Transportinfo.org.uk - today's transport news in the uk, hand picked for you each morning

Tuesday, 11 January 2011

BBC News

• Keeping an uninsured car soon to be illegal in Britain New rules will make it illegal to keep an uninsured car in Britain whether it is being driven or not.
• Fuel error leaves plane too heavyPassengers are ordered off an EasyJet plane at Birmingham Airport after too much fuel is loaded into it
• Anglesey port revamp funding rowA political row breaks out over who should pay to develop Anglesey as a base for renewable energy.
• Royal wedding Tube strike threatDrivers on the London Underground could strike on the day of the royal wedding in a row over pay, union officials warn.
• Fiat raises Chrysler stake to 25%Italian carmaker Fiat increases its stake in Chrysler to 25% after meeting a commitment to produce a small engine in the US.

Department for Transport

• First Chairman of Highways Agency board appointedAlan Cook has been appointed as the first ever non-executive Chairman of the Highways Agency board.

Financial Times

• Lufthansa joins campaign against HeathrowEurope's biggest airline group by revenues has joined Virgin Atlantic to press the London airport to compensate airlines hit by snow chaos the week before Christmas
• American Airlines sues Sabre over ticketsIn a lawsuit claiming contract breach, the carrier says the fight with groups that distribute its tickets could raise costs and cause it to lose billions of dollars in revenues

The Guardian

• Local couriers get transport minister's mobile number After hitting out at the handling of Scotland's icy road problems, an Edinburgh delivery firm got a hotline to the man in charge

The Herald

• £100m to repair Scotland™s roads ravaged by weatherScotland™s councils are facing a bill of up to £100 million over budget for road repairs and increased maintenance work caused by this winter™s severe weather.

The Independent

• Tube strike on royal wedding day 'cynical' Suggestions of a Tube strike on the day of the royal wedding were condemned as
• BA cabin crew set to back new strikes British Airways cabin crew are expected to vote

The Telegraph

• Royal Wedding tube strike threat Tube drivers threatening to walk out on April 29th over pay issues.

Mail Online

• 100 Londoners take part in annual No Trousers Tube RideThe thrill-seekers made the journey on the Bakerloo Line from Charing Cross to Paddington and back surrounded by commuters who had no idea what was happening.
• EasyJet passengers ordered off plane after fuelling blunder makes flight too heavyWhen some passengers refused to budge they were told three police officers were waiting in the airport terminal and would arrest them if necessary.

The Mirror

• Airline tells 37 to get off plane too heavy to take off ANGRY passengers were ­threatened with arrest if they refused to get off a plane that was too heavy to take off.

Network Rail

• RAIL IMPROVEMENT FOR BRITANNIA BRIDGE
• AMIR KHAN HELPS NETWORK RAIL CELEBRATE BIG HIT TO RAILWAY CRIME

Belfast Telegraph

• Improved roads can aid economy, quarrying experts claimIncreasing spending on Northern Ireland's roads will help the economy come out of recession, according to a body which represents the quarrying industry.Related StoriesBig movies boost Cineworld coffersYou can always bank on host of Santander gripesSamsung set to use technology from UlsterBoost for financial firms as sales riseManufacturing industry to 'lead us out of recession'

Daily Post (North Wales)

• £8.6m appeal launched to finish the Welsh Highland Railway A NARROW gauge railway has launched an ambitious appeal to raise cash to upgrade facilities.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Trams firm bosses 'earn more than First Minister'SIX senior figures at Edinburgh's under-fire tram development body, including its chief spin doctor, are paid higher salaries than the First Minister, it has emerged.

Journal Live

• North's economy would be hit if Mersey campaign succeeds WARNINGS have been sounded that the regional economy could be damaged by a Liverpool bid to take cruise ships away from ports such as Tyneside.

Liverpool Echo

• Riverside MP Louise Ellman set to head probe into winter transport “fiasco” A LIVERPOOL MP is set to head a Parliamentary probe into this winter’s transport “fiasco.”

Liverpool Post

• Transport minister receives Liverpool Daily Post's Get On Board cruise campaign petition THE Daily Post handed over its Get On Board cruise campaign petition in person to the transport minister Mike Penning MP in London yesterday afternoon.

London Evening Standard

• Barrister calls for tougher action on lorry drivers who kill cyclistsTop barrister joins calls for greater legal safeguards for cyclists following the death of boxing champion Gary Mason, who was knocked off his bike in Wallington last week
• Big rail fare rise then tea trolley hits the buffers on SoutheasternThe rail company which introduced the highest fare increases in Britain has now lost the catering service on a busy commuter route

Manchester Evening News

• Banned scooters ‘are less dangerous than prams’ on Metrolink Disability campaigners have called for a rethink after figures showed that pushchairs were responible for more tram accidents than banned mobility scooters. Mobility scooters have been technically banned since the Metrolink network opened in 1992.
• Council bosses bought grit from Peru, despite being only 50 miles from UK's biggest salt mine Town hall bosses less than 50 miles from Britain™s biggest rock salt mine has been forced to buy grit from Peru. Rochdale council bought 3,000 tonnes of salt from the South American country after transport bosses became concerned grit levels could fall critically low for a second year running.

