In this week’s news from the light rail sector – Edinburgh Trams becomes a Living Wage employer, over £1m for improved cycle storage at stops across Metrolink’s Bury line, engineering works in Dublin and first new train for Tyne and Wear Metro.

UKTram

The light rail sector’s representative organisation has appointed Lindsay Murphy as its Interim Chair at a board meeting this week.

A transport engineering specialist with over 30 years’ experience, Lindsay first joined the UKTram board in 2019, and her broad experience has already proved valuable to the organisation as it strives to support its members and promote the benefits of light rail.

A Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers, Lindsay has a proven track record in the delivery of major transport projects and you can read more here.

In other light rail news:

Edinburgh Trams

The tram operator has become an accredited Living Wage employer, which will see all of its employees receive a minimum hourly wage of £10.90 per hour.

This rate is significantly higher than the government minimum for over 23s, which currently stands at £9.50 per hour and the announcement strengthens plans to “Make Edinburgh a Living Wage City” while tackling in-work poverty.

The real Living Wage is the only UK wage rate calculated according to the costs of living and you can read the full story here.

Manchester Metrolink

More than £1m is being spent on new and improved cycle storage at stops across Metrolink’s Bury line.

High quality cycle parking, including covered Sheffield stands with lighting and CCTV, will be installed at eight stops to make it easier and safer for people to scoot or cycle to and from their local tram stop.

The £1.2m scheme is being funded through the Mayor’s Challenge Fund (MCF) which is supporting the delivery of cycling, walking and wheeling infrastructure within the Bee Network, Greater Manchester’s vision for an integrated public transport and active travel system. To read more, click here.

Luas

The operator of Dublin’s tramway will be carrying out essential engineering works on the Green Line to upgrade overhead cables.

These works are part of an ongoing maintenance programme to ensure trams can continue to operate safely. Luas Green Line operating hours will be temporarily impacted on a number of dates in March and further details can be found here.

Red Line Operating Hours are not affected by these works.

Tyne & Wear Metro 

The Tyne and Wear Metro’s first new train arrived in North East England this week, after Stadler successfully delivered it from their factory in Switzerland – heralding a landmark moment for the £362m programme.

The Stadler Class 555 Metro train, the first of 46 that Nexus has on order, will undergo a period of testing and driver training before entering customer service in the autumn.

Nexus, the public body which owns and manages Metro, said it was a proud moment for the network, its customers, and its workforce. More new trains will arrive in the region later this year and you can read more here.

Heritage

Thanks to a combination of donations, ticket sales, and support from Blackpool Council and Blackpool Transport, Blackpool’s Heritage Tram Tours has secured the finances to deliver Phase One of its Tramtown Vision.

This will ensure the continued maintenance and running of Heritage Trams for years to come.

As reported here, Phase One already includes a new roof for a third of the tram shed, a new headbeam, new partition wall, repairs to the gutters and drains and the relocation of engineering equipment into the redeveloped facility.

LRSSB

Light rail safety professionals now have free access to the most up-to-date legislation, thanks to a new agreement between the LRSSB and the best-known provider of specialist information services.

Founded in 1957, Barbour EHS also provides regular updates on changes to UK legislation across a number of key areas, including health and safety, environment and energy, estates and facilities management, fire and security, and mental health and wellbeing.

The agreement with Barbour provides significant value for our customers, giving them easy access to legislation, guidance and policies from over 800 trusted sources. These include documents produced by the Health and Safety Executive, the Environment Agency and the British Standards Institute, as well as a host of trade organisations. To find out more, click here.

To be included in the next round-up, or the Members News section of the UKTram website, send your press releases to info@uktram.org.