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

Saturday, 31 January 2015

BBC News

• Rural transport lifeline for villageA transport lifeline for a rural community that lost a bus service in 2014 is being piloted in north Wales.
• Business leaders discuss transportTransport summit held to find ways to improve travel infrastructure in north Wales to boost economic growth.
• Honda cuts profit forecast on recallJapanese carmaker Honda cuts its profit forecast and sees third quarter earnings drop sharply following a vehicle recall linked to airbags.
• Easyjet backs Heathrow expansionBudget airline Easyjet says it is in favour of expanding Heathrow airport in a submission to the Airports Commission
• Qatar buys 10% stake in BA ownerQatar Airways announces a surprise investment in International Airlines Group, the owner of British Airways and Iberia.

Financial Times

• Network Rail operates a performance scorecard - Letter, Mark Carne, Network RailSir, In your report “Railways behemoth becomes stuck in transit” (January 29), it was stated that there is “no direct connection between executive pay and performance”. This is not true.
• EasyJet backs Heathrow runway bidGatwick dismisses view as based on ‘narrow commercial interests’
• Q&A: Qatar’s swoop on IAG stakeWhy the Gulf airline is seeking a closer alliance with the owner of BA
• Chart that tells a story — travel costsPetrol prices and rail season tickets have outpaced CPI over the past decade
• IAG and Qatar Airways: related partiesQatar Airways has acquired 10 per cent of IAG
• Qatar Airways buys 10% stake in IAGDeal to strengthen ties with owner of British Airways and Iberia

The Guardian

• Why I talk to strangers on the trainNothing makes me happier than taking this moment of physical movement and social stillness to dive into a stranger’s lifeA Catholic priest once slept on my shoulder for two hours as we rattled through northern France. A lavender-scented woman once talked to me the whole way from Edinburgh to London, before handing me a small book of prayers and her postal address. I am writing this sitting next to a man with an Only God Can Judge Me neck tattoo who just spent the last 10 minutes telling me about the cat he wants to buy as we speed towards Weymouth. When it comes to transport, I am a magnet to ...

The Herald

• Turntables put cars in a spinIT is a novel way to avoid reversing out of your driveway into oncoming traffic.

The Independent

• Gatwick’s biggest airline, easyJet, calls for new runway at HeathrowThe easyJet flight to Belfast, Berlin or Barcelona could soon be departing from Heathrow Terminal 4. Britain’s largest budget airline is Gatwick’s biggest customer. But it has told the Airports Commission that the next new London runway should be built at Heathrow.

Mail Online

• Delta plane makes emergency landing after captain is LOCKED out of the cockpit A flight from Minneapolis to Las Vegas was forced to make an emergency landing today after the pilot was locked out of the cockpit. The first officer was forced to make an 'unassisted landing'.

The Mirror

• 12 most annoying things people do on public transportToday is 'Curmudgeon Day', a day for being grumpy and whinging at annoying things. So let us complain about some of the people who are most irritating of all: people on public transport. As if it's not bad enough that you have to spend your day in a job full of annoying people, you're surrounded by them on your way there.

London Evening Standard

• Walk to work away from the pavement's edge and stay away from main roads: Mayor's advice on beating pollution in London Boris Johnson today urged Londoners to act to protect their families from air pollution leading to thousands of premature deaths a year in the capital.
• Westminster ‘needs 20mph speed limit to cut road deaths’ Westminster council has come under attack over its road safety record, with protesters claiming it does too  little to protect residents and visitors.

Manchester Evening News

• Town halls raking in £100,000 A DAY from car parkingManchester town hall makes almost £15m a year, but 6 Greater Manchester boroughs saw their income slide over the past three years
• Picture this... cycle campaigner from Levenshulme comes up with a snappy idea to get more women on their bikesCampaigner launches picture competition to encourage more women to get into the saddle

This Is Local London Network

• Britain’s manufacturers back plans to expand HeathrowA NUMBER of Britain’s leading firms are backing the proposed expansion of Heathrow, believing it to be the best way to secure the economy.

