News from the East Anglian Branch of Railfuture, edited by Martin Thorne and Jerry Alderson.
Railfuture News Snippets 392 - 30/11/2025
- EAST WEST RAIL LINK [all issues]
- East West Railway Company publishes revised proposals following feedback from consultation
- Chiltern Railways provides update on start of East West Rail services between Oxford and Milton Keynes
- WEBSITES AND APPS [all issues]
On 6th November 2025, Network Rail (NR) informed Railfuture, rail user groups (such as a FLUA), local politicians and other stakeholders of the very disappointing news that the opening of Cambridge South station has been pushed back to June 2026 because one of its key sub-cotractors, which was performing a "critical internal fit-out of the station's electrical and mechanical systems, has gone into administration. NR had previously announced that it would open in 'early Janaury 2026', a date that was already months later than originally expected because the necessary signalling works had been delayed. Realtime Trains (RTT) had been showing trains running from 26th Jauary 2026. See article on the Construction News website. When Railfuture attended a site visit in May 2025, NR had said that the contractors would be leaving the site in October 2025, but this has not yet happened.
The UK government has announced that regulated fares in England will be frozen in 2026, with the anticipated increases based on July 2025's RPI rate not taking place. This is the first time since privatisation in the mid-1990s that the goverment has prevented regulated fares (which account for almost half of those purchased by passengers) from increasing (there was a one-off yeer during the financial crisis when RPI went negative so there were no rises). However, the government has not said what will happen to unregulaed fares, such as advance, rangers and rovers and First Class. Given that the government has controlled the passenger railway since March 2020 the concept of regulated and unregulated fares has not really existed since the government could set fares to whatever it wished (operators became merely outsourced contractors to deliver what the government wanted, talking no fare revenue). The government claimed that "commuters on the more expensive routes will save more than £300 per year" (against an increase of RPI+1pp) although it does depends on frequency of travel (the press release quoted a saving of £315 for someone using a flexi-season ticket to travel three times a week from Milton Keynes to London). It is estimated that transport costs make up 14 per cent of household spending, with the government saying that cutting the cost of living is a priority. See article.
In the budget announcement on 26th November 2025, the Chancellor said that the Government is committed to progressing key rail schemes (see article). Although Rachel Reeves namechecked the Midlands Rail Hub, Transpennine Route Upgrade and Northern Powerhouse Rail there was no mention of anything in East Anglia.
It was announced in late November 2025 that Alex Hynes has been appointed as the new chief executive of Department for Transport Operator Limited (DFTO) to lead the next phase in the transition to GBR. Alex will replace Robin Gisby, who is retiring, on 24th December 2025. See news story.
GTR has announced that Great Northern and Thameslink trains will be replaced by buses between Royston and Cambridge North from Saturday 27th December 2025 to Sunday 4th January 2026. This is to allow for further work on the 'C3R' Cambridge area re-signalling scheme and to get infrastructure ready for the new station at Cambridge South opening in summer 2026. Meanwhile for different reasons, London Liverpool Street station will be closed between 25th December 2025 and 1st January 2026 inclusive for work on the roof (replacing 224 roof panels with 53 access hatches above the concourse and removing scaffolding from an earlier phase of the roof project) and improving the drainage system.
Greater Anglia (GA) has announced that the planned extension of 'Pay As You Go' (PAYG) contactless ticketing to a further 20 stations across its network, which would have included Stansted Airportand Southend Airport, has been postponed for technical reasons (problems involving integration with TfL's fare system identified during testing) and is now expected to take place in summer 2026. GA's signs at Liverpool Street station warning passeners not to use contactless to go to Stansted airport will need to rmeian in placeruntil it is working. See article for a list of new contactless stations.
Charlotte Cane, the MP for Ely & East Cambridgeshire, has announced in her bulletin to constituents that she had recently obtaedin a response from Rail Minister Keir Mather about the vital rail upgrade for the Ely area (known as the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement, EACE) who had replied: "I fully recognise the strategic importance of the EACE programme. It has a strong case for future investment, and we are committed to working with stakeholders to support its place in the pipeline of future rail enhancements." Whilst many may see this as a worthless 'holding position' reply, Ms Cane described it as "the first meaningful concession in a positive direction" that she had obtained. She also had a "constructive meeting" with Lord Hendy, Minister for Rail, to "urge further research and planning to demonstrate the full economic benefits of the scheme." On 20th Noveeber 2025 a BBC article with the title "'Historic underinvestment' holding back region" about a report produced by local MPs included calls for investment and criticised the lack of funding to resolve the railway bottlenecks.
