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

Thursday, 03 April 2014

BBC News

• A glimpse of new Heathrow Airport Terminal 2When Heathrow's Terminal 5 opened six years ago, it turned into a national embarrassment - there was chaos, including lost luggage and delays.
• Old railway line converted into pathWork starts to convert a disused railway line in the Black Country into a cycle route and footpath.
• Report on rail landslip preventionThe report calls for Network Rail to implement new safety measures to try and reduce the number of landslips which occur due to extreme weather.
• Electric trains between two citiesElectric trains will be introduced one of the north west's main routes from December, Northern Rail announces.
• Under the flight path, the landscape of HeathrowA look at the landscape around Heathrow Airport
• VIDEO: A glimpse of new Heathrow Terminal 2Heathrow is using volunteers to test its new Terminal 2 building ahead of the official opening in June.
• Pilots' strike grounds LufthansaGerman airline Lufthansa cancels around 900 flights at the start of a three-day strike that is expected to affect some 425,000 passengers.
• Electric cars 'must make more noise'Electric and hybrid cars will have to generate noise to make them safer for pedestrians, especially the visually impaired, the European Parliament says.
• Liverpool mayor threatens to exit Merseyside authorityThe Mayor of Liverpool has threatened to pull out of a combined authority in Merseyside after a vote on its leadership was taken in his absence.

Financial Times

• FirstGroup turnround hit by bad weatherWinter storms led to school closures, hitting profits from FirstGroup’s student bus business, but it says it is making progress in its turnround plan

The Guardian

• Heathrow airport would have to fork out £100m to homeowners if it matches Gatwick's compensation offerHeathrow owners would have to shell out £100m every year to households around the airport if it is to match Gatwick’s new noise compensation offer

The Herald

• Trains at risk from landslips lacked safeguardsTRAINS were operated without special precautions when there was a significant risk of running into a landslip, according to an official report on six incidents.
• Strike by pilots grounds airlineLUFTHANSA pilots have started a three-day walkout in a dispute over early retirement, effectively grounding Germany's largest airline in one of the biggest strikes ever to hit the company.

The Telegraph

• Trains allowed to run despite landslip riskTrains were allowed to run without extra precautions despite landslip risks, an official report has found    

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Bradford schools transport cuts likely to be pushed through by Chris Young T&A Reporter Bradford Council is likely to push through controversial cuts to free school transport, despite opposition from both rival political parties and within its own party.

London Evening Standard

• Tube passengers trapped in 'stifling' lift with alarm sounding for over an hourTube passengers criticised transport bosses today after being trapped in a lift in “stifling heatâ€� for more than an hour while alarms blared.
• Cyclists unveil 'wall of death' memorial at London road safety protestCyclists today unveiled a “wall of deathâ€� memorial as they called for road safety to be a priority in the local and European elections.

Manchester Evening News

• Victory for mobility scooter users as Metrolink relent after four-year battleMetrolink bosses have launched a trial to allow scooters on tram services

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Call to new super council for bus takeoverBus campaigners are hoping a new super council will push on with takeover plans.

This Is Local London Network

• Schools can 'opt in' for 20mph zones under new road safety plans Schools will be able to ‘opt in’ for 20mph zones in surrounding roads under plans approved by councillors this evening.

Wales Online

• Wales faces a £440m bill and a 12-year maintenance backlog to repair pothole riddled roadsEstimates suggest around 148,000 holes were filled last year at a cost of about £7.5m

Yorkshire Post

• Millions needed to fix roads ‘crisis’The cost of fixing Yorkshire’s growing potholes problem would be £96 million for every council, according to a new survey.

Bucks Free Press

• Gillan: MPs face 'tight timescale' on HS2 consultation CHERYL Gillan has said MPs will be up against a tight timescale to consider HS2 consultation responses ahead of a key Commons debate.

