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

Wednesday, 27 January 2016

BBC News

• Call for Borders Railway extension to Carlisle renewed during Lamington workCampaigners say the closure of the West Coast Main Line due to storm damage has strengthened their case to extend the Borders Railway to Carlisle.
• Councils could face �5k roadwork finesCouncils and utility companies could be fined up to �5,000 a day for leaving roadworks unmanned at weekends under government proposals.
• Uber driver 'pulls gun' on passengerAn Uber driver in Florida admits to police that he drew a gun after a passenger said he felt sick in his car, despite the firm's firearms ban.
• Devolve air tax call from airport headCardiff airport's chairman has called on the UK government to devolve passenger air taxes to Wales, in a bid to boost its business.
• NI airport passenger numbers riseNorthern Ireland's two main airports see increase in passenger numbers in 2015, according to Civil Aviation Authority figures.

The Guardian

• How we made the Eurostar‘We had whole meetings devoted to how hot the water has to be to make a decent cup of tea’. Roger Kemp, project director, Alstom Transport

The Scotsman

• Paris chaos as cabbies block roads in protest over UberParis police fired tear gas and taxi drivers lit bonfires on a motorway yesterday amid nationwide strikes and protests over working conditions and competition from app-based services such as Uber.

The Telegraph

• Transport Secretary defends new Heathrow delayPatrick McLoughlin faces industry lobby over latest airport capacity hold up. Opponents of airport expansion “could not have been more wrong” if they saw the latest delays to a new runway in the South East as a victory, the Transport Secretary will claim on Wednesday night.
• Bristol Airport named most expensive airport to reach in BritainBirmingham Airport is the cheapest followed by Stansted, while Heathrow Express is the most expensive airport train journey, survey reveals
• Lower Thames Crossing: more expensive Gravesend option recommendedHighways England has opened a consultation on a new River Thames road tunnel at Gravesend, rather than the cheaper Dartford Crossing option
• Train chiefs apologise after advertising bargain fares on closed lineVirgin Trains placed an advert in a newspaper on Monday promoting its first class fares between Glasgow and London
• One in seven drivers suffer memory blanks on the road, study findsThe worst-affected age group was 25 to 34-year-olds, with almost a quarter admitting to regular memory blanks

Daily Record

• Number of fatal collisions on A9 drop since introduction of average speed cameras along the route THERE were no fatal collisions anywhere on the A9 in the last six months of 2015, the longest period in Transport Scotland's accident database which reports back to 1978.

Mail Online

• Paris taxi drivers torch car tyres over Uber as riot police deployed There was fighting on the ring road of the French capital, Paris, as masked men and women stopped cars and other vehicles in the morning rush hour.

The Mirror

• More than one in 10 drivers suffer MEMORY BLANKS on road, worrying research findsOf 27,000 motorists who responded to a study 15% were quite often or very often not able to recall the last few moments of their journey

Birmingham Post

• Former Tarmac boss to head Black Country Chamber Keith Bryan joins business body as chief executive after rising through the ranks to spearhead Tarmac

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Free shuttle bus around Bradford city centre saved - but passengers will face �1 fare A FREE shuttle bus around the city centre has been saved from the chop, but passengers will soon have to pay a �1 fare.

London Evening Standard

• London commuters vent fury after they face further Southeastern delaysCommuters today blasted "appalling" rail services after fresh rush hour chaos in south London.
• Night Tube launch 'could be delayed until after Mayoral election in May'The start of Night Tube is still months away and may not even happen until after the London Mayoral election on May 5, it was claimed today.
• Passengers left stranded on Eurostar train after passenger had e-cig in toiletCommuters were left stranded for five hours on board a Eurostar train after an e-cigarette sparked a fire alert.
• Victoria line part suspended due to track failureA key part of the Victoria line was closed ahead of this morning's rush hour due to a track failure.
• Could levitating trams be the future of London commuting?Nick Glass travels to Dresden, Germany to meet Ludwig Schultz, a pioneer of a new type of transport
• Consultation launched over plans for new Thames tunnel for carsPlans for a new multibillion-pound road link across the River Thames between Essex and Kent have been released.

