''Rail'' is a British

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

on the subject of current

rail transport in Great Britain The railway system in Great Britain is the oldest railway system in the world. The first locomotive-hauled public railway opened in 1825, which was followed by an era of rapid expansion. Most of the track is managed by Network Rail, which in ...

. It is published every two weeks by

Bauer Consumer Media Heinrich Bauer Publishing (german: Heinrich Bauer Verlag KG), trading as Bauer Media Group, is a German multimedia conglomerate headquartered in Hamburg. It operates worldwide and owns more than 600 magazines, over 400 digital products and 50 ra ...

and can be bought from the

travel Travel is the movement of people between distant geographical locations. Travel can be done by foot, bicycle, automobile, train, boat, bus, airplane, ship or other means, with or without luggage, and can be one way or round trip. Travel c ...

sections of UK newsstands. It is targeted primarily at the enthusiast market, but also covers issues relating to rail transport. ''Rail'' is more than four decades old, and was called ''Rail Enthusiast'' from its launch in 1981 until 1988. It is one of only two railway magazines that increased its circulation. It has roughly the same cover design for several years, with a capitalised italic red ''RAIL'' along the top of the front cover.

Editorial policy

''Rail'' is customarily critical of railway institutions, including the Rail Delivery Group, the

Office of Rail and Road The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the economic and safety regulation of Britain's railways, and the economic monitoring of National Highways. ORR regulates Network Rail by setting its ...

, as well as, since it assumed greater railway powers, the

Department for Transport The Department for Transport (DfT) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved. The d ...

. ''Rail's'' continuing campaigns include one against advertising and media images showing celebrities and others walking between the rails (an unsafe practice), with another against weeds on railway lines. The market for rail magazines has remained static but bounced back since then. To meet the change in the market, the magazine has repositioned itself from being purely enthusiast-based to being more business-oriented. This has met with some success. ''Rail'' also organises conferences, including the annual National Rail Conference, the National Rail Awards and the ''Rail'' 100 Breakfast Club.

Regular features and contributors

''Rail'' publishes a mix of news, analysis and features written by its own editorial staff and freelance contributors. The magazine takes a broadly supportive stance on

High Speed 2 High Speed 2 (HS2) is a planned high-speed railway line in England, the first phase of which is under construction in stages and due for completion between 2029 and 2033, depending on approval for later stages. The new line will run from its m ...

and began running a regular column dedicated to it in 2013. The magazine's Managing Editor is Nigel Harris. Other staff include Deputy Editor Stefanie Foster, News Editor Paul Stephen and Features Editor Tom Allett. Other regular contributors include transport commentator

Christian Wolmar Christian Tage Forter Wolmar (born 3 August 1949) is a British journalist, author, railway historian and Labour Party politician.Christian Wolmar Christian Tage Forter Wolmar (born 3 August 1949) is a British journalist, author, railway historian and Labour Party politician.List of rail transport-related periodicals A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...

* ''

Modern Railways ''Modern Railways'' is a British monthly magazine covering the rail transport industry which was published by Ian Allan until March 2012, and Key Publishing since then. It has been published since 1962. The magazine was originally based in She ...

'' * ''

Railways Illustrated ''Railways Illustrated'' is a British monthly railway magazine. Inside there is detail of news, stock changes, tours, and more. It is aimed at railway enthusiasts. Founded in 2003 by Ian Allan Publishing, it was published by Key Publishing ...

'' * ''

The Railway Magazine ''The Railway Magazine'' is a monthly British railway magazine, aimed at the railway enthusiast market, that has been published in London since July 1897. it was, for three years running, the railway magazine with the largest circulation in t ...

'' * ''

Today's Railways UK ''Today's Railways UK'' is an English-based monthly magazine covering rail transport in Great Britain. It was founded by Platform 5 in January 2002 as ''Entrain'' as a sister publication to ''Today's Railways Europe'', in January 2006 it was reb ...

References

External links

* {{Bauer Verlagsgruppe Bauer Group (UK) Biweekly magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines established in 1981 Rail transport magazines published in the United Kingdom 1981 establishments in England Mass media in Peterborough