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

Wednesday, 01 April 2015

BBC News

• Bedford's new £8.8m bus station officially opensA new £8.8m bus station in Bedfordshire has been officially opened to the public.
• Talks expected on security staff payThe operator of Scotland's regional airports is due to hold talks with union leaders in an effort to resolve a pay dispute.
• Engine problem forces plane to landAn Aberdeen to Wick flight returns to Aberdeen International Airport after an emergency is declared due to an engine problem.
• Easyjet increases Belfast GB flightsBudget airline Easyjet announces a big expansion of existing services between Belfast International and other UK airports.

Financial Times

• Business pioneers in transportIt is often not inventors of technology who change the world but those who exploit it
• Goldman sells out of busiest UK portsCanadian pension plan and Hermes buy Associated British Ports shares
• UK rail nationalisation would save £1.5bnChanges could fund an 8 per cent cut in ticket prices, TUC report argues
• Shipping anchors itself in capital marketsOwners have enjoyed cheap financing, but ultra-low interest rates may spark capacity gluts

The Guardian

• Iron maiden voyage: world's largest aircraft looking for investorsIt could be the future of aviation, British eccentric genius on a grand scale, or possibly a bit of both. Secreted in a hangar a few miles south of Bedford sits the world’s largest aircraft: a hybrid of plane, balloon and hovercraft, an airship that the company modestly says will change the world. The Airlander 10 can fly for weeks, land virtually anywhere that’s flat, and burns just a fifth of the fuel of a conventional aircraft.

The Herald

• New ScotRail operator promises Oyster-style smartcard for whole of ScotlandPASSENGERS across Scotland will eventually be able to use a single smartcard to travel on trains, buses and other modes of transport under ambitious plans outlined by Dutch operator Abellio as they take over the ScotRail franchise today.

The Scotsman

• Abellio seeks to boost passenger numbers up to 100mDUTCH firm Abellio takes over ScotRail today with the pledge to boost passengers to 100 million a year by 2018. The operator said two fleets of new trains would help it hit the target, up some 90m in the year which ended yesterday.

Birmingham Post

• Birmingham to Shannon service returns Aer Lingus Regional relaunches its service to Irish town from summer 2015 to meet passenger demand

London Evening Standard

• London weather: Commuters hit with travel misery as high winds cause chaos on roads and railways Powerful winds buffeting the south-east left commuters facing chaos this evening as trains were cancelled or delayed and roads were hit with disruption.
• 'Give London Bridge passengers automatic refunds if trains are late'Passengers forced to put up with weeks of chaos at London Bridge station should get an automatic 50 per cent refund if their train is late, it was suggested today.
• Simon Calder says: Are there ways to save money on trains in Belgium?We are going to Belgium in May. We are staying with a friend in the town of Geel, east of Antwerp and then spending two nights in Ghent. Are there any tickets we can get for the trains that will save us money? - Julie Wiley

Manchester Evening News

• Get ready for an Easter eggstravaganza ... of shut stations, improvements on key lines, and motorway roadworks!Roadworks, Victoria station closure, engineering works and no direct route to London spell trouble for the long weekend getaway
• Hero railway staff at Salford Crescent station save woman's life after she fell in front of trainBritish Transport Police praised the quick-thinking staff who rushed to the woman's aid

Nottingham Evening Post

• Plans for HS2 station in Nottinghamshire back on trackPlans to build the new HS2 high-speed rail hub in Nottinghamshire are back on track. Nottingham City Council leader Jon Collins has made the claim following a recent meeting with "an official" for the project – which the Post believes to be HS2 chairman Sir David Higgins.
• TracyWalker published Tram testing in Beeston is scheduled for Wednesday nightResidents in Beeston are to get their long-awaited first view of a tram on Wednesday night.Trials of the tram extension into the town are due to take place from 11pm.There had been plans for the tests on Tuesday night but work was rescheduled as NET Phase two construction contractor Taylor Woodrow Alstom did not get clearance from police or the highways authority.It means three years of upheaval for residents and businesses is drawing to a conclusion. The tests will run from University Boulevard...

Sheffield Telegraph

• Sheffield rail passengers ‘to be used as cash-cow’ for European operators, claim campaignersSheffield railway passengers have been warned they will be used as a ‘cash-cow’ to fund improvements to train services in Europe.

This Is Local London Network

• Bus route to be extended A bus route is to be extended to a new housing estate.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Familiar bus name rides again in LeedsThe biggest bus operator in Leeds has sent one of its double-deckers on an eye-catching trip back in time.

Doncaster Free Press

• Warning of ‘extremely busy’ Easter getaway for road and rail usersRoad and rail users are preparing for an ‘extremely busy’ Easter getaway in South Yorkshire this weekend.

East Anglian Daily Times

• More homes and better transport will be top priorities for successful Braintree District Council election candidatesThere is the potential for sweeping changes at Braintree District Council come election day – though in practice that is unlikely to happen.

Plymouth Herald

• Plymouth's airport campaign group dismissive of Heathrow's "politicking" THE CHAIRMAN of Plymouth's airport campaign group has accused Heathrow Airport of using the city in an attempt to secure a third runway.

The Shields Gazette

• Bus company aims to hire army of women driversA TEACHER who swapped the classroom for a life on the buses is encouraging other women to get on board.
• Flybe and easyjet announce more flights from Newcastle International AirportAIRLINES Flybe and easyJet have launched a record number of flights and routes from Newcastle International Airport this year.

Other Regional Press

• Heathrow expansion would be ‘Good for Scotland’Heathrow recently announced a raft of new measures which would be deliverable with the expansion of the airport, and which the airport owner believe would boost Scotland’s links to the world, and help Scottish businesses connect to global growth.
• Hillingdon Council in row over £320,000 spent fighting Heathrow expansionSparks fly as pro-expansion group Back Heathrow accuses the council of “sticking two fingers up” to taxpayers, having never made its own spending details public
• Access to new Heathrow would cost £20bn, Transport for London warnsTransport for London (TfL) has raised "serious concerns" about congestion and the costs of expansion at Heathrow just weeks before the Airports Commission's final recommendation is due.
• Last ditch effort to save Bedwyn's direct trainsTRAIN campaigners in Bedwyn have written to the Department of Transport in a last ditch attempt to save a direct service to London.
• Wind beneath the wings: Watch planes land sideways at Leeds Bradford Airport in gusts of 70mphSome flights cancelled while Manchester Airport also faced challenging landing conditions
• Celebrate 150th anniversary of the Portland branch railway with these fantastic pictures THIS year marks the 150th anniversary of the Portland branch railway.
• Metro trains back on track after power problemMetro trains back on track after power problemMETRO services are now running again after power problems knocked out services between East Boldon and South Hylton.

Other News Sources

• Train line between Spalding and Peterborough closed as freight train wagon blown off tracks in high windsThe train line between Spalding and Peterborough had to be closed on Tuesday after a freight train wagon was blown off the tracks.
• Van Excellence hits a century with Countrywide FarmersThe Freight Transport Association’s Van Excellence scheme has reached its century – announcing that it has now accredited its 100th fleet ...
• Mood Lighting and Menu Service in Economy?! Virgin Atlantic’s Classy New UpgradeMillions of people make the famous New York to London flight annually. It’s a journey of 3,459 miles, and one that now takes a mere six hours when tail winds are in your favor.