Railway staff and their families partied the night away at the RailStaff Awards at the International Convention Centre in Birmingham this weekend. Supporters were out in force to celebrate the RailStaff Awards now in its third year. ‘These are the awards that celebrate the achievements of the ordinary men and women who actually deliver the railway day after day. It’s the drivers, train crew and track workers, that deserve wider recognition,’ says Tom O’Connor managing director of the Rail Media Group which stages the RailStaff Awards.
The RailStaff Awards this year was hosted by Adrian Lyons, former director general of the Railway Forum and a great supporter of the industry.
Michael Roberts, chief executive of the Association of Train Operating Companies praised the professionalism and competence of all who work in the industry. ‘What you do underpins economic growth and sustained social bonds,’ Mr Roberts said. He went on to stress the need for more training and development as the industry shapes up for greater expansion in the future.
Iain Coucher, chief executive of Network Rail, described how he felt when reading the stories behind the awards. ‘I am humbled and in awe,’ he said and went on to say, ‘You are an inspiration to me. I will go in to work Monday aiming to redouble my efforts to live up to you.’
The RailStaff Awards 2009 celebrates a record year for the rail industry which has consistently driven up performance, punctuality and passenger satisfaction. New projects like Crossrail, Thameslink and the projected High Speed 2 added to the air of confidence and celebration as rail staff danced the night away.
The RailStaff Awards Associate sponsors are Network Rail and the Association of Train Operating Companies.
Photos of the night can be seen here. For high res photos, please email us.
Congratulations to our 2009 Winners:
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
Keisha Ffrench of Transport for London
TRAINER OF THE YEAR
Graham Whistance of Benchmark Training
TRAIN DRIVER OF THE YEAR
Mark Thorn of Southern
TRAIN CREW OF THE YEAR
Sharon Jones, Robert Morris and Paul Gunning of Virgin Trains
RAIL SAFETY PERSON OF THE YEAR
Fergal Keating of Bridgeway Consulting
OUTSTANDING CUSTOMER SERVICE OF THE YEAR
Simon Cotton of Virgin Trains
ON TRACK WORKER OF THE YEAR
Andy Pearson of Network Rail
STATION STAFF MEMBER OF THE YEAR
Catherine Jones of Arriva Trains Wales
RAIL ENGINEER OF THE YEAR
Peter Martell of Amey
DEPOT STAFF MEMBER OF THE YEAR
Lance Crawley of First Capital Connect
RAIL MANAGER OF THE YEAR
Craig Ellis of Amey
RAIL PERSON OF THE YEAR
Steve Hawkins of Network Rail
We hope that you had an enjoyable evening and if you would like to leave us your comments we have a section on the RailStaff Awards website for you to do so.