Blackpool Gazette

• MPs demand action on rail networkTwo Fylde coast MPs have called for action from the Government to improve rail services in the region.

Doncaster Free Press

• South Yorkshire firms urged to ‘make the most’ of HS2 construction workA new campaign has been launched to get South Yorkshire firms to take advantage of the business opportunities from the multi-billion HS2 project.
• Petrol prices tumble as North Lincolnshire retailers battle for businessPetrol prices have plunged to a four-year low with North Lincolnshire supermarkets and independent retailers cutting unleaded dramatically following a huge drop in crude oil prices.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Rail improvement works, which will lead to cancellations to services to London each weekend, to begin on SaturdayThe first weekend of major rail works which will result in no services running between East Anglia and London Liverpool Street are due to begin today.

Other Regional Press

• Royal Borough to tell Airports Commission to expand Gatwick not HeathrowHeathrow Airport should be ‘better not bigger’ is the message the Royal Borough will highlight in its response to the Airports Commission consultation on how to expand Britain’s air capacity.
• The Burning Issue - Level crossingsThe easyJet flight to Belfast, Berlin or Barcelona could soon be departing from Heathrow Terminal 4. Britain’s largest budget airline is Gatwick’s biggest customer. But it has told the Airports Commission that the next new London runway should be built at Heathrow.

Airportwatch

• HEATHROW UNVEILS HOME INSULATION SCHEMEHeathrow has unveiled new plans to provide insulation to homes if its proposals for a third runway are approved.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Hitachi holds recruitment drive for 200 train staffHitachi is holding a recruitment drive to hire 200 people at its factory in Newton Aycliffe. The first phase of recruitment is aiming to uncover talent in engineering and manufacturing, as well as looking for potential staff for its quality assurance and technical teams. There are also jobs going in facilities management, human resources, communications, finance and procurement. Visitors to the recruitment events are invited to talk to people from each of these teams to find out more about the roles on offer. Over the past few months, Hitachi has been gradually building up its senior team, wit...

Rail Magazine

• Middlesbrough-Northallerton electrification favoured?Confidence is growing that the Northallerton to Middlesbrough line will be given a 'very high priority' for electrification.
• Record year for Hull TrainsFirst Hull Trains recorded punctuality of 87.1% (trains arriving within ten minutes of schedule) in 2014.
• Crossrail’s Elizabeth breaks throughTunnel boring machine reaches Liverpool Street
• Anglian work for High Output Ballast CleanerNetwork Rail’s High Output Ballast Cleaner (HOBC) has begun work on the Great Eastern Main Line, between Norwich and Stowmarket.
• Weekend engineering work begins on GEMLEngineering works begins on the Great Eastern Main Line on weekends from January 31 until March 22.

Railway Gazette

• Siemens starts work on Banbury resignallingUK: Siemens Rail Automation began work on a £40m contract awarded by Network Rail to renew life-expired signalling equipment between Leamington Spa and Heyford on January 26.

Aviation Industry

• Qatar Airways buys 9.99% stake in British Airways owner IAGAirline may consider ‘increasing stake further over time’
• Easyjet backs Heathrow expansionGatwick says airline’s stance is ‘based on its own commercial interests’

Other News Sources

• PROBLEMS: Blackburn's £5million bus station falls further behind schedule BLACKBURN’S new £5 million bus station has fallen further behind schedule and will not not open until early summer.
• Who will win the runway battle? THE debate over a proposed second runway at either Gatwick or Heathrow rages with residents having only a few more days to put forward their views, AUBREY ALLEGRETTI reports.
• Ryanair Pilot Group: Open Letter (reply) to Ryanair CEO - Irish Tax Regime The Ryanair Pilot Group (RPG) welcomes your recent concern for pilotsrsquo; inability to purchase their own homes, as reported in your media appearance on January 25, 2015*. We have to...