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

Tuesday, 08 April 2014

BBC News

• £1.5bn A14 improvement plans out to consultationA 10-week public consultation has begun on plans for £1.5bn improvements to the A14 in Cambridgeshire.
• Reading railway station shops delayed until summerThe opening of six new shops at Reading station has been delayed by several months.
• Labour to pledge £20bn funding boost for English citiesLabour is to promise English cities more powers over transport, housing and employment to help close the "productivity gap" with London.
• London Southend Airport sets new passenger targetLondon Southend Airport in Essex expects to carry two million passengers by 2015 - five years earlier than originally planned.
• Camden's 'lack of urgency' over improving fatal junctionThis week there will be a number of inquests into the cyclists who died during that grim fortnight last year.
• New services for Cambrian and Heart of Wales linesNew peak hourly trains between Aberystwyth and Shrewsbury will be among extra services to be funded by the Welsh government on the Cambrian and Heart of Wales rail lines.

The Guardian

• 'Black box signals' raise hope of finding MH370 in days Malaysian ministerHishammuddin Hussein cautiously hopeful of positive developments in hunt for plane 'in next few days, if not hours'The hunt for the missing flight MH370 could see positive developments "in the next few days, if not hours", Malaysia's transport minister has said after an Australian vessel twice detected signals consistent with transmissions from the beacons on a black box. Continue reading...

The Telegraph

• Bailiffs 'inflating fees' for parking finesBailiffs are inflating fees and adopting a heavy-handed approach to parking fine collection, Panorama documentary claims

Daily Express

• The secrets of the indestructible black box and the mysteries it has solvedIN MAY 1953 a de Havilland Comet jet aircraft, operated by British carrier BOAC, crashed near Calcutta killing all 43 people on board.

Network Rail

• Local school pupils learn about railway safety ahead of East West Rail upgradeA team from Network Rail’s East West Rail programme are visiting schools in Bedford, Bletchley and Bicester to help children and young people in the local areas understand railway safety.
• Rose Grove to Colne line reopens after upgrade and investmentThe line between Rose Grove and Colne has reopened after improvement work was carried out to provide a better railway for passengers.
• New £4.5m Shore Road bridge opens six weeks earlyTransport Minister Keith Brown was joined by some of Riverside’s oldest and youngest residents today (Monday, April 7) to officially open the new Shore Road bridge.
• Network Rail and The Office Group announce next phase of growth for The Station Office Network joint ventureThe Station Office Network, the joint venture between Network Rail and The Office Group, has announced that it will open a further three drop-in work spaces in 2014 following the successful launch of its flexible office product at Paddington station in mid-2012.
• Flyover to boost capacity and reliability on one of Europe’s busiest rail routesPlans for a new railway flyover which will help provide increased capacity and improved reliability on the Stafford to Crewe section of the busy West Coast main line have been given the go-ahead.

Birmingham Post

• Former whip Michael Fabricant to lead rebellion against HS2 Tory Vice-Chairman Michael Fabricant urges Labour MPs to back his attempt to block high speed rail legislation

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Cycle helmet competition Youngsters have the chance to get creative by designing a cycle helmet for their favourite story characters.

Derby Telegraph

• Boss of Derby train-maker Bombardier Francis Paonessa to join Network Rail THE man who helped guide train-maker Bombardier to a £1 billion contract that secured the future of its Derby site is to leave the company to take up a role with Network Rail.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Tram bosses use Father Ted slogan for safetyA SAFETY crackdown inspired by a cult television comedy has been launched with the aim of preventing tram-related road deaths.
• Tram bosses use Father Ted slogan for safetyA SAFETY crackdown inspired by a cult television comedy has been launched with the aim of preventing tram-related road deaths.

London Evening Standard

• A rainbow over St Pancras: vivid new sculpture unveiled at transport hubThe skies might be grey but a rainbow of colour was cast across St Pancras station today when a new sculpture was unveiled high above the platforms.
• Andrew Adonis: What I learned from riding London’s night busesThe most exciting part of my week’s immersion on London’s buses last month — 104 routes in five days — were the night buses. It began at midnight in Shoreditch, then to Trafalgar Square, and on to Heathrow on the N9 at 4am. I saw plenty of partygoers, but far more fellow passengers were going to and from work — waiters, cleaners, nurses, shop and security staff — all relying on the buses.

Northern Echo

• National Railway Museum and Hornby up for award THE National Railway Museum and model-maker Hornby have been shortlisted for an award at a national celebration of arts and business.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Last-ditch appeal to stop West Link roadPROTESTERS have made an 11th-hour plea for Highland councillors to reconsider the controversial Inverness West Link road.

