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

Friday, 06 July 2012

BBC News

• Derby buses to get 'route champions' to improve services Derby City Council has pledged to improve public transport by restoring a bus partnership which was scrapped by the previous administration.
• Leeds trolleybus comeback scheme approved Leeds is to become the first UK city to get a modern trolleybus system, it has been confirmed.
• Rotherham Central Railway Station reopens after revamp A South Yorkshire railway station has officially reopened after an £8.5m revamp overran by more than a year.
• Tyne and Wear Metro workers accept new pay deal Tyne and Wear Metro workers have accepted an improved pay deal, removing the threat of further strikes.
• Leeds's 30-year wait for green transport scheme More than five years after they were first announced, plans for the UK's first modern trolleybus system have been given the go-ahead by the government.
• Drivers owe £174m for congestion charge More than £170m is owed by people who have not paid the congestion charge in London, it has been revealed.
• Rail overcrowding in London and South East 'gets worse' Overcrowding on rush-hour trains in London and south-east England continues to worsen despite extra investment in railways, government figures show.
• 450 new jobs at Swansea DVLA HQThe DVLA says up to 450 jobs will be created at its Swansea HQ as part of an improvement programme, although posts will go in Cardiff and Bangor.
• Tugboat to be stationed in OrkneyAn emergency tug will provide cover for north Scotland, Western Isles and Shetland from a port on Orkney.
• Plaque marks pioneering railwayA specially designed plaque will be unveiled in Ayrshire later to commemorate the first-ever railway to carry passengers in Scotland.
• Tourists face extra Spanish taxHolidaymakers in Spain this summer are facing a surprise new airport tax imposed by the Spanish government as it tries to balance its books.
• US in China car import tariff rowThe United States has complained to the World Trade Organisation about the level of China's import duties on large-engined US-made cars.
• Air fares to include card feesTwelve airlines, including Easyjet and Ryanair, agree to include debit card charges in air fares, rather than at the end of the booking process.

Department for Transport

• Green light for Leeds trolleybusTrolleybuses are set to return to Leeds after Transport Secretary Justine Greening today approved a new £250 million public transport system.
• Transport statisticsStatistical release of figures to do with rail passenger numbers, port freight and driver and rider tests.

Financial Times

• Call to avoid costly mistakes made with Channel tunnel lineCostly mistakes over the UK™s first high speed rail line must not be repeated with link between London and the north, Public Accounts Committee says

The Herald

• Union's strike warning to ferry ownersUNION leaders have warned the company which has taken over ferry services to Orkney and Shetland that they could be on a collision course over terms and conditions for staff and potential job losses.
• Bid to boost active school travel failingLESS than half of Scotland's pupils walk or cycle to school, according to a new survey which found that years of Government policy designed to boost
• Train delays warning over funding cutsTRAIN delays on Scotland's busiest rail route could become far worse after a decision to scale back a £1 billion investment programme, senior industry figures have warned.
• Airlines to scrap last-minute feesTwelve airlines “ including easyJet and Ryanair “ will no longer spring last-minute fees on customers paying by debit card, the consumer watchdog has revealed.
• HS1 demand misjudgedTHE Government faced calls to review its commitment to a new high-speed rail line after

The Independent

• MPs warn taxpayers could be left with huge bill for HS2 high-speed rail linkTaxpayers could be left with a huge bill for the planned high-speed rail line between London and Birmingham unless lessons are learnt from costly mistakes over the Channel Tunnel link, MPs warned today.Related StoriesBarbecue warning after girl's Good Friday campsite deathFour hundred million more plastic bags handed out in supermarkets last yearWe want to become ScientologistsProtest: You bunch of bankers!Number of children living in vulnerable families to rise to one million by 2015, leading charities warn