Metro

• After Spirit Of Britain: The world™s biggest shipsThe biggest ever cross-channel ferry sailed into Dover yesterday, but how does it stack up against the world™s biggest boats? We got our measuring sticks out and found five sea-going whoppers that leave other vessels looking distinctly minnowish.
• Tube strike on Bakerloo and Northern lines this weekendLondon Underground workers on the Bakerloo and Northern lines are preparing to strike for 24 hours from Friday evening.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Bus plug is set to open to cars as part of traffic trialONE of the controversial Gedling bus plugs will be opened up on Monday for a trial. Car drivers will be able to drive through the Burton Road bus plug, which until Monday can only be used by buses. The plug – where the road is narrowed for only buses to go through – will be opened to all vehicles under 7.5 tonnes and a traffic light will control the flow as the road is only wide enough for travel one way at a time. People will be able to send their views on the scheme to the council over the next six months. Responses will be presented to Councillor Richard Jackson, cabinet...

Sheffield Star

• Pledge over public use of station bridgeMOVES to make Sheffield railway station footbridge a public right of way are set to move forward with approval from the council's cabinet highways committee next Thursday.

Reading Evening Post

• We're fuel of misery Commuters faced soaring rail fares and fuel prices when they returned to work after the Christmas break – and transport businesses have been severely hit too.

Other Regional Press

• Have your say on public transport plans PEOPLE across the Vale have been urged to have their say on BOLD public transport plans during a 12 week consultation period which began on Monday.
• MP hits out at rail service THE disrupted train service to Lynn caused by snow and icy conditions has been blasted by MP Henry Bellingham. It has described it as “unacceptable” by the MP after travelling from London King’s Cross Station on December 23.
• Works begin at Whitechapel for Crossrail BUILDING works around Whitechapel station start today, as engineers lay the groundwork for the capital’s huge Crossrail project.
• Tower Hamlets council wins battle over Crossrail sewerThe Hackney to Abbey Mills and Wick Sewer in Wick Lane, Bow, was going to be diverted, causing major disruption to neighbours.
• Kirklees highways “fails to repair unlit bollards” HIGHWAYS staff have been criticised for failing to repair unlit and damaged bollards on major roads around Huddersfield.
• More bus services to be cut in Huddersfield LOCAL buses serving parts of Huddersfield are to be axed.
• Cave under Manchester Road in Slaithwaite reported FOUR months before repairs WORK to secure one of Huddersfield’s main roads following the discovery of an underground cavern started FOUR months after problems were first reported.
• New £1.2m bus lane on Leeds Road, Bradley, dug up after planning blunder PART of a newly laid £1.2m bus lane had to be dug up because of a planning blunder.
• MSP in bid to stop First from slashing hospital bus servicesA Glasgow politician has called on bus chiefs to put passengers before profits.
• Alex Salmond vows to cut fuel costs in ScotlandALEX Salmond has vowed to use North Sea revenues to cut the soaring cost of fuel in Scotland.
• Potholes scar a third of Aberdeen area™s roadsALMOST a third of the Aberdeen area™s roads are not up to scratch due to potholes, it was revealed today.

Washington Post

• Honda to offer natural gas, hybrid for 2012 Civic DETROIT -- Honda Motor Co. said Monday it plans to sell a nearly emission-free, natural gas-powered version of its new Civic sedan in all 50 states starting this year.
• American sues Sabre in battle over flight listings DALLAS -- American Airlines said a Texas state court judge temporarily blocked reservations-system operator Sabre from downplaying American flights in search results provided to travel agents.
• Prius ranks as Japan's top-selling car in 2010 TOKYO -- Toyota's Prius hybrid ranked as Japan's top-selling car in 2010 with annual sales hitting an all-time high, bucking the fallout from a series of massive global recalls, an auto industry group said Tuesday.

Aviation Industry

• Gatwick-Plymouth air route to closePlymouth is to lose its air link to Gatwick after Air Southwest announced closure of the loss-making route

Green Miscellany

• Devolving bus policy In an unguarded moment you may have found yourself gazing at the bar-code printed on the side of your groceries and you may have wondered how the bar-codes are allocated. Common sense tells us that there must be a different bar-code worldwide for every product – even down to its size and colour.read more

Other News Sources

• Crossrail Awards Major Tunnelling Contracts Worth £1.25bn Crossrail has announced its intention to award the major tunnel contracts for Europe's largest infrastructure project.