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

Tuesday, 26 January 2016

BBC News

• Bus lanes to open for electric carsElectric car drivers will be allowed to travel in bus lanes as part of plans to boost usage of low-emission vehicles in England.
• Bus pellet attack investigatedPolice appeal for witnesses after lead pellets are fired at a bus in the Scottish Borders.
• Plane Stupid activists facing 'jail'Activists who cut through a fence at Heathrow Airport and chained themselves together blocking a runway are told to
• Tube strike called off by unionA 24-hour Underground strike planned to start on Tuesday evening is called off as the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) suspends its action.
• Is Land Rover's off-road heyday over?The last of Jaguar Land Rover's classic Defenders will roll off the production line this week, ending 68 years of production - does this mean the carmaker's best off-road days are behind it?
• Passenger numbers improve at airportGlasgow Prestwick Airport claims it is

Financial Times

• London Underground strike suspendedRMT union says progress has been made but it remains in ‘dispute’ over night Tube

The Guardian

• Sticking up for local bus users? That’s the ticket [Letter]Owen Jones (Wait for a bus and then tell me the market knows best, 21 January) rehearses the problems of poor bus services outside London and even suggests some elements of the remedy, but critically jumps to the wrong conclusion. Privatisation of parts of the industry is not the reason for falling bus use and worsening services. That was happening before privatisation and indeed a decent case can be made that privatisation has helped to slow the decline.
• I’m proud of my daughter and the other brave Heathrow protesters. Here’s why | Tim SandersonPlane Stupid’s trespass was a red flag to politicians: to claim you can have a booming aviation-based economy and cut emissions is a cowardly deceptionOn Monday morning last week, my eldest daughter went on trial at Willesden magistrates court. She is 28, and this was the first day of a court case that lasted all week. She, along with 12 others, was charged with aggravated trespass and unauthorised entry to the runway areas of Heathrow on 13 July last year. She and her colleagues are all members of the Plane Stupid pressure group, who are engaging in direct action against plans to expand aviat...

The Telegraph

• Commuter pays �6,000 a year on season ticket to sit in cleaning cupboard on packed trainThe commuter is recognised by staff in his standard seat beside the mop and bucket on trains between London and Ipswich

Mail Online

• Why HS2 trains may have first, second AND third-class carriages High-speed HS2 trains that would link Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds and London could have special carriages for wealthy travellers who wish to ride undisturbed by others.

The Mirror

• Transport minister red-faced after green bus breaks down on way to its launchAndrew Jones had already arrived late due to a train delay - then a low-emission electric bus being used to announce a £7.5m initiative failed to start

Bolton News

• All aboard the sardine train - what is life really like on the 7.42 that has made some passengers faint? WE told last week how the 7.42am train into Manchester city centre was so packed that people onboard were fainting. MP Chris Green has written to rail bosses to demand urgent improvements. Our reporter Dale Haslem boarded the 'sardine train' to see the situation for himself.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• MP Greg Mulholland wins award for road safety campaigning AN MP's road safety campaigning has led to him being named the first Parliamentarian of the Month for 2016.

London Evening Standard

• City worker who pays �6,000 for train ticket forced to sit in tiny cleaning cupboard on packed trainsA City worker who spends more than �6,000-a-year for a rail season ticket is forced to sit in a tiny cleaning "cupboard" with mops and a bucket because of overcrowding.
• Zac Goldsmith pledges support for electric 'car sharing' schemeThousands of Londoners could hire electric cars to travel across the city in the four-wheel version of Boris bikes under ambitious plans unveiled by Zac Goldsmith today.
• Hospital bosses and Harrods back King's Road Crossrail stationBosses from dozens of renowned west London institutions — ranging from Harrods to Chelsea & Westminster hospital — have joined forces to back plans for a new station in King's Road.
• Southeastern trains blames 'bright sunlight' again for rush hour delaysBright sunlight has been blamed for delays on a Southeastern train during the morning commute - for the second time in a month.
• Eurostar passengers left stranded in darkness on board train which was delayed for eight hoursHundreds of Eurostar passengers were plunged into darkness and stranded for nearly eight hours on a severly delayed train from London to Paris.
• Heathrow third runway protesters face jail after shackling themselves at airportThirteen protesters who ran on to a runway at Heathrow and chained themselves to railings, grounding 25 flights, are facing jail.
• Tube strike January 2016: cancellation of walkout greeted with relief by LondonersLondoners have greeted news of the Tube strike cancellation with relief this evening.