Other Regional Press

• Bus firms to put on improved services PASSENGERS are being promised improved bus services despite Oxfordshire County Council cutting £200,000 from its subsidy for services in West Oxfordshire.
• New era as West Yorkshire councils join forces for £1.6bn transport fund and £500m growth projectKirklees chief executive Adrian Lythgo has dual role on new Authority

Global Rail News

• Northern to get electric trainsNorthern Rail has reached an agreement with the Department for Transport (DfT) to introduce electric trains onto its network from December 2014. The operator is to receive 14 Class 319[...]
• Stagecoach to run East Midlands Trains services to 2015The Department for Transport (DfT) has reached an agreement with Stagecoach to continue operating services through East Midlands Trains until October 2015. The extension was an option included in the[...]
• Chile places suburban train orderAlstom is to build and maintain 12 new X’Trapolis suburban trains for Chile’s state-owned rail operator, Empresa de Ferrocarriles del Estado (EFE). The €70 million order follows an order placed[...]
• Verkehrsverbund Mittelsachsen orders Coradia EMUsGerman operator Verkehrsverbund Mittelsachsen has awarded Alstom a €150 million contract to supply and maintain 29 new Coradia Continental electric trains. The trains, which will operate services in Germany’s Central[...]
• Shortlist announced for Danish electrification projectDenmark’s rail infrastructure manager, Banedanmark, has published the names of five companies shortlisted to complete a major electrification of the country’s rail network. The national electrification programme will first see[...]

Aviation Industry

• Stobart Air scoops Flybe franchise Irish regional carrier Stobart Air, formerly Aer Arann, has inked a five-year franchise agreement with UK regional carrier Flybe covering two aircraft and six European routes. read more
• LOT Polish Airlines swings to $8.6 million profit in 2013LOT Polish Airlines has reported a PLN26 million ($8.6 million) net profit for the first time in five years. read more
• Avis and British Airways renew 15-year dealNew loyalty points scheme for business travellers
• Bmi Regional and Lufthansa sign codeshare dealAgreement sees Lufthansa adds Bristol to its route network

Other News Sources

• Boris Johnson: HS2 Heathrow spur would be a 'ludicrous waste of money'Mayor of London told anti-HS2 campaigner Lottie Jones the spur 'should be scrapped'
• Lothian Buses customers are the most satisfied  96% of users are satisfied with operator’s service Lothian Buses was the highest rated operator of the 36 bus operators included in the 2013 Bus Passenger Survey. The survey, which is undertaken by Passenger Focus, is usually restricted to operators in England, outside of London. However, council-owned Lothian was one of two Scottish operators included in the survey for the first time in 2013 – the other was First Glasgow. An impressive 96% of bus users said they were satisfied with Lothian’s overall service. The company was one of 13 operators that achieved an overall satisfactio...
• ‘Catch the Bus Week’ returns for second year  Claire Haigh of Greener Journeys says week-long spotlight on buses will be bigger and better in 2014 Greener Journeys, the sustainable transport group, has a mission to promote more sustainable travel and get people who don’t normally travel by bus to leave the car at home and give it a try. That’s why this Spring the organisation is once again coordinating ‘Catch the Bus Week’, which will run from the April 28 to May 4. Catch the Bus Week ran for the first time last year and was launched by chief executive of Greener Journeys, Claire Haigh, in conjunction with the then transport minist...
• TransPennine’s brand struggles to stand out  His southern-dwelling friends haven’t heard of  TransPennine Express, but Alex Warner wonders how many northerners are also unaware of it TransPennine Express is like the M62 Sport, Rugby League – good quality, but at best only on the periphery of the consciousness of us Southern softies. Indeed, in a recent brand survey undertaken by, ahem, yours truly of a sample size of 30 of my reprobate, unwashed friends and foes, none of them had even heard of TransPennine Express. I was determined, though, to get TransPennine Express into my consciousness with a taster trip from Manchester ...
• Bus user satisfaction reaches record 88%  Bus Passenger Survey shows significant improvement in satisfaction scores.‘These are very positive results,’ says transport minister Baroness Kramer The percentage of bus users who are satisfied with the service they receive has reached a record 88%, according to the fourth Bus Passenger Survey from Passenger Focus – up from 84% last year. Speaking at a briefing event in London last week, transport minister Baroness Kramer said: “These are very positive results.â€� She added: “The evidence from the survey is encouraging. Bus companies are increasingly focused on the passenger experi...
• ‘Sluggish’ growth for western business travel marketEast and emerging economies counter Europe's slow growth