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

Thursday, 06 October 2016

BBC News

• Severn Tunnel electrification upgrade a 'mammoth task'Fitting five years' of work into six weeks to upgrade the Severn Tunnel for electric trains is a
• WW2 bomb on Newport rail line is 'not ammunition'A suspected unexploded World War Two bomb which closed the rail line between Cardiff and Newport for hours is found to be construction equipment.
• No fines issued in Wales for smoking in cars with childrenNo fines have been issued in Wales for smoking in cars with children, a year after the law is introduced.
• Crossrail tunnel: Drone captures progressAs the Crossrail rail link progresses on its route through London, the BBC has filmed tunnels lined with tracks in Europe's biggest engineering project.
• Jetpack pilot takes flight above LondonA pilot wearing a jetpack takes to the skies above London like
• London mayor in last-ditch plea for Gatwick expansionThe mayor of London writes to the prime minister urging that an extra runway is built at Gatwick Airport, rather than at Heathrow.
• Great car, but where do you put your drink?When it comes to using a car, there are more important issues than the size of the engine and the colour of the paint - as Theo Leggett has been finding out.
• Heathrow runway 'within EU pollution laws'New, independent research seen by the BBC suggests Heathrow airport could build a new runway without breaking European pollution laws.

ITV News

• Gatwick or Heathrow? The runway wait is almost overThe government's long awaited decision on a new runway at Heathrow or Gatwick is likely within weeks, Theresa May today signalled.

Financial Times

• Uber offers free rides in deal with US townCar-hailing app hopes to weave itself deeper into public transit networks across the country
• Etihad and Tui eye new tourism airlinePlan could help Abu Dhabi carrier salvage its investment in lossmaking Air Berlin

The Guardian

• Share your memories and pictures of the Trans-Siberian railwayHave you travelled on the 6000 mile Trans-Siberian railway? To mark 100 years since it was completed we’d like to see your photographsTo mark the 100th anniversary of the completion of the Trans-Siberian railway we’d like to see pictures of your journeys through the years.Whether you’ve gone the whole distance from Moscow to Vladivostock in the east or took the trans-Mongolian route through to Ulaanbaatar and Beijing, we’d like to hear from you. You might have pictures of the engines themselves, the people you met while travelling, or perhaps of sights on the way such as Lake Baikal (and its s...
• Southern rail and RMT to hold talks in bid to avert series of strikesNew talks come as Govia Thameslink axes poster campaign urging commuters to ‘strike back’ after Twitter backlashSouthern rail and union officials will hold talks on Thursday in an eleventh-hour bid to avert a series of strikes due to begin next week.The rail franchise’s owner, Govia Thameslink, has fought a bitter battle with the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union over proposed changes to the role of conductors and had set a deadline of Thursday for acceptance of its proposals. Continue reading...

The Scotsman

• Pilot demonstrates jetpack in skies over LondonThe “ultimate boy’s toy” has soared into the London skies as the UK’s first jetpack flight took off.

City AM

• Heathrow agrees to amend fourth misleading advert after complaint to ASAThe Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has "informally resolved" a complaint over a Heathrow ad attempting to stir up support for its expansion after the airport agreed to amend it.

Mail Online

• Justine Greening says I’ll fight Heathrow over plans for a new runway Miss Greening’s Putney constituency, in south-west London, is near the airport and she has vowed to oppose a third runway and will continue to fight against Heathrow being expanded.