Manchester Evening News

• The Great Train Delay: How our rail upgrades have slipped by A DECADEOnly one major Network Rail scheme for Greater Manchester has been delivered on time - with the rest delayed by a combined total of 10 years

Wales Online

• Campaigners who chained themselves to Heathrow railings warned they are likely to be jailedThree Welsh protesters were among a group of 13 activists from the Plane Stupid group who trespassed onto the north runway

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Final phase of West Yorks smart motorway to go liveDrivers will be able to use an extra lane on a section of the M1 near Wakefield after tonight (Monday), ahead of the new smart motorway going live.

Yorkshire Post

• Lord Kerslake: business leaders crucial to Northern Powerhouse successTHE project to create a Northern Powerhouse will fail without the active engagement of business leaders, the former head of the civil service has warned.

Bucks Free Press

• Cycling action group looks to install new bicycle racks in town Keen cyclists could soon be able to chain their bikes in Beaconsfield Old Town as the town council look at allowing new bicycle racks to be installed.

Other Regional Press

• Hopes 1066 high-speed rail will be funded in 2019 High-speed rail travel to London will not be possible for at least another three years, according to MP Amber Rudd.
• Hopes fading for Government to fund crucial rail studyHopes that the Government will fund two crucial studies into South West rail improvements are fading fast, with only days left for officials to give the go ahead. Read more: http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Hopes-fading-Government-fund-crucial-rail-study/story-28599652-detail/story.html#ixzz3yLQOKtkf Follow us: @WMNNews on Twitter | westernmorningnews on Facebook
• Campaign launched against proposed community transport cuts in SuffolkLabour councillors have rebuked proposed cuts to community transport services across Suffolk, claiming that thousands of residents will be left without “a lifeline”.
• Southeastern cancels trains between Tonbridge and Tunbridge WellsTrains are being cancelled or delayed following signalling problems on the railway line between two Kent towns.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Challenge is on to find best of bus and coachThe IRTE Skills Challenge - an exciting annual competition that aims to find the best bus and coach technicians and apprentices in the UK and Ireland – is now open for registration.  Founded by the Institute of Road Transport Engineers (IRTE) in 2011, this event invites operators large and small to test the skills of their technicians and apprentices against each other in a bid to discover the best in the bus and coach world.  Held each year at S&B Automotive Academy in Bristol, the competition includes theoretical and practical assessments in mechanical, electrical, and ...
• �200m being invested in bus priority schemes to help keep bus passengers movingA £200m investment in new bus priority schemes in London is already speeding up journeys for passengers in the Capital.  More than 100 of the schemes will be in place by April this year, helping hundreds of thousands of passengers get through busy parts of the London more quickly. The Capital’s roads are seeing an increase in congestion due to a construction boom and a significant growth in population, so Transport for London is investing heavily in helping keep the roads moving through a range of means. Part of this programme is designed to help buses get through congested a...

Rail Technology Magazine

• CAF to deliver 281 rail vehicles for Northern rail franchise in UK UK-based rolling stock operator Eversholt Rail Group has signed contracts worth £490m with Arriva Rail North and Spanish rolling stock manufacturer CAF to finance and procure 281 new vehicles for operations on the new Northern rail franchise.

Railnews

• Government sells King's Cross stake for �371m The government is selling its interest in the King's Cross railway lands to an Australian pension fund for �371 million. The site will contain almost 2,000 homes as well as offices, schools, restaurants and shops, with 50 new or refurbished buildings. Its occupiers include Google, the Aga Khan Development Network and University of the Arts London.

Railway Gazette

• SNCF studies options for 'semi high speed' trains in IndiaINDIA: France’s SNCF has begun working with Indian Railways on a one-year project to study the...

Aviation Industry

• A4E to lobby for removal of all ‘unreasonable’ taxes on aviation The airline industry is taking Italy and Norway to task for introducing new passenger taxes that it says will hurt visitor numbers. read more
• Iran promises to make major aircraft ordersAirbus set for massive aircraft deal following lifting of economic sanctions on Iran
• French public service strike set to disrupt air travelAir traffic controllers and taxi drivers among those due to take industrial action

Other News Sources

• Commuters slam UK rail operator c2c. You slow, late, er... privacy violatorCommuters in the south east of England, already angry about recent timetable changes and delays, have been further incensed by basic security blunders by rail operator c2c as it tried to placate passenger disquiet with a new compensation form on its website.
• Network Rail's bridge net by River Cam labelled 'dangerous' to rowers and cyclists Read more: http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/River-Cam-net-labelled-dangerous-rowers-cyclists/story-28601148-detail/story.html#ixzz3yKqXvXNl Follow us: @CambridgeNewsUK onA net hanging from a bridge over the River Cam presents a risk to pedestrians, cyclists and river users, Cambridge residents have claimed.
• FTA urges Government to press ahead with new crossingThe Freight Transport Association (FTA) is urging the Government to press ahead with the new Lower Thames Crossing following today’s reports that ...