There's a catalogue of problems with new trains on several main line routes and secondary lines.They have to be tested and bedded in for the lines they may be used on. One of the reasons we had such variation in types of train going back to steam days and even British Rail days is the differences across the network dating right back to the Victorian engineering and the pioneer days of Railways. Curves, cambers, drainage, headroom clearances, signalling, platform heights and clearances, even track widths were once different. Even weather and geological differences dictate the types of railway infrastructure in this 'small island' The solutions Victorian engineers, who mainly worked for competing railways at the time, generally worked, but do differ. It's one of the reasons the Great Western Lines were not electrified as it was estimated too costly and likely to be very high in maintenance. This is looking just as likely 60 years on. The only payback is now environmental, but infrastructure operating costs will probably never be recovered adequately.Trouble is, it is still a struggle for a one size fits all fleet of trains for the whole UK network. Very few have this capability and the latest trains are plagued with issues that should have been considered at the drawing board. British Rail, much maligned, was very close to solving these embedded issues, but much of that has been ditched post privatisation and the DfT is more concerned with H&S issues and side issues than wholistic design and engineering quality.A big part of the problem is the total lack of joined up thinking and the wrong kind of people calling the shots. The DfT dictates policy and parameters and they get it wrong again and again. That's political interference by politicians and career 'advisers'who know bugger all about the detail and nuances of the domain they get lumped with. Just look at the alarming ignorance by the London Mayor's Transport deputy and it's a snapshot of this. A once very good MP who really knows about health issues, but is completely out of her depth on transport modes ..and it shows. Or is it they have truly awful advisors? But how does she or anyone else with such a lack of comprehension manage to get such a high position job in an area they know so little about? It is hardly surprising then to see why things go out of control fiscally, and end up falling short of the promised intention.The only area improved is safety and that's a result of a series of calamities which became to burning an issue. but it takes that level of discord to effect a change. Half measures are not accepted in this area. So route and gauge testing is important and has to be done.The sort of problems including today's very serious one would though, not be happening if the DfT stopped interfering in design and build issues and let one body that knows and understands the UKs railways properly, oversee all projects with employees who are there for the long haul and not short term career hoppers.So today's debacle is yet another illustration of how unable we are becoming at getting things we were once world leaders in right. And need to look at the roots of where it all goes wrong.
Mark Kehoe ● 2725d