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LIGHT RAIL
Network Rail’s Alex Dodds has been named Employee of the Year at the Global Light Rail Awards. He discusses the award and his work on the Metro Flow and Skyefall projects
The delicate line between observing industry standards and getting the job done
“T
enacity, pragmatism and teamwork” are the words used in a recent award bid to summarise the approach Alex Dodds takes to creating a safe and workable operational environment. His contribution to a wide range of rail reopening and improvement schemes which involve the use of innovative operating procedures drawing on or integrating with light rail technology has resulted in significant benefits to schemes. It hasn’t gone unnoticed, with Network Rail’s Light Rail Knowledge Manager named Employee of the Year at the recent Global Light Rail Awards. “It’s satisfying but also reassuring to know that what I’ve done with the support of my colleagues has been recognised and what we have achieved has had a positive impact thanks to stakeholder collaboration, consultation and compromise,” said Alex. The award bid also added that Alex “trod a delicate line between observing industry standards and getting the job done in a timely manner,
The South Yorkshire Tram Train Pilot Project Maintaining standards Alex added: “Industry standards are there for a reason was the first of its and some people would say that the rule book is written kind in the UK on the basis of our mistakes, in the interests of not making even devising new operational methodologies where none existed”, going above and beyond expectations to provide high-quality simulations to demonstrate that operational innovation can be safely applied.
them again. However, infrastructure and geographical factors mean that not every situation is the same. “You might not be able to pick up rules and regulations related to heavy rail, main line 125mph railway junction and simply apply that over a 30mph tramway junction with a line of sight interface. “Then there is the challenge of working collaboratively with our counterparts in the Network Rail and industry standards teams, to make realistic proposals that are workable in practice, and seek alterations or deviations from existing standards where applicable.
December 2023
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