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

Thursday, 04 September 2014

BBC News

• Irish rail strike action called offRailway workers in the Republic of Ireland call off planned strike action over a pay dispute, after lengthy talks with company management.
• Mayor unveils 'Crossrail for cycles'London Mayor Boris Johnson unveils plans for segregated urban cycleways as part of a £913m investment in improving cycling in the capital.

Financial Times

• Virgin Atlantic to bolster core US routesAirline is dropping flights to Tokyo, Mumbai and Cape Town to better compete with British Airways and take advantage of Delta partnership

The Guardian

• The 8.15 from Peterloo? Campaign to change name of Manchester PiccadillyIn five years time it will be the 200th anniversary of the Peterloo Massacre in Manchester, the bloody protest which paved the way for universal suffrage. To mark the occasion, a group of locals want to change the name of the city’s most famous station

The Telegraph

• Britain's town centre roads need more shared spaces, expert saysIncreased road safety and less congestion could be the benefits of introducing more shared spaces to the nation's urban roads, suggests Ben Hamilton-Baillie.

Mail Online

• Boris Johnson unveils £900m 'Crossrail for bikes' The routes will offer cyclists protection from other road traffic and are the centrepiece of a £913million project to get more Londoners on to two wheels.

This is Money

• Richard Branson prediction fails to fly as Virgin forced to axe underperforming destinations Sir Richard Branson's airline is abandoning flights to Mumbai and Vancouver just two years after launching them, while Cape Town and Tokyo Narita are also being axed.

Birmingham Mail

• Land Rover launch is out of this world (literally) Land Rover marks Discovery Sport reveal by launching ‘Galactic Discovery’ space flight competition with partner Virgin Galactic

Birmingham Post

• Growth of city's India air link is celebrated at Birmingham Airport Air India and Birmingham Airport held a celebratory dinner to mark the airline's first anniversary of operating from Birmingham Airport.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Transport police division has only five minority background officers BRITISH Transport Police has only five constables from minority backgrounds in the North East division which covers Bradford and the surrounding area.

Journal Live

• Dedicated North East transport plan must be drawn up warns Hexham MPA dedicated transport plan for the North East must be drawn up or the region will be 'left in the slow lane' MP Guy Opperman has warned

Lincolnshire Echo

• More AND faster trains between Lincoln and Nottingham Read more: http://www.lincolnshireecho.co.uk/faster-trains-Lincoln-Nottingham/story-22868905-detail/story.html#ixzz3CKHd2yZ2More direct trains on the Castle Line running between Lincoln, Newark and Nottingham have been pledged by the government.

London Evening Standard

• Commuter chaos as London Bridge signalling problems cause long delays and cancellations Commuters continued to experience delays at London Bridge this evening after a signalling failure caused chaos during the evening rush hour.
• Letters to the editor: Airport debate is far from over The alliances and codeshares that characterise modern aviation need a single hub airport in a focal city. If Sir Howard Davies chooses Gatwick for expansion, the airlines of the three major alliances would not move there. A bigger Gatwick would therefore only serve to aid the low-cost, point-to-point carriers to expand.
• Art Deco classic Victoria Coach Station made into a listed building Victoria Coach Station, used by millions of Britons and foreign travellers as an international transport hub, has been made a listed building.
• World-leading cycle route for London is unveiled: 18-mile east-west superhighway to protect riders on capital's busiest roads Full proposals for the world’s longest segregated urban cycle route were revealed today, as Boris Johnson ramps up efforts to improve rider safety in  the capital.

Manchester Evening News

• Hermes boss backs east-west rail link Chris Taylor, chief executive of Hermes Real Estate, has weighed in to support the so-called “HS3â€� line.

Northern Echo

• Music among the locos - rail museum hosts its own festival BANDS and singers are preparing for a gig with a difference this weekend - amid the locos at the National Railway Museum.
• Councils call for faster rail links with London REDUCING the journey time for trains travelling between London and Newcastle to two-and-a-half hours has been identified as a key aim by North-East councils.

Yorkshire Post

• Video: York sightseeing bus gets electric makeoverThey are a familiar sight on York’s streets but now one of the city’s tourism buses has gone electric.

Doncaster Free Press

• Work to replace the railway bridge over the A161 through Misterton has been completed.£1m project sees new railway bridge at Misterton

North Wales Live

• 'No services to be cut' vow for Merseyrail network Operator has hit back at claims from union bosses on cutbacks

Other Regional Press

• Influential committee of MPs to look into Anglia’s poor rail dealEast Anglia’s poor deal when it comes to rail subsidies is set to be examined by an influential parliamentary committee. Norwich MP Chloe Smith, who is a member of the transport select committee, said she had persuaded her committee to look at investment in rail because it was clear that East Anglia had not had its fair share.
• Stagecoach gives green light to £210 million train orderPerth-based public transport giant Stagecoach Group has sanctioned a £210 million new train order to boost capacity on one of the UK’s busiest rail networks. The massive contract for 30 new five-carriage Desiro City trains has been placed with manufacturer Siemens and rolling stock leasing company Angel Trains.
• Devon transport links set for upgrade as George Osborne promises overhaul money South West’s transport is set for an upgrade to be announced in his autumn statement.
• “Hands off our signal box,” village tells rail bossesCampaigners fighting to save a railway signal box in Deeping St James have rejected a rescue plan put forward by rail bosses. At least 40 people came to Deeping St James Scout Hut for a community meeting where plans were unveiled by Network Rail for the “sensitive and partial deconstruction” of St James Deeping signal box in Station Road.
• Mum Susan Tanner thrown off Stagecoach bus because son Tommy was crying on New Romney route A bus firm has apologised after a driver turfed a mum and her young son off a bus... because he was crying.

Aviation Industry

• Aer Lingus Regional to launch Leeds Bradford – Dublin routeDouble-daily service to start in October
• Norwegian’s application for US flights permit delayedUS Department of Transport requires additional time to make decision
• Virgin Atlantic to cancel Tokyo and Mumbai servicesAs part of a network review Virgin adds new LHR to Detroit route
• Virgin CEO: new Clubhouse at LAX and wifi on DreamlinersChanges are part of a £300 million initiative to improve ‘customer experience’

Other News Sources

• Positive news ‘imminent’ for better Lincoln to Nottingham rail linksThe Department for Transport is expected to announce positive news “imminently” on its involvement in the CastleLine project for more and faster trains between Lincoln and Nottingham. Lincoln MP Karl McCartney said “there is a very strong possibility that positive news might be announced imminently.”
• Creagh: Network Rail will be ‘guiding mind’If Labour wins next year’s general election, the infrastructure controller will compete with ROSCOs and take over tasks from train operators     Network Rail rather than train operators will have lead responsibility for planning train services, and provide competition to the rolling stock leasing companies if Labour wins next year’s election. The new responsibilities form part of a revised role set out for the company by shadow transport secretary Mary Creagh which would see it become the industry’s “guiding mindâ€�. Other key tasks that would transfer to Network Rail under Labour’s bl...
• Centro ponders jumbo artics for Sprint schemePTE seeks derogation for the operation of bi-articulated buses     Centro, the West Midlands PTE, is seeking a special dispensation from the Department for Transport that would allow it to introduce Britain’s longest buses on its proposed Sprint-branded Bus Rapid Transit corridors. Bus operators in the UK are currently limited to a maximum vehicle length of 18.75 metres, however in an OJEU notice seeking manufacturers to provide vehicles for Sprint, Centro says that it has ambitions to utilise single deck bi-articulated vehicles of 24-metres in length on Sprint corridors. “This is su...
• Fears of ‘chaotic’ race for northern franchisesThe shortlisted bidders for the Northern and TransPennine franchises have been named, but some fear the competitions will conflict with each other   The announcement of shortlisted bidders for the new Northern and TransPennine rail franchises has been accompanied by claims from within the rail industry that the competition for the new contracts risks “becoming chaoticâ€�. Concerns have centred on lack of clarity over how the Department for Transport will run simultaneous competitions for the two franchises which have interlinked timetables between cities across the north of England. The DfT...
• Wilkinson heads Office of Rail Passenger ServicesNew Office of Rail Passenger Services announced     The Department for Transport’s franchising director Peter Wilkinson has been appointed as managing director of the government’s new Office of Rail Passenger Services. ORPS will be formally launched on November 1 as a distinct section of the DfT’s rail executive with responsibility for awarding and managing rail franchises. Its creation is in line with the conclusions of the Brown Review of franchising which recommended that a clear and separate organisation should be created to bring together, and provide a clear focus on, the DfT’s...
• Brian Souter’s PolskiBus moves up a gearSir Brian Souter brings in Polish pipers to herald new services, new destinations and new coaches     In the space just three short years, Sir Brian Souter’s PolskiBus.com has mushroomed from an initial launch fleet of 18 vehicles to a complement of 132. The inspiration of the Stagecoach co-founder and chairman has been embraced by Poles. The Souter Investments subsidiary has now carried eight million passengers. The latest expansion has seen a £6.6m investment in 20 new high capacity coaches, built in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, by Alexander Dennis subsidiary Plaxton (which is its...
• Administrator – Best Impressions/Classic Bus  Administrator Best Impressions is the leading design and marketing agency working in the UK public transport industry today. In addition to our contemporary design work, we also put together and publish the historical special interest magazine, Classic Bus, which appears every two months.   Job description You will be required to undertake a wide range of administrative duties, including, among other things, the following: for Classic Bus managing the subscription service receiving, logging and returning material sent in by contributors arranging for the reimbursement of contributo...
• Designer/Artworker – Best Impressions  Designer/Artworker Best Impressions is the leading design and marketing agency working in the UK public transport industrytoday. To help us design our award-winning vehicle liveries and information and marketing material, we are looking for a designer/artworker to join our busy team.   Job description You will be required to undertake a wide range of design duties, which could include any/all of: photo retouching drawing/editing maps analysing, typesetting and formatting timetable and other information assisting with website design leaflet layout poster and advert design preparing ...