutsche Bahn is valued at €20 billion, according to the company.

Hans-Peter Friedrich, transport expert for Merkel's conservative bloc said there was now a good basis for negotiation and compromise, despite Beck's watered-down proposals. "We could live with the variant put forward by the Social Democrats," Friedrich said.

The finance ministry, under the Social Democrat, Peer Steinbrück, who has long lobbied for a more radical privatization of the network, cautiously welcomed Beck's proposals.

Torsten Albig, a ministry spokesman, said Monday, "This model could interest the market," adding that the railroad tracks would remain in state hands.

Beck's compromise will be discussed by the government later this month but analysts say it is far from clear if any decision will be made between now and late next year when federal elections are due. Indeed, party officials said Monday Beck could face fresh criticism from among the left wing which will try and persuade him to change his proposals.

But Wolfgang Tiefensee, the Social Democrat transport minister, warned against the failure of privatization. "In view of the problems arising from the considerable increases in freight traffic in the transit land Germany, I can only warn against postponing privatization," he told Handelsblatt, a daily business newspaper.

See also:

Compromise on Deutsche Bahn privatisation paves way for IPO

Thomson Financial: 15-04-08

FRANKFURT - A political compromise over the privatisation of Deutsche Bahn paves the way for an initial public offering of stock in the state-owned rail operator, Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported, citing financial sources.

Previously, a sale to strategic investors or the issuing of preferential shares without voting rights were seen the most likely outcomes, given the selloff plan faced significant resistance within the Social Democrat (SPD) party that co-governs the country.

The compromise, brokered by SPD chairman Kurt Beck, sets a 24.9 percent ceiling for the selloff of a stake of a holding comprising Deutsche Bahn's logistics, rail cargo and passenger train operations.

Previously, a 49.9 percent stake in the holding was to be opened up to investors. A second holding comprising the company's rail network and train stations will remain state-owned.

Beck said Monday this limitation will prevent investors from gaining seats on Deutsche Bahn's supervisory board.

Sueddeutsche said the SPD expects the privatisation in this form to yield some 5 billion euros.

Meanwhile, Handelsblatt reported Deutsche Bahn plans to expand its rail cargo operations in France and to that effect plans to move the headquarters of its English, Welsh and Scottish Railways (EWS) unit from the UK to France, citing French industry sources.

Handelsblatt quoted a logistics consultant saying Deutsche Bahn's move could be a way to expand its activities in France without threatening its existing cooperation with SNCF in passenger train operations.

Posted on 10:00 AM | Permalink

Financial Times: April 14 2008
By Robert Wright, Transport Correspondent

Plans for one of the most important new train orders are in disarray after a bidder for the Intercity Express programme dropped out and the two remaining contenders demanded more time to submit tenders.

The withdrawal of a consortium of Alstom Transport and Barclays Private Equity from bidding to supply the order for between 500 and 2,000 carriages has heightened rail industry concerns about civil servants' specifications for the high-speed trains.

The Express Rail Alliance - a consortium including Canada's Bombardier and Germany's Siemens - and Japan's Hitachi have successfully asked for the postponement from May 7 to June 30 of the deadline to submit bids.

Both are thought to be struggling to make sense of the requirements for the trains, for which they are supposed to produce at least three basic designs and many further permutations of train lengths and layouts.

The Inter City Express trains are due to replace InterCity 125 trains that have been the workhorse for 30 years of the Great Western, Midland and East Coast main lines, as well as some other ageing trains.

The Department for Transport, rather than train operators and leasing companies, is running the ordering process to ensure all the trains use similar, interchangeable designs.

Rail industry executives have told the Financial Times neither the financial aspects of the programme nor the demands of the specification are workable.

There is particular criticism of the demand for one version of the train - which is meant to be lighter than traditional vehicles - to be able either to run off overhead electric lines or to use a diesel engine. Each such hybrid train will need two sets of traction equipment, of which one will always be out of use.

"They've asked for an environmentally friendly, lightweight train but they want a hybrid that then carries a lot of diesel around under the wires," one executive said.

Another executive said it was "extremely complex" trying to submit a sensible bid for the work because the trains were now meant to use so many routes. The project was "fundamentally flawed", a third said.

The Department for Transport has barred shortlisted bidders and others involved from speaking publicly.

Alstom said its consortium withdrew after reading the full specification. "It was decided to withdraw from the competition and instead focus on other major opportunities in the UK rail market," Alstom said.

The department confirmed it had granted an extension for submitting final bids. It expected this to have no effect on the date the trains enter service - 2012 for a pilot batch and 2015 for the main production run.

Depending on how many trains the Department for Transport eventually orders and the length of the associated maintenance contracts, orders under the programme are likely to be worth several billion pounds.

Posted on 1:06 PM | Permalink

Thomson Financial: 14 April 2008

FRANKFURT - Polish rail operator Polskie Koleje Panstwow (PKP) plans to float units PKP Intercity and PKP Cargo on the Warsaw stock exchange to raise funds for investments, Financial Times Deutschland reported, citing a spokesman for PKP.

'The express train unit will sell shares next year,' the spokesman said.

PKP Cargo, Europe's second-biggest rail freight business, may be floated in 2010 or 2011, the spokesman said.

PKP, which has some 125,000 employees and generates annual sales of more than 10 billion zlotys, needs funds to modernise its 10 subsidiaries, FT Deutschland said.

'We want to raise 500 million zlotys,' a spokeswoman for PKP Intercity told the newspaper, while the spokesman for parent PKP said the company will not know how much it may raise until advisors it commissioned have submitted their reports at the end of June.

The company plans to invest some 2.7 billion zlotys into the unit by 2012, among others to buy new trains.

See also:

PKP Cargo - new livery, new owner?

First Poland-Germany (Poznan-Seddin): 28.04.2008

Freight service hauled by TRAXX EU43 locomotive

PKP Cargo, part of the state-owned PKP Group, and Poland’s largest freight carrier, has a new logo. The logo is a derivative of the old logo, but with a cleaner, more modern appearance. When state-run industries start redesigning their logos and web pages it’s usually a good sign that privatisation is not far away. Sure enough, the Polish Sejm Infrastructure Committee is working flat out on a new Act to govern the privatisation of parts of the PKP railway empire.

