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

Wednesday, 07 December 2016

BBC News

• Berlin transport company makes light of Twitter vitriolBerlin's public transport company has released a series of videos in which its employees read out expletive-ridden tweets from angry customers.
• 'Living in fear'The human impact of rail strikes on commuters
• Agreement signed in Prestwick spaceport bidGlasgow Prestwick Airport signs an agreement with Houston Spaceport as it continues its bid to become the UK's first launch site.
• Labour's Andy McDonald on government railway plansGovernment plans to change running of the English railway network are criticised by Labour
• Southern rail 'major delays' as union action growsCommuters face major delays as an RMT strike on the Southern rail network coincides with an Aslef drivers' overtime ban.
• Trump says Air Force One Boeing order should be cancelledDonald Trump says he wants to cancel the

Financial Times

• UK’s new train orders signal risk to leasing groupsUpgrades to rolling stock increase chances of not earning money on older trains
• Grayling downplays fears over rail shake-upVow to put more stress on quality of service than simple financial terms of bids
• Using data to improve global transport systemsCities in emerging markets are using apps to refine how people travel

The Guardian

• Plans for Transport for London to take over capital's rail lines ditchedTransport secretary instead says TfL will be involved in new Southeastern franchise that will hand more control to private firmsPlans for the capital’s rail lines to be run by Transport for London have been scuttled, as the government instead said it would make the Southeastern franchise a testbed for controversial reforms that will lead to private train companies taking joint control of the tracks.The transport secretary, Chris Grayling, has blocked a deal announced in January by his predecessor, Patrick McLoughlin
• The Guardian view on Chris Grayling’s rail plans: small-minded, ideological and partisan | EditorialThe UK government is putting more money into transport infrastructure but its dogmatic approach again risks benefiting the south at the expense of the northTransport was one of the winners in Philip Hammond’s painfully cautious autumn statement last month. Considering the size of Britain’s infrastructure spending backlog, and the cost of the rail, road and air projects now on the national wishlist, the chancellor’s additional £1.1bn transport spending, with £110m earmarked for the new east-west rail link between Oxford and Cambridge, was perhaps an unambitious amount. But it was a decent down ...

The Herald

• Space travel from Scotland by end of decade as Prestwick secures Nasa tie-inIT is a new frontier for an airport better used to budget flights to the continent's beaches and city break getaways. 

Daily Record

• Scotland's £320million spaceport dream moves closer with Houston partnershipKEY players at Prestwick have signed an agreement with the Houston Spaceport as part of an agreement to share resources.

Mail Online

• East Cambridgeshire station Shippea Hill only used by TWELVE people in a year A league table of the quietest stations in the country has been topped by Shippea Hill - which was astonishingly used by just 12 people last year.

The Mirror

• London Tube Twitter account suffers meltdown after complaining 'I'm really getting it in the neck' from commuters Social media staffer for troubled Piccadily Line tweeted: "Can we move on now... like a delayed tube, can we move on now?" after lamenting lack of staff to help him
• Director of Chapecoense plane crash airline ARRESTED in Bolivia over disaster which killed 71 peopleGustavo Vargas, director of La Mia airlines, has been detained by Bolivian authorities carrying out an investigation

Birmingham Post

• HS2 depot site sold by St Modwen 50-acre plot in north Birmingham acquired by the Government to house a new rolling stock maintenance depot
• M42 upgrade plans at Birmingham Airport junction Highways England launches consultation programme on notoriously problematic junction which serves both airport and NEC

London Evening Standard

• Southern Rail strike: Minister tells unions and Southern to sort out differences themselvesTransport Secretary Chris Grayling has told Southern Rail and unions to sort out their differences themselves as he condemned strike action affecting London commuters.
• Southern Rail cancels over 1,000 trains in worst disruption so farSouthern Rail today cancelled 1,100 trains in the worst disruption so far in the nine month-old dispute with some areas left without any service at all.
• Sadiq Khan promises �200m boost for step-free Tube stationsSadiq Khan today promised to spend �200 million on step-free access to the Tube over the next five years, making it easier for the disabled, elderly and parents with young children to use.
• Southern Rail strikes 2016: How to claim up to a month's compensation for disruptionTens of thousands of Southern rail commuters who have suffered months of travel chaos are entitled to compensation.
• Sadiq Khan's bid to take over London's suburban railways stopped in its tracks by Chris GraylingSadiq Khan's bid to take over London's suburban railways was halted in its tracks today.
• Southern Rail strikes: Commuter chaos to continue as walk-out enters second dayFed-up commuters face yet more chaos on Southern Rail services tomorrow as the beleaguered operator struggles through the second day of another crippling walk-out.

Sheffield Telegraph

• LOOK SMART: South Yorkshire drivers try extra motorway laneToday sees launch of South Yorkshire M1 fourth lane in �15 billion upgrade.

The York Press

• Yorkshire's busiest and quietest railway stations revealed YORK Railway Station is the third-busiest in Yorkshire and Humberside, according to new statistics.
• Judge slams rail company over crossing crash YORK'S top judge has warned�people could have been killed in a recent train crash and urged Network Rail to improve safety.

Wales Online

• A new winter timetable has been released for some Arriva Trains Wales services The most significant changes will be to lines going from South Wales to England and between Cardiff and Holyhead

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Severn Valley Railway share offer hits �500,000 after a month More than �500,000 has rolled in during the first month of a scheme to buy shares in the Severn Valley Railway.
• POLL: Should Network Rail share control of the tracks with train companies?Labour has accused the Government of putting the nation's railways on the

Yorkshire Evening Post

• ‘Turn your words into action’ plea to Leeds transport buses over trolleybus successorA new mass transport system to replace the scrapped trolleybus and Supertram plans WILL form part of Leeds’s future transport vision, council bosses confirmed today.

