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

Friday, 08 August 2014

BBC News

• Fund seeks Malaysia Airlines revampMalaysia's state investment firm Khazanah Nasional seeks a
• Whitehall consultants on £1,000-£2,000 per dayThe Department for Transport took on 10 consultants, while the Ministry of Defence said it had recently employed someone earning up to £3,000 a day.

Financial Times

• Lufthansa seeks help from spy networksChief executive Carsten Spohr calls for better sharing of intelligence to protect flights after a Malaysia Airlines flight was shot down in Ukraine
• Lufthansa plots another German winnerAirline’s new chief focuses on low-cost long-haul service after enduring a turbulent introduction following the shooting down of MH17 over Ukraine
• Alitalia agrees rescue deal with EtihadFormal agreement, set to be signed as early as Friday, will make the Gulf airline the biggest shareholder in the lossmaking Italian carrier
• Malaysia Airlines to be nationalisedRescue plan will see carrier, which has been teetering on the edge of collapse, delisted by sovereign wealth fund Khazanah and restructured in a bid to restore it to profitability

The Guardian

• Malaysia Airlines shares suspended as state buyout is announcedBeleaguered company to be taken fully into state hands for restructuring in wake of MH370 and MH17 disastersMalaysia Airlines shares have been suspended and the beleaguered company will be taken entirely into state hands after it was hit by two disasters that killed hundreds of people.Trading of shares in Malaysia Airline System Bhd (MAS) was suspended on Monday morning and the company soon afterwards announced it would be removed from the stock market. Continue reading...

The Herald

• £600,000 in fines for bus gate violationsMORE than 10,000 motorists have been caught driving through a city centre bus gate in just over a fortnight.
• Flights emissions to riseEfforts to reduce aviation carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions will be outweighed by the growth in air passengers, according to new research.

The Telegraph

• Crossrail extension to Hertfordshire being consideredTransport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin says he has commissioned a report into whether to extend Crossrail to bring the high-speed train services to Hertfordshire
• Boris Johnson's opposition to Heathrow could derail MP bidBoris Johnson's bid to become an MP could be in doubt because of his desire to see Heathrow cosed and a four-runway estuary airport built in the Thames

The Mirror

• Malaysia Airlines suspends its shares following MH370 and MH17 disasters The decision comes after the airline lost two aircraft in two separate tragedies during the past year

Network Rail

• Football fans advised to check August rail travel plansFootball fans planning to travel to matches by train in August are being advised to check before they travel as planned improvement work may mean changes to some journeys.
• Rail investment in Blackpool continuesNetwork Rail is to make additional investment in the line between Preston and Blackpool North as part of its commitment to provide a better railway in the north west of England.

London Evening Standard

• Transport for London worker counts down days to new Doctor Who with witty signsA Transport for London worker is counting down the days until the new series of Doctor Who arrives with witty signs for commuters.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Newcastle Airport denies claims it will be damaged by third runway at HeathrowGatwick Airport has told an inquiry that a third runway at Heathrow would damage regional airports such as Newcastle International

Sheffield Star

• Wizz Air boosts flights from Doncaster AirportWizz Air has announced it will increase the number of flights to Riga and Vilnius from Doncaster’s Robin Hood Airport.

Yorkshire Post

• Fears for cyclists as toll of injuries goes upA SURGE in the popularity of cycling coupled with inadequate roads and poor road sense have contributed to a dramatic rise in the number of bikers killed or seriously injured on the roads, it is claimed.
• Rail company given new 10-year contractGRAND Central Railway has been awarded the contract to run services between London and Bradford for another 10 years.

Doncaster Free Press

• Wizz Air boosts flights from Doncaster AirportWizz Air has announced it will increase the number of flights to Riga and Vilnius from Doncaster’s Robin Hood Airport.

Other Regional Press

• Railway crossing diversions drive motorists crazyDiversions where level crossings have been closed have been driving motorists in South Holland crazy.
• MSP has lucky escape in bus crashA DUNFERMLINE MSP escaped serious injury when a car smashed into the side of the bus she was travelling on.
• Brockenhurst Railway Station gets £4.6m refitPASSENGERS at a Hampshire railway station will benefit from a £4.6m scheme that will improve access for those with limited mobility.
• Knutsford Railway Station gets spruced up in a bid to attract more visitorsRAIL users can expect an extra colourful welcome when they step off at Knutsford train station, thanks to the efforts of some proud Knutsfordians.
• Letter: Don’t demolish 1850s signal boxI live in a hamlet between the parishes of Deeping St James and Crowland.
• Funding boost for green transportUP TO almost £1 million could be given to the Isle of Wight Council to fund environmentally-friendly transport projects later this year.
• Police investigating whether one of Northampton’s ‘Boris Bikes’ was stolen and put up for sale on eBayOne of Northampton’s ‘Boris Bikes’ has been stolen and police are now investigating whether it has been placed on the internet auction website, eBay.
• Preston Bus Station named as top 100 buildingPreston Bus Station has been named as one of the 20th Century Society’s top 100 buildings in the past 100 years.

Airportwatch

• Halting late bus will hit villagesBUSES from Nottingham to East Bridgford and other outlying villages, due to funding withdrawal to Trent Barton/Greens, will no longer run in the late evening.

Railnews

• High Court dismisses HS2 protestors The High Court has dismissed a petition for a Judicial Review of HS2, rejecting claims by HS2 Action Alliance and the London Borough of Hillingdon that the Government had failed to carry out a Strategic Environmental Assessment under the European ˜SEA Directive™ before making safeguarding the route. The court concluded that the Safeguarding Directions were not a plan or programme that set the framework for development consent and therefore the Department for Transport was not required to undertake an SEA.

Aviation Industry

• United launches mobile app passport scanningAirline claims first to offer technology on international flights
• Air France to use A380 for Miami routeAirline to operate service with A380 from December
• Norwegian posts record passenger numbers for JulyAround 2.5 million people travelled with the airline last month

Other News Sources

• The importance of expanding London's airports, explainedLet Britain Fly spoke to business leaders about the importance of expanding London's airports. This is what they had to say...
• Government proposes Crossrail extension to HertfordshireNew service could help redevelopment of Euston station