According to a BBC News article the semaphore signals at Manea, on the line between Ely and March, which were removed on 1st November 2025, could have been the last in use in the entire Eastern region, althugh the Network Rail (NR) media spokesperson contactewd by the BBC could not be sure. Of course, this doesn't mean that NR is cluesless as to what infrestructure it has, merely that the BBC published its article before the situation had been confirmed. The article did not mention whether the signal would be donated to a heritage railway or simply scrapped.
The recent Greater Anglia (GA) 'Stakeholder News' communication reveals that a waiting room at Saxmundham station has been transformed into a welcoming community space, thanks to a £6,500 grant from GA's Customer and Community Improvement Fund.
A new cycle parking area, which cost £200,000, is now open at Bury St Edmunds station. The fully-enclosed Cycle Hub is located at the station's northern entrance and replaces the former car wash waiting room. It has 16 cycles in a secure, access-controlled area that requires a smartcard costing £25 a year and is also covered by CCTV. There are also 52 spaces normal on a first-come, first-served basis. The Cycle Hub has been funded in partnership with the Department for Transport (funds managed by Sustrans), Suffolk County Council, and West Suffolk Council.
A brand new bus departures real-time info screen has been installed above the station exit at Cambridge station. It shows bus route numbers, destinations, departure stops, and countdowns to departures in minutes. The aim is to make it easier and quickler for passengers to work out where to go to board the right bus. It has been installed in collaboration with local bus operator Stagecoach East, which has partly funded the screen.
The footbridge at Woodbridge station, which is on the East Suffolk Line, will be closed for six weeks until 24th December 2025 for reapirs, according to a BBC News article. Work will strengthen steelwork, paint the footbridge, and install new handrails with integrated lighting.
Network Rail has thanked passengers for their patience after completing further work to progress the digital in-cab signalling system (ETCS) on the East Coast Main Line (ECML) over the weekend of 22nd and 23rd November 2025 (as mentioned in [Snippets 391]). The testing over the weekend saw the East Cosat Digital programme (ECDP) achieve a landmark with the first instance of two trains operating with ETCS at the same time on an inter-city main line in Britain. This was achieved involving two Great Northern class 717 units. The weekend also saw testing involving a Grand Central class 180 unit, and data updates across different elements of the ETCS system (trackside interlocking and also the Radio Block Centre, proving desk and signaller screens at York Rail Operating Centre). Work also took place enabling balises in the track that communicate with the trains to be 'unshielded' (i.e. left switched on), which will enable future testing periods to be more efficient. Passenger services are expected to begin using digital signalling through the Welwyn to Hitchin section in 2026. See article.
Over the weekends of 15th/16th and 29th/30th November 2025, Network Rail (NR) will be completing the latest stage of a project to swap out 40-year-old signalling components at the Norwich end of the Great Eastern Mainline (GEML). As well as being more reliable, the new digital parts are compatiblewith potential further upgrades to signalling equipment, helping to future-proof the railway. See Network Rail media release. While trains are not running, NR will perform maintenance on the overhead line equipment between Diss and Norwich.
In mid-November 2025, Network Rail frmally launched its new property development company, Platform4, which is set to develop brownfield railway land and lead infrastructure-led regeneration projects that are vital for the growth of towns, cities, and the railway. The company has been created from the merger of London & Continental Railways Ltd and Network Rail's Property Development business. It is predicted that Platform4 will enable 40,000 new homes alongside 10 million sq ft of commercial space over the next ten years, transforming significant areas of railway land — from major stations and station land to former goods yards — into new communities. See article.
