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

Wednesday, 25 February 2015

BBC News

• Tree damages windscreen on trainA train travelling from Inverness to Edinburgh is struck by a tree, damaging the engine's windscreen.
• Video shows 'close shave' on A9Footage is uploaded to a video sharing site showing a near miss between a car and a lorry on the A9 in Easter Ross.
• Irish cannot accept Aer Lingus offerThe Irish government says it cannot accept the current offer for airline Aer Lingus.
• London cyclists in 23,000 accidentsThere were 22,988 accidents and 80 deaths involving cyclists in London over five-years, according to Department for Transport (DfT) figures.

Financial Times

• Dublin rebuffs IAG bid for Aer LingusMinisters need more assurances on jobs and growth prospects before selling state’s stake
• Hitachi snaps up Finmeccanica rail assetsJapanese conglomerate seeks to become global player in rail by expanding European presence
• IAG awaits clearance on Aer Lingus bidDespite growing Irish support for takeover Dublin is still playing hard to get

The Herald

• Call for ministerial statement on forecast Prestwick Airport spendMINISTERS have been told to come clean about spending on Prestwick Airport after a public spending watchdog revealed that the Scottish Government expected to hand over £40 million of taxpayer loans by 2021.
• Loyal passengers need to spend ten times to earn a free ticket under new East Coast points scheme LOYALTY club passengers travelling on the new East Coast franchise will have to spend ten times as much to earn enough points for a free train ticket, it has emerged.

The Scotsman

• Pressure mounts on SNP over Prestwick bailout costTHE spiralling cost to taxpayers of bailing out Prestwick Airport should be set out in a ministerial statement to MSPs, opposition parties have said.

The Telegraph

• Ferrari 458 Italia flips over on M6 slip roadThe driver of the 201mph machine is sent to an improvement course to sharpen their skills behind the wheel after accident

Mail Online

• Truck driver 'was lost' when he caused Metrolink train crash in LA The crash reported at 5.44am on Tuesday caused a number of injuries in Ventura County northwest of Los Angeles.

Network Rail

• Under embargo until 0001, 25 February 2015: Birmingham New Street development reaches another milestone as demolition work finishesThe new Birmingham New Street station and Grand Central shopping destination are a step closer to completion after demolition work to create the stunning new atrium came to an end

Birmingham Post

• HS2 land freed to create over 2,000 jobs in Washwood HeathLand in east Birmingham once earmarked for train yards can now be developed under new vision called East Birmingham Growth Prospectus

London Evening Standard

• California train crash: 30 people injured after carriages derailed in collision with truck Around 30 people were today injured after a train crashed into a truck in California.
• Aer Lingus shows why BA-owner IAG wants it with transatlantic traffic jump Aer Lingus showed why the owner of British Airways has bid £1 billion to add the Irish carrier to its hangar – posting strong transatlantic traffic and an 18% jump in operating profit in 2014.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Trains through Newark and Gedling to be improved in £2m scheme Long-awaited improvements to trains between Nottingham and Lincoln are to come into place by May.

The York Press

• Talks planned for York Outer Ring Road upgrade TRANSPORT officials are about to start talks with landowners about plans for major improvements on the York Outer Ring Road.

This Is Local London Network

• New pavement for "atrocious" road A new footpath will be built on a “precariousâ€� stretch of road used by hundreds of children every day.

Wales Online

• Cardiff airport could compete with Bristol for long-haul flights, according to major report on devolution's impact on the West of EnglandThe IPPR report explores the impact of a 'stronger' Wales across the border
• Cardiff Bus users rack up more than £28,000 in debt on travel smartcards, new figures showPassengers are given a single journey's grace if they run out of credit on their pre-loaded cards – and it seems plenty have taken advantage

Yorkshire Post

• Yorkshire MEP sets out airline data anti-terror planA FRESH attempt to create a Europe-wide system to use airline passenger data to help track the movement of terrorists and serious criminals is to be launched by a Yorkshire MEP.

Doncaster Free Press

• Rail union plans Doncaster railway station protestRail union RMT is to stage a protest at Doncaster railway station this weekend.

Other Regional Press

• HS2 chiefs set abandon plans to demolish Euston station with move back to old schemeHS2 chiefs have performed an “astonishing” triple u-turn after appearing to ditch the plan to demolish Euston Station in favour of an old scheme that was scrapped last year following an intervention by the Chancellor George Osborne.

Airportwatch

• Great Western electrification scheme 'one year behind schedule'Plans to modernise railways in the Thames Valley are a year behind schedule after they proved to be "dramatically more expensive" than first thought.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Government promises help for Kent airportThe fate of Manston Airport in Kent is now looking more hopeful after aviation minister Robert Goodwill promised the Transport Select Committee that he will “leave no stone unturned” in his bid to save the transport hub. He also said that prime minister David Cameron had taken “a keen interest” in the rescue bid. However, it was also confirmed that no one knows who owns the airport in question, which will pose a major challenge to any further developments on the site. Mr Goodwill said that a compulsory purchase order would not be dependent on the current...

Middle East North Africa (MENA) Rail News

• Kuwait Parliament Approves New Spending PlansThe Kuwaiti National Assembly has approved a national budget of KD34.15 billion that includes large infrastructure projects. With some members of the Assembly voicing disapproval, the vote was carried and building projects including a new metro for Kuwait City and the country’s section of the GCC Railway Network will commence this year. The budget was […] The post Kuwait Parliament Approves New Spending Plans appeared first on MENA Rail News.
• TAT Railway to Boost Afghan and Tajikistan EconomiesA new railway planned for construction later this year is hoped to inject cash into two of the poorest countries in Central Asia and hopefully increase security with the revenues. The Tajikistan Afghanistan Turkmenistan (TAT) Railway should enable overland trade by linking in to the new international railway network, which could ultimately allow freight to […] The post TAT Railway to Boost Afghan and Tajikistan Economies appeared first on MENA Rail News.

Railnews

• First Great Western train damaged by bridge debris A First Great Western driver was treated for shock after his train struck debris on a line in Wiltshire on 22 February. Rubble on the track had been dislodged from an overline bridge after one of its walls had been struck by a lorry.

Aviation Industry

• Aer Lingus reports 18% profit jump as passenger numbers soarIrish carrier increases travel on long-distance routes

Other News Sources

• Younger travellers are ‘more compliant’Buyers have more trouble convincing older workers to book within policy