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

Saturday, 04 November 2017

BBC News

• Welsh ambulance staffing gaps left vehicles off the roadThe Welsh Ambulance Service has since
• Ford builds robot which tests car seats and other newsBBC Click's Nick Kwek looks at some of the best of the week's technology news stories.
• Forth Road Bridge faces months of restrictions during repair workMajor repairs are needed on the road bridge which has only been used by public transport since the Queensferry Crossing opened.
• Northern Rail strikes go ahead as talks break downNorthern Rail says a planned walkout by RMT members will go ahead after talks broke down.
• Man charged after London Tube train hit passengerA 29-year-old man is accused of attempted murder and is due before magistrates later, police say.
• BMW recalls a million cars in North AmericaThe firm said it has identified two separate problems that raise the risk of fire.

ITV News

• Half of all fixed speed cameras in Britain left inactiveAbout half of all fixed speed cameras around the country are switched off, according to data obtained under freedom of information rules, with some authorities maintaining no active fixed speed cameras at all.

The Guardian

• Tell us how you are affected by the HS2 routeWe’d like to hear from you if you, your community or your business is affected by the planned route of HS2 The HS2 rail link will affect many people in regions all along the proposed 140 mile route, with plans that could demolish properties and close businesses. Landscapes are also due to be indelibly altered by its proposed path, and we’d like to hear what the impact will be for you. Related: Living in the path of HS2: 'We don’t matter, do we?' Continue reading...
• The light sentencing of a 'road rage' driver is sadly all too familiar to cyclists | Laura LakerThe Harper case is yet another example of the legal system failing vulnerable roads users and demonising cyclistsA man was sentenced to 27 months in jail, ordered to pay £5,000 in damages, and banned from driving for three years for deliberately driving into and injuring another man, who was cycling, before threatening to repeat the attack.Clifford Harper hit Peter Corfe with his BMW in central London earlier this year, after the two traded insults in slow moving traffic. Witnesses then saw Harper get out of his car and tell Corfe: “I’ll do it again.â€� Continue reading...

The Telegraph

• Border Force launches patrol boat on Thames in fight against people smuggling

Times Online

• Behind schedule and burning cash but Tesla still has a hold on pole position [Subscription]It’s rare to find Elon Musk in anything other than an optimistic mood, but that wasn’t the case on Wednesday. “I have to tell you I was really depressed about three or four weeks ago,” the boss of Tesla said on an earnings call after the company reported a thoroughly dismal third-quarter update.
• ‘Fake breath tests put lives at risk’ [Subscription]The recording of bogus breath tests by gardaí may have potentially led to more deaths on the roads, safety chiefs said.
• Rail travellers lose right of appeal over parking fines [Subscription]Commuters may be unable to escape heavy penalties for leaving vehicles in railway station car parks after operators scrapped the right to appeal.
• Half of Britain’s speed cameras are turned off [Subscription]Only about half of fixed speed cameras in Britain are switched on and catching offenders, figures suggest.
• Travellers wait for hours at airports to enter UK [Subscription]Airport authorities criticised “unacceptable” delays at passport control desks yesterday as new figures showed that tourists were being forced to queue for up to two-and-a-half hours to enter Britain.
• ‘Baffling’ airline rules blamed for 4,000 complaints [Subscription]Almost 4,000 complaints were made against airlines including British Airways and EasyJet last year amid warnings that carriers were hiding behind red tape to deny passengers their rights.

City AM

• This airline is weighing passengers before they board flightsA Finnish airline is asking passengers to step on the scales before boarding their flight.
• EasyJet agrees employment terms to save 1,000 Air Berlin jobsEasyJet has settled on terms for former Air Berlin employees with a German aviation union.

Mail Online

• Fraudsters bought £6million of supercars tax-free Raymond Gordon (pictured) and Margaret Lunt were complicit in a scheme which exploited a law allowing disabled people to buy vehicles VAT free, Manchester Crown Court heard.
• London black cab ‘reversed into Channel 4 correspondent' James Wilkinson, 57, has been found guilty of false imprisonment and dangerous driving after he locked Channel 4' journalist Helia Ebrahimi (pictured) in his car and refused to stop.

This is Money

• Almost half of drivers have felt blinded by others To measure the dangers of dazzling, Direct Line conduced a roadside experiment and found that driver are temporarily blinded by other vehicle's headlights for an average of two seconds.

Birmingham Mail

• Bullring slashes car parking charges for late night Christmas shopping Find out when you'll be able to park at Bullring at a discounted rate

Bolton News

• Rail warning over months of closures on Blackpool lineRAIL passengers heading to Blackpool this winter are being warned of several months of upgrade works which will affect travel to and from the seaside town.
• Reduced rail service during latest day of strike actionNORTHERN Rail has published revised timetables that will operate during strike action next Wednesday.
• Bridge reopens after six months of repair worksA BRIDGE at Lostock railway station has reopened after months of repair works.
• WARNING: Plan ahead for strike action on trains and buses next weekCOMMUTERS have been warned to plan ahead for their journeys next week, when bus and rail staff take industrial action.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Arriva Rail North workers to strike as talks over role of guards collapseA 24-HOUR strike on Arriva Rail North will go ahead next week after talks aimed at resolving a row over the role of guards collapsed.
• Only quarter of West Yorkshire's fixed cameras actively catching speeding drivers, figures showONLY a quarter of fixed speed cameras in West Yorkshire are actually switched on and catching offenders, new figures have revealed.
• Town Council opposes flight path changes A TOWN council has objected to new flight paths into Leeds Bradford Airport, saying planes would be flying over a much more densely-populated area.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• 'What The Truck?' Calls for bridge heights to be properly displayed to stop HGVs smashing into them“We need HGV drivers and their employers to get on board with our initiative and make bridge strikes a thing of the past”

London Evening Standard

• More woes for Gama Aviation as finance boss jets offGama Aviation's troubles multiplied on Friday as the private jet operator, which is being sued by a former director, revealed it is losing its finance chief.

