Network Rail - Shambles

[Beach Hut]

Will anyone ever learn anything from any rail crash ever

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6398057.stm

What the hell were they doing on safety, what confidence should us commuters or any rail traveller have in this tin pot organisation.

This is a f***ing shambles of the highest order.

Heads must roll and the railway infrastructure should perhaps be re-integrated.

Unbelievable

 

[Lord Bracknell]

At least they've taken responsibility for what happened. Unlike their predecessors, Railtrack, who spent ages trying to pass the buck to one of their contractors.

But you're right about integration. Do you remember the Clapham crash (which was caused by failures in the signalling)?

While the rescue work was still in progress, Gordon Pettitt, the General Manager of BR's Southern Region gave a television interview in which he said "We don't yet know what the cause of this crash is, but I can say that British Rail must take responsibility for it".

I'm sure that's what everyone wants to hear in these circumstances, not carefully worded statements that have to be first run past corporate lawyers.

They later named a train after Gordon Pettitt - and gave him an OBE. These days, railway managers get nothing but bollockings and public contempt.

 

[Train Spotter]

Yeah! Sack Armpitt before he leaves with his £1 million retirement bung this year. Blokes a to$$er!

 

[Lord Bracknell]

I have a sneaking feeling that when men like Gordon Pettitt joined the railway, what they expected on retirement was a pension that would keep them in carpet slippers and a quiet hobby.

Curiously, they did a better job than the current bunch of "incentivised" private sector fat cats.

 

[East Preston Gull]

buck passing

Oh it would never be the fault of the private rail companies.They love to pass the buck to railcrack.You would never guess that they would blame someone else so they can keep those shareholders happy with a nice compo claim.Within 36 hours they had leaked out a classic missing bolt yarn.....to avoid a share drop throughout the industry.

 

[Buzzer]

At least they've taken responsibility for what happened. Unlike their predecessors, Railtrack, who spent ages trying to pass the buck to one of their contractors.

Yet you wanted to give Des Turner the benefit of the doubt about the drink-driving until all the facts were known.

Innocent until proven guilty not apply to this then?

 

[East Preston Gull]

knobs!

"railcrack".."network fail"...what will they be called next time

 

[Bry Nylon]

October, 2003, following Potters Bar rail crash ...

Network Rail is to stop using private contractors to maintain Britain's railways.
The work is to be taken in-house, a decision which will affect seven contracting firms and more than 18,000 workers.

Network Rail chairman Ian McAllister said the move would ensure "greater consistency of maintenance standards and help deliver efficiency savings more quickly than would otherwise have been possible".

"We have studied the implications in great detail and concluded that it is the right thing to do," he said.

There has been growing criticism that contracting out maintenance work had been inefficient and was jeopardising safety.

February, 2007 ...
Investigators have found one of three stretcher bars was not in position, one had nuts and bolts missing and two were fractured.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Yet you wanted to give Des Turner the benefit of the doubt about the drink-driving until all the facts were known.

Innocent until proven guilty not apply to this then?

It's not about guilt or innocence. It's about RESPONSIBILITY.

 

[Buzzer]

It's not about guilt or innocence. It's about RESPONSIBILITY.

I'm not denying that but let's wait until the facts are known. If it was Network Rail then rightly throw the book at them, but we don't know if it was vandals, bad weather or shoddy workmanship for sure yet. (Although it does look LIKELY that it's the latter).

 

[Beach Hut]

Is it not time for a corporate manslaughter law ?

 

[Lord Bracknell]

I'm not denying that but let's wait until the facts are known. If it was Network Rail then rightly throw the book at them, but we don't know if it was vandals, bad weather or shoddy workmanship for sure yet. (Although it does look LIKELY that it's the latter).

The Network Rail statement ...

"Network Rail is devastated to conclude that the condition of the set of points at Grayrigg caused this terrible accident ... We would like to apologise to all the people affected by the failure of the infrastructure."

 

[Beach Hut]

Whatever the statement this is a disgrace of the highest order and indefensible.

Oh I'm sorry blah blah blah.

The point is when will anyone learn that Railway Safety cannot be compromised ?

 

[beorhthelm]

who is to blame though? was it some "fat cat" director? or a track enginneer? or some fella who made the broken stretcher bar? or the QA manager at that company?

Not nice that, is it? blame some poor bloke for making a human error. much easier to blame i nasty faceless corporation and their highly paid executives. sue them, that'll fix everything. Alot is going to be made about the missed inspection last week, but you cant tell me that bolt come undone and other railway components broken in one week.

sadly, humans fuckup.

 

[bigc]

Running rail Services for profit will never work.

How did the usual free market principles of competition improve our rail service? Can we choose what train operator to travel from Brighton to Victoria on? No!

Noam Chomsky argued the point that not all areas of life should be run solely for profit. The railways should be one of them.

 

[Tesco in Disguise]

welcome to free-market capitalism.

you asked for it.

 

[Biscuit]

Nationalise.

 

[bigc]

welcome to free-market capitalism.

you asked for it.

I blame the SDP...

 

[jmsc]

And lets not forget, sadly one lady died in this accident, the first person who has died due to a railway mistake in over 5 years!

Deaths on the roads in Sussex in the last 5 years? Hmmmm!

 

[British Bulldog]

The point is when will anyone learn that Railway Safety cannot be compromised ?

Nail on the head there BH.