Rail

Our specialist services

Operations – providing specialist advice on day-to-day rail commercial activities, major strategic projects and complex contractual arrangements relating to passenger and freight operations as well as rail stations and platform services.

Dispute resolution – advising on rail disputes including litigation, arbitration, adjudications and ADR.

Procurement – providing specialist advice on the procurement of rail specific good and services.

Commercial property – providing advice in relation to rail stations, depots, signal boxes and general real estate.

Construction and projects – providing advice in relation to rail infrastructure projects.

Workforce – providing support in respect of trade union relations, TUPE projects and restructuring projects, as well as advising on conflict management and ESG strategy.

Our rail experience

• Managed service agreement for the provision of IT support by Keolis Amey to Transport for Wales.
• Advising on contracts for telecoms providers for fixed and mobile services, WiFi in office premises, at stations and on-board rolling stock.
• Provision, maintenance and support of ticket vending machines; and energy contracts.
• Advising landowners in conjunction with land agents in respect of HS2 covering issues such as compensation, access and planning.
• Advising on the terms of the franchise agreement and grants.
• Dealing with vacant obtaining possession on behalf of rail operators in instances where they wanted units back in their possession at platforms for redevelopments, lease renewals, forfeiture and dilapidations.
• Advising on the amendments to rail operator obligations and consequential amendments of grant agreements.
• Advising on the agreement between rail operator and waste disposal specialist in the rail industry for the provision of waste disposal services.
• Advising on agreements with suppliers, (utilities, road transport services and catering).
• Advising on track access agreements with Network Rail.
• Advising on multimillion-pound software and hardware supply agreements with suppliers following the grant of the operation of a new rail franchise. Agreement for the supply of software, hardware, security services, internet connectivity services, back-up, archiving and recovery services and release management.
• Advising on agreements managing obligations between rail franchise operators.
• Dealing with platform lease agreements; platform property agreements; platform concession agreements.
• Advising on leases relating to rail depots and track rights agreements.
• Advising on disputes generally in the rail sector, including around catering services and disputes relating to previous franchisees.
• Advising public and private sector rail operators across England and Wales on employment law and strategic HR projects, with expertise in TUPE and trade union industrial relation.
• Providing support on Health & Safety, regulatory and compliance to rail operators, including those relating to criminal sanctions.

How we act for our clients

Our approach to working with rail clients is to immerse ourselves in your organisation, enabling us to gain a nuanced understanding of their commercial landscape and the unique challenges they face. We prioritise building strong working relationships and often achieve this by placing secondees within our clients’ teams, allowing for continuous, seamless knowledge sharing and integration. This hands-on approach allows us to deliver tailored, insightful support, led by lawyers who are consistently informed and aligned with the client’s latest developments. By working alongside our clients in this way, we’re able to add genuine value, foster trust, and support the successful delivery of complex, high-stakes projects that demand precision and dedication

Client case study – Keolis Amey

We were appointed legal advisor to Keolis Amey Wales Limited, the entity which has been awarded the new rail franchise for Wales and the Borders following many years in the hands of Arriva Trains Wales.

For the past two years since the franchise award, Aled and our team has worked very closely with Keolis on numerous complex and major pieces of legal advice, including advising on its funding and grant agreements, high-value supply arrangements, IT, IP and property matters.

Two members of the team have been seconded to Keolis Amey for significant periods during the last two years, which has enabled us to acquire in-depth knowledge of the client, its requirements and personnel. This model is one we have replicated with other clients in the sector and works very well.