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

Saturday, 09 December 2017

BBC News

• Bristol rail services funding bid to be submittedA bid for £46m to improve rail services around Bristol is to be made to the government before Christmas.

Financial Times

• UK train fares: ticket to rideThe increases in both fares and investment levels are exaggerated
• BA agrees deal with unions to close final salary pension schemeAirline to move staff to defined contribution plan as it tackles £2.8bn pension hole

The Herald

• First electric trains to run on Edinburgh to Glasgow lineTHE first electric trains on the Edinburgh to Glasgow line will be introduced this weekend, ScotRail have confirmed.

The Independent

• The railway routes the Government could restore to reconnect coasts with cities and countrysideHope was almost extinguished in the 1960s, as was the neighbouring station of Edale. These two Derbyshire halts provide access to the best parts of the Peak District National Park, with Edale also marking one end of the Pennine Way. Had Dr Richard Beeching had his way, they would have been among the thousands of UK stations closed, on the grounds of being “clearly uneconomic”.

Times Online

• Tory Keith Prince in row with woman who put feet on train seat on London commuter service [Subscription]A senior Conservative councillor apologised yesterday after becoming embroiled in a row with a woman he accused of putting her feet on his train seat.
• Tram safety boost after ‘dozing’ driver’s fatal crash in Croydon [Subscription]All trams will be fitted with automatic braking systems after a driver drifted into a “microsleep”, leading to the worst crash of its kind in almost a century.
• Porvair’s potential filters through to investors [Subscription]The market likes many things, but if you can put some of them together in a single basket, then all the better. Thus Porvair’s combination of a technology-driven business, something never more fashionable than now, and the promise of a “healthy” order book had investors dipping in yesterday.

Birmingham Mail

• Green light for new Wolverhampton rail station Transport bosses agree £50 million funding towards the Wolverhampton Interchange Project linking rail and tram stops

Northern Echo

• Hopes for HS2 upgrade at Darlington: Chris Grayling says it's on his 'serious to do' listTRANSPORT secretary Chris Grayling said the modernisation of Darlington station – making it ready for HS2 trains – was on his 'serious to-do list', as he visited the town yesterday.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Train passenger numbers riseMORE commuters are jumping on to trains across the Black Country and Staffordshire than before, new figures have revealed.
• M6 works to take two yearsDrivers will face nearly TWO YEARS of delays during the major revamp of the M6 junction 10.
• Government is bluffing over restoring closed rail linesTransport secretary Chris Grayling could restore closed lines under plan to expand rail network and increase growth.

Bucks Free Press

• £4 million HS2 cash boost for Buckinghamshire A cash boost of £30 million will be handed out to towns and villages along the route of the controversial new High Speed Two railway in a bid to improve road and cycle safety – with Bucks County Council landing almost £4 million.

Cambridge News

• The game-changing 'driverless train' that could be coming to CambridgeCambridge could be getting a complete underground metro by 2025, it was revealed yesterday .

North Wales Live

• Arriva bus strike day CANCELLED - but others could still go ahead Drivers will be voting on a new pay deal next week

Other Regional Press

• Oxford Bus Company buys City Sightseeing bus tours OXFORD Bus Company has purchased the firm behind the City Sightseeing open-top buses and hoped to invest more in welcoming visitors to the city.
• Transport Minister: we'll invest in space travel and fixing roadsIN A week of major traffic problems on the A34, a Government transport minister has promised investment in infrastructure to support growing businesses.
• Rodent droppings found in kitchen of Virgin East Coast train The animal droppings were found this week on a service which runs from Edinburgh to London
• Double awards success for Gatwick Airport’s teamGATWICK has won an environmental awareness award in recognition of its work to become the UK’s most sustainable airport.
• Strong passenger growth as two million travel through Shrewsbury Railway Station in a year More than two million passengers travelled through Shrewsbury Railway Station in the last financial year.
• Strong passenger growth as two million travel through Shrewsbury Railway Station in a year More than two million passengers travelled through Shrewsbury Railway Station in the last financial year.
• Rail campaign group demands 10 per cent cut in West Norfolk fares over prospect of longer journeys Campaigners have demanded a minimum 10 per cent cut in rail fares on West Norfolk’s line as compensation for the prospect of longer journeys.
• Improved train services pull in to LancashireThis weekend more rail services and better train connections roll into Lancashire.

Train Operators

• Northern to take first rail customers across Manchester’s Ordsall ChordRail operator Northern is preparing to welcome customers onto the first passenger service to cross Manchester’s Ordsall Chord on Sunday 10 December.

Rail Technology Magazine

• #UKRIA2018 picks up HS2 chief executive for keynote speechMark Thurston, chief executive of HS2, has been announced as the keynote speaker for this year’s prestigious UK Rail Industry Awards (UKRIA). Thurston, who took over at the country’s biggest rail project in March, is expected to offer a unique insight into the industry for more than...

Railnews

• Tram crash driver may have been in ˜microsleep™ The final report into the Croydon tram crash of November 2016 has said the driver of the tram which overturned at speed, killing seven people, may have been in a momentary ˜microsleep™ which made him ˜lose awareness™. By the time he woke up, he may not have realised in time that his tram was overspeeding dangerously close to the tight curve at Sandilands Junction, where there is a restriction of 20km/h. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch concluded that the risk of trams overturning on curves had not been ˜properly understood™. However, the RAIB has dismissed reports that shift patterns at...
• EGIP goes electric, but new trains must wait until 2018 Electric trains will start running between Glasgow Queen Street and Edinburgh on Sunday, but the rolling stock will be existing Class 380s from the ScotRail fleet rather than the new Class 385s which are being built by Hitachi. Class 380s with seven cars will be moved to the Edinburgh Glasgow Improvement Programme route via Falkirk High for now. The ScotRail Alliance said it is preparing ˜to welcome brand-new Hitachi Class 385 trains next year™. Managing director Alex Hynes described it as ˜another key stage™, and from Sunday there will be more seats, and some journeys will be faster.

Green Miscellany

• Have your say on human powered vehiclesThe idea of travelling in an extremely small and lightweight vehicle that will not move without physical effort from its driver will seem outlandish to motorists who do little more than turn a key, but we are great fans of human powered vehicles (HPVs). These environmentally benign vehicles could have a transformative effect on the way we get about town… The post Have your say on human powered vehicles appeared first on ETA.

Other News Sources

• Rolls-Royce and European Space Agency embark on digital shipping projectRolls-Royce and the European Space Agency have signed an agreement to investigate the use of space technologies for remote-controlled and autonomous shipping.
• People are the key to digitalisationShipping needs to prepare the human element to become high reliability organisations and adopt digitalisation to reap the benefits, says Transas’ Frank Coles
• VISITBRITAIN, NEWCASTLE AIRPORT AND NEWCASTLEGATESHEAD INITIATIVE ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIPVisitBritain has teamed up with Newcastle Airport and NewcastleGateshead Initiative to promote the North East of England to overseas visitors.
• Gatwick Airport launches first passenger app with live queue timesIt has personalised flight alerts, real-time queue updates for check-in and security, intuitive navigation using beacon technology and shopping, restaurant and airport offers.
• Northern Rail working with other train operators to boost Christmas economy across the NorthTRAIN operators across the North are working together to help people get to shops and markets in the run-up to Christmas.
• Northern Rail to introduce improved connections for East Lancashire rail commutersNORTHERN Rail has improved connections for rail commuters on lines between East Lancashire and Preston and Manchester.