Our betting is that, sooner or later, the German state-owned railway company, Deutsche Bahn AG, will end up owning a controlling interest in PKP Cargo. PKP Cargo S.A. and Railion Deutschland AG have already signed a long-term cooperation agreement. Railon is owned by Deutsche Bahn AG.

DB AG has also bought EWS, the UK’s largest rail freight carrier, so if the current difficulties regarding Channel Tunnel rail freight can be overcome, the prospect of moving some of the 1,000 Poland-UK HGV lorry loads onto rail becomes decidedly better.

Posted on 9:12 AM | Permalink

Reuters: Apr 13, 2008

BERLIN - Germany's plans to partly privatise rail operator Deutsche Bahn were thrown into doubt at the weekend as Chancellor Angela Merkel said she did not agree with her coalition partner's proposals for the listing.

For months, Merkel's conservatives and her Social Democrat (SPD) partners in Berlin have been at loggerheads over plans to list Germany's last big state-owned company, which had a turnover of more than 31 billion euros ($49 billion) last year.

The company's board had hoped to achieve a partial listing this year, to which end SPD leader Kurt Beck recently suggested separating local rail transport from the privatisation model.

In an interview with Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, Merkel rejected this idea.

"I think it's right to split the infrastructure from transportation," she said. "But I don't think it's right to make distinctions between local and long distance transport."

Analysts have said the coalition will probably have to agree by April 28 to achieve the listing this year, and Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee said there was still work to do.

In an interview due to appear in Monday's edition of business daily Handelsblatt, Tiefensee said the listing should not be allowed to fail, according to a preview on Sunday.

"In view of the problems caused by strong growth in goods freight in Germany as a transit country, I can only warn against allowing the privatisation to be put off," he said.

See also:

Germany's minister warns against failure of German rail privatisation

Thomson Financial: 04.13.08

FRANKFURT - German transport minister and Social Democrat Wolfgang Tiefensee has warned against shelving plans to privatise German rail operator Deutsche Bahn AG.

Tiefensee issued the warning in an interview with Handelsblatt to be published Monday.

His comments contradict those of his party leader, Kurt Beck, who wants to exclude Deutsch Bahn's regional train services from privatisation.

Beck is leader of the Social Democrats Party (SPD) which controls the German federal government with coalition partner CDU/CSU, a conservative bloc.

The CDU/CSU is opposed to Beck's proposal, Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported on Saturday, citing Volker Kauder, head of its parliamentary party.

German chancellor and conservative Angela Merkel told Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung she also opposed the plans.

She said in an interview published on Sunday she backs a model previously suggested by finance minister and Social Democrat Peer Steinbrueck and Deutsche Bahn chief executive Hartmut Mehdorn that sees the company's rail network and train stations transferred into a holding company, which will remain state-owned.

Its logistics, rail cargo and passenger train operations would be transferred into a second holding, 49 percent of which would be opened to investors.

A committee governing coalition issues between SPD and CDU/CSU will discuss the issue on April 28.

Posted on 7:03 PM | Permalink

Eastern Daily Press: 12 April 2008
ED FOSS

Offshore workers face months of waiting before a final resolution is reached in a lengthy row about their holiday entitlement rights.

A battle being waged by individuals and employee groups has seen various attempts made to secure up to four weeks of paid holiday for workers in addition to their “two week on, two week off” shift structure.

In February, a “victory of sorts” was won at an employment tribunal when it was decided that workers should be provided with two weeks of the type of paid leave in question.

But as expected, the industry has lodged an appeal in the last few days against the appeal ruling, which in turn will serve to protract the legal dispute, according to an offshore union.

The Offshore Industry Liaison Committee (OILC), formed in 1988 in the aftermath of the Piper Alpha tragedy in which 167 offshore workers were killed, campaigns for better safety and conditions at offshore sites. The OILC is on the brink of a formal merger with the RMT union, at which point the RMT's general secretary Bob Crow is expected to join the fray over offshore working.

The OILC's general secretary Jake Molloy said: “Without making any announcement, and ironically on April Fools Day, the employers lodged an appeal.

“OILC/RMT had, of course, anticipated this and had prepared our own grounds of appeal to counter that lodged by the employers. An OILC/RMT appeal has been lodged.

“All of this means we face a lengthy delay in implementing any kind of paid holidays for those unfortunates that have no entitlement.

“It could take a year or more to get to the employment appeal tribunal and there are several other stages of appeal thereafter.

“We have had almost five years of legal wrangling so far, with the only winners being the lawyers working for the employers. It cannot be in the interests of the workforce or the employers to continue down this route.”

There have been claims in recent months from oil companies that the ongoing employment tribunals could lead to large sections of North Sea production being shut because of the costs of recruiting the necessary extra workers to cover the new holiday entitlement.

Mr Molloy said that in the event that talks failed to deliver on holiday entitlement, “the fight must go on and we must be ready to take it to those employers that continue to resist”. It has cost the industry many millions of pounds so far, but if they are not going to move then we will raise that liability by potentially several million more.”

Posted on 12:38 PM | Permalink

The Times: April 11, 2008
Ben Webster, Transport Correspondent

More than a thousand miles of high-speed railway line and new rail tunnels under the Irish Sea and the English Channel will be needed to cope with the continuing rapid growth in rail travel, according to the industry’s vision for the future network.

Three new 200mph lines would fan out from London, halving journey times to all the big regional cities and to Scotland. A fourth new high-speed line would cross the Pennines, linking Manchester, Sheffield and Leeds.

Tracks could also be laid on top of tidal barrages being considered for the Severn, Solway and Morecambe estuaries. A dedicated freight train network would take millions of lorries off the roads and would remove a cause of huge delay for passenger trains.

The Association of Train Operating Companies has published a vision for the network in 2057, by which time, if the postprivatisation growth trend continues, the number of passengers will have more than trebled.

Rail passengers clocked up 30.1 billion miles (49 billion km) last year, the greatest distance travelled by train in peacetime and 10 billion more miles than a decade ago. The annual passenger growth rate is running at 7.8 per cent, with 1.2 billion journeys made last year.

The only years when the railways were busier were during the Second World War, when millions of troops were moved around the country. This is despite the network being a third smaller today than in 1945.

The association believes that the growth rate will decline slightly, but still forecasts that the network will be carrying 2.4 billion passengers by 2028.