The government announced in November 2025 that housebuilding around railway stations will be given a default "yes" if the new homes meet certain rules, which the Government says will ensure more high-quality, affordable homes are built in and around key towns and cities, saving commuters time and boosting access to housing. Housebuilders will be encouraged to build more homes near these transport links, and councils in England will also now be required to tell the government when they intend to reject new housing developments of 150 homes or more, with the Housing Secretary able to have the final say on whether they should go ahead — these changes will be introduced alongside proposals to streamline the statutory consultee process (reducing the number of applications considered by some statutory consultees by up to 40 per cent), further saving developers time and money, ensuring spades can get in the ground quicker. The intention is that more people will be able to live near stations, which will help connect people to towns and cities, and open the door to new job and education opportunities. Naturally, Railfuture supports the principle as it wants to see higher patronage on the railway — more people having a nearby station reduces the end-to-end journey time and shifts people from road to rail. The default 'yes' policy also builds on work already underway following the launch of the Platform4 property company (see above) set to unlock brownfield land near railway stations.
Three additional Rail 200 'Inspiration' train locations within the East Anglia branch area have been confirmed for 2026. These are Cambridge station (in platform 3) on Saturday 31st January and Sunday 1st February, Colchester station on Tuesday 3rd and Wednesday 4th February and Clacton-on-Sea station on Thursday 5th and Friday 6th February. Bookings are already open for visitors to secure their free place via the Railway 200 website. Booked visits will begin at 10:00 and the last entry will be at 16:00 with the train closing at 17:00. Visits are expected to last for one hour. Railfuture hopes to have a stall (shared with the local CRP) in the fourth carriage when it is at Cambridge.
During closing arguments for the two-month long public inquiry for the proposed Cambourne to Cambridge (C2C) busway, CPCA mayor Paul Bristow said it would be a £200m white elephant, according to the Cambridge Independent newspaper, claiming that the plans are "uncertain, expensive and backward". In his statement, which was read by his chief of staff, Peter Graham, the mayor also said that the controversial proposals also conflict with his ambition to develop a light rail network for Cambridge. Following the same attack as the even more controversial Cambridgeshire Guided Busway, which was built on the then mothballed St Ives railway line, he said: "C2C's supporters recognise the need to do something — and this is something. Because it has taken time to get to this stage, they feel obliged to keep going rather than thinking again. The GCP feels obliged to keep going with busways because they are all it has left before its time is up. But none of this makes this busway a good idea. None of that makes it provide value for money." Unusually, the inquiry has two inspectors, Geoff Underwood and Richard Clegg. The busway proposals were devised by the Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP), which is seen by some as fanatical about buses. On 23rd November 2025 (two days after the inquiry closed on 21st November) the BBC published a related article under the somewhat strange title of "Maybe I'm a Nimby, says neighbour of proposed busway."
A BBC news story on 29th November 2025 about the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway reported on documents produced for Cambridgeshire County Council's highways and transport committee meeting to be held on 2nd December 2025. Until the £6.5m project to install permanent fencing along the busway route was completed, a blanket 30mph (48km/h) speed limit was imposed on the northern section in October 2025 along with a 20mph limit on the southern section. The meeting document said that passenger numbers were "down due to the increased journey time" caused by longer journey times; bus companies Stagecoach and Whippet were "supportive" of the fencing works — hardly a surprise as they could hardly criticise it after three people had been killed by buses — but "expressed concern over the longer-term impact of the current works." The council's papers mentioned that "The increased journey times can have an impact on the attractiveness of busway services and have resulted in operational difficulties for the bus companies." The most recent data showed a drop of 6.8% year-on-year on Busway A customers and 8.6% on Busway B customers.
The East Anglian Daily Times reported that the plan to demolish the historic water tower at Bury St Edmunds station had been refused on 27th November 2025 after a number of objections including from Historic England and Bury St Edmunds Town Trust. The water tower, which was built in 1847 and has been listed since 1972, will not be removed after West Suffolk Council refused the plans submitted by Network Rail, which had claimed it was necessary because "of structural instability and disrepair" as it alledgedly posed a risk to public safety and trackside operations at the station. The town trust said: "The water tower is in exceptionally poor order due to neglect of maintenance over a long period." and it should have been kept in a "sound condition".
On 29th November 2025 on the Hereward Line between Ely and Peterborough there were two special 'Santa Train' services, with 11:00 and 13:00 departures from Ely.
