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

Tuesday, 26 May 2015

BBC News

• Limited powers 'harming road safety'Limited devolution may be harming road safety progress in Wales, the motoring charity RAC Foundation claims.
• VIDEO: Where does Crossrail waste earth go?The BBC's Andrew Bomford finds out where the millions of tonnes of earth go that have been excavated during the cross rail project.
• Biker 'doing 111mph' among speedersA biker is charged by police after being caught allegedly driving at 111mph on the A96 between Inverurie and Aberdeen.
• Will truckers lose out to software?Is the lorry driver of the future a piece of software?

Financial Times

• Chinese city to launch Uber rival serviceMunicipal government’s plan follows police raid to shut US group’s local office
• Luton airport eyes faster link to terminalAll options under consideration including tram, monorail, or even automated pods

The Guardian

• Cyclogeography: Journeys of a London Bicycle Courier review – life, the universe and everything on two wheelsJon Day’s memoir of three years as a cycle courier in London makes fascinating literary and philosophical detoursArmchair cycling turns out to be an exquisitely indolent sport – at least when one has in one’s hands a book as choice as Jon Day’s Cyclogeography. Everything about this slender hardback, bound in shocking pink (Notting Hill Editions are beautiful books), makes it a pleasure to read. One can become becalmed as any Oblomov as the wheels spin and pages turn. But the story Day tells is not luxurious. He is a lecturer in English at King’s College London, who for three years – for reason...
• Mexico City taxi drivers stage mass protest over UberHundreds of drivers protest online service’s tax and regulationLeader: ‘We are not against technology, we want a level playing field’US investigates hacked UK Uber accounts Related: Uber’s first self-driving car spotted in Pittsburgh Hundreds of taxi drivers marched through Mexico City on Monday, chanting “Uber Out!â€� and demanding city authorities ban the online ride service. Some drove their pink-and-white cabs in ranks, snarling traffic along the city’s main boulevard. Continue reading...
• Solar aircraft to be flown across the Pacific in world record bidLongest solo plane flight in history will be attempted in Solar Impulse II aircraft powered by nothing but sunlight A Swiss pilot and his craft powered by nothing but sunlight will launch an attempt to cross the Pacific Ocean on Monday in what will be the longest solo plane flight in history.For five days and nights, André Borschberg and his solar aircraft will battle exhaustion, discomfort and technological limitations as they cross the lonely 5,000 miles of ocean that swallowed Amelia Earhart 78 years ago. Continue reading...
• Ferries cross the Mersey for Cunard's 175th anniversary in LiverpoolThree queens – Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria – sail together down the river in honour of the shipping lineThree Cunard ocean liners have sailed together along the Mersey to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the shipping line’s formation in Liverpool.The Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria choreographed their manoeuvres, including 180-degree turns, as they arrived side by side in the city. Continue reading...
• Traffic noise could increase risk of fat around midriff, says Swedish studyExposure to road, rail and aircraft noise could be a physiological stressor that increases production of cortisol, which is thought to have role in fat deposits A pot belly might not simply be the product of too much food and not enough exercise, according to a Swedish study that found it could be related to traffic noise.Research published in the Occupational & Environmental Medicine journal has revealed a link between exposure to road traffic, rail and aircraft noise and the risk of developing midriff bulge, one of the most harmful types of fat deposit around the body. Continue readi...
• Oil company bosses' bonuses linked to $1tn spending on extracting fossil fuelsExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, Total and BP pour funding into projects to unlock oil reserves – despite scientists warning they will lead to climate change disasterBosses at the world’s big five oil companies have been showered with bonus payouts linked to a $1tn (£650bn) crescendo of spending on fossil fuel exploration and extraction over nine years, according to Guardian analysis of company reports. Continue reading...

The Herald

• Motorcyclist pulled over for allegedly riding at 111mphA motorcyclist has been caught allegedly driving at 111mph on a rural road during a police crackdown on speeding during the Bank Holiday.

The Independent

• Train stations could be hived off in plan to split up Network RailThe private sector could end up managing 18 of the UK’s biggest train stations, including Birmingham New Street and Glasgow Central, under reforms being considered by ministers.

