HS1 Ltd

Our Journey is Your Journey. Watch our video on HS1 Ltd, where we share insight into our role as owner and operator of the UK’s only high-speed railway, and leading international stations along the line. Hear more about our work safeguarding St Pancras International’s rich heritage while building a world-class retail offer, our ambition to grow and develop new international routes, our investment in the communities we serve, as well as the people that make our business successful. https://lnkd.in/eMwskSK

We are thrilled to announce that HS1 has won two awards at the 2024 Creative Retail Awards 🏆   Our collaboration with Hatchards for the St. Pancras International 2023 Christmas Book Tree has been recognised for: ✨Festive Display [Highly Commended] ✨Retail Experience [Winner]   The magical installation was a true testament to creativity and teamwork, transforming St. Pancras into a festive destination that went viral across the globe, resonating with visitors of all ages. Thank you to our partners and our team for making this possible.   Make sure you are following @stpancrasinternational on Instagram to be the first to see our 2024 Christmas display. Coming Soon.

We are pleased to share details about some important changes to the HS1 Ltd Executive Leadership Team as we look ahead to delivering significant growth and improvements across our business. These changes come at an exciting time for the HS1 business as we look to shape the future and provide enhanced services for our customers. To ensure HS1 is best positioned to meet these challenges and opportunities, Richard Thorp has stepped into the role of Chief Operating Officer (COO) where he will continue to lead all engineering operations and oversee our review of capacity enhancement at St Pancras. Wendy Spinks has been promoted to Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) where she will lead our commercial and marketing strategies, and continue to manage our relationships with local stakeholders, and new commercial ventures. Mattias Bjornfors has been appointed Chief Strategy and Regulation Officer (CSRO) and will focus on business development, whilst also leading HS1 to navigate the regulatory engagement during this exciting time for the business. In addition, Virginie Merle has joined the business as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and bolsters the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) with her extensive financial leadership experience from the public transport sector. Our strengthened leadership team will ensure HS1 remains well-positioned to meet the needs of our Train Operating customers, passengers and partners, while being committed to driving sustainable growth. 

We are very proud to announce that HS1 has become a member of Rail Safe Friendly – a programme that delivers rail safety messages to children across the UK.   HS1 and Rail Safe Friendly believe navigating train travel safely is just as important as road safety, and we look forward to help promoting rail safety awareness and education in 90 schools along the HS1 route. You can read more about our partnership here: https://lnkd.in/eS7iCJ6z   #HighSpeedRail #RailSafeFriendly #Community 

We’re pleased to announce that HS1 has achieved the ISO 55001 certification for our 109km of high-speed rail and four stations, including St. Pancras International. Additionally, our key stakeholder Network Rail High Speed has extended their ISO 55001 certification to include all routes, stations, and depots under their management. This international standard offers a framework for effective asset management, ensuring the long-term safe operation of the Green Gateway to Europe. It reflects our dedication to the exceptional management of our railway and stations along the route and adds a significant layer of assurance that management of the HS1 railway assets is best in class. Attaining the certification has been a rewarding journey, working in collaboration with our key stakeholders to consistently improve our infrastructure and implement new technologies. We are excited to continue working collaboratively with our partners as we look to expand and grow capacity on the line. 

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has published its annual report on HS1’s performance, and we are pleased to see the positive response to how the line has been managed over the past year, as well as the developments and improvements that have been implemented to ensure a reliable railway. Over the past year, HS1 has successfully driven down costs, invested in innovative technology to improve safety and performance, and launched an innovative energy savings scheme which has resulted in a £1.1m annual saving in electricity. This has been passed directly on to operators to encourage lower ticket prices. We have worked closely with the team at the ORR during this period and the developments have been accomplished thanks to successful collaboration with Network Rail High Speed, Southeastern Railway, Eurostar and other key stakeholders, and demonstrates a reliable, efficient and well-run railway. We look forward to continued collaborations and an exciting year of international and domestic growth. 

HS1 and Eurostar are immensely proud to offer all those journeying to Paris this summer the option of sustainable travel. The commitment to leaving a lighter footprint this summer is shared by travellers across Europe, and is made possible by train travel. Listen to Richard Thorp, Engineering and Sustainability Director at HS1 explain the difference in environmental impact between trains and planes.

We're incredibly proud to support initiatives that provide work experience to students, helping shape the next generation of professionals. A huge thank you to our dedicated team for making this possible, Parveen Rooprai Bhavra, Naveed Khalique, Ben Olney & Samuel S.

Optimising capacity at St. Pancras International Station is an essential part of HS1’s plans to support growing demand for international rail travel. We are delighted to announce that we will be working with specialist design consultancy Active Thinking to carry out an in-depth study into expanding capacity at the historic Grade 1 listed building. With experience on the likes of Heathrow Terminal 5 and the 2012 Olympics, we are looking forward to working with the team at Active Thinking to understand how we can optimise capacity and futureproof the station to cater for continued growth.

We’re delighted to announce that Virginie Merle will be joining HS1 as our new Chief Financial Officer in September. Virginie brings a wealth of experience from the transport sector and joins us from Keolis, where she has been CFO for the UK, Middle East and India. We look forward to welcoming Virginie to the team at such an exciting time, with demand for both domestic and international rail travel very much on the rise. #HighSpeedRail