It is that time of year again. Worrying reports of snow fall in the North of Britain are creeping on to headlines and causing us to start questioning our travel plans for the winter with threats of another “Big Freeze”.
Last year, snow was already falling all over the UK by late November, causing chaos to the nation.
Retailers suffered during the cold snap due to reduced transport links, students were stuck in university over a portion of the holidays and families could not travel to see their loved ones due to the snow affecting the infrastructure of the UK.
Met Office forecaster Barry Gromett said the mean temperature for the first fortnight of December 2010 was -0.7c. These conditions caused disruptions on transport around the country, particularly rail links.
Arguably, ScotRail see the worst cases of weather with Scotland facing moderate to heavy snow fall every year, particularly in the Highlands and Northern Scotland.
ScotRail recently announced a £2million investment in to winter equipment which could be retaliation to the criticism of the way the government handled the extreme weather conditions of the last few years.
ScotRail improvements at a glance:
• A new £1million engineering train which can be used to defrost the tracks and transport engineers and equipment when other transport links are not possible.
• A thermal imaging helicopter to discover spots where severe weather could cause major disruptions.
• Insulating heater strips which will keep the infrastructure from failing.
• NASA-grade insulation to insulate the inside of points machines to prevent freezing.
• Staff will receive smartphones to aid with communication and updates on the train.
• “Power Showers” to defrost the tracks and prevent ice from forming on the locomotives.
Despite the improvements in ScotRail engineering, will the rest of the UK fare well if another Big Freeze hits?
Jo Coverly, the Customer Relations Senior Officer for First Great Western, insist they are prepared for future chaos on the routes they serve. “We work closely with the Department for Transport who expect to see robust plans in place.
“We believe we have achieved this in previous years and have every intention of doing so in future.”
The introduction of social networking and better technology in the past few years has helped to improve communication regarding travel in the UK.
Twitter has proved a hub for frustrated travellers, with many Twitter accounts specifically made for disruption announcements. Until May 2011, an unofficial account named @uktrains which was run by Ben Smith who felt frustrated by the limited and pricey ways rail travellers could receive travel alerts.
Mr Smith received content from the BBC Backstage Project and regular Twitter users who would message the account and have their tweets retweeted on the feed.
National Rail created official Twitter accounts after the closure of uktrains tailoring to the specific needs of the user. First Great Western also have a twitter account which is primarily run by Ms. Coverly of First Great Western: “We very much value the immediacy of Twitter and Facebook and we will use it alongside our website to keep our passengers informed about changes to their services.”
Even the smartphone industry cash in on chaos with apps specifically made for ease of communication. UK Train Times By Agant Ltd costs £4.99 on the app store and shows train times, service bulletins and ticket purchasing.
So, is Britain really ready for potential winter chaos this year?
The investment in rail infrastructure as mentioned in the Autumn Statement could mean a brighter future for rail in times of chaos.
David Higgins, CEO of Network Rail, said: “The news of further rail investment is great news for passengers and for our supply chain, with tangible benefits for rail users.”
If the government invest in infrastructure as promised, it could be a giant step forward for rail travel in Britain which faces criticism for delays, extreme weather or no extreme weather.
The promises of NASA level technology on our railways should hopefully mean we are prepared for the next big freeze and the end of Britain grinding to a halt every winter we see snow.
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