The Telegraph

• Airlines forced to scrap 'surprise' debit card charges Low-cost airlines, including easyJet and Ryanair, have been ordered to include charges for paying by debit card in tickets’ headline prices to show the true cost of flying with them.
• Airbus's US move highlights redefinition of globalisation It is some achievement to annoy unions in both Europe and the US in the same week, but Airbus, the aircraft manufacturer, has managed it.
• Border Force 'still failing' on Heathrow queues as Olympics draw near Britain’s Border Force is still missing its own targets on cutting immigration queues at Heathrow just weeks ahead of the start of the Olympic Games, figures showed last night.
• £60m 'Olympic' bus stand used by just one busA £63 million bus stop billed as

Press Association

• Chunnel link leaves £4.8bn debt Over-optimistic forecasts for passenger demand have left taxpayers "saddled with £4.8 billion of debt" over the HS1 Channel Tunnel rail link, a report by MPs has said.

Daily Record

• ScotRail tell train drivers to coast on downhill sections of track to save moneySCOTRAIL’S train drivers have been told to switch off their engines and freewheel to save fuel.

This is Money

• End to Ryanair debit card tricks as budget airlines forced include payment fee in ticket priceBudget airlines including Ryanair and easyJet have agreed to include the cost of paying by debit card in the headline price of tickets - ending a scam that made it almost impossible to pay for tickets without a charge

ATOC

• Train companies respond to latest rail crowding figuresResponding to the latest rail crowding figures published by the Department for Transport, a spokesperson for the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) said: “Faster trains and better...

Network Rail

• NATIONAL TRAIN PERFORMANCE FOR PERIOD 3 IS 92.9%

Birmingham Mail

• All change in Birmingham city centre as buses are taken out of Corporation StreetMAJOR changes are to be unveiled today for Birmingham city centre bus passengers.
• Vapour from 'smokers' health aid' sparked M6 Toll road alertThe terror alert which closed the M6 toll today was caused by a

Bristol Live

• £1billion jackpot will fund long-awaited Bristol Metro train networkA REVOLUTION in the way Bristol and the surrounding area is run was being announced today.
• Nick Clegg: Giving Bristol the freedom to thriveYESTERDAY I announced new powers that will unshackle Bristol from London and give it the freedom to thrive.

Derby Telegraph

• Bus forum relaunched with aim of improving travel services in cityA BUS partnership is being relaunched today in an effort to get transport companies and passengers to work with the city council to improve services.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Key rail link hits the buffers after £1bn budget cutA CUT in the budget for the upgrade of the Edinburgh-Glasgow rail line means passengers travelling from the west will no longer be able to use the planned interchange to catch a tram to the airport.

London Evening Standard

• British Airways takeover of BMI puts booming cities on the route mapBritish Airways is to launch vital œtrade routes� to the growing economies of the Far East and Latin America despite losing its battle for a third Heathrow runway.
• Bus passengers reveal terror fearsBus passengers caught up in a terror alert caused by an electronic cigarette have told how they feared for their lives.
• easyJet, Ryanair, and ten other airlines will have to include hidden debit card charges in headline ticket priceTwelve airlines - including easyJet and Ryanair - will no longer spring last-minute fees on customers paying by debit card, the consumer watchdog revealed today.
• British Airways flies into privacy storm over Google identity checks on passengersBritish Airways today faced a backlash from privacy campaigners after it revealed plans to use the internet to create œdossiers� on passengers.
• Bicycles 'stolen after two years'Cyclists own a bike for an average of two years before it is stolen, according to a study.

Sheffield Telegraph

• It™s a deal: Big Government boost for jobs and transportTHE Sheffield region is today being given the chance to create 4,000 apprenticeships and to offer skills training to 2,000 workers as part of a pioneering deal with the Government, writes Peter Kay.
• Have Your Say: Quiz bosses over Sheffield bus service changesBUS passengers in Sheffield will have the chance to quiz network bosses about proposed changes to services and improvements to tickets, writes Richard Marsden.

The York Press

• Transport and jobs cash for York through Government powers dealYORK is set to get a share of a £1 billion public transport and roads fund and other Government cash as councils from across Yorkshire team up.

