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

Thursday, 09 April 2015

BBC News

• Shell to buy BG Group in £47bn dealRoyal Dutch Shell says it has agreed to buy oil and gas exploration firm BG Group in a deal that values the business at £47bn.
• Plane made 'uncontrollable slide'A plane from Manchester with 48 passengers and four crew made an
• Belfast firm wins Passport contractAn administration services provider has been selected for a £500,000 government contract
• Family 'stranded' due to air strikeA Northern Ireland family stranded in Spain due to the French air traffic controllers' strike criticise how their airline handled the situation.
• Lorry hits bridge carrying trainA lorry crashes into a south London railway bridge as a passenger train is heading towards it.
• Gatwick oil find 'significant'There could be up to 100 billion barrels of oil onshore beneath the South of England, says exploration firm UK Oil & Gas.

Financial Times

• Heathrow, Hong Kong and bigger planesRiven UK politicians can unite around a move to larger, fuller aircraft

The Guardian

• Mick Cash: 'passengers pay a premium for privatisation'RMT union boss talks to Anna Isaac about the fragmented railway system and how current devolution plans are not the answer to UK transport woes
• Why car sales are through the roof but homebuying down in the basementFor the moment, the two are going in opposite directions, a temporary result of curbs on mortgage lending in response to market showing signs of overheatingMarch 2015 was a great month to be selling new cars in Britain. Almost 500,000 were shifted, making it the best month the motor trade has had this century, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. It was the 37th month in a row that there has been year-on-year growth in business.It was not a great month to be flogging houses. Demand for mortgages, according to the Bank of England, fell significantly in the first quarter ...
• Don't want to get motion sickness in a self-driving car? Take a napA new study finds almost half of those who would ride in a self-driving car would do things such as read, text or watch movies – increasing their odds of feeling illTurns out that being driven around is not all that fun. Riding in a self-driving car can increase the likelihood and frequency of motion sickness, a new study from the University of Michigan has found. Unless, that is, you’re asleep.This is mostly due to the fact that passengers are more likely to be involved in activities other than driving. Related: Elon Musk: self-driving cars could lead to ban on human drivers Related: Insurer...
• China may build rail tunnel under Mount Everest, state media reportsChinese expert says tunnel under consideration in bid to link China with Nepal by railA railway between China and Nepal that could include a tunnel under Mount Everest is under consideration, Chinese state media said Thursday, as Beijing builds links with a country India regards as firmly within its sphere of influence.The Qinghai-Tibet railway already links the rest of China with the Tibetan capital Lhasa and beyond, and an extension running as far as the international border is already being planned “at Nepal’s requestâ€�, the China Daily newspaper reported, quoting an expert at the Chinese Ac...

The Herald

• Record-breaking month for new car sales in ScotlandNEW car sales in Scotland hit record levels in March, as the UK as a whole enjoyed its best month this century for new vehicle registrations.
• Booking glitch causes chaos for Caledonian Sleeper tourists reserved FOREIGN tourists travelling on the Caledonian Sleeper were left without berths after turning up to discover they were booked on coaches that did not exist.
• New campaign calls for Britain to stay in the EU and abolish air taxesScottish businesses want to see the UK remaining in the European Union, the immediate devolution and abolition of air passenger duty (APD) and more readily available export finance, according to a new campaign targeting politicians.

The Telegraph

• Flights hit by air traffic controller strikeUK and Irish airlines forced to axe scores of flights while others are being disrupted in a day of chaos for travellers
• Dulwich rail passengers rescued as lorry hits bridge in path of oncoming trainDriver slams on emergency brakes to avert disaster and halt Southern train just feet from where cherry picker's grabber became welded onto tracks in south London

City AM

• How the City is making millions from selling roadsThe City of London has made over £10m from the sale of roads in the last four years - in attempts to facilitate redevelopment in the capital's business district.Figures obtained through a freedom of information request show that between 2010-11 and 2013-14, the City sold nine plots of "surplus highway land", raking in a total of £10.3m. In all cases, the sales were made to "facilitate redevelopment". Under current rules, roads must be declared surplus before they can be sold to enable development schemes.According to a City of London spokesperson, this ...