Yorkshire Post

• YP Letters: HS2 is about rail capacity, not speedFrom: Dr Alex Strickland, Childwall Road, Liverpool.
• Anger at Varsity Line plan after scrapping of Yorkshire schemeTRANSPORT SECRETARY Chris Grayling has come under fire for setting out ambitious railway plans while the Government struggles to deliver on existing commitments to Yorkshire.

Blackpool Gazette

• Pilotless aircraft to return to Fylde skiesEngineers at BAE Systems’ Warton site are set to carry out a new set of pilotless plane tests.
• Unmanned aircraft trials stepped up by BAE SystemsScientists and engineers at BAE Systems have begun another tranche of ground-breaking unmanned aircraft technology trials.

East Anglian Daily Times

• New rail link could improve links from East Anglia to the west of EnglandThrough trains from Ipswich and Norwich to Oxford and possibly Swindon or even Bristol could be running within 15 years under a new rail model being flagged up by the government today.
• East West rail route gets a big boost from government – trains could run from Ipswich to BristolHopes of building a major new rail link from East Anglia to Bristol, creating an “Arc of Prosperity” around London have received a major boost.

Other Regional Press

• 'Railway level-crossing is killing town – and must be replaced' AN UNDER-threat railway crossing needs to be replaced or trade in Bicester's town centre could be 'killed off', transport campaigners have warned.
• Closing Oxford to Cambridge rail link was decision 'we have lived to regret' Transport secretary set to pledge commitment to new East West Rail link
• Passengers numbers at Oxford station drop for first time since records began THE number of passengers using Oxford railway station has dropped for the first time since records began following the opening of Oxford Parkway.
• Mystery of a bus stop - on a road with no busesNeither Kirklees nor the bus operator can explain why it's there

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• CILT responds to the future direction of Network RailResponding to today’s (6th December) announcement by Chris Grayling MP on the future direction of Network Rail, CILT’s Strategic Rail Policy Group said: “While the policy announcement by the Secretary of State is somewhat less radical than some had anticipated or hoped for, it shows a welcome attention to improving the overall level of service to rail users.  “The approach is based on fostering practical cooperation in management at working level between train operators and infrastructure managers, without changing either ownership arrangements or the legal respons...

Rail Magazine

• Railway to bring benefits to the South WestTask Force Report cites resilience, faster journey times and improved connectivity as key

Rail Technology Magazine

• DfT to extend West Coast franchise until 2019 ahead of new WCP A short-term contract will be needed to deliver services on the West Coast Main Line (WCML) for a year after the current franchise ends, prior to the delivery of the new West Coast Partnership (WCP), the DfT has confirmed. From 1 April 2019, the WCML will be run as a new franchise in combination...
• Waterloo continues to top list of Britain's busiest rail stationsMore passengers passed through London Waterloo than any other station last year, the latest figures from the ORR show. In 2015-16, an estimated 99 million people entered and exited the station, a similar figure to the previous year. Overall, nine of Britain’s 10 busiest rail stations were...
• Ealing Broadway derailment due to miscommunication, RAIB findsThe RAIB has released its report into the derailment of a Tube train at Ealing Broadway station in March of this year, concluding that the accident was caused due to miscommunication between control room staff. At 1:29am on 2 March 2016, the leading bogie of the District Line train derailed with...
• Grayling to reveal plans for fully privatised railway lineUnder proposals drawn up by transport secretary Chris Grayling, the new route between Oxford and Cambridge will not be developed by Network Rail but instead by a new East West Rail organisation, who will also operate train services on the line. In his keynote address at Conservative think tank...
• Khan frustrated as Grayling halts London train devolution plansThe government has announced that suburban rail services may not be devolved to London after all, frustrating the city’s mayor Sadiq Khan. Earlier this year, the government signed a prospectus which stated suburban services operated by Southern, Southeastern and South West Trains could be...

Railnews

• Grayling urges an end to rail maintenance confrontation Transport secretary Chris Grayling has told Railnews his reforms of railway maintenance, to be formally unveiled later today, are intended to get people around the same table rather than 'throwing contracts at each other'. In a speech to the think tank Policy Exchange this evening, he will unveil plans to make franchised operators more responsible for infrastructure maintenance. However, speaking in advance of the event, he dismissed any idea that Network Rail will be 'stripped of its powers', as some reports have claimed.

Railway Gazette

• East West Rail heads move to vertical reintegrationUK: On December 6 Transport Secretary Chris Grayling announced a series of measures that aim to...
• Hitachi awarded Frecciarossa maintenance contractsITALY: Hitachi Rail Italy has been awarded two contracts worth a total of €100m, covering the...

Aviation Industry

• Bombardier: CSeries aircraft performing better than expected Bombardier said it will increase the formal specifications for the CSeries CS300, as the aircraft’s per seat and trip costs have already proven 2% better than its original brochure values. read more
• Airbus books $1.6 billion in commercial aircraft orders in NovemberAirbus reported firm orders* for 14 commercial aircraft in November, valued at $1.6 billion at list prices, from two airlines and one undisclosed customer. read more

Other News Sources

• Houston Spaceport partners with U.K. spaceportThe Houston Spaceport has signed a memorandum of understanding with a counterpoint in the U.K. to share relevant policies, processes and other information relating to commercial spaceport licensing and operations
• Space travel from Scotland by end of decade as Pretwick secures NASA tie in
• Cycle lanes cause problems for road users, says Transport Secretary Chris Grayling was speaking about wider transport issues when he made the comments about cycling
• FTA tells Government ‘Don’t forget freight in rail reforms’The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has responded with caution to today’s Government announcement of changes to the structure of the rail ...