Network Rail Consulting Wins Key Role in Development of High-Speed Railway in California, USA

Washington DC, January 2024 – Network Rail Consulting’s US subsidiary, Network Rail Consulting Inc, has been awarded a $73.2m (£57.5m) contract to provide systems engineering services to California’s High-Speed Rail Program.

The first dedicated high-speed railway in the USA, California's high-speed network will see 200-mph trains linking the Los Angeles basin with San Francisco, with later branches to Sacramento and San Diego. With construction under way, Network Rail Consulting will directly support the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s Rail and Operations Delivery Branch in a partner role through to May 2029.

Network Rail Consulting Inc’s Chief Executive and Network Rail Consulting Global Managing Director, Nigel Ash, said “Having been involved in the development of the California High-Speed Rail Program since 2015, we’re delighted to have the opportunity to continue our support to the California High-Speed Rail Authority to help deliver this important investment that is poised to be one of the most transformative infrastructure programs in U.S. history.”

Services supported by Network Rail Consulting will include asset management, rail engineering support and oversight, design and construction operations and maintenance oversight, network integration and program compliance, start-up and commissioning, Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) certification, rule of applicability, system safety and security, and track, systems, and trainsets contracts commercial support.

Network Rail Consulting will be supported by international consultants, Egis and Ricardo, together with six local California companies, C2PM, D.R McNatty & Associates, Inc., GCM Consulting, Inc., Intueor Consulting, Inc., LOR Consulting Group LLC, and NSI Engineering, Inc.

The California High-Speed Rail Authority is responsible for planning, designing, building, and operating the high-speed network, which will eventually total 800 miles of railway with up to 24 stations. In addition, the Authority is working with regional partners to implement a statewide rail modernization plan that will invest billions of dollars in local and regional rail lines to meet the State’s 21st century transportation needs.

To find out more about the California High-Speed Rail project visit www.buildhsr.com or for more information on Network Rail Consulting's services and capabilities visit www.networkrailconsulting.com

-ENDS-

For further information, contact: Sam Clarke, [email protected]

Notes to Editors

About Network Rail Consulting

• Network Rail Consulting is a wholly owned subsidiary of Network Rail International Ltd, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Network Rail. Network Rail Consulting was established in 2012 to benchmark Network Rail’s capabilities in the international market and enhance the capabilities of its staff through international experience which could then be deployed back into its UK operations.
• Whilst Network Rail is a Public Body and funded by the UK Government, Network Rail Consulting is funded through its commercial operations and is classified as a Public Corporation.
• The board of directors of Network Rail Consulting comprises Jeremy Westlake (non-executive chair), Nigel Ash (global managing director), Andrew Noble (finance director), Ian Dobbs (non-executive director), Neil Reynolds (non-executive director) and Mark Prior (non-executive director).
• Network Rail Consulting has subsidiaries in Australia, Canada, and the USA; and operates from offices in Boston, Brisbane, London (HQ), Jeddah, Melbourne, New York, Riyadh, Sacramento, San Francisco, Sydney, Toronto and Washington DC.
• Network Rail Consulting is selling the full range of rail expertise available within Network Rail including advisory services, strategic planning, major projects, including systems integration and project and programme management, railways operations, including timetabling and operational modelling, and asset management and maintenance.

More information can be found at www.networkrailconsulting.com or you can download the Network Rail Consulting Fact Sheet here.

About Network Rail

Network Rail owns and operates Britain’s rail infrastructure network – one of the world’s most intensively used rail networks. Our network is the fifth busiest rail network in the world and the second busiest in Europe. We:

• Provide a safe and efficient national railway network that carries over 1.8 billion passenger journeys, 16.6 billion tonne kilometres of freight and 7 million train movements every year;
• Own, maintain and operate 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and embankments and thousands of signals;
• Operate 20 major stations which handle 800 million passenger journeys and own 2,500 other stations, which are leased to train operators;
• Employ 42,000 people in asset management, operations, maintenance, renewals, and enhancement projects; and
• Have an annual turnover of over £8bn, with capital expenditure of over £5bn per annum.