Manchester Evening News

• Only one in four speed cameras in Greater Manchester is actually switched onRoad safety charities say figures are ‘concerning’ and have called for all cameras to be switched on permanently

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Rail strike to hit North East next week after talks between the RMT and Arriva Rail North break down A 24-hour walk is planned for November 8, with Merseyrail, Southern, Greater Anglia, South Western Railways and Island Line also effected

Northern Echo

• Train driver spots rail track defect - delays between Newcastle and Darlington AN eagle-eyed train driver spotted a problem with the track between Durham and Darlington today.
• Council to look again at its speed sign policy following protests from villagersHIGHWAY bosses are being told to look again at allowing worried villagers to buy their own speed signs after protests from communities.

The York Press

• Another rail strike looms after talks breakdownA 24-HOUR strike on York-based Northern trains will go ahead after talks aimed at resolving a row over the role of guards collapsed.

Wales Online

• Fewer than two-thirds of fixed speed cameras in Wales are actually switched onRoad safety charity Brake described the figures as concerning

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Reindeers oppose HS2The owner of a Staffordshire family attraction is taking his protest against HS2 all the way to Parliament - along with two reindeer.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Repairs and resurfacing to A14 and Orwell Bridge will mean weeks of road closures for night-time travellersDrivers are facing weeks of overnight closures on the A14 and Orwell Bridge to allow vital repairs and resurfacing work to take place.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Time to act on danger crossing in PeterboroughA main road crossing in Peterborough city centre could be redesigned after a cyclist was seriously hurt in a collision - the seventh incident in less than three years.
• Flying Scotsman steams along Nene Valley Railway after repairsThe Flying Scotsman is back on track after needing vital repairs in Peterborough.
• New trains to link Peterborough with St Pancras and Gatwick and give live tube updatesCommuters between Peterborough and London will be able to travel directly to St Pancras station on new trains which will also open up links to Gatwick Airport.

West Sussex Gazette

• Lorry operating centre plans for FordAn application has been made for a farm in Ford to be used as an operating centre for lorries transporting oil and petrol.

Other Regional Press

• 230 FREE parking spaces up for grabs at Cambridge Road for Town fans Kirklees Council offering spaces as demand soars on Match Day in the Premier League
• One of Southampton's busiest bridges to close this weekend WORK will begin this weekend on a multi-million scheme to save one of the city’s busiest road bridges.
• BMW boss says Brexit is not a risk to the Cowley PlantBREXIT does not pose a threat to the Mini plant in Cowley, a director of BMW has said.
• Oxford councillor calls for government diesel scrappage fundTHE Government will need to help drivers cover the cost of scrapping diesel vehicles, an Oxford city councillor has said.
• Bad news for drivers as fuel prices set to increaseDrivers are being encouraged to fill up this weekend with petrol prices set to increase.
• Tourism flights could take off for Bedford’s AirlanderWealthy tourists could be paying a six figure sum to jump aboard Cardington’s Airlander for the luxury holiday of a lifetime.

Buying Business Travel

• Easyjet opens Bristol-Stockholm routeCarrier will operate two flights a week
• Flybe to launch Cardiff-Venice routeFlybe will launch a direct flight from Cardiff airport to Venice for the summer 2018 flying season between March 27 and September 9.The new route will operate twice a week on Tuesday and Saturday. It is Flybe’s fourth service to Italy from the Welsh airport.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Merseytravel calls on Liverpool council bosses to endorse rail strategyMerseytravel has urged the Liverpool City Region to endorse its new updates to the long-term rail strategy. The plans, presented to the authority’s transport committee yesterday, have been edited to consider changes in the industry since the strategy was first produced in 2014. This...
• Solihull councils release £1.2bn Hub development framework to capitalise on HS2 Councils in Solihull have released a framework outlining infrastructure plans to build on the upcoming HS2 interchange that is set to be built in the area. The ‘Hub’ development would attempt to fulfil the full economic potential of HS2 with connections to the National Exhibition...
• Blackpool rail network to close for 19 weeks during major upgradeBlackpool’s rail network is set for major changes as Network Rail plans to close the system for 19 weeks of essential work. The upgrades – which form a part of the Great North Rail Project – will focus on improving capacity and reliability across the service. During the...

Aviation Industry

• Bombardier CEO: CSeries is ‘largely a US product’The Bombardier CSeries is “already largely a US productâ€� and contains more US-produced content than the Boeing 787, Bombardier president and CEO Alain Bellemare said. read more
• Clark sees potential for 200 A380s at new Dubai airportThe new Dubai World Central Airport (DWC) would allow Emirates Airline to operate 200 Airbus A380s – twice as many as it has today, the carrier’s president said Friday. read more

Other News Sources

• Taxi industry critical over council's Uber decisionUBER has been granted permission to operate in Brighton and Hove for a further six months.
• All aboard for Harry Potter themed weekend at Watercress LineA MOB of mischievous witches and wizards swarmed The Mid Hants Railway Watercress Line, in Alresford at the weekend to celebrate its popular Harry Potter themed Wizard Weekend for Halloween.