Manchester Evening News

• Tram services halted after another car drove onto tracks A taxi ended up on the Metrolink tracks after taking a wrong turn on Lord Sheldon Way in Ashton-under-Lyne
• Should cars be banned from Manchester city centre for one day a month to cut pollution? The idea is part of a ‘Air Quality Manifesto’ drawn up by the environmental charity Global Action Plan

Wales Online

• Cross-border train routes could soon be split into 'English' and 'Welsh' servicesWelsh stations like Aberystwyth and Rhyl could lose their regular through services to Birmingham
• Arriva Trains Wales strike off after talks between union and company bosses Aslef has announced it is suspending action it was planning to take next week on the Welsh network

Blackpool Gazette

• Railway all set to get back on track by 2018 Blackpool’s long-awaited rail upgrades are back on track as bosses pledged to have electric trains running by May 2018.

Get West London

• Heathrow: PM told to stop 'dithering' at pro-expansion rally in IsleworthMore than 50 people from across Hounslow attended a meeting organised by Back Heathrow, which supports a third runway

Other Regional Press

• Planned Lancashire bus cuts could be illegal say campaigners A national pressure group is warning that Lancashire County Council could be at risk of breaking the law over its planned cuts to bus services.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• New tunnel proposed for Lower Thames crossingThere have been new proposals made to build a multi-billion pound road link across the River Thames. The road will be built between Essex and Kent and will be set to benefit the economy, the area and�the wider�country. It's hoped that the link will also help to ease congestion at the existing Dartford Crossing and will improve the resilience of the road network as an alternative across the Thames. Highways England carried out detailed work to decide between two options for the new bridge or tunnel, with one near the existing Dartford Crossing (option A) and linking the M2 and M25 via the A13 (...
• Thameslink Programme to regenerate Cricklewood railway landThameslink's railway cleaners are being helped by the new government-sponsored Thameslink Programme, with the opening of a new facility in Cricklewood. The new �40 million railway facility in north London also features a drive-through train wash, which is already cleaning trains on the ever-busy Thameslink route between Bedford, London and Brighton. New Thameslink Class 700 trains will also be using the train wash when they're introduced in spring. These new trains are also to form a part of the programme's new intensive train service. Speaking on the new cleaning facilities that the company's...

Global Rail News

• Welsh Government preparing for takeover of domestic rail servicesThe Welsh Government has launched a public consultation for the next Wales and Borders rail franchise.

Aviation Industry

• Flying High: Ryanair's StockRyanair is not your average airline. Despite market sell-offs the bullish stock is well above its 12-month support line.
• Oslo Airport first to offer mains-supplied biofuelOslo Airport has started supplying Air BP Biojet via its regular fuel hydrant system, naming KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Lufthansa Group and SAS Scandinavian Airlines as launch customers. read more
• Easyjet targets corporate growth through TMCsAirline launches new industry team led by Iain Withers
• Airlines call for EU to end ‘disgraceful’ air traffic control strikesAction hits travel across Europe
• Amadeus partners with Accesrail to grow ‘door-to-door travel’Agents can now book air and rail with a bus connection on one screen

Other News Sources

• Renfe shortlists six for high-speed train contractAlstom, Bombardier, CAF, Hitachi Rail Italy, Siemens and Talgo have now been invited to tender by Renfe for an initial batch of 15 standard-gauge sets, which will be maintained by the manufacturer for 30 years.
• European governments still fund 88% of rolling stock procurementDESPITE the expansion of the number of private rail operators in Europe, state funding still makes up 88% of rolling stock procurement.
• Heathrow Airport trespass 'worth going to prison for' say convicted Plane Stupid protesters The 13 Plane Stupid protesters, including a man from Reigate, have been found guilty of breaking into Heathrow Airport for a climate change protest
• FTA says new tunnel plan must consider freight trafficThe Freight Transport Association (FTA) says the planned new tunnel under the Thames must have a robust system in place for handling commercial ...