It commissioned Jim Steer, the former strategy director of the Strategic Rail Authority, to consider how the network would need to expand to accommodate predicted demand.

Mr Steer’s report says that the first new high-speed line should run from London, via Heathrow, to Birmingham and Manchester. The second should run up the East Coast to Newcastle upon Tyne and Edinburgh, and the third to Bristol and Cardiff.

New and reopened lines operating at the conventional speed (about 100mph) would be needed to avoid bottlenecks on the existing network. Trains would run between Oxford and Cambridge, via Bedford, for the first time since 1967.

The disused line between Okehampton and Plymouth in Devon would be reopened to provide an alternative to Brunel’s route via the seawall at Dawlish, which faces an uncertain future because of rising sea levels.

Mr Steer said that the forecast by the Office for National Statistics of an 18 million increase in the population during the next 50 years, and environmental constraints on expanding roads and airports, meant that demand for rail travel would continue to grow even during an economic downturn.

He said: “We need to think big and we need to start planning for expansion right now if we are to have any hope of coping with demand. Other countries, such as Japan, have had a long-term vision for their railways but we have tended only to think about the next five years.

“At some stage, Government will have to recognise the sheer implausibility of the [population] increase being predominantly accommodated in the wider South East, as it has been for the last 50 years.

“It is therefore likely to see high-speed rail as one of a number of key instruments to achieve this economic shift, while also reducing dependence on aviation for short-haul flights.”

The Government published what it claimed was a 30-year rail strategy last July, but the only commitments given were for modest expansion up to 2014.

Ministers have conceded recently that a new high-speed line will have to be considered, but they have yet to commission a detailed study.

Atkins, an engineering consultancy, published last month its own study of the costs and benefits of two high-speed lines running between London and Scotland along the East and West Coasts. It found that the lines would cost £31 billion, but deliver £63 billion in economic benefits, including helping northern cities to regenerate.

Britain has the fastest growing railway of any leading European country but is the only one that has yet to build, or to commit to building, a network of high-speed lines.

George Muir, the director-general of the Association of Train Operating Companies, said yesterday: “The railway brings people together and, as measured by passenger miles, 2007 was a record year.

“This growth shows that more train capacity is urgently needed for our passengers, for the economy and for a green Britain.

“People are increasingly turning to rail; not only is it a faster and more convenient way of travelling, it is greener than travelling on our congested roads and domestic air routes.”

See also:

The new age of the train

A historic boom on the railways – but can network take the strain?

Britain is witnessing the dawn of a new era of rail travel as an unprecedented demand for environmentally friendly transport encourages people to take more train journeys than at any time since the Second World War.

Figures released yesterday revealed that the number of miles travelled on the rail network reached a record-breaking peacetime high of 30.1 billion during 2007, capping a huge rise in popularity in which passenger numbers have increased every year for the past 13 years.

The rise in passenger miles, documented by the Association of Train Operating Companies (Atoc), indicates a boom in demand for rail transport at a time when the threat of climate change is encouraging more people to find greener ways of moving around.

George Muir, director general of Atoc, described the resurgence of train use as astonishing. "We knew that we were growing but it was only when we looked at the graph that we realised how sudden that growth was," he said. "If you take out the war years, for much of the past 80 years passenger miles have hovered around the 20 billion mark, but within the past 10 years it has grown dramatically."

The only time that train passenger miles – calculated as the number of journeys taken multiplied by the distance travelled – has been higher was during the Second World War when the rail network was twice the size it is now and large numbers of troops were being transported around the country. The previous peacetime record was set in 1946 – when vast numbers of soldiers were being demobilised.

Atoc's figures represent one of the most detailed attempts to gauge the popularity of Britain's railways over the past 170 years and show how demand for rail travel has reached unprecedented levels over the past decade since privatisation. Last year the network handled 1.21 billion rail journeys, the equivalent of 20 journeys for every citizen and a 7 per cent rise on 2006. Traffic on the railways, meanwhile, has increased by 67.6 per cent since 1994 when just 17.9 billion passenger miles were travelled.

Tim Leunig, a historian from the London School of Economics who helped compile the figures, said current trends meant passenger miles were likely to continue breaking records "time and time and time again" as demand increases. A White Paper last year estimated that Britain would need to double its rail capacity by 2030 to meet demand.

Passenger groups voiced concerns that the cost of expanding the overstretched rail network will be paid for by yet more above-inflation ticket price rises. The most recent, which came into effect in January, saw some rail operators put up the cost of fares on some routes up by as much as 15 per cent.

Bob Crow, general secretary of the RMT, the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers, said: "We need a fares policy that encourages rail and bus use, and that means cheaper tickets, not more expensive ones. If just 5 per cent of people travelling by car turn to rail it would require a 50 per cent increase in rail capacity, so the task is huge and it needs dramatic action."

Environmental groups also warned that rising ticket prices could remove the incentive to travel by train at a time when car use and short-haul flights are also at record highs. "We're delighted that the demand for rail travel is increasing and that more and more people are choosing to use this greener form of transport but we do have concerns about the rising costs of using our railways," said Cat Hobbs from the Campaign for Better Transport.

"We're also not convinced that the Government has adequate long-term plans to expand and fund a railway network that will meet future demand."

Concern was also expressed yesterday that, as demand for rail travel grows, the already chronic overcrowding on some sections of the network will only get worse. Anthony Smith, chief executive of Passenger Focus, the independent national rail consumer watchdog, said: "These figures graphically underline the urgent need for more and longer trains. Passengers left standing on a crowded peak service will find this announcement hard to believe."

A Department for Transport spokesperson rejected any suggestion that the Government would fail to meet future demand. "We are ahead of the curve and planning for growth," she said.

"On top of the opening of the UK's first high-speed line and securing funding for Crossrail last year we announced £10bn investment focused on increasing capacity.

"We are planning a rail network which can carry 180 million more passengers over the next six years, growth of 22 per cent."

Posted on 12:28 AM | Permalink

Thomson Financial: 04.09.08

PARIS - French state-owned railway company SNCF said it has signed an agreement to acquire 75 percent in Dresden-based rail freight operator Import Transport Logistik.

The purchase price was not disclosed.

