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

Monday, 25 January 2016

BBC News

• Plaque for Sutton Coldfield rail crashA plaque for the 17 people killed in a crash at Sutton Coldfield station 61 years ago is unveiled
• Cardiff-Anglesey flights' new carrierA new airline agrees to take over twice-daily flights between Cardiff and Anglesey after they were suspended.
• Database deal over blue badge misusePeople who misuse disabled parking permits can now be immediately identified by the police, following a deal struck with councils.
• Sunday closing for rail station worksWorks on a viaduct that will connect three railway stations in Manchester results in Victoria station being closed every Sunday.
• Bail after 'random' Tube stab arrestA man arrested on suspicion of the murder of a university lecturer near a London Tube station is released on bail.
• Iran eyes purchase of Boeing planesIran is considering buying planes from US manufacturer Boeing as it moves to upgrade its fleet following the removal of UN sanctions.

ITV News

• £100 million Luton Airport expansion beginsMajor work to redevelop Luton Airport gets underway today.

Department for Transport

• £40 million to drive green car revolution across UK citiesNottingham, Bristol, Milton Keynes and London named as winners of multi-million fund to encourage drivers to go green.

Financial Times

• Cathay Pacific: prickly hedgesHong Kong’s airline has paid a high price for its hedging policy

The Guardian

• Unions condemn giving Spain £490m UK train contract as a 'kick in the teeth'RMT general secretary Mick Cash criticises Arriva’s decision to give contract to overseas company instead of to British train manufacturer Bombardier
• Stansted 'bus war' as Terravision sells coach tickets despite airport banFirm lost right to use facilities at terminals leaving unsuspecting customers facing interchange at King’s Cross, meaning journey times doubled

The Herald

• Transport challenge to be faced after electionYOUR report and related graph on transport trends (“Critics hit out over ‘wasted’ years to boost green travel”, The Herald, January 22) illustrated the pitfalls of statistics and their presentation.

The Telegraph

• New multi-million pound station closed at peak times due to health and safety fearsSports fans and concert goers won't be able to use the new station at Coventry's Ricoh Arena on match and event days
• Four in every five sets of traffic lights should be removed, report claimsTraffic lights and speed bumps are damaging the economy and the environment, think-tank claims
• Flying Scotsman return delayed due to faulty brakesThe National Railway Museum confirmed that brakes on The Flying Scotsman require some

Times Online

• Can railways solve London’s housing crisis? [Subscription]The biggest rail expansion programme since Victorian times may be the answer to the housing crisis in the capital
• Rip out thousands of traffic lights to boost the economy [Subscription]Four out of every five traffic lights should be ripped up to boost the economy and road safety, according to a report.
• Night Tube a ‘honeypot for criminals’ [Subscription]Tube bosses in London have been accused of creating “a honey pot for criminals” after it emerged that an internal report warned that sex attacks and other crimes were likely to rise when the night Tube was introduced.
• French get on track to build trains for HS2 line [Subscription]Competition to win the £4 billion contract to build superfast trains for the HS2 rail line has been blown open by a promise from Alstom, the French industrial giant, to bring rolling stock production back to Britain if it wins the tender.

Daily Express

• Fury as SPANISH company handed £490million contract to build our trainsFURIOUS unions have attacked a decision to had a £490 million train building contract to Spain.

Mail Online

• Rail bosses blow £631,000 on taxis, £20,000 on M&S hampers, £1,600 on flowers and even £35 on doughnuts using taxpayer-funded 'credit cards' Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3414152/Network-Rail-bosses-blow-631-000-taxis-20-000-M-S-From luxury hotel rooms, Christmas hampers and expensive dinners to taxis, doughnuts, guidebooks on management - and even train-shaped confetti - these are just some of the many items Network Rail bosses have bought with taxpayer-funded 'credit cards'.
• Rail bosses blow £631,000 on taxis, £20,000 on M&S hampers, £1,600 on flowers and even £35 on doughnuts using taxpayer-funded 'credit cards' From luxury hotel rooms, Christmas hampers and expensive dinners to taxis, doughnuts, guidebooks on management - and even train-shaped confetti - these are just some of the many items Network Rail bosses have bought with taxpayer-funded 'credit cards'.

The Mirror

• Traffic lights should be scrapped to unclog roads and not be dangerous Think-tank calls for 80% of traffic lights to be scrapped claiming it has worked in other countries
• Another betrayal of Britain's steel as new trains to be built in SPAIN in £490m dealDerby firm ­Bombardier was snubbed as the deal to build carriages for Northern Rail went to CAF – effectively ruling out using any British steel

Birmingham Post

• New �2m Park and Ride at Four Oaks station Extra free parking is expected to take more cars of the road as transport body Centro aims to cut congestion in the city

Daily Post (North Wales)

• North Wales rail services hit today by work to rule train drivers Train drivers action causes services to be delayed or cancelled ahead of Monday's strike
• 'Super-jumbo' Iranian Airbus deal on cards this weekIranian President Hassan Rouhani heads to Europe this week where he may sign a deal to buy more than 100 Airbus jets

London Evening Standard

• Uber scraps flat rate fares to London airportsUber has announced that it will stop offering flat rates to customers travelling to London airports.
• Wearing helmets 'makes cyclists take more risks,' study findsWearing a bicycle helmet could actually make riders less safe because they are more likely to take risks, new research claims.

Sheffield Star

• Power problems affect trams in SheffieldTrams between Sheffield railway station and Halfway are not running this morning because of power supply problems.

Blackpool Gazette

• Blackpool Airport buildings removedPreparation work has begun to clear the ground for the demolition of Blackpool Airport’s international terminal.
• Blackpool Council shells out �1.3m in compensation claims - including potholesCompensation claims totalling more than £1.3m have been paid out by Blackpool Council in the last two years, according to figures revealed today.

Other Regional Press

• Transport Secretary Still Backs Thurrock Crossing OptionsThe Transport Secretary has told Heart he still backs the two remaining options for where a new Lower Thames Crossing should be built in Thurrock.
• Liberty Park milestone paves way for access to Lichfield rail station car park mothballed for a year THE new railway bridge at Streethay near Lichfield Trent Valley railway station has been officially opened, along with the business project for which it was constructed.

Bus and Coach.com

• Latest Live Edition 22 January 2016
• Euro 5s account for nearly half 2015 registrations
• Premium Vantage brand for Manchester Busway services
• First launches 22 StreetDecks for Rotherham upgrade
• New mobile phone app for Oxford Tube
• ADL 'Virtual Electric' buses for Bristol trial
• Contactless ticketing plan for all British bus routes by 2022
• New Irizar i8 launched to UK coach operators
• Blackpool to take first single-door Enviro400 Citys

Railway Gazette

• World rolling stock market January 2016Australia: Bombardier Transportation is to supply four additional Flexity trams to the Gold Coast...
• World rail infrastructure market January 2016Argentina: The government has awarded a joint venture of Lemiro Pablo Pietrobini and Savabisa a...

Other News Sources

• Bus station set to receive £323k boostPlans for a £323,000 revamp of a town centre bus station have moved a step closer.
• Newcastle Airport targets Cumbrian flyersNewcastle International Airport is aiming to woo more passengers from Cumbria as it expands the number of flights and destinations on offer. Newcastle Airport chief executive David LawsNewcastle Airport attracts 170,000 passengers from Cumbria each year