Shows / Green Signals
Green Signals
Green Signals is a show about railways - its politics, its economics, its people and history. We turn over the issues of the day and talk to the people making the decisions that affect all our lives. We also dig into many of the amazing events in the history of an industry that spans nearly 200 years. Nigel Harris (former Managing Editor and Events Director of the leading industry and opinion forming magazine RAIL) and Richard Bowker (former Chair & CEO of the Strategic Rail Authority) steer…
Episodes
Green SignalsRunning the world’s largest integrated transport system – in conversation with Andy Lord
It’s the biggest integrated transport undertaking in the world. So it follows that running it and being accountable for its day-to day operation, is one of the…
Green Signals131. Integrated Transport Strategy – Wishy-Washy Waffle? Or Sensible, Solid, Strategy?
A new Integrated Transport Strategy is launched, but is it all wishy-washy waffle, or a sensible, solid, strategy? We preview an interview with Transport for…
Green Signals130. The Beeching Report turns 63. Controversial… But was he right?
The Beeching Report turns 63… We ask the controversialquestion: Was Beeching unfairly and unreasonably criticised? We learn more about how the Railways Bill…
Green SignalsOxRail 2040. Is rail in Oxfordshire about to be transformed?
Oxfordshire is a one of the UK’s regional powerhouse economies. Furthermore, Rail is big business in Oxfordshire. In 2024/25, the estimated total entries and…
Green Signals129. Are High Speed 2 trains going to be a bit less ‘High Speed’?
Are High Speed 2 trains about to get a little bit less ‘high speed’? Glasgow Central reopens and Network Rail make the most of its partial closure to catch up…
Green SignalsTranspennine Route Upgrade – is this rail’s best kept secret?
There’s a revolution underway on the railways in the north, and no, it’s not Northern Powerhouse Rail, but rather something that will provide the bedrock to…
Green SignalsNorthern Powerhouse Rail – is it good value for money?
The National Audit Office or NAO is an independent parliamentary body. It is the independent public spending watchdog. It audits Central Government…
Green Signals128. Remember Network North? An FOI request reveals more than you might think…
Network North – remember that? A Freedom of Information request reveals more than you might think… We speak to the National Audit Office about its recent…
Green SignalsHS2’s final TBM starts tunnelling to Euston! And we go onboard….
HS2 has started excavation of the final tunnel bore on the 140-mile railway between central London and the West Midlands – the down tunnel from Old Oak Common…
Green SignalsHolding Government to account - In conversation with Ruth Cadbury MP
Select Committees work in both Houses of Parliament. They scrutinise and report on a wide range of activities from the work of Government departments to…
Green Signals127. Is the £2bn HS2 train contract about to be rewritten?
Is the £2bn contract for 54 HS2 trains about to be rewritten? And is it true that HS2 is going to ‘end in a field’, as was reported last week? Plus, we preview…
Green Signals126. New Tube trains for Piccadilly Line are delayed AGAIN!
New Piccadilly Line trains are delayed AGAIN Network Rail takes control of the Barking Eurohub rail freight terminal And we’re shocked to discover that…
Green SignalsThe Railways Bill – Will it work?
The Railways Bill is the most important piece of railway legislation since the 1993 Railways Act that brought about the era of privatisation. The current…
Green Signals125. £14 billion funding commitment for Welsh Railways! Except it isn’t
Seven new stations for Wales in a £14bn “funding promise” bythe UK Government! Except that it isn’t. Is the Jacobite steam train about to be saved by West…
Green Signals124. Government vs Great British Railways – Could there be trouble ahead?
Transport Select Committee publishes their report into the Railways Bill and warn of future tensions between the Government GBR unless addressed. Richard is…
Green SignalsPrivate Finance in Rail – Is it going to finally happen?
Private finance and the rail sector are often talked about but frequently misunderstood. And where it is well established in sectors such as rolling stock…
Green SignalsNew Look CrossCountry Voyager: We attend the glitzy launch event!
The Voyager and Super Voyager trains are one of the least loved on Britain’s railway. But why is that? Operationally and mechanically, they are robust…
Green Signals123. New poll calls for fares cuts & new services… but is that the whole story?
A recent poll says 7 in 10 Brits want the government to use savings made from nationalising the railways to cut rail fares and open new services. It has us…
Green SignalsClass 37 test running on HVO! With cab ride!
The Class 37 is one of the most successful British locomotive designs of all time. 309 locomotives were delivered between 1960 and 1965 and despite even the…
Green Signals122. Blackpool Trams: Are we about to see the end of heritage trams in service?