Wales Online

• Taxpayers spared massive bill despite Cardiff Bus' unlawful actionsCardiff Bus will have to pay just £90,000 in compensation to a rival it drove off the roads and into liquidation
• Plaid Cymru calls for "re-nationalisation" of the railways Plaid Cymru has called on the Welsh Government to effectively re-nationalise the railways after the UK Shadow Transport Secretary suggested Labour were looking at the policy for England.
• Cardiff news: 8% of passengers on trains to Cardiff have to stand at busiest timesOne in 12 passengers has to stand on rail services into Cardiff when they are at their busiest.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• HS2 rail junction plans are attacked Fresh plans for a major junction of the HS2 rail line near Lichfield are revealed today, sparking criticism from Staffordshire County Council chiefs.
• HS2 rail junction plans are attackedFresh plans for a major junction of the HS2 rail line near Lichfield are revealed today, sparking criticism from Staffordshire County Council chiefs.

Yorkshire Post

• Green light for Leeds™s electric trolleybus schemeLeeds’s decades-long campaign for a modern transport system has finally reached a successful conclusion after Ministers gave the green light to a £250m electric trolleybus scheme.
• History is made as region handed cash reinsCONTROL over billions of pounds of transport and investment funding has been transferred to large swathes of Yorkshire in a historic devolution of powers.
• Airlines to end surprise debit card surchargesTwelve airlines – including easyJet and Ryanair – will no longer spring last-minute fees on customers paying by debit card, the consumer watchdog revealed.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Reinstated bus service is victory for people powerDelighted residents in a Stanground street won a victory for people power when a bus service was reinstated.

Other Regional Press

• £100 million Bristol Metro train network by 2016 The £100-million Bristol Metro train network which will bring massive improvements to local railways is to go ahead with the first services running by 2016.
• Hitchin rail curve main structure fittedTHE multi-million pound Hitchin flyover project has moved nearer to completion, with the main structure having been fitted over the weekend.
• FirstBus said to be selling Northampton baseA bus company which operates 35 services in Northampton has put the operation up for sale, a report claims.
• FirstBus said to be selling Northampton baseA bus company which operates 35 services in Northampton has put the operation up for sale, a report claims.
• UK & World News: Chunnel link leaves £4.8bn debtOver-optimistic forecasts for passenger demand have left taxpayers
• UK & World News: Bicycles 'stolen after two years'Cyclists own a bike for an average of two years before it is stolen, according to a study.
• Preston passengers halted by ˜electronic cigarette™Bus passengers travelling from Preston to London were surrounded by armed police on a motorway after an electronic cigarette sparked panic on-board.
• Plea for more spending on North-east transportTRANSPORT bosses today launched a major drive for cash “ after admitting that the Aberdeen area had lost out on billions of funding.