The York Press

• Unions launch legal bid over East Coast reprivatisation RAIL unions are looking to launch a legal challenge against the Government's plans to reprivatise the East Coast Main Line.

Yorkshire Post

• Back our bid for growth, Ministers are urgedUPGRADES to roads, rail electrification and new buildings are among dozens of schemes in North and East Yorkshire which could be set to benefit from a £125m boost for the region next year.

Burnley Express

• Traffic lights plan for busy Burnley roadTraffic lights are set to be installed at one of the main gateways into Burnley which is plagued by congestion.

Doncaster Free Press

• Unions join forces to challenge government over East Coast Main LineThe Rail Unions ASLEF, RMT and TSSA have launched an application for Judicial Review to challenge the government over InterCity East Coast and the direct award of rail franchises.

Other Regional Press

• Historic tiles make their return to Normanton Railway StationA piece of heritage and a new display have been unveiled at Normanton railway station. A replica of the historic North Eastern Railway tiled map has been installed at the station alongside a plaque of the Normanton Town Council coat of arms, created by artist Harry Malkin.
• Gatwick second runway consultation launches to record turnout for one of its exhibitionsGatwick Airport has launched its public consultation on proposals for a second runway with record crowds for one of its exhibitions packing the first date.
• Oxford second highest number of those cycling to work The proportion of residents who cycle to work in the city is the second highest in the country.
• Stagecoach to put up Northamptonshire bus faresStagecoach Midlands have announced that fares will rise by an average of three per cent in Northamptonshire due to rising costs.
• Labour: Northamptonshire pothole funding is ‘too little too late’A Labour frontbencher has branded the Government’s announcement of additional funding for road maintenance in Northamptonshire as “too little, too late.”

Global Rail News

• Bombardier boss to lead Network Rail IPBombardier’s current managing director, Francis Paonessa, is to become the new head of infrastructure projects at Network Rail. Paonessa will succeed Simon Kirby in the summer, who leaves Network Rail
• Work starts on €16.3bn Riyadh MetroPrince Khalid bin Bandar has broken ground on line 4 of the Riyadh Metro two months ahead of schedule. The governor of Riyadh province was joined by Prince Turki bin Abdulaziz,[...]
• Delivering the Downtown LineIn December 2013, rail passengers in Singapore were welcomed onto the first 4.3-kilometre stretch of what will be the city’s fifth metro corridor – the Downtown Line (DTL). Opening in[...]
• Siemens hands over last domestic ICE 3 train to DBSiemens has delivered the eighth and final new high-speed ICE 3 trainset to operate domestic services for Deutsche Bahn (DB). The German manufacturer is delivering 17 new Series 407 sets[...]
• Bombardier and DB agree maintenance contractDeutsche Bahn (DB) has enlisted Bombardier to carry out maintenance on hundreds of vehicles operating in Germany’s Lower Saxony region. Bombardier will repair and maintain wheelsets, brake components and bogies[...]
• Project manager sought for central section of California’s high-speed railwayThe authority leading the construction of California’s new high-speed railways has issued a request for qualifications to project manage the delivery of a 60-mile central section of the route. The $45[...]

Railnews

• HS2 'should be slower' -- and may cost more The cost of HS2 could rise by almost a quarter by 2019 according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. The forecast has come amid calls for the speed of trains on HS2 to be reduced to 300km/h. A new report from the House of Commons Environmental Audit Select Committee says that
• Unions mount challenge to East Coast plans Rail unions have launched an application for a judicial review of the government's plans to reprivatise the East Coast franchise, and also the current DfT policy of making direct awards to get the franchising timetable back on track. ASLEF general secretary Mick Whelan said: œIt is imperative that we raise the genuine concerns of all stakeholders but, especially, the employees before this is rushed through. We cannot, in good conscience, allow the mistakes of the past to happen again.�

Aviation Industry

• Gatwick starts consultation on second runwayAirport inviting feedback from local community

Other News Sources

• Rolls-Royce invests in new marine facility to support continued growth of Brazil's offshore oil and gas industryRolls-Royce and UK Chancellor George Osborne announced today that the Group will further invest in Rio de Janeiro State to better support customers in the
• New Redhill platform and more train seats in £2.3bn rail investmentExtra carriages also promised for some South West Trains routes as Network Rail announces five-year plan
• Ring-fenced budget needed for HS2 environmental impact, MPs warnThe environmental impact of HS2 should be overseen by an independent body, with a separate ring-fenced budget, according to an influential committee of MPs.
• Is this the ping from flight MH370's black box? - videoAustralian vessel Ocean Shield picks up acoustic
• Cyclists and pedestrians to share Seaford seafront A trial that will see cyclists and pedestrians share a section of seafront promenade is to launch.
• Avis and British Airways renew 15-year dealNew loyalty points scheme for business travellers