Blackpool Trams – Are we about to see the end of the heritage trams in service? A Fatal Accident Inquiry has launched in Scotland over the tragic accident at…
Green SignalsExclusive interview with Mark Phillips, CEO, Rail Safety and Standards Board RSSB
“The evidence is that Driver Only / Driver Controlled operation [DOO / DCO] is safer than being dispatched by a conductor or even a platform member of staff.”…
Green SignalsUK’s first battery only train enters service. We ride it!
On Saturday 31st January 2025, GWR (Great Western Railway) introduced the UK’s first battery-only powered train into passenger service. Naturally, Green…
Green SignalsCurzon 2: The Highest Viaduct on HS2!
Curzon 2 (dubbed the Bellingham bridge by the HS2 team) isgoing to be the highest viaduct on HS2 when it’s complete. An enormous 25-metre-high truss will…
Green Signals121. Dawlish Sea Wall breached again - Is it time for an alternative route?
The Dawlish Sea Wall collapses in 2 places after StormIngrid hits Devon and Cornwall. Time for a new route? Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander signs…
Green SignalsNEW (Nearly) Trains for Chiltern Railways!
The venerable Mk 3 coaches that date from the 1970s and 1980s have served Chiltern Railways well for over 15 years now but everything is about to change. On…
Green SignalsGWR Boss answers the tough questions: Mark Hopwood CBE – Great Western Railway MD
The Great Western Railway. Brainchild of legendary engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Chocolate and Cream coaches and quintessential English Branch lines. GWR…
Green SignalsNorthern Powerhouse Rail - What could go wrong?
Northern Powerhouse Rail, or NPR, was announced by the Government to much fanfare on 14 January 2026. Up to £45 billion will be invested in the creaking…
Green Signals120. Northern Powerhouse Rail – Done deal? Or not?
Northern Powerhouse Rail – Is it really a done deal, or just the beginning? A new line from Birmingham to Manchester! Richard thinks it’s bonkers… And we…
Green SignalsDigital Train Ticket revolution: we try it!
Imagine a world where you could arrive at a station, get out your phone and open an App, click Start journey, make your train journey and then at your…
Green Signals119. Billwatch: Government comes out fighting on Railways Bill
Billwatch returns… Scrutiny of the Railways Bill is heating up and the Government comes out fighting – but are we convinced? We preview a fascinating visit to…
Green Signals118. New Rules on Railway Access = Bad News for Freight?
New rules on access to the railway are coming… and it couldbe bad news for freight Trenitalia gets serious about competing with Eurostarthrough the Channel…
Green Signals117. Do We Have A Leaderless Railway?
As 2025 comes to a close, we take a look at TransportSecretary Heidi Alexander’s first year… We review the key moments from 2025… And we take stock of the year…
Green SignalsCross Channel Rail – What works and what doesn’t?
2025 finally saw some action to please those who have long campaigned for better use to be made of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link between London and the mainland…
Green Signals116. Leeds Tram is delayed until end of 2030s!
Leeds Tram is delayed until the end of the 2030s! RAIB issues an urgent safety update on lineside monitoring equipment And RMT General Secretary Eddie Dempsey…
Green Signals115. Great British Railways has a new look… and we are NOT impressed
Great British Railways gets a new look… and meets with almost universal derision! Billwatch returns to Green Signals with the second reading of the Railways…
Green SignalsRailway Signalling: In days, not decades!
Imagine being able to implement signalling solutions in days, not decades? Well, that’s the vision of Universal Signalling, an exciting new signalling tech…
Green Signals114. Does the Railways Bill signal trouble for freight? And GBR unveils a new livery
It’s our first Billwatch! We examine the Transport Select Committee’s recent scrutiny of the Railways Bill ahead of its second reading this week… Great British…
Green Signals113. The Avanti West Coast 07h00 Ghost Train to London… nearly
Avanti West Coast is forced to run a ‘Ghost’ Manchester toLondon train… until they weren’t, when the decision was reversed! Richard eats some humble pie over…
Green SignalsHow To Get the Cheapest Train Tickets – Complete Buyer’s Guide
Booking train tickets in the UK is complicated – and knowing how to find the cheapest train tickets can be even harder. This is the complete guide, verified by…
Green Signals112. Rail Fares Freeze Fiasco – Are there unintended consequences?
