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

Friday, 15 December 2017

BBC News

• Scathing report on Sheffield-Rotherham tram-train pilotThe UK's first tram-train project has incurred "spiralling" costs with questionable benefit for similar schemes in the future, a scathing report by MPs has found.
• Suitcase journey through East Midlands AirportHandlers deal with more than one million items of luggage a year at East Midlands Airport.
• Virgin Trains staff to hold 24-hour strikeVirgin Trains West Coast workers go strike later - the first of a number of walkouts by UK rail staff.
• Rescue bid after freight ship loses powerLifeboat and coastguard teams are assisting the stricken vessel which is drifting off Taransay in the Western Isles.
• 'Jobs at risk' at new West Midlands rail franchiseWest Midlands Trains suggests outsourcing and moving some jobs in a letter to staff seen by the BBC.
• Niki Austrian airline failure strands many passengersAbout 5,000 passengers are stuck abroad after the Austrian airline opens insolvency proceedings.
• HS2 redundancy pay 'shocking waste' of taxpayer cashOverpayments totalling £1.76m were made to 94 people, a committee of MPs says.

Financial Times

• Transport in north needs £60bn, says regional bodyTfN to unveil 30-year plan aimed at raising productivity and closing wealth gap
• CSX railroad chief takes unexpected medical leaveMove comes 9-months after Hunter Harrison was paid $84m up front to join group

The Guardian

• MPs call for legal action over 'shocking' HS2 payoutsPublic body overseeing £55bn rail project ‘lacks basic financial controls’ with outgoing staff overpaid by £1.76m, committee warnsMPs have called on the government to consider legal action against the former chief executive of the public body building the new high-speed rail network, over £1.76m in redundancy payments made in direct contravention of civil service rules.HS2 Ltd, which is overseeing the £55bn project, paid a total of £2.76m to 94 individuals, while the statutory redundancy terms should have kept the bill at £1m. Continue reading...

The Huffington Post

• HS2 'Wasted £1.7 Million Of Taxpayers' Money' On Redundancy Pay-Outs

The Independent

• Man bites train passenger's ear during argument over loud phone conversationVictim requires hospital treatment after attack in south London

The Telegraph

• Millionaire's daughter, 15, 'stranded in London after rail staff refuse to believe she is a child'
• Bus travel plummets amid funding cuts, city congestion and a rise in car ownership

Times Online

• HS2 bosses ‘covered up’ unauthorised payments [Subscription]Bosses at HS2 have been accused of a cover-up over unauthorised redundancy payments amid warnings of financial chaos at the heart of the £56 billion high-speed rail project.

City AM

• Four of the world's eight happiest airports are in the UK (but none are in London)Most people associate airports with long waits, overpriced food, lengthy treks to terminals and pottering around in WHSmiths.
• London Overground Night Tube service arrives today: Here's what you need to know about the new 24-hour serviceYou may have heard the Night Tube is expanding once more, and branching out to the London Overground this week.
• Ryanair has bowed to pressure and agreed to recognise pilots' unionsEmbattled Ryanair said today it will recognise pilots' unions - as strikes threatened to cause travel misery for thousands of passengers over the Christmas period.

Mail Online

• Timpsons boss slams Virgin Trains for stranding daughter Businessman James Timpson said his daughter Niamh was left stranded at London Euston when an inspector refused to let her through a barrier, writing 'not a child' on her ticket (pictured).

Birmingham Mail

• £56 billion HS2 high speed rail project is at risk of 'fraud and financial errors' MPs warn of poor financial controls after HS2 Ltd handed over £1.76 in unauthorised redundancy payments

Birmingham Post

• Bus operator accused of putting profit before passengers after closing 59 stops Transport for West Midlands move criticised in House of Commons

Bolton News

• Greater Manchester Mayor's disappointment after Government rejects railway plansPROPOSALS that would have seen the borough’s railway stations transformed into community hubs, encompassing gyms, cafes and even art galleries have been rejected by the Government.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Ghost railway axed in Beeching cuts could be reopenedBid to improve transport infrastructure could also see island airport linked up to main coast line

London Evening Standard

• Network Rail releases shocking footage of drunk revellers dicing with death after falling onto railway tracksShocking footage of drunk revellers falling onto railway tracks has been released by Network Rail.

Manchester Evening News

• LIVE: Long delays at Manchester Piccadilly and Oxford Road rail stations due to broken down train Passengers are being warned of delays and cancellations between Manchester Piccadilly and stations across the country

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• HS2 high speed rail project at risk of 'fraud and financial errors' as £56bn plans come under fireNorth East MPs warn of poor financial controls after HS2 Ltd handed over £1.76m in unauthorised redundancy payments
• Transport Secretary under fire after he says funding is higher in the North Transport Secretary wrote to MPs with good news about transport funding, but the reality was slightly different

Other Regional Press

• Wrexham to get £10m boost for transport infrastructureMore than £10 million of Welsh Government funding is to be invested in modernising transport infrastructure and services in Wrexham.
• Transport secretary opens new company that will link Oxford to Cambridge by rail againLINKING Oxford and Cambridge by rail is a step closer today after a company that will see the restoration of a line between the cities officially launched.
• Ryanair pilots to spark chaos by striking five days before Christmas Trade union Impact said it would either disrupt flights or generate substantial costs for the airline
• Bus users in Coventry have TWO WEEKS to make huge savings on passes As with any offer, there are a few terms and conditions be note

Buying Business Travel

• Eurowings to offer business classFull-flat bed seats to feature on long-haul routes

Rail Technology Magazine

• DfT officially launches East West Railway CompanyTransport secretary Chris Grayling has officially launched the East West Railway (EWR) Company today, intended to restore the link between Oxford and Cambridge. The Varsity line, which previously connected the two cities, was shut down nearly 50 years ago during the Beeching cuts, although it...
• c2c announces £100m train deal with BombardierTrain operator c2c has today announced a deal for £100m worth of new trains to be manufactured by Bombardier in its Derby factory. The agreement will see 60 carriages of the latest Aventra trains delivered to c2c by the end of 2021, three years earlier than previously planned.

Railway Gazette

• Bombardier to supply Aventra EMUs to c2cUK: Leasing company Porterbook has awarded Bombardier Transportation a £105m contract to supply 10...
• Railway supply industry news round-upThe European Commission announced on December 8 that the final discussions for the EU-Japan...

Aviation Industry

• Delