Alstom employee retires after 50 years on Britain’s railways

WEBWIRE – Tuesday, September 2, 2025

At Alstom, we strive to create meaningful careers for passionate individuals like Ken, and we look forward to continuing this legacy through our growing recruitment programmes that are supporting the next generation of rail leaders.

Alstom Movements Manager, Ken Davies, began his career in 1975 as a signallers messengerEarlier this year, Kens colleagues named a locomotive in his honour

Alstom has celebrated Movements Manager Ken Davies career as he retires following more than 50 years service on Britains railways.

A fitting send-off was organised at Alstoms Liverpool Traincare Centre on Friday 29 August, where he was surrounded by many of the trains he had worked on over the last five decades including a Class 390 Pendolino. In fact, as part of his final shift, Ken drove Avanti West Coasts 390200 back in to the Edge Hill depot ahead of maintenance work.

Following a series of speeches in front of around 50 colleagues, Ken was whisked away on board a vintage bus from theMerseyside Transport Trust. Ken has been an active member of the Trust for five years, and their 1968 Leyland Panther bus Liverpool Corporation Passenger Transport No. 1054 took him and his colleagues on a nostalgic trip across the port city, passing by many of the places that have shaped his and his familys lives.

My career has taken me across the length and breadth of this country, and around the world. Throughout, I have been supported by the railway family, whove been with me through every challenge and triumph, said Ken, who now lives in Ashton-in-Makerfield.

Railway career

The 67-year-old began his career on the Wirral, progressing quickly through signalling and traincrew roles, before moving in to senior traffic management positions. Ken joined Alstom in 2002, where he managed the companys operations along the West Coast Main Line, as well as the Old Dalby Test Track.

Ken added: I had made my mind up at the age of four that working on the railway was what I wanted to do with my life. Its gone so quickly and I am looking forward to a break, but something tells me that this wont be the last time I am working in this environment. The railway gets under your skin in the best way possible.

Kens final role at Alstom was to mitigate risks when operational procedures changed, particularly when a new fleet is introduced. Launched in 2012, the Alstom Zero Deviation Plan (AZDP) focuses on high-risk activities to protect all employees and contractors from the risks they may face, and Ken has been instrumental in implementing this across the UK and Ireland.

We are immensely proud of Kens remarkable career, spanning over five decades of dedicated service to the railways. Its been a privilege to support a journey that has brought him such lasting fulfilment. At Alstom, we strive to create meaningful careers for passionate individuals like Ken, and we look forward to continuing this legacy through our growing recruitment programmes that are supporting the next generation of rail leaders, said Ben Cooke, General Manager at Alstom.

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the modern railway and Kens family have made their mark during this period, sharing 157 years service between them. His grandfather worked at Tuebrook Sidings in Liverpool, while his father was a driver. Meanwhile, his sister worked on the railways for 20 years, retiring from her role as a guard in Par, Cornwall.

Alstom celebratedRailway 200earlier this month when it hosted the worlds largest-ever gathering of historic and modern trains. The Greatest Gathering took place at the companys historic Derby Litchurch Lane Works between Friday 1 and Sunday 3 August, welcoming 40,000 visitors from around the world.

Furthermore, the train Ken drove in to Alstoms Liverpool Traincare Centre on his final shift 390200 has been temporarily renumbered by Avanti West Coast to commemorate Railway 200. The Liverpool Traincare Centre is one of five similar facilities operated by Alstom along the West Coast Main Line and where Avanti West Coasts high-speed Pendolino (Class 390) trains are serviced.

Locomotive naming

Earlier this year, Ken was surprised by colleagues at the Alstom Transport Technology Centre in Widnes, where the sitesClass 08 locomotive, 08721, had been fitted with a plaque bearing his name in honour of his 50 years service. The Class 08 then took centre stage at The Greatest Gathering, where it helped moved exhibits into place and highlighted the shunters importance to Britains railways since the 1950s.

In addition, as part of BBC Radio 2s21st Century Folk series, singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones was asked to write a song commemorating Kens 50-year career. The song,Climbing The Shap Again, was performed by Bill from West Kirby to Ken at The Greatest Gathering on board a Derby-built Class 720 Alstom Aventra train.

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