Global Rail News

• London and south east overcrowding worsensPeak-time overcrowding on London and south-east England services has got worse, according to figures released by the Department for Transport. The percentage of rail passengers travelling from London at peak times who exceeded normal capacity stood at 3.2 per cent in 2011, 0.2 per cent up on the previous year’s statistics. The research, which looked [...]
• Network Rail in fresh bonus rowNetwork Rail has apparently been warned that it would be in breach of its license if it goes ahead with multi-million pound bonuses. The rail union TSSA announced yesterday that Network Rail bosses were planning a long-term bonus scheme which will see them paid almost £12 million on top of annual bonuses already worth up [...]
• Dumped cables cause 20-hour delayRail passengers experienced 20-hour delays last week after telephone cable was deliberately thrown onto lines near Peterborough. The disruption is estimated to have cost Network Rail £90,000 in compensation to inconvenienced train companies. Eighty-five trains were affected by the delays, with five services being cancelled as a result. Pc Christopher Thompson-Chambers said: œA train driver [...]
• Siemens reveals InnoTrans modelsSiemens has given journalists a sneak preview of what it will present at this year’s InnoTrans - the world’s largest trade fair for transport technology – during a visit to the company’s Vienna plant. The train builder will exhibit Avenio , Siemens’ most advanced tram, and Inspiro, the company’s new-generation metro train, along with various other [...]
• Upstairs DownstairsIt could only be London – the energy, the din, the bustling humanity. One of the city™s red double-deckers plots a course through the traffic; half-a-dozen folk wait in line for it. A thirty-something woman, tanned by Cuprinol, perches on inexplicable heels. Her partner shoulders the spoils of shopping: four assorted bags. She jabs him [...]
• FTPE tackle Three Peaks by RailA team of four from First TransPennine Express (FTPE) has conquered the Three Peaks Challenge by Rail, climbing the highest mountains in England, Scotland and Wales in just three days. The event, now in its 10th year, took place between June 21 “ 23. All proceeds were donated to the Railway Children, a UK-based children™s [...]
• Future of Sustainable DesignDavid Biggs, director of property at Network Rail, delighted delegates at the Future of Sustainable Design conference with details of retail outlets on stations out performing recession-struck high street shops. ˜It™s retail on the way, not in the way,™ says Biggs. For several years now Network Rail Property has been hard at work unlocking the [...]
• Irish Rail reunites Twitter dog with ownerIrish Rail harnessed the power of Twitter to return home a lost dog that boarded one of its early morning trains to Dublin. Rail workers posted a message on Twitter with a photo of Patch who ended up 20 miles from home after hopping onto the 6.49am commuter train in Kilcock on Wednesday. The message [...]
• Panda-monium on the TubeThe London Underground was filled with a different breed of tourist yesterday, as more than a hundred pandas made there way onto the Tube to raise awareness about the endangered species. A total of 108 costumed performers, which represents the 108 pandas that live in the Chengdu Panda Base research centre in Southwest China’s Sichuan [...]

Railway Gazette

• Wi-fi is latest upgrade for SWT Desiro fleetUK: A £3·2m programme to install wireless internet on the 45 five-car Class 444 Siemens Desiro EMUs operated by South West Trains was announced on July 4. As well as enabling passengers to access the internet and e-mail on the move, wi-fi will enable real-time monitoring of on-train equipment and, in conjunction with forward-facing cameras mounted in the cab, the possibility of monitoring track and the third rail power supply from revenue trains. Wi-fi installation is scheduled to take place over the next 12 months. Christian Roth, Fleet Director for the alliance between SWT and Network Rail, ...
• Bombardier licenses Flexity 2 design to China SouthCHINA: On July 5 Bombardier Transportation announced the conclusion of a technology licence agreement with the CSR Puzhen subsidiary of China South Locomotive & Rolling Stock Corp. Under the agreement, Bombardier will provide CSR Puzhen with a 10-year licence to use its technology to manufacture and sell Flexity 2 100% low-floor trams in China. The agreement includes preparation and delivery of documentation for a local variant of the Flexity 2. It also provides for extensive training for CSR Puzhen employees, including assistance in the adaptation of technical documents. However, Bombardi...
• Stations for mobile workers NETHERLANDS: Serviced office company Regus and Dutch national passenger operator NS have opened their first station2station business lounge at Amersfoort station, and are planning to develop a total of 13 drop-in office facilities at inter-city stations by the end of the year. The lounges provide access to office facilities including include workstations, meeting rooms, wi-fi, video conferencing, administrative support and tea and coffee. Workers can drop in to use the internet, complete paperwork, print documents, and meet colleagues or customers. Regus has undertaken similar projects in par...

Aviation Industry

• Airlines to include debit card fees in pricesA group of 12 carriers agree to display fees within the headline fare
• BA expects Olympics dip for premium travel Carrier warns on "softness" for premium cabins due to the games

Other News Sources

• Coalition told to do more research into HS2 alternatives The government has been told to ‘revisit its assumptions on HS2’ by a powerful committee of MPs.
• Telford rail station’s revamp delayed The £1 million project to revamp the station started in March and was expected to take six months to complete.
• Huppert pushes government to act on rail prospectusMP Julian Huppert joined Parliamentarians from across the eastern region this week to take their rail improvement plans directly to the government.