Storm Éowyn brings debris and disruption to the railway

Welcome back to This Week on the Railway. I'm Seb, and it's 26 January 2025, the end of a very busy fourth week of the year. Let's take a look at what's happened.

Contactless ticketing: To begin the week, the Department for Transport announced that tap-in tap-out ticketing would be rolling out at 47 more stations in the South East of England. Passengers will be able to make use of contactless ticketing at these stations starting 2 February.

I have included the full list of stations at the bottom of this article. It includes the entire c2c network, as well as several stations served by London Northwestern Railway, South Western Railway, Southeastern, and Thameslink.

"We want our customers to travel with ease with fares that reflect travellers’ needs post-pandemic. We’re delighted that pay as you go technology is being expanded to 47 stations which will provide convenience, simplicity and flexibility, making it easier than ever for customers to pay and travel seamlessly.

"We are committed to developing a simpler and better-value fare system that not only meets our customers’ expectations but also supports the long-term growth of rail travel and enhances the overall customer experience."

Jacqueline Starr, Chief Executive, Rail Delivery Group

Station consultation: Network Rail launched a consultation for Manchester Oxford Road, as they plan improvements to platforms, track, and signalling at the station. There are two information sessions being held at Friends' Meeting House, 6 Mount Street, M2 5NS, on 1 February 11 am to 4 pm, and on 17 February 2 pm to 7 pm.

Boost for Bradford: On Tuesday, LNER shared its plans to increase the number of direct services between Bradford and London Kings Cross. Starting with the May 2025 timetable change, LNER will offer an additional five services in each direction throughout the week. On Sundays, it intends to offer two direct services a day in each direction, up from one.

The additional capacity at Bradford Forster Square is coming from the construction of a platform 0, which was planned specifically with additional LNER services in mind.

"We are proud to be introducing additional services to and from Bradford, especially during the year it celebrates UK City of Culture status. We are delighted to be the official travel partner of Bradford 2025.

"The extra LNER services will make it even easier for people to visit the region and enjoy all it has to offer, while also benefiting the area by contributing an estimated £4 million per year of economic value."

David Horne, Managing Director, LNER

New Director for Network Rail: Dave Hooper will join Network Rail's Southern division as its Managing Director on 1 May. He will be responsible for the company's activities throughout Devon, in the west, to Kent, in the east.

He has held a variety of positions across the industry, including at Osborne, Transport for London, and Serco Rail. Dave is currently Director of Major Programmes at Siemens Mobility.

"I'm exhilarated to be joining the Network Rail Executive Leadership team at such an exciting time for the UK’s railway. I look forward to working together as one team, with the teams across Network Rail and with our wider industry partners, to improve the service offering for our passengers and freight customers."

Dave Hooper

His predecessor, Ellie Burrows, will be moving to the same role for the Eastern division, replacing Jake Kelly. Jake will move to the North West & Central division, replacing Rob McIntosh, who will become the independent chair of the Transpennine Route Upgrade programme board.

Plenty of movement within the upper levels of Network Rail.

Growth for Eurostar: Eurostar, the company operating international rail services between London and mainland Europe, recorded growth in passenger numbers in 2024. 19.5 million customers travelled with the operator last year, representing a 5% increase on 2023's figures. At least part of this increased demand will have come from the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games, which were held in the French capital over the summer. The route that saw the most growth, with over 280,000 additional passengers, was unsurprisingly between London and Paris.

"Eurostar continued its strong growth in 2024, breaking its own previous passenger records. I would like to thank our customers and recognise the efforts of our teams for this excellent result in the company’s 30th year. Looking ahead, this is further proof of the huge demand for international rail and the great potential of sustainable travel. Eurostar is targeting growth to 30 million passengers and investing in up to 50 new trains as a direct result, with the aim of delivering a unique and exceptional service long into the future."

Gwendoline Cazenave, CEO, Eurostar

Storm Éowyn: Last but very much not least was Storm Éowyn, which wreaked havoc on train services across Scotland, the north of England, and north Wales. I travelled today with ScotRail, two days after the red weather warnings expired, and still felt the effects with some disruption between Edinburgh and Glasgow.

ScotRail withdrew all its services on Friday, 24 January, TransPennine Express issued 'Do Not Travel' advice, and the East Coast Main Line was closed north of Newcastle, among other steps taken in response to the storm.

Network Rail spent much of Saturday morning inspecting their routes for damage and debris, with chainsaw teams sent out to remove fallen trees from the tracks. Some of these checks were carried out by helicopter, as was the case around Manchester.

Yes, there is still some disruption, but we're nearly back to normal. And with that, I'll round off this week's instalment of the newsletter. Same time next week? Thanks for reading.

Stations receiving contactless ticketing

• Apsley
• Ashford
• Basildon
• Bat & Ball
• Benfleet
• Berkhamsted
• Bletchley
• Bricket Wood
• Chalkwell
• Cheddington
• Datchet
• Dunton Green
• East Tilbury
• Egham
• Eynsford
• Garson
• Hemel Hempstead
• How Wood
• Kempton Park
• King's Langley
• Laindon
• Leigh-on-Sea
• Leighton Buzzard
• Otford
• Park Street
• Pitsea
• Sevenoaks
• Shepperton
• Shoeburyness
• Shoreham
• Southend Central
• Southend East
• St. Albans Abbey
• Staines
• Stanford-le-Hope
• Sunbury
• Sunnymeads
• Thorpe Bay
• Tilbury Town
• Tring
• Upper Halliford
• Virginia Water
• Watford North
• West Horndon
• Westcliff
• Windsor & Eton Riverside
• Wraysbury