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

Tuesday, 26 April 2016

BBC News

• Manchester Metrolink services restoredTram journeys across Manchester's Metrolink resume after a technical fault at its control depot halted services for five hours.
• Southern rail strike to cause disruptionPassengers on Southern railway face more than 24 hours of disruption due to a strike by conductors over their role and driver-only trains.
• VIDEO: Car makers bet on China for growthCar makers at Beijing's annual car show explain why they're still looking to China for growth.
• Bike couriers in legal fight over rightsFour couriers are taking their companies to a tribunal in a bid to get employed workers' rights, in what could be a landmark case affecting thousands of self-employed people.

Financial Times

• Heathrow dismisses transport cost claimsTransport for London estimates third runway will more than double passenger numbers

Mail Online

• TfL predicts 330m MORE journeys per year on London Underground Nearly 22,000 passengers are now arriving in London during the morning rush hour peak - forcing commuters to be crammed in carriages with five people per square metre.

Belfast Telegraph

• Conductors' strike set to cause rail chaosRail passengers on some of the busiest routes in the country face travel chaos because of a conductors' strike.

London Evening Standard

• Southern railways strike to cause two days of travel chaos for commutersA strike across Southern railways from Tuesday means two days of major travel chaos, rail chiefs warned.
• Zac Goldsmith: Tube passengers will suffer conditions worse than farmyard animals unless changes are madeCommuters will endure conditions that would be illegal for farmyard animals unless there is urgent investment in London's transport infrastructure, Zac Goldsmith warned today.
• Tube strike: Piccadilly line walk-out called off after progress in talks, RMT confirmsA planned Piccadilly line strike that threatened chaos for thousands of commuters tomorrow has been called off, the RMT has confirmed.
• Rail tickets featuring Samaritans helpline number launched by Audley Harrison to cut suicidesTrain tickets will feature a helpline number for the Samaritans in a bid to reduce suicides on the rail network, it has been announced.
• Southern rail strike: Commuters braced for days of travel chaos as walkout beginsThousands of commuters are braced for two days of travel chaos from this morning as strike action cripples major rail routes into London.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Tory civil war putting key decisions for North East in doubtTurmoil surrounding EU referendum could affect decisions on Heathrow expansion and APD - both of which are crucial for North East

Crewe Chronicle

• Electric charging 'on the go' gets closer Production of electric cars' wireless charging as you drive is near.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Lottery boost for Mid Suffolk Light Railway’s jubileeSuffolk’s only standard-gauge steam railway, the ‘Middy’, got its 25th birthday year off to a great start at the weekend with the formal start of work on its new workshop.

Other Regional Press

• No Southern trains in Tonbridge and Ashford during RMT Union strikeSouthern trains from two busy Kent stations will be cancelled as workers strike over safety fears.
• Why Maidstone sees more car crashes than anywhere else in KentRoad accidents are falling year on year across Kent, but this area stubbornly bucks the trend.
• Italy and Spain now closer with new Dorset flights announced PARTS of Italy and Spain are slightly closer as airlines announce new direct flights from Dorset.
• UPDATE: Weymouth Park and Ride to re-open - with services provided by First Bus SERVICES are set to re-commence at Weymouth Park and Ride.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Finishing touches to be added to Stafford and Crewe lineThere will be finishing touches added to the line that connects Stafford and Crewe over the May bank holiday weekends. Forming part of Network Rail's �40 billion Railway Upgrade Plan, the company's staff will be working at Stafford to remove one of the last major bottlenecks on the West Coast main line. By doing this, there will be room at the station for more passenger and freight services between Birmingham and Manchester, London and the north-west. The changes also hope to improve the reliability of services and improve journey times for those travelling on the trains. Lines between Staffor...
• Finalists announced in the 2016 FTA everywoman in Transport & Logistics Awards22 of the most inspirational role models within the transport and logistics industry have been announced as finalists in the 2016 FTA everywoman in Transport & Logistics Awards. The Awards aim to demonstrate the breadth of career opportunities offered by the industry, particularly for women, and those shortlisted are prime examples of this with careers ranging from engineers to warehousing managers and HGV drivers. This is the ninth year of this prestigious programme which celebrates the women who really shine, whether they are rising stars at the beginning of an exciting career journey o...
• Reading Buses order world’s first Scania gas double deck busesReading Buses has today officially confirmed its inaugural order worth £1.3 million for five Scania double deck buses powered by Compressed Natural Gas from a bio-methane source – a world first. The order, for Scania’s new N280UD model, builds upon the success of its single deck variant which Reading Buses was the first bus operator to adopt in 2013. Reading Buses operate a fleet of 34 single deck Scania gas buses and the five new double deck buses will be purchased without the assistance of any government grant funding, demonstrating what Chief Executive Officer Martijn Gi...
• Two Optare Metrocity buses for Midland ClassicMidland Classic have acquired two Optare Metrocity buses.  Midland Classic founded in 2005 operates local bus services around Swadlincote and Burton upon Trent. The 10.1m, Euro 5, Metrocity buses, seat up to 35 and feature, under seat lighting, an additional buggy bay as well as the usual wheelchair bay, and USB charging points fully integrated into the seating.  The vehicles will operate on the Lichfield City circular services. James Boddice, Managing Director, Midland Classic, said, “We had heard from other operators who have purchased the Metrocity how impressed they have ...
• Railway along Cumbrian Coast line gets rock armourNetwork Rail has finished a project to install a 15,000-tonne rock armour sea defence to protect the railway along the Cumbrian Coast line at Parton. The company's team worked with the tidal patterns of the Irish Sea to deliver the emergency repairs to the sea wall. These repairs were much-needed because of storms over Christmas and the New Year that had battered the sea defences, which were in place to protect the railway. 15,000 tonnes of rock has been moved from the base of the sea wall to the beach next to the railway, creating a protective barrier between the train and and the force of th...