ITL, which has subsidiaries in the Netherlands, Czech Republic and Poland, had sales of 45 million euros last year and posted gross operating profit of 3.7 million, SNCF said.

The German business employs 160 people and is very active in the transport of hydrocarbons, chemicals, cereals and raw materials.

On Sunday, Guillaume Pepy, SNCF chairman, announced that the company plans to launch a 135 euros per share offer for the 57 pct it does not already own in French logistics group Geodis.

See also:

SNCF make €1.1bn offer for Geodis

IGD: 9 Apr 2008

In an attempt by SNCF to address heavy-losses in its freight business, the French state-owned rail operator has made a cash offer for Geodis, valuing the logistics group at €1.1bn.

Established formerly as the road-freight subsidiary of SNCF, Geodis was privatised in 1996. The acquisition would herald the re-nationalisation of the logistics group after 12 years.

SNCF has for many years been Geodis' main shareholder and currently holds 42.37% of its share capital and 45.79% of its voting rights. With the bid valuing Geodis at €1.1bn, it would cost SNCF €600 million for the outstanding shares.

See also:

Allianz's AGF says will tender 5 percent Geodis stake to SNCF takeover offer

Thomson Financial: 04.09.08

PARIS - French insurer AGF, part of Allianz SE, said it will tender its 5.01 percent stake in logistics group Geodis to the takeover offer of French rail operator SNCF.

State-owned SNCF announced on Sunday plans to offer 135 euros per share for the rest of Geodis, in a deal worth 600 million euros.

SNCF already has a 42 percent stake in the logistics company.

See also:

French railway co SNCF ratings unchanged so far after acquisition plans

Thomson Financial: April 10, 2008

LONDON -- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said its ratings and outlook on French state-owned national railway company Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer Francais (SNFC) remain unchanged for now following the company's offer to acquire Geodis, a French logistics company, for about 600 million euros in cash.

SNCF, which is rated 'AAA' and 'A-1+' with a stable outlook, had also announced its plans to acquire a majority stake in German logistics company Import Transport Logistik for an undisclosed amount.

These acquisitions reflect SNCF's heightened ambition to develop its logistics operations as its main markets are opening up to competition, the ratings agency said.

Posted on 12:08 AM | Permalink

Financial Times: April 9 2008
By Robert Wright, Transport Correspondent

Train builders will on Wednesday be invited to bid for the UK’s largest train order since privatisation over a decade ago when the Department for Transport issues a tender for hundreds of new carriages for the vital cross-London Thameslink route.

The new trains, expected to cost around £1.4bn ($2.8bn), will substantially increase passenger capacity on the route, which is to undergo a £3.5bn upgrade that will increase the number of trains and open up more northern destinations.

The size of the order is not yet finalised, but it will be between 900 and 1,300 new carriages. When the upgrade is completed, with older trains redeployed elsewhere, there will be around 380 more carriages than in the existing fleet, which is currently severely overcrowded because of capacity constraints.

Ruth Kelly, transport secretary, will say on Wednesday that the extra carriages will provide 14,500 more seats on some of the most overcrowded commuter routes into London.

The new vehicles are in addition to an order for 44 new carriages placed by the DfT in March with Bombardier Transportation, the world’s largest trainmaker. Those carriages are intended to help Southern, the train operator at the route’s southern end, to provide services over part of the route while the upgrade programme is under way.

The northern part of the route – which will link the existing cross-London service to lines from Kings Cross – will be completed in time for the 2012 Olympics. Work on the southern part of the route, where trains are currently held up by a stretch of single track near London Bridge station, will then go ahead after 2012.

As one of the largest single train orders ever placed in the UK, the contract will be keenly contested by big trainmakers.

The fleet will need electrical equipment to deal with both the low-voltage third rail south of the River Thames and the high-voltage overhead lines north of it.

The government promised in last year’s rail white paper to provide another 256 carriages for the Thameslink route by the middle of the next decade.

Posted on 1:21 PM | Permalink

RMT members learned with great sadness of the untimely death on Sunday 6 April 2008 of Greg Tucker, secretary of RMT’s Waterloo branch since 1993 and of the union’s National Conference of Train Crews & Shunting Grades since 1992.

Greg had suffered a malignant throat cancer diagnosed over a year ago and was admitted to St Thomas’ Hospital on Saturday afternoon where he died some hours later.

As well as being a leading socialist activist for over 30 years, including a period in the 1980s when he served as a local government councillor as part of the ruling Labour group in Lambeth, south London and subsequently following expulsion from the Labour Party when he became a founding member and parliamentary candidate in Streatham for the Socialist Alliance in 2001, Greg Tucker played a crucial role in the emergence of RMT as a democratic, fighting, industrial trade union following the NUR-NUS merger in 1990.

"I am proud of the role that I have played in building one of the best parts of one of the most progressive, fighting democratic unions in this country" - Greg Tucker, 31 March 2008

Greg joined British Rail as a member of Platform staff at Vauxhall station in 1980 later becoming a Guard first at Clapham Yard and then at Waterloo depot. Following the 1988 Traincrew Agreement between BR and the trade unions Greg became part of the first tranche of Guards to become Train Drivers. Along with several of his generation who cut their trade union teeth as Guards in the 1980s, Greg maintained a fierce loyalty and commitment to industrial trade unionism through the NUR and from 1990 the RMT.

In 1992 Greg was elected Secretary of RMT’s newly formed National Conference of Train Crews & Shunting Grades, which merged the former Locomotive Grades with the Guards & Shunters Grades Conference. In a recent letter addressed to RMT Conference delegates less than a week before his death, he wrote: “I am proud of the role that I have played in building one of the best parts of one of the most progressive, fighting democratic unions in this country.”

Greg Tucker believed strongly in the common interests of all workers, but specifically in the need for Train Drivers to defend Guards’ safety and operational responsibilities against the encroachment of Driver Only Operation train services as BR sought to slash jobs and wage costs in preparation for privatisation.

Already a leading figure within RMT as a delegate at numerous AGMs during the 1990s Greg campaigned against rail privatisation. In 1999 Greg Tucker stood as candidate for General Secretary of RMT. Although unsuccessful this was an indication of the prominent position on the left that he occupied within our union. Greg was elected onto RMT’s Council of Executives for the period of office 1997-1998 where he distinguished himself by winning a successful strike ballot by RMT Guards and Driver members against plans by South West Trains to introduce Driver Only Operation trains on their suburban services.