London Evening Standard

• New runway at Gatwick Airport would boost confidence, Sadiq tells Theresa MaySadiq Khan today made a last-ditch attempt to persuade the Government to back a new runway at Gatwick rather than Heathrow.
• Danish entrepreneur Henrik Fisker gears up for electric car comebackControversial car designer Henrik Fisker must have read the maxim "if at first you don't succeed, then try, try again".
• Jubilee line Night Tube service starts this FridayThe Jubilee line is going 24-hour this weekend as it becomes the third line to adopt the revolutionary Night Tube.
• 'Car Airbnb' coming from Mercedes-Benz New subdivision will set up car sharing schemes.
• Anger as cyclists 'brazenly' flout riding ban on Tower Bridge while road is shut for repairsFurious pedestrians today told of their anger after spotting cyclists brazenly flouting a riding ban on Tower Bridge while the road is closed for repairs.
• Fury over Hawaiian Airlines' plan to weigh customers at check-inFurious customers have slammed plans put forward by an airline to weigh passengers at check-in.
• Third runway at Heathrow 'would not break pollution laws', study suggestsA third runway at Heathrow would not break any pollution laws, a study has suggested.

Sheffield Telegraph

• Sheffield drivers among most dangerous due to emotionsRoad rage - and more often happiness - cause city motorists to speed, new research reveals.
• �5 million to be spent on cycle lanes in SheffieldAlmost £5 million could be spent on new cycle schemes in Sheffield to encourage more people to get on their bikes.
• VIDEO: Amazing footage of how Sheffield’s buses used to lookHere's some great footage of South Yorkshire Transport and other colourful buses that frequented the city in the mid 1980's

Wales Online

• Cardiff to Newport railway line closure: What we know so farThe item was found near the railway line in Newport

Blackpool Gazette

• Rail station parking pleaThe team behind proposals to create a railway hub at Poulton are calling on Network Rail to listen to local concerns and expand parking at a busy station.

Get West London

• Is Heathrow trying to bribe west London residents over third runway expansion?A group of councils, including Hillingdon, have accused Heathrow Airport of trying to bribe residents by banning night flights

Other Regional Press

• Southern Rail calls for posters in line with failed Twitter campaign to be removed and destroyedSouthern Rail has called for posters printed in line with a failed Twitter campaign to be

Rail Magazine

• Refurbished Mk 3s for TornadoA dedicated train of Mk 3s is planned for ‘A1’ steam locomotive 60163 Tornado. They're expected to enter service towards the end of 2019.
• �600 million new train deal for AngliaAbellio UK completed contracts to replace the entire East Anglia train fleet on October 5.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Abellio completes �600m financing deal for Stadler rolling stockAbellio has today finalised contracts worth over £600m to procure and finance 58 Stadler Flirt trains as part of the new East Anglia franchise. Funding for the 378 electro-diesel multiple-units was led by Rock Rail and SL Capital Partners. Additional co-investment equity is being provided...
• ORR: Progress being made towards consumer-focused rail retail industryThe rail industry is making progress on giving third-party retailers a greater say in rules around the sales of tickets to increase competition, according to the ORR, but recommendations for an independent consumer champion-type member on TOC decision-making groups that affect this have not been...
• ScotRail workers agree deal in guard disputeScotRail workers have voted to accept a deal in an effort to resolve its dispute over the role of guards on trains. The RMT said that its members had backed the agreement – which will guarantee that a conductor will be retained as the second member of staff on board new trains being rolled...

Railway Gazette

• Pension funds back Abellio East Anglia order for Stadler trainsets UK: Contracts worth more than �600m for Stadler to supply 378 multiple-unit cars for the next East...
• Hopper wagon under developmentEUROPE: Wagon manufacturer Waggonbau Niesky, leasing company Wascosa and commodities company K+S...

Aviation Industry

• GOL makes South America’s first broadband-connected commercial flightAn Oct. 4 GOL passenger flight between São Paulo Congonhas Airport and Brazil’s national capital Brasilia was the first South American commercial airline flight to have onboard internet connectivity, according to GOL CEO Paulo Kakinoff in a statement delivered in flight and transmitted live on GOL’s Facebook page. read more

Other News Sources

• Passenger confronts Southern Railway conductor after firm's 'Strike Back' ads A Southern Railway conductor was confronted by an angry passenger amid signs that staff are facing abuse following an advertising campaign by the company, which is embroiled in a bitter industrial dispute.