Rail Magazine

• High Court Injunction looms in GatEx new train rowGovia Thameslink Railway has issued proceedings at the High Court to seek an injunction enabling the operation of its new 12-car Gatwick Express trains
• GTR statement at the conclusion of high court proceedingsGovia Thameslink Railway has issued proceedings at the High Court to seek an injunction enabling the operation of its new 12-car Gatwick Express trains
• ORR investigates incident involving WCR at Bath SpaAnother safety incident involving West Coast Railway Company occurred on April 13
• ETCS forecast to facilitate 30% capacity boostInstallation of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) will increase capacity by up to 30% on some parts of the network
• ORR to focus on workforce safety in 2016-17 The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is to focus on worker safety in its 2016-17 business plan

Rail Technology Magazine

• Aslef back down over 12-car dispute after GTR obtain injunctionThe High Court has awarded an injunction to Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) forbidding their drivers from refusing to drive their new 12-car trains in an ongoing industrial dispute. GTR applied for the injunction, which was awarded on Friday, after Aslef drivers refused to drive the new 12-car...
• All Metrolink services suspended after communications failureTrams in Manchester came to a stop today (Monday 25 April) after a communications failure at the Old Trafford stop. The fault occurred at about 11.30am and means that the network control room staff are not able to monitor tram movements or access information displays. Metrolink RATP Dev trams...
• £100m contracts to build Luton airport link advertisedContracts worth between £100m and £200m to build the light rail link between Luton Airport Parkway station and London Luton Airport, including driverless rolling stock, are being advertised.
• TfL and Airports Commission at odds over impact of Heathrow third runwayNewly released documents show that the Airports Commission’s estimate of the cost of rail links needed to support the third runway at Heathrow airport is as much as £11bn below that of Transport for London (TfL).

Railnews

• High Court intervenes in Gatwick DOO dispute A High Court judge has ordered ASLEF not to 'induce' refusals by Gatwick Express drivers to operate 12-car trains. Govia Thameslink Railway said it was 'pleased' at the ruling, but ASLEF is balloting its members on Gatwick Express and Southern, which is also operated by GTR, while Southern services are also set to be disrupted by a separate conductors' strike from tomorrow.

Aviation Industry

• TFL: Heathrow underestimated cost of road and rail links by £16bnUpgrade work to London’s transport system ‘eight times more than airport’s estimate’

Other News Sources

• Stagecoach freezes fares on all Lancaster busesStagecoach will freeze fares on all routes in Lancaster in a drive to continue to offer passengers value for money and to encourage more people to travel by bus.
• Further delays in store for rail passenger rights The government is set to delay implementing enhanced rights for rail passengers by 18 months, Which? has discovered.
• More truckers take to bikes in Belfast for FTA safe driving schemeHGV drivers will be taking to their bikes in Belfast as part of a scheme aimed at improving safety for all road users. ...
• Uber and Lyft overtake car rental for corporate travelReport finds ‘ride-hailing’ firms now more popular than car rental and taxis for business travellers