The Scotsman

• In pictures: Cunard liners sail down River MerseyTHOUSANDS of people lined the shores of the Mersey today to witness Cunard’s three flagship liners sail down the river framed by the magnificent Liverpool skyline.
• Fighter jets escort Air France plane to US airportAuthorities say US military jets escorted an Air France flight into New York’s Kennedy Airport after a threat was made against the flight.

City AM

• The high stakes fight for London’s streetsLondon’s cabbies are taking on Uber, and TfL TRANSPORT for London’s (TfL) headquarters will be the scene of a protest by black cab drivers today. The action is a demonstration of the simmering tensions between traditional cabbies and modern firms like Uber, which show no sign of dying down. Black cab drivers are represented by the London Taxi Drivers’ Association (LTDA), Unite the Union, the RMT union or the National Taxi Association. However, today’s protest is being organised by a splinter group called the United Cabbies Group, perhaps indicating some frustration with the represe...

Mail Online

• Cunard's Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth ships join Queen Mary 2 in Liverpool The world's largest and grandest ocean liner, the Queen Mary 2, joined for the first time on the River Mersey with the Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth for Cunard's 175th anniversary.
• Living near a motorway or under flight path could mean you pile on the pounds The Swedish researchers found that adults who lived in an area disrupted by road traffic, trains or planes were 25 per cent more likely to have a bulge, spare tyre or 'central obesity'.

The Mirror

• Network Rail could lose major stations under new privatisation plans by Tory governmentNetwork Rail could be stripped of some of Britain’s biggest stations under new privatisation plans being studied by ministers, it emerged.
• Living near a busy road or airport can give you a pot belly claim scientists in Sweden Scientists in Sweden claim to have discovered link between noise levels from traffic, trains and aircraft and bulging waistline

Bolton News

• Angry residents protest over lorries stopping in 'dangerous' road outside Great Lever shop A PETITION has been launched by a group of Great Lever residents to have double yellow lines and traffic lights installed on a

London Evening Standard

• 'Ill commuters are behind spike in delays on New York subway' Ill commuters are causing increased delays on New York's underground trains, according to reports.

North Wales Live

• Birkenhead engineering firm IPS completes work on Stena Superfast ferry Company carried out insulation and fabrication work on Holyhead to Dublin vessel

Northamptonshire Telegraph

• Fire crews tackle blaze on single-decker bus in RushdenTwo fire appliances were sent to Rushden after a bus caught fire in the early hours of this morning.

Other Regional Press

• TfL to take over Abellio Greater Anglia lines from May 31The popular commuter line will be re-named TfL Rail and they will have overall responsibility for train frequency.
• From Covent Garden to Carmarthen: London Underground trains could be used in Carmarthenshire LONDON Underground trains could soon swap Charing Cross for Carmarthen and Waterloo for Whitland as railway managers seek new ways to reduce overcrowding in Wales.
• Network fail – AGAINGridlock-hit motorists in Spalding have vented their anger at Network Rail for bringing traffic chaos to the town twice in a few days.
• Redhill rail users set for Christmas chaos as London route to shut for 10 daysCOMMUTERS are likely to face massive disruption this Christmas as the entire Brighton mainline will be shut for engineering work.
• Free transport for faith schools could end in 2016 as Kirklees unveils its preferred optionCabinet to make final ruling for pupils attending faith schools

Bus and Coach.com

• Accessible fleet achieved by First Leeds
• Speedy Scania put to the test by Reading
• Electric buses for York park-and-ride
• Manchester Quality Partnership Scheme consultation

Other News Sources

• £3.64bn ... how much Scotland may pay for a HS2 line that won’t go beyond the BorderTHE SNP have reacted furiously to claims that there is“no business case” for HS2 to come to Scotland.
• Heathrow Airport Expansion Must Go Through Historic VillageWith its classic red phone booth, pub, and medieval church, Harmondsworth’s center looks quintessentially British. But the search for a twee English village isn’t what brings millions of people within a stone’s throw of its boundaries.