The rail industry has been a constant topic of conversation over the past 12 months. From HS2 to the 10-year life extension of the current rolling stock and from Bombardier’s £1billion contract to the terrible damage caused by the recent inclement weather; trains and tracks have rarely been out of the news.

The early weeks of the New Year were dominated by the desperate news from the south west of England, in particular, where many sections of track were either submerged or damaged beyond repair.

With the storms having given way to a spell of brighter weather and rebuilding work ongoing, the attention now has turned to other matters, like HS2. This week HS2 chairman Sir David Higgins claimed that building work on the northern section of the £50bn high-speed project, should be accelerated.

In his new report for the government, called HS2 Plus, Higgings says the initial part of the project should run from London to Crewe by 2027, instead of merely reaching Birmingham by 2026. The second phase of HS2 could then be completed by 2030 instead of 2033.

“The section north of Birmingham to Crewe is relatively straightforward to build, and relatively lower-cost than other parts of the northern network,” he said.

Read more on this at the BBC website.

Having worked closely within the industry since the early days of the new Millennium, Simon Jones, CEO and managing director of PRV, has kept a close eye on the recent developments within the rail industry.

He said; “The industry has hardly been out of the news. Some of it good, some of it bad.

Our link with the industry dates back 14 years to when we first started to provide parts. Nowadays, we provide everything, from little electrical contacts to parts for points and from parts for carriages to parts for track laying equipment.

It’s certainly interesting to read what is going on within the rail industry and of course to see the level of business coming into the industry.”

What’s your view on HS2 or the rail industry in general? Why not post a comment below?.

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