Friends of the Rail Forum

Last month, on International Women’s Day, the iconic St Pancras International station played host to the Rail Women Debate in an attempt to seek answers as to why the industry struggles to attract women. Is it that the industry is fundamentally unappealing to women and girls? Or are there barriers preventing women from pursuing fulfilling careers in rail?

Just 6.5% of drivers in England, Wales and Scotland are women, and 8% are an ethnic minority...

A young female engineer helped to develop the clever invention that is making sure the Elizabeth Line runs without delay. Camilla Hattersley, 27, has been working for Crossrail since 2019 and is part of the team who make sure trains can safely travel at 60mph through tunnels... This is largely thanks to the cutting edge technology and signalling systems, which Ms Hattersley helped to pioneer. The Elizabeth line consists of three sections; the new build central section and the east and west surface sections. “Each are operated by a different signalling system and my job is to make sure the interfaces are talking to each other," Camilla explains...