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Nick Taylor is to step down to step down as chief executive of Waterman Group next year after 42 years at the company.
Mr Taylor (pictured, right) has also been CEO at the company for 17 years.
He will step down from the Waterman Group plc board on 31 March 2025 with Neil Humphrey succeeding him on 1 April.
Mr Humphrey is currently the chief operating officer of Waterman UK and has been 'an integral part of the Waterman team' since 2001, the company said.
From 1 April 2025, Mr Taylor will continue as non-executive chairman of Waterman.
He will also retain his position as a director of Waterman’s businesses in Ireland and Australia.
Both Mr Taylor and Mr Humphrey currently sit on the Waterman Group plc board and the company’s separate executive board.
Neil Humphrey
The firm said the transition has been carefully planned over several years, with the next generation of leaders increasingly taking on more active and responsible roles within its organisational structure.
Founded in 1952, Waterman Group describes itself as a multidisciplinary consultancy providing sustainable solutions to meet the planning, engineering design and project delivery needs of the property, infrastructure, environment and energy markets.
The company specialises in civil, structural, transportation, mechanical and electrical engineering as well as sustainability and construction related health and safety consultancy.
Waterman Aspen, which is a part of the Waterman UK, is the sponsor for the Active Travel Scheme of the Year category at the 2024 Highways Awards next week and was also a sponsor last year.
Channel: Infrastructure
keywords:
Transport Planning
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Ruth Cadbury has been elected as the chair of the Commons Transport Committee for the new Parliament, following a ballot of MPs.
She has been the Labour MP for Brentford and Isleworth since 2010 and has served two previous stints on the committee. She has also been a shadow minister.
Ms Cadbury described it as ‘a great honour’ to be elected by MPs from across the House of Commons.
She added: ‘Transport touches every aspect of our lives, from getting to work to seeing our loved ones and ensuring we can buy the goods we need. Furthermore, the local transport challenges vary considerably across the country.
‘Working cross-party, this Committee will continue to champion the sector and consumers across the country. I can’t wait to start working with my new colleagues on holding the Government and service providers to account.’
Ben Curtis of Campaign for Better Transport welcomed Ms Cadbury’s election.
He said: ‘Ruth brings a wealth of experience from her shadow ministerial roles and her previous work on the committee, which will be invaluable during this crucial period when significant decisions about the future of our transport network must be made.
‘If we are to make the right decisions on the future of public transport, around the establishment of Great British Railways, reform of the bus network and the integration of our transport network, amongst other things, we need rigorous parliamentary scrutiny.’
Labour MP Florence Eshalomi was elected as chair of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee while Liberal Democrat Alistair Carmichael MP was elected unopposed as chair of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs committee.
Former shadow roads minister Bill Esterson was elected as chair of the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee.
Channel: Infrastructure
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Transport heavyweight Lord Peter Hendy has been appointed as a minister of state in the new government.
At the time of his appointment, Lord Hendy was chair of rail infrastructure operator Network Rail.
Peter Hendy pictured last year
He was London’s Transport Commissioner for nine years, before being appointed as chair of Network Rail in 2015 following financial difficulties over its 2014-19 investment programme.
In November 2015, he published a report to the then transport secretary – known as the Hendy Review – on how Network Rail intended to replan its investment programme.
Only last June (2023), he was reappointed to chair Network Rail for a further two years, including overseeing its part in the transition to Great British Railways.
Lord Hendy also led the Union Connectivity Review in 2021, which explored ways in which transport could better connect the UK.
He was awarded a CBE in 2006 for services to public transport and knighted in the 2013 New Year’s Honours list.
In November 2022, he received a life peerage as Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill, sitting as a crossbench peer.
At the time of writing, transport secretary Louise Haigh was the only other minister in the Department for Transport and Lord Hendy’s area of responsibility had not yet been announced.
Channel: Infrastructure
keywords:
Transport Planning
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Louise Haigh has been appointed secretary of state for transport, after serving as the shadow secretary since November 2021.
The MP for Sheffield Heeley has sat in the Commons since 2015 and held a string of shadow cabinet posts, including shadow Nothern Ireland secretary, and shadow ministerial positions for the Home Office, Cabinet Office and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
She will be in charge of a capital spend of £20.5bn for 2024-25 and a resource budget of £5.7bn. She is also leading one of Labour's more radical briefs, with a range of specific pledges that run further to the left of the party than PM Starmer usually steered.
The Labour manifesto promised to bring the railways into public ownership 'as contracts expire or are broken through a failure to deliver'.
The planned Great British Railways body, currently in transition form, 'will deliver a unified system that focuses on reliable, affordable, high-quality, and efficient services; along with ensuring safety and accessibility,' Labour said.
It also pledged to hand local mayors sweeping integrated transport powers, including new powers to deliver bus franchising and set up municipal bus companies and influence rail services in their areas.
One immediate challenge Ms Haigh faces is to restore the phase-out date of 2030 for new cars with internal combustion engines, With recent Conservative governments flip-flopping on the date, there will be some focus on whether Ms Haigh keeps to this pledge.
Ms Haigh is generally regarded as a skilful media operator and communicator and has made appearances on Question Time and Newsnight.
She is also recognisable for her distinctive look, often including dyed hair, once described as 'a colourised 1940s photo brought to life' - a description which she seemed to approve of on Twitter.
Channel: Infrastructure
keywords:
Transport Planning
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Mott MacDonald has reappointed Professor Glenn Lyons as Chair of Future Mobility, as he begins his term as the new president of the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT).
The engineering, development and management consultancy is continuing its sponsorship of his position at the University of the West of England Bristol (UWE Bristol).
Having worked in the role with Mott MacDonald and UWE Bristol since January 2018, Prof Lyons' tenure has been extended through to the end of 2027.
Professor Lyons (wearing Megadeth t-shirt) with outgoing CIHT president Karen McShane
Mott MacDonald said that since taking up the role, he ‘has been instrumental in positioning the business as a leader in the transport planning conversation, particularly in areas such as decide and provide, vision-led planning and triple access planning’.
Graeme Smith, divisional general manager for Transport and Mobility Solutions, said: ‘Glenn’s continued leadership ensures we can support clients in understanding and responding to the developing mobility landscape, shaped by emerging technological possibilities and evolving societal needs and preferences.’
Prof Lyons said: ‘I am delighted to continue this important journey with Mott MacDonald as we all grapple with providing appropriate stewardship over the future of transport and society.’
‘Combining that work with my presidency of CIHT is an honour and allows me to continue to focus upon issues that are dear to me.’
Prof Lyons was elected president of the CIHT at its annual general meeting on 19 June. At his inauguration event, he said: ‘Climate action will require us to think and act differently. Technologically tweaking business as usual isn’t going to make the changes we need to achieve net-zero. The longer we drag our feet on collective action, the worse things are going to become.
‘I am keen to better understand where CIHT members stand on climate action at both a personal and professional level.’
Channel: Transportation
keywords:
Transport Planning