On 20th November 2025, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) announced the results of its rolling stock analysis for trains in Britain. The average train age is up by 0.1 years to 16.7 years. Changes to Merseyrail's stock saw the largest annual decrease in average age from 9.8 years to 4.0. Chiltern Railways has the oldest fleet at 32 years. GTR is at 12.3 years and GA third best at 4.8 years. See ORR info.
Greater Anglia says (see article it has completed the installation of large fixed tables in the four seating bays on its 12-car Class 745/1 Stansted Express trains. The smaller fold-down tables on the rear of the seats of the two bay seats have been retained. When the trains were built, they were designed for long-distance commuter work on outer London services on the Great Eastern Main Line. Since then, the 745/1s have been used on regular services on the Stansted Express. The installation of larger tables began in July 2024. The table installation is also covered on the GA website - see here.
East Midlands Railway (EMR) has confirmed that the first of its 33 brand-new Aurora trains will enter service in December 2025. This does not directly affect services in East Anglia, as the nearest location that the trains will serve is Bedford.
The European Passengers Federation (EPF), of which Railfuture is a member, has announced that is next annual conference will be held in Maastricht in the Netherlands on 5th and 6th June 2026. It wil be held in the 'Gouvernement aan de Maas' building, where in 1992 the EU treaty was signed. The focus of the conference will be the modal shift from fossil to sustainable mobility: less cars, more walking, cycling and public transport in cities and regions; more trains and buses in cross border and international travels.
The Whitwell & Reepham railway will be running its popular Santa Trains on 13th, 14th, 19th and 20th December 2025 from 16:30 and 17:30 (17:30 and 18:30 on the 19th). Tickets are £15 for adults, £17.50 for children aged 2-16 years, and £7.50 for children under 2 years and include a drink and mince pie on arrival. It also has Christmas Day lunch, a New Year Eve celebration. In 2026 there will be more chances for a Steam Experience driving a train. The 'Silver' version includes: 60 minutes on the footplate, taking charge of the engine, learning to start, stop and control speed and direction from an experienced driver, a site tour, a £20 meal voucher to use at The Sidings restaurant and a certificate to commemorate the experience.
EAST WEST RAIL LINK
East West Railway Company publishes revised proposals following feedback from consultation
On 19th November 2025 the East West Railway Company (EWR Co) revealed more than 80 changes — including major updates — to its proposals, which it says has been shaped by extensive public consultation and detailed technical design work. The latest proposals enable EWR to play an essential role in the opportunities for economic growth in the corridor between Oxford, Milton Keynes, Bedford and Cambridge. Its 'You Said, We Did' report follows analysis of thousands of consultation responses collected at the start of 2025.
The new proposals (see article) include:
- Cambridge station will have an eastern entrance on the Clifton Road area — this is a long-standing Railfuture campaign and will both reduce congestion around the station and bring more people to it as the ned-to-end travel time for rail decreases. The new entrance would include new passenger facilities, including a new gate line, an active travel hub and direct links to walking and cycling routes
- A new Cambridge East station, subject to third-party funding, possibly located near the current Cambridge City Airport, to provide rail access for communities in the east of the city, reduce pressure on Cambridge's main station and support growth in one of the fastest-growing parts of the UK.
- Consolidate the nine intermediate stations on the Marston Vale Line (some are amongst the least used in Britain, with poor accessibility, outdated facilities and infrequent, slow services) into four modern, larger and better-located stations, to provide safer, more accessible facilities with parking, walking and cycling links, and stronger connections to new housing, business and leisure developments. One of the four new stations will be at Stewartby to best serve Universal Studios' proposals for a theme park in this area, which is expected to have more than 8.5 million visitors in its opening year alone. The other new (relocated) statrions will be Woburn Sands, Ridgmont and Lidlington.
- Increase in proposed East West Rail service frequency up to a maximum of five trains per hour during peak times, to help cater for people wanting to travel to Universal Studios theme park. This is an increase on the three trains per hour previously planned
- Tempsford alignment will run north of the Black Cat roundabout as the preferred route between Bedford and Cambridge (it was strongly favoured in consultation feedback for being shorter, more cost-effective, and less disruptive to local roads and communities than the alternative). Tempsford station wil now include a southern entrance to the new station, ensuring strong connections with planned growth areas around Tempsford, as well as improved walking and cycling links to nearby villages. The first phase will bring forward the East Coast Main Line part of the new station ahead of the full East West Rail interchange
- Bletchley station eastern entrance, subject to third-party funding being secured. The eastern entrance would have substantial passenger benefits offering an easier and more direct route by improving connectivity to the bus station and town centre
- An updated design for trains to continue onto a reopened Cowley Branch line — the opening was recently confirmed by government — to release capacity at Oxford station, which would then allow a full EWR service to operate. The Cowley Branch Line will unlock new local journeys in Oxford, increasing access to jobs, education and housing
One of the problems with running more services on the EWR line through Bicester is that the downtime of the level crossing barriers would be increased, causing considerable inconvenience. The BBC reported That the company now proposes to create an underpass at the London Road level crossing — which is set to permanently close — with a single-lane road for vehicles and a segregated corridor for pedestrians and cyclists. However, the design of the underpass would be subject to securing third-party funding contributions.
A spokesperson for the Campaign to Electrify Britain's Railways said: "East-West Rail is going to be transformational for cross-country passenger connectivity, easing rail congestion in London and road congestion between Oxford and Cambridge, while boosting access to jobs and opportunity. But the clear preference for partial electrification has got to stop. Our research shows that, over its life, this will be a more expensive solution with worse reliability. The Government needs to come clean on its costings [of battery-electric trains]. Without full electrification, freight will still rely on diesel well beyond the 2040 phase-out deadline. Passengers will need to get used to announcements: 'Sorry, we are delayed behind a slow-moving diesel freight train.' East West Rail needs to be fully wired from day one." This is a view that Railfuture strongly shares.
Public engagement on the latest proposals will continue in 2026 with a series of localised events in specific communities so people can understand more about our updated designs. In spring or summer 2026, we will then hold another consultation. This will provide an opportunity for local communities and stakeholders to comment before the EWR Co finalises its application to the Secretary of State for a Development Consent Order (DCO), which would authorise the company to construct the project.
Chiltern Railways provides update on start of East West Rail services between Oxford and Milton Keynes
Many people have been asking why it has taken so long for passenger trains to start running on the reopened railway line between Bicester and Bletcley (which has been fully operational since October 2024). In November 2025, Chiltern Railway provided a minor update on its website, essentially just confirming that services would not launch in 2025, but not elaborating — it has been reported elsewhere that disagreements around the use of Driver Contreolled Operation (DCO), which Chiltern operators on parts of its network, has held up the launch. Chltern has recruited dand trained 44 train drivers and created a new staff facility at Bletchley but the fit out of the new Winslow station is not fully complete.
News: https://www.chilternrailways.co.uk/oxford-to-miltonkeynes.
WEBSITES AND APPS
Yet another website showing real-time train locations
The https://signalmaps.co.uk/ website shows routes, signals and train locations in graphical from in real-time. It is possble to search for a route or even a particular train by specifying its headcode.
The URL for a specific location is 'https://signalmaps.co.uk/#placename:number'. To detemrine the place name go via the navigation. For example, https://signalmaps.co.uk/#cambridge:2848 will show trains around Cambridge North and https://signalmaps.co.uk/#ely:580 will show north of it up to Ely. Each location on the map, and the trains, are clickable links which go to Real Time Trains (RTT) to provide details.
Real-Time Trains website offers ad-free viewing for a subscription and increase the historical data available
The https://realtimetrains.co.uk/plus/ website, which is widely regarded and is paritally funded by advertisements, has launched 'RTT+', its new subscription service that unlocks ad-free viewing and more for just £25 a year. Cick on https://realtimetrains.co.uk/plus/ to find out more.
Real-Time Trains has also added extended data history: up from one to three months, and it will increase this to six months by January 2026. However, the RTT+ subscribers can see history up to five years.
Railfuture East Anglia Branch News Snippets 392 - 30/11/2025
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Railfuture is a non-profit making pro-rail campaiging organisation, which is run entirely by unpaid volunteeers, including production of Rail News Snippets for the East Anglian branch of Railfuture.
How we spell Railfuture — singular, one word, one capital letter (can be abbreviated to Rf).