Rail fares are frozen for 2026! But is it wise and could there be unwanted consequences? No passenger trains for East West Rail until 2026 – more than a year…
Green SignalsGovernment need to look in the mirror – they're the ones who screwed up! Interview - Olly Glover MP
In a wide ranging and refreshingly direct and no-nonsense interview, Green Signals talks to Olly Glover, the Liberal Democrat Transport spokesperson and member…
Green Signals111. Transport Secretary gives evidence to Transport Select Committee - but how does she score?
The Secretary of State for Transport updates the Transport Select Committee on her Department’s performance so far. But what score does she get from Green…
Green Signals110. The Railways Bill is here… but what will it all mean?
The Railways Bill is here… but what will it all mean? And HOW will it be delivered? What happened when a Pendolino derailed at Shap last week? And Transport…
Green SignalsBehind the Scenes on the Severn Valley Railway
The Severn Valley Railway is one of Britain’s premier heritage railway lines. Running between Kidderminster and Bridgnorth it delights tens of thousands of…
Green Signals109. LIVE From the RIA Conference with Former Rail Minister Huw Merriman
This episode is livestreamed from the Railway Industry Association Annual Conference in London! The Railways Bill is finally here… Former Rail Minister and…
Green SignalsVirgin Trains is BACK! And ready to take on Eurostar…
Eurostar has been a feature of the UK railway landscapesince 1994. But in all that time it has been the monopoly provider – and the cracks began to show some…
Green Signals108. Eurostar orders double-decker trains… but will we see them in the UK?
Eurostar orders double-decker trains – but will we see anyof them in the UK? The reopening of the Cowley branch in Oxford in announced…but is everything quite…
Green SignalsDemystifying the planning process of major projects... Is the UK’s system broken?
The Planning Act 2008 was designed to seriously improve (and speed up) the process for securing consent for major projects – by establishing something called a…
Green SignalsTransforming Rail in Wales – Transport for Wales boss gives exclusive interview
It is not that many years ago that the train operator in Wales was working to a franchise agreement that many criticised as ‘no growth’. Whether that was…
Green Signals107. CAF is ‘blacklisted’ by the UN – but what does it mean for its UK contracts?
Spanish train builder CAF is blacklisted by the UN… but what does that mean for its contracts in the UK? We preview an interview with Transport for Wales’s…
Green SignalsRunning trains on the West Coast: Interview with Avanti West Coast MD Andy Mellors
Andy Mellors is a career railwayman with a successful careerin railway engineering and other senior leadership positions. In March 2023 he took on his biggest…
Green Signals106. 50% of Rail journeys now nationalised
Greater Anglia is renationalised… and the Transport Secretary makes some curious comments Chiltern Railways launches its Mk 5a sets in a striking new livery…
Green Signals105. £1m fine for GWR over droplight window death – what happened?
Great Western Railway is fined £1 million over a fatal droplight window incident in 2018 – we ask what the implications are for other parts of the network And…
Green Signals104. Nature vs Railways – have we got the balance with biodiversity wrong?
Railways and vegetation, bats, dormice – and biodiversity in general – don’t always mix well. Are we getting the balance wrong? The railway celebrates its…
Green Signals103. Northern Powerhouse Rail – The new HS2 for politicians to argue about?
Northern Powerhouse Rail – has it become the new HS2 for politicians to argue about? We chat to Northern Powerhouse Partnership CEO Henri Murison The Liberal…
Green SignalsEllie Burrows: In the hot seat for the biggest East Coast timetable change in a decade!
Imagine being responsible for the East Coast Main Line, or the Midland Main Line, or the whole of the Anglia – and then imagine actually being responsible for…
Green SignalsSettle & Carlisle Railway Diversions On Test – and we’re on Board!
In the days of British Rail and Virgin Trains, the iconic and spectacular Settle & Carlisle railway line was used as a diversionary route whenever there were…
Green Signals102. HS2’s ‘Green Tunnels’ – Great idea or huge waste of money?
We visit TWO of HS2’s ‘green tunnels’ and discuss whether they’re a great idea or a huge waste of taxpayers’ money… Reform says they’ll cancel HS2 and leave…
Green SignalsWhy Are UK Train Tickets SO Expensive?
Why are train tickets in the UK so expensive? In this short explainer video, we cover the top ten things that answer that question – and some of them are…
Green SignalsNEW Tyne and Wear Metro Class 555s - inside Stadler's £70m depot
The Tyne and Wear Metro has a fascinating story that very nearly didn’t happen. We take a tour of Stadler’s new £70 million depot in South Gosforth, Newcastle…