Following SWT’s climb down and promise to withdraw DOO equipment, which they had recently purchased and begun installing at great expense, RMT’s General Grades Committee at Greg’s insistence forced SWT’s Managing Director to sign an affidavit to the effect that the DOO plan was withdrawn, a humiliation which SWT always remembered. It is Greg’s great legacy that SWT train services remain DOO-free with a Guard on every train in passenger service today.

On 10 June 2001, following his return to work after standing for the Socialist Alliance in a parliamentary General Election campaign in Streatham against sitting Labour MP, Keith Hill, Greg became the latest victim of SWT management who sought to sack him as a Train Driver and permanently exclude him from any safety-critical position. Greg fought the victimisation and triumphed at his Employment Tribunal, which found: “the dismissal was part of a concerted manoeuvre involving several influential members of the Respondents' management”. Commenting on the veracity of the SWT managers the Tribunal noted: “Like that of Mr Cook, and in striking contrast with the frank and straightforward testimony of the Applicant [Mr Tucker], we found much of Mr Marsden's evidence incredible, and some of it risible.”

At the 19th National Conference of Train Crews & Shunting Grades held in York on 1-3 April 2008, delegates unanimously and with acclaim carried the following resolution:

Recognition of Brother Greg Tucker

“This Conference thanks Brother Greg Tucker for his long-standing service as Secretary of the Train crew & Shunting Grades Conference.
“Greg is a tireless advocate for the members we represent, a proven fighter for our class and a good friend to us all. This Conference pays its deepest and most sincere thanks for his contribution and commitment to our movement and we send our best wishes to him and his family.
“We agree to hold a minute’s applause in appreciation of the role Greg has played in our trade union. Furthermore we agree to send flowers to Greg and Joan.
“Viva Greg Tucker!”

RMT members can view the web cast of Thursday morning’s Conference on RMT’s website at http://www.rmt.public-i.tv/site/?rmt=67655069360

The Funeral: will take place from 12.30-13.30 on Wednesday, 16 April 2008 at West Norwood Crematorium and Cemetery, Norwood Road, West Norwood, London SE27 9JU. Tel: 020 7926 7900. Just 5 minutes walk from West Norwood train station. Buses 2, 68, 196, 315, 322 and 468 stop outside. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=SE27+9JU+&ie=UTF8&ll=51.445663,-0.10849&spn=0.046433,0.116215&z=13&msa=0&msid=110599981159510383190.0004498867b6450fb5732

A Wake to Celebrate the Life of Greg Tucker: Greg’s many friends, workmates and comrades are welcome to join his family at the funeral and are also invited to attend a celebration of Greg’s life following the funeral from 13.30 hrs at The Bread & Roses Pub http://www.breadandrosespub.com/ 68 Clapham Manor St, London SW4 6DZ. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=SW4+6DZ&ie=UTF8&ll=51.468927,-0.1369&spn=0.023205,0.058107&z=14&msa=0&msid=110599981159510383190.0004498867b6450fb5732

Alex Gordon
Monday, 7 April 2008

See also:

Steve Sinnott and Greg Tucker: Socialists and Trade Unionists

John McDonnell, MP: April 08, 2008

Over the last week our movement has been dealt a real blow with the deaths of Steve Sinnott, General Secretary of the NUT, and Greg Tucker, longstanding Left RMT activist.

Greg Tucker was a superb example of selfless dedication to the causes of socialism and trade unionism. I have known Greg for nearly 30 years from the days he was a rank and file activist campaigning in support of the Labour Left on the GLC, through the ratecapping campaign and the miners strike and onto his excellent work representing the RMT. Greg was one of those comrades who was always there if you needed support no matter how difficult the issue and whatever flack we were coming under. He embodied the best of our movement, a thinking, extremely well read, and determined socialist. Because he was such an effective representative of RMT members he was an automatic target for management victimisation but he stood up courageously to everything thrown at him. Greg would not allow anything to stand in the way of serving his members and our movement. The real heroes and heroines of our movement are those that quietly without thought of reward devote their lives to our cause. Greg was one of those heroes whom I am immensely proud to have known.

Posted on 3:47 PM | Permalink

Financial Times: April 5 2008
By Robert Wright, Transport Correspondent

Globaltrans, Russia's largest private rail freight operator, plans to list on the London Stock Exchange in a deal that could raise about $200m (£100m) in fresh capital and value the company at about $1.3bn.

Existing shareholders in the company - which made a $128m operating profit in 2007 - expect to raise another $200m by selling about 18 per cent of the existing shares, according to people familiar with the transaction.

Globaltrans is 70 per cent- owned by N-Trans, Russia's largest transport company, formerly known as Severstaltrans, while Globaltrans' management hold the remaining 30 per cent.

The train operator - which operates 21,000 wagons and 19 locomotives - is the latest Russian company to list on the LSE after several years when they have been buoyed by strong economic growth and drawn to London to avoid the bureaucracy of New York's stringent rules.

Proceeds from the listing will be used to expand Globaltrans' fleet of wagons and locomotives, which mostly carry high-value steel and oil products.

Sergey Maltsev, chief executive, said listing would give the company new options for financing. "These new financing options result in new options for future development," he said.

In the past five years, Russia has liberalised access to its state-owned rail network, the world's second longest by route length. Private companies can own wagons, use their own locomotives over short distances and request haulage over longer distances from Russian State Railways.

The Russian state had decided to concentrate on developing the more profitable rail infrastructure, while leaving the substantial investment required in locomotives and rolling stock to private companies, Mr Maltsev said.

The desire to encourage private sector rolling stock investment meant it was in a different position from Russian companies such as Yukos, the oil company, which had suffered from Russian government interference, Mr Maltsev said. Globaltrans was also close to government bodies that set policy for rail liberalisation.

"Whatever the changes, the movements, in the industry are, we always know about them first," he said.

Globaltrans could also benefit from having been set up as a private company, rather than privatised. Many of the worst experiences for investors in Russia have been in privatised companies whose privatisation was re-examined by the state.