Daily Express

• Shock new claim - doomed Germanwings plane was downed by HACKERTHE doomed Germanwings plane may have been crashed by a crazed hacker, rather than deliberately flown into the French Alps by co-pilot Andreas Lubitz, an aviation boss has claimed.

Birmingham Post

• Cello Aviation doubles cabin crew numbersThirteen new cabin crew were presented with their ‘wings’ in a ceremony that marks significant growth for the airline, which operates from Birmingham Airport

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Wrexham students face losing free bus passCash-strapped council chiefs want to axe the service to save £375,000 and say the current situation is 'financially unsustainable'

Derby Telegraph

• Derby Telegraph published b_line card: Derbyshire teenagers could see bus and rail fare...YOUNG people in Derbyshire would get less discount taken off bus and rail travel if council plans to save cash get the go-ahead.Plans have also been revealed to change eligibility for the b_line discount card so that it would be for all 16-to-18-year-olds, instead of ages 14 to 19 in full-time education.The discount would be dropped from 33% to 25% for the scheme, which is run jointly by Derby City Council and Derbyshire County Council.Councillor Asaf Afzal, cabinet responsible for travel in...

London Evening Standard

• London home to four of world's best airports, survey reveals Four of London's airports rank among the top 100 in the world, with Heathrow in the top 10, according to a passenger survey published this week.
• Revealed: Complaints about London bus drivers - including baby 'sent flying' to floor and one who 'hit cyclist while ogling woman' A bus driver who slammed on the brakes so sharply that a baby was “sent flyingâ€� to the floor in his pram reportedly told the child’s terrified mother: “This is how I always drive.â€�
• French air strike causes delays at Stanstead and Heathrow for British travellers Thousands of British passengers flying abroad are today facing travel chaos due to a strike by French air traffic controllers.
• Lorry smashes into Dulwich bridge, narrowly missing packed train A cherry picker lorry this morning smashed into a low railway bridge in south London, narrowly missing a train full of passengers and spelling transport misery for commuters.
• Bus cameras set to scan passengers to show how many seats are free upstairs A pioneering tech trial will see passengers on a London bus route scanned by an intelligent camera whenever they sit down – so people boarding the bus will be able to see how many seats are free upstairs.
• Germanwings crash: Co-pilot Lubitz 'spiked captain's drink to make him leave cockpit' German prosecutors believe killer Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz may have spiked his captain’s drink so he would have to go to the toilet, leaving him alone at the controls, it has been reported.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• 'You bet': WATCH as transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin backs six figure salaries for HS2 chiefsTransport secretary Patrick McLoughlin has defended six figure salaries for more than 20 high speed rail bosses.

Daventry Express

• Stagecoach reveals bus fare hikeBus fares in Northamptonshire are to rise by an average of 2.5 per cent from April 12, Stagecoach has revealed.

North Wales Live

• Liverpool John Lennon Airport boss says demand exists for two global hub links Flybe to begin connecting flights to Amsterdam from LJLA in September - as talks continue with Heathrow
• Fires near railway lines bring trains to a halt in Widnes and RuncornHot weather probably to blame says fire service

Other Regional Press

• Gloves are off as Gatwick's chief exec says Heathrow expansion problems would be "off the scale"Hundreds of thousands of new people in west London will be affected by aircraft noise if Heathrow is granted expansion, the chief executive of Gatwick has warned.

Aviation Industry

• France air traffic strike continues into second dayHundreds of flights cancelled due to 48-hour industrial stoppage
• BA to increase capacity from London City to DublinAirline will add extra flight as Flybe prepares to axe route

Other News Sources

• Greens call for new rail station at West LeighCALLS have been made for a new train station to improve public transport and ease congestion.