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

Sunday, 26 October 2014

BBC News

• Heathrow airport: Disruption after 'issues' with IT systemAn IT problem at Heathrow caused disruption on Saturday night, a spokeswoman for the airport said, after travellers reported flight delays.
• Cockermouth's Main Street reopens to trafficA Cumbrian town's high street has fully reopened to traffic for the first time in seven months as a £1.7m roadworks scheme nears completion.
• Dubai: Gold prizes offered for public transport usersCommuters in Dubai are being offered the chance to win lavish prizes if they take public transport, it's reported.
• Cost of driving licence to be cut by up to 32%The cost of getting a driving licence is being cut following a recent public consultation, the government says.
• Delays warning over junction closureOne of the busiest motorway junctions in the West Midlands is partially closed as part of a £2.5m redevelopment.
• IT issues cause Heathrow disruptionAn IT problem at Heathrow airport causes baggage handling problems, with some passengers reporting

The Guardian

• UK driving licence fees fallYoung drivers facing the mounting costs of taking to the road might well breathe a little easier after the government announced it was slashing the cost of obtaining a licence.
• Heathrow airport expansion essential, says Virgin’s Richard BransonBranson calls on UK politicians to be brave and ‘bite the bullet’ by aiming for two new runways at Heathrow
• Criticism of easyBus service is unfairYour alleged complaint in the Consumer champions column (27 September) paints a grossly distorted view of easyBus.

The Telegraph

• HS2 route: Phase Two plans for new hub in Crewe Sir David Higgins, the chief executive of the £50 billion project, is due to publish his analysis of the line north of Birmingham on Monday - and it is likely to go via a new hub in Stoke, rather than Crewe

Times Online

• Fast Track - High-speed rail must link northern cities to each other, not just to London [Subscription]On Monday George Osborne and David Cameron will travel to Leeds to announce a high-speed rail link from Liverpool to Hull. This not an idea but a concrete pledge. They have rushed to get this far in the four months since Mr Osborne first talked about building a “northern powerhouse” in June, and they are committing themselves to HS3 before a yard of track for HS2 has been laid.
• Tories woo voters in north with HS3 railway promise [Subscription]George Osborne will make a major pitch for northern votes next week by announcing a multibillion-pound high-speed railway line linking some of the biggest cities across the Pennines.

Daily Express

• 'He has protected Britain' Tyke - the Border Force watchdog is named Animal Of The YearTYKE the Labrador’s endearing eyes and wagging tail provide a friendly welcome to the thousands of travellers landing daily at Heathrow Airport.

Mail Online

• Meltdown at Heathrow: Flights take off with NO luggage, passengers left stranded on the runway for hours and departure boards fail to update after major computer crash disables airport's baggage system  The systems failure has caused major delays with hundreds of passengers taking to Twitter to express their anger. One pilot earlier admitted: 'This looks like quite a big problem.'

The Mirror

• Thousands of airline passengers delayed after computer crash disables baggage system at HeathrowDozens of flights were prevented from taking off while some that were able to get away reportedly left without luggage

Network Rail

• Bearsted station on the up as Sir Hugh Robertson and friends open Access for All scheme’s 1,000th lift.Bearsted railway station, the gateway to Leeds Castle and a popular station in its own right, has become fully accessible for the first time in its 130-year history.
• PHOTO: This weekend, as the clocks go back and people get an extra hour in bed, Network Rail engineers are working through the night to rebuild London Bridge stationStunning night shot of a Network Rail engineer working on track near London Bridge station, with the Shard lit up in the background.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Cabbies fear insurance cost of tram crashesA COLLISION between a taxi and a tram in the city centre has sparked fears that repeated accidents could push up insurance costs for cabbies.
• Plan to tarmac Edinburgh’s historic streetsHistoric cobbled streets in the Capital face being smothered in tarmac under cost-cutting measures aiming at boosting the city’s flagging bank balance.
• Peace talks to heal rift between transport bossesPeace talks to heal a rift between directors at Edinburgh’s public transport system will be held next week after complaints were filed against the firm’s top boss.

Lincolnshire Echo

• LETTER: Great day out, but the transport was dire We have recently returned from a delightful week’s visit to Lincoln. We have recently returned from a delightful week’s visit to Lincoln. The weather was grand. The city from top to bottom was fascinating. However, the public transport system was deplorable.

Manchester Evening News

• New details of high-speed rail link to Manchester will be good news for regular travellers to Crewe - but not StokeProposals for northern section of controversial £50bn HS2 project expected to be announced on Monday

Sheffield Star

• First bus company teams up with road safety charityBus company First has teamed up with national campaign charity Brake to promote road safety awareness.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Hundreds sign petition to take Stonehaven road train the scenic routeHundreds of people have signed a petition calling for a tourist road train to be able to use a scenic route into Stonehaven.

The York Press

• WiFi services connect another bus route BUS passengers travelling between York the coast will be able to access free Wi-Fi thanks an allocation of city funds.

Wales Online

• M4 relief road: Anger as consultants' fees top £6m - before any work is done on £1bn projectAn FOI response reveals London-based engineering consultancy Arup has been paid more than £6.3m from 2010-2011 to advise on controversial project

Yorkshire Evening Post

• A fare cop as cabs are ordered off Leeds streetsSix taxis were ordered off the road because of concerns about faults in a crackdown on dodgy drivers in east Leeds.

Yorkshire Post

• A critical time for the future of rail services in YorkshireWHEN James Lewis recently gave a presentation on rail in the North he put a picture of a pacer train on the screen.
• Creagh puts pressure on franchise bidders to phase out old-fashioned trainsTransport companies have been told to have clear plans for phasing out old fashioned trains from Yorkshire or risk having their bids to run the region’s local rails services rejected by an incoming Labour Government.

Plymouth Herald

• Plan to reopen Tavistock to Plymouth railway line could still happen, says Transport Secretary A plan to reopen the train line from Tavistock to Plymouth as an alternative to the vulnerable Dawlish line is still under discussion, the Transport Secretary said today.

Other Regional Press

• Deeping St James signal box taken down to campaigners despairThe last few bricks that once made up The Deeping St James signal box were cleared away last night (Thursday October 23) by Network Rail.
• A1 closures at Black Cat delayed for a weekMotorists are being warned that carriageway closures on the A1 at Black Cat roundabout will now begin next weekend, Friday, October 31, as work on the scheme to reduce congestion continues.

Other News Sources

• Hawaiian Airlines Celebrates 30 Years Serving American SamoaHawaiian Airlines has reached a new milestone today as it celebrates 30 years since launching its non-stop service between Honolulu and Pago Pago, American Samoa. The airline is the only major...

News from Europe

• Violeta Bulc approved as EU transport commissionerSlovenian commissioner-designate for transport Violeta Bulc has been approved by the European parliament, the second candidate put forward after the previous nominee Alenka Bratušek was overwhelmingly rejected with 122 votes out of 135 against her nomination.
• ‘Lack of industry experience may help’ new EC transport supremo Violeta BulcVioleta Bulc has been confirmed as the new EC transport commissioner. Members of the European Parliament approved Jean-Claude Juncker’s new commission line up yesterday.