Posted on 1:48 PM | Permalink

Pontypridd Observer: Apr 3 2008
by Ian Caleb,

A PETITION has been launched to make it full steam ahead for a £1m scheme to restore passenger rail services to Beddau and Tynan.

With the recent openings of Pontyclun and Llanharan stations, the petitioners want the old mineral line running from Pontyclun, closed in 1952, to be reinstated.

That’s in line with proposals outlined by the South East Wales Transport Alliance which would see four stations linked to Cardiff.

Not only would the track provide Beddau and Tynant with fast transport, but it would also run parallel to the Church Village bypass – a plan already supported by rail consultants.

Terence Llewellyn, who lives at Woodland Road, Beddau, started the petition in the villages after his ideas met with interest.

He said: “At the moment the line is just sitting there, an eyesore of a disused railway track, when it could be the ideal link for the valley.

“There is also ample ground at the old coal yard at Tynant for a small station to be built and sufficient space for a car park. I ask myself why is Beddau and Tynant always the last to get any modern road and rail links?”

“Local AMs and central government are forever telling the public to get out of their cars and use public transport to save this otherwise doomed planet of ours, and this is a great opportunity.”

The line runs from Cwm Colliery all the way to Pontyclun, and has a long history as a link for the valleys.

Existing as a subsidiary of Taff Vale railway, it was used to transport Cwm Colliery’s coal and limestone at first, before being also used as a passenger line from 1875 to 1952.

The route’s usefulness for the future was also recognised by South East Wales Transport Alliance (SEWTA), which works with 10 local authorities on rail and bus links.

In a report published on rail strategy for the next 10 years, SEWTA said the new system at Cardiff Central will “allow more trains to turn back in the platforms to avoid shunting and crossing movements.”

One of its key proposals is to re-open the Beddau line with four more stations on the branch, which it is estimated will cost £1m.

Talbot Green, Llantrisant, Gwaun Meisgyn and Beddau would have stations to catch the half-hourly service, and it would run parallel to the Church Village Bypass.

Councillor Richard Yeo said the petition should help make the SEWTA plans a reality.

He said: “I think it would be such a good link for the area. The line is just sitting there, and the A4119 has been earmarked for a projected line.

“We need as many people as possible to sign the petition, with enough support it may be possible to get the railway back.”

The petition is available at the Beddau Spar, Bosley’s Newsagents and Beddau Post Office.

Posted on 7:02 PM | Permalink

Daily Guide: 04 Apr 2008
From Sam Mark Essien, Takoradi

HUNDREDS OF striking railway workers in Sekondi-Takoradi yesterday converged on their ‘holy ground’ popularly called ‘Bottom Tree’ at Ketan near Sekondi, clad in white robes and dancing to brassband music to end their two-month strike action.

The workers poured libation at Bottom Tree to renounce a curse they invoked some months ago at which time they had called on the gods to deal drastically with the Minister of Ports, Harbours and Railways should he lie to them on pertinent issues affecting their welfare.

Similar prayers were offered to neutralize other curses invoked on some senior management personnel as well as workers who had clandestinely returned to work after a unanimous decision to embark on that strike action.

Amidst brassband music, the workers marched to the Railway Workers’ Union office in Sekondi, where they poured another libation and continued on foot to the railway line at Nkontompo crossing.

The dancing, drumming and brassband music reached their apogee on their arrival at the company’s administration offices in Takoradi, where the event ended with yet another libation which was followed immediately by some carpenters and other workers removing some barricaded areas and nails on certain doors.

In an interview with Joseph Kenneth Dadzie, Chairman of the Interim Management Committee of the Railway Workers’ Union, he made it clear that it was necessary to revoke those curses now that the way was clear.

He added that since a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) had been concluded with the authorities concerned as well as government, the workers would report for work today (Friday, 4th March 2008) without fail.

Daniel Kingsford Esso, Secretary of the Interim Management Committee of the Union, said it was good that the workers stuck to their guns in fighting for their rights.

He advised the workers to put in their maximum best and skills at the workplace so that with the joint effort of government, the Ministry of Ports Harbours and Railways, National Labour Commission and other stakeholders, the company could regain its past glory.

He emphasized that each party must judiciously fulfill its part of the deal as contained in the Memorandum of Understanding so that there would be lasting peace.

It would be recalled that workers of the GRC embarked on a strike action about two months ago calling for the immediate removal of the Managing Director, Rufus Quaye and payment of their three-month salary arrears.

They also complained that their Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) had not been reviewed since 31st December 2002 and demanded a 150-percent salary increase.

See also:

Railway workers ready to resume work

Kessben.fm: 2008-04-04

Striking workers of the Ghana Railway Company Limited on Thursday assembled in Takoradi to celebrate the of their six-week long strike.

The workers, all clad in white attires and waving white handkerchiefs, white scarf, sprinkled powder on one another and danced to brass band music at the company's headquarters in Takoradi. The workers, who had a marathon meeting at the Ketan Bottom Tree, resolved to resume work on Friday April 4 and walked through some principal streets from Ketan but on reaching the New Takoradi round about, they were directed by the Police to use the rail instead of the road.

Mr. Joseph K. T. Dadzie, Interim Management Committee (IMC) Chairman poured the libation in the precincts of the company and revoked all earlier curses, invocations and called for unity and oneness among all.

He thanked the workers for their solidarity and consistency during the entire duration of the strike.

He directed that all doors which had earlier on been blocked should be re-opened to enable workers to resume work but stressed that the door to the Managing Director's office should still be under lock. At exactly 1558 hours, the workers armed with harmers, pinch bars started removing all wooden boards used to seal off the office whilst the workers clapped and cheered. Earlier, when the Ghana News Agency (GNA) visited the office the entire place was dusty, dirty and still had red flags flying at several vantage points.

See also:

Railway workers call Off Strike

Happy Ghana.com: 4/3/2008

By Henrietta Abayie

WORKERS OF the Ghana Railway Company Limited will return to work on Friday April 4, 2008.

This was the outcome of a meeting held in Accra on Tuesday April 1, 2008 among the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Railway Workers Union of the Ghana Railway Company Limited (GRC), the Ministries of Manpower, Youth and Employment, Harbours and Railways, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the National Labour Commission (NLC).

The meeting was held under the chairmanship of the Minister of Manpower, Youth and Employment, Hon. Nana Akomea.

A statement issued in Accra yesterday and signed by Nana Anim Mante, Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Manpower, Youth & Employment, noted that the IMC of the railway workers had agreed to call off the strike and resume work as contained in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by Hon. Nana Akomea, Hon. Sophia Horner-Sam, Deputy Minister for Ministry of Harbours and Railways; Joseph K. T. Dadzie, Chairman of the IMC of the Railway Workers Union and Mr. Kofi Asmoah, Ag. Secretary General, Trades Union Congress.

The MOU spelt out conditions such as: prompt payment of outstanding salary arrears; establishment of a committee to investigate grievances expressed by the workers and the submission of the report of the committee within 21 days of its inception; and recovering of the Standing Joint Negotiation Committee (SJNC) to review the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) including wages and salaries which elapsed in 2000.

Commenting on the aftermath of the strike, the MOU indicated that no worker would be victimized for participating in the industrial action, and also promised regular payment of salaries to all stations monthly.

It further noted that the management of Railways and the Workers Union shall reconvene the SJNC to review the CBA.

“Government should reconsider its decision on payment of subvention to Ghana Railway Company whilst speeding up the privatization process,” the MOU stressed.

According to the agreement, while all railway lands given out to private individuals and companies for development shall be investigated, the Ministry of Harbours and Railways shall also investigate with the view to reviewing all contracts outsourcing track maintenance.

The Chairman of the IMC of the Railway Workers Union reiterated the “total commitment” of the Ghana Railway Company Limited to collaborate with Government, Board and Management to ensure the “growth and sustainability” of the railways system in Ghana.

On her part, the Deputy Minister for Harbours and Railways, Madam Sophia Horner-Sam, pledged government’s commitment to revamp the railway sector.

According to her, government had allocated $90million for the rehabilitation of the Western line of the railway network in the country. All stakeholders were urged to abide by the terms and conditions agreed upon in the MOU.

See also:

Railway workers call off strike

Ghana Broadcasting Corporation: 2 April, 2008

Workers of the Ghana Railway Company Limited have decided to call off their strike action and resume work on Friday, April 4. A statement issued in Accra on Wednesday by the Ministry of Manpower, Youth and Employment said this follows a meeting attended by the Interim Management Committee of the Railway Workers Union, the Ministry of Manpower, Youth and Employment, Ministry of Harbours and Railways, the TUC and National Labour Commission.

The statement said the meeting held under the chairmanship of the Minister of Manpower, Youth and Employment, Nana Akomea agreed on a number of key issues that formed the basis of a memorandum of understanding signed by the stakeholders. These are prompt payment of outstanding salary arrears and establishment of a committee to investigate grievances expressed by the workers and the submission of the report within 21 days of its inception.

Another issue is the reconvening of the Standing Joint Negotiation Committee to review the Collective Bargaining Agreement, including wages and salaries which elapsed in 2000. The statement said the Interim Chairman of the Railway Workers Union, K.T. Dadzie, reiterated the "total commitment" of workers of the Company to collaborate with government, board and management to ensure the growth and sustainability of the railway system in Ghana.

The Deputy Minister of Harbours and Railways, Mrs. Sophia Horner-Sam pledged government's commitment to revamp the railway sector. She said the government has allocated 90 million dollars for the rehabilitation of the Western line. The meeting urged all stakeholders to abide by the terms and conditions agreed in the MOU.

A Sekondi High Court on Monday adjourned to April 9, a case in which the National Labour Commission (NLC) had instituted legal action against the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Ghana Railway Company (GRC) for not calling off an industrial strike began on February 15, this year.

The workers were demanding the removal of their Managing Director, Rufus Quaye, a 150 per cent increase in their salaries and payment of outstanding four months' salary.

See also:

High Court adjourns Railway/NLC case

Accra Daily Mail: April 02, 2008

A Sekondi High Court on Monday adjourned to April 9 a case in which the National Labour Commission (NLC) has instituted legal action against the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Ghana Railway Company (GRC) for not calling off an industrial strike began on February 15.

The IMC members are Joseph K. T. Dadzie, Alex Boateng, E. Quansah, Daniel K. Esso, Francis Dadzie and Isaac Asare.

The IMC was represented by Mr Asempa J. K. Mensah, Mr Joseph E.K. Abekah and Mr A. H. Bodza-Lumor, while Ms. Efiba Amihere represented the NLC.

Mr Mensah told the court presided over by Justice Anthony Oppong that the IMC received the service on March 26 but under the rules, they must be served for three clear days before they appear in court and that the service was too short.

Mr Justice Oppong said the applicants should have allowed for three clear days before any action could begin and therefore adjourned to April 9.

Thousands of striking Ghana Railway Workers and their interim management Committee (IMC) besieged the court premises and brought proceedings at the three courts to a halt for almost three hours.

The workers clad in red arm, head and neck bands, arrived at the premises at 0700hours amidst brass band music, singing and dancing.

The court premises looked like a battle ground and the workers carried placards and a big banner.

Policemen were brought in to ensure law and order but their arrival rather incensed the workers.

The workers are demanding the removal of their Managing Director, Mr. Rufus Quaye, 150 percent adjustment in their salaries and the payment of outstanding four months’ salary.

Posted on 6:33 PM | Permalink

Nottingham Evening Post: 04 April 2008
JON ROBINSON ENVIRONMENT CORRESPONDENT

Union chiefs are to ballot for possible strike action on trains to and from Nottingham.

About 150 senior conductors will be asked whether to strike or take other industrial action, following a row over Sunday shift cover.

If a strike goes ahead, it would hit local services from Nottingham but would not affect trains to London.

The row started when East Midlands Trains told the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) Union it was planning to ask managers to provide emergency cover on senior conductor shifts on Sundays.

A number of Sunday services had to be cancelled because of a lack of senior conductors - who are responsible for the safety of the train and passengers.

East Midlands Trains, which took over the franchise from Central Trains in November last year, has a voluntary arrangement for covering Sundays.

And with no cash incentive, many senior conductors were choosing not to work.

A spokesman for the RMT said: "East Midlands Trains say they have had problems covering Sundays, which has led to the cancellation of some services.

"They proposed to use managers and all sorts to cover the job. That is unsafe in our view. A senior conductor is in charge of a train - not the driver.

"They are responsible for the safety of the train and customers. There is strict training for them.

"If there is a problem with Sunday coverage it is because they are not paying enough."

The spokesman said the company had introduced an ad-hoc payment system for senior conductors which had helped ensure the Sunday posts were covered in the past two weeks. But he said when RMT officials asked for this arrangement to be made formal, the company made the proposal for emergency cover by managers.

"We have said we will sit down and negotiate with the company over it but we are not looking for any dilution of safety," he said.

The ballot is understood to involve a total of 150 senior conductors - including about 110 based in Nottingham.

It could be up to five weeks before any industrial action comes into effect.

East Midlands Trains said it was "very disappointed" about the ballot.

The company said it had already enhanced Sunday payments for senior conductors to encourage volunteers.

Managing director Tim Shoveller said: "We have actually run over 97% of all Sunday services. Under the previous franchise on some Sundays there were as few as 50% of services running because of a shortage of staff.

"This is a fantastic improvement, achieved through better management and with the flexibility and commitment of our staff.

"I thank our staff for their continued dedication but we must now find a permanent solution to ensure the reliability of Sunday services.

"We're confused and disappointed that the RMT do not understand that we must be confident that we can operate our trains every day of the week for passengers. It's not something we can leave to chance."

Posted on 10:18 AM | Permalink

The Scotsman: 01 April 2008
ALASTAIR DALTON

TRAIN drivers and other First ScotRail staff have won a 5 per cent pay rise this year and at least 3 per cent the following year, The Scotsman has learned.

The company's 900 drivers have accepted the deal and its remaining 3,200 staff are expected to follow suit.

It will raise drivers' pay to at least £34,620 in a year's time.

The agreement, which comes into force today, will see pay increasing by 5 per cent this year.

This will be followed by a further 3 per cent rise – or the retail price index if higher – next April.

The two drivers' unions, Aslef and the RMT, have accepted the offer and other staff are being balloted.

Mary Dickson, First ScotRail's managing director, said: "Our commitment to investing in our team through pay and conditions is essential to taking the business forward and securing ongoing improvements for our customers."

Kevin Lindsay, the district organiser for Scotland for Aslef, said: "This is a reasonable settlement, but First ScotRail drivers still lag behind their intercity colleagues, and we will be looking to close that gap."

Posted on 10:13 AM | Permalink

EIRO: 01 April, 2008
Máté Komiljovics, Institute for Political Science, Hungarian Academy of Sciences

Three railway trade unions from Hungary and Austria, as well as the works councils of three railway companies from the two countries, have concluded an agreement on guidelines for cooperation and negotiations after the recent takeover of MÁV Cargo by Rail Cargo Austria and Győr-Sopron-Ebenfurt Railway.

The trade union cross-border cooperation aims to reduce wage differences, enhance employee benefits, strengthen relations and improve health and safety.

Consortium wins tender for MÁV Cargo

The Hungarian Minister of Economy and Transport, Csaba Kákosy, announced on 27 November 2007 that an Austro-Hungarian consortium had won the bid for the privatisation of MÁV Cargo Zrt – the freight transport arm of the Hungarian Railway Company (Magyar Államvasutak, MÁV). The consortium – which consists of the freight subsidiary, Rail Cargo Austria (RCA), of Austrian Federal Railways (Österreichische Bundesbahnen, ÖBB) and the Austro-Hungarian cross-border company Győr-Sopron-Ebenfurt Railway (Győr-Sopron-Ebenfurti Vasút, GYSEV) – offered HUF 102.5 billion (€395 million, as at 18 March 2008) for a 100% stake in MÁV’s freight business.

Trade union agreement

Cooperation and relations have been excellent between the Austrian and Hungarian railway trade unions for many years; this has facilitated their reaching an agreement on guidelines for cooperation and negotiations after the takeover. The first contact between the Austrian and Hungarian railway unions on this issue took place in early 2007 when MÁV had announced a tender invitation for MÁV Cargo and RCA expressed interest in it.

The trade unions declared in the course of the tender process that they preferred the Austro-Hungarian consortium because its offer included a guarantee to continue employing MÁV Cargo employees for the next three years. The other reason for their support of the consortium was the proposal to offer employees 5% of the shares at half of the current market price.

The signatories to the trade union agreement included representatives of the Free Union of Railway Workers (Vasúti Dolgozók Szabad Szakszervezete, VDSZSZ), the Trade Union of Hungarian Railwaymen (Vasutasok Szakszervezete, VSZ), the transport section of the Austrian trade union VIDA, and the works councils of MÁV Cargo, RCA and GYSEV.

Content of agreement

The accord consists of different issues providing a framework for all members of the employee side in Austria and Hungary. The President of the transport section of VIDA, Wilhelm Haberzettl, explained: ‘We signed a unique agreement which has not existed so far in the region.’ He noted that the cooperation between Austrian and Hungarian trade unions had always been close but that the agreement would bring additional benefits. Mr Haberzettl highlighted that employees of MÁV Cargo earn at least 40%–60% less than their colleagues at RCA, which is one of the most important issues to be resolved.

The agreement also addresses the employment of engine drivers: both countries’ trade unions concur that the drivers must be employed in their own country.

Reactions to agreement

The President of VSZ, Simon Dezső, stated that the trade union agreement showed that railway tracks do not end, but rather start, at national borders. Mr Dezső added that the accord had been concluded after several rounds of negotiations held in Austria and in Hungary. More specifically, an official of VDSZSZ, Mózes Tibor, emphasised that the agreement may improve job security and corporate culture, secure wage increases and improve health and safety issues. The President of the works councils of RCA, Werner Harrer, urged the three companies’ works councils to meet as soon as possible and take steps towards the foundation of a European Works Council.

Participants in the negotiations agreed that the objectives of the agreement were to: develop a common position on issues arising, reduce wage differences among the employees, maintain the employee benefit of free rail travel, expand the Employee Benefits Programme, and provide training or education options – mostly language courses.

The signatories of the agreement are certain that RCA’s aim is to operate more efficiently in southeastern Europe but the trade unions’ aim is to avoid ‘social dumping’. Everybody agreed that employees should not be played against each other. With the acquisition of MÁV, RCA became the third largest rail company after the German Deutsche Bahn and the French SNCF.

Posted on 11:39 PM | Permalink