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

Wednesday, 01 October 2014

BBC News

• MPs call for direct rail service between Oxford and BristolTen MPs have written to Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin calling for a direct train service between Oxford and Bristol.
• New HS2 college locations revealedThe National College for High Speed Rail will be split between Doncaster and Birmingham, the government reveals.
• High school buses shake-up agreedFree secondary school transport rules are being tightened up in Denbighshire to save the county council £270,000.
• VIDEO: Trains halted by track-side fireTrains on a railway line out of Birmingham have been disrupted by a fire involving 200 tons of metal.
• Google Glass used by airport staffStaff at Edinburgh Airport are using Google Glass headsets to help them deal with customer inquiries.
• Kinloss spaceport plan endorsedA bid to bring the UK's first spaceport to the former airbase at Kinloss is endorsed by Moray councillors.
• Tube extension consultation beginsA public consultation begins into plans to extend the Bakerloo Line south.
• Burglar who fled up tree jailedA burglar who caused delays for thousands of commuters when he fled up a tree overhanging a railway line is jailed.
• Cars will be taxed twice, says AAThe AA complains that the new vehicle tax system will provide the government with extra revenue, as some cars will, in effect, be taxed twice.

Financial Times

• Network Rail told to cut costs by 20%Network Rail will have to cut costs by a fifth over the next five years while improving services on Britain’s railways, the regulator has said

The Guardian

• How to create sustainable transport systems throughout the UK – livechatJoin us on Friday 10 October from 12-2pm to discuss what the transport sector should do to help improve public health and tackle climate change

The Scotsman

• Edinburgh trams to feature on souvenir T-shirtsCOUNCIL chiefs have revealed plans to claw back a fraction of the £1 billion spent on the Edinburgh trams scheme by selling merchandise including model trams, mugs and T-shirts.

The Telegraph

• Roundabout of the Year 2014 competition, in picturesIn pics: The winner and the runners up in the Roundabout of the Year competition
• Tax discs scrapped: penalty fears for innocent driversThe DVLA could mistakenly seek to fine innocent drivers due to errors by ANPR cameras, experts warn as tax discs become obsolete
• Tax discs scrapped: how will changes affect drivers?With the era of the tax disc coming to an end on Wednesday, October 1, what do motorists need to know about paying vehicle excise duty in future?
• Tax discs scrapped: AA sends out badges to fill void on windscreenAA members who feel naked without a tax disc on their windscreen can plug the gap with a badge reminding them of when their next payment is due
• Was flying in 1989 better than today?£249 flights to New York, Keith Floyd on the box, hilarious cabin crew fashion and seven-course suppers - did air travellers have it better 25 years ago?

Mail Online

• A bicycle with wings, the Land Rover hovercraft and a side-by-side tandem among newly discovered archive of bizarre British inventions that never made it into the mainstream Businessman Chris Hodge, from Chislehurst, south east London, came across the vehicles as he trawled through a collection of images spanning the last 100 years.
• End of the road for the tax disc after 93 years: Drivers will no longer have to display disc on windscreens from today  Motorists will still have to pay tax, but will no longer have to display a disc in their windscreen. But experts say thousands of motorists risk a £1000 fine because they have not had enough warning.

Birmingham Mail

• Women-only train carriages could cut sex attacks, says transport ministerClaire Perry tells Birmingham Tory conference she would look at new ideas to boost safety

Birmingham Post

• Birmingham and Doncaster chosen for HS2 College Birmingham’s Science Park and Doncaster’s Lakeside Campus will be the hubs for the college, which is due to open in 2017
• HS2 College: Skills boost welcomed with 2,000 apprentices to be trainedThe college, which will train rail engineers of the future, will be spread across Birmingham Science Park and Doncaster’s Lakeside Campus

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Parents to hold second protest after Talybont school bus axedThey raise concerns over safety of walk to school along 'dangerous' pavement
• Denbighshire school bus cuts mean pupils face three mile walk to catch transportNew transport rules will save authority £270,000, but mean many areas will have just one central pick-up point

Derby Telegraph

• RJohnson_dt commented Derby misses out on HS2 training collegeDERBY has missed out on becoming the site of a new college that will train engineering apprentices working on high-speed rail projects such as HS2.The Government has said the college will be split between Doncaster and Birmingham.The National College for High Speed Rail will train staff working on the HS2 link between London, Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds.The college, due to open in 2017, will be based at Birmingham's Science Park and Doncaster's Lakeside Campus.Derby had offered up a site at...

London Evening Standard

• Airport terminal evacuated after man distracted by iPad wanders past security An airport terminal was evacuated after a man accidentally by-passed security because he was distracted by his iPad.

The York Press

• Consultation over bus route changes A SCHEME to shake up York's city centre bus routes has been opened to public consultation.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Case for £250m trolleybus in Leeds is weak & flawed says university transport expertA FORMER professor of transport planning at the University of Leeds has told a public inquiry the business case for a proposed £250m trolleybus scheme in the city is “weak, flawed and misleading.”

Doncaster Free Press

• Rogue rail activity clampdownPeople who misuse railway crossings In Doncaster are being targeted by British Transport Police as part of a crackdown.
• Robin Hood airport says Ciao Bella to new Italian packagesIndependent tour operator Newmarket Holidays has announced new exciting packages to Italy from Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield next year.
• Doncaster wins HS2 rail college raceDoncaster will be at the forefront of a high speed rail revolution, after being chosen as the home of the new HS2 college.

Other Regional Press

• Minister sees red after signal box protestPassionate protestors who tied red ribbons on a threatened signal box in Deeping St James are back on track with some good news – because their petition is on the fast train to the railway minister.
• Route of proposed A45 bypass modified after county council fails to reach agreement with Northamptonshire landownersThe route of the proposed A45 Flore, Upper Heyford and Weedon bypass has been modified due to problems acquiring land where the road will be built, the county council has announced.
• A66 lane to be reopened after closure for roadworks causes misery for motoristsU-turn by Highways Agency comes after works lead to huge tailbacks heading into Stockton today :: Repairs set to last five weeks
• Huddersfield MP Barry Sheerman confident he can save free Town BusRallying call issued over threatened bus service

Aviation Industry

• Blackpool airport on brink of closureAirport to close on October 7 if no buyer can be found
• Lufthansa flights hit by strike action50 long-haul flights cancelled from Frankfurt airport

Other News Sources

• Karl hails improved train service for passengers travelling between Nottingham and LincolnKarl McCartney MP has today welcomed the news that train services between Nottingham, Newark Castle and Lincoln are to be improved through a three-year service enhancement. The new timetable will deliver faster journey times on a total of 16 services between Nottingham and Lincoln and will reduce the fastest journey time to just 47 minutes.
• Winchester Station travel plan approved PLANS to help people get to Winchester Railway Station more easily on foot, by bicycle or bus have been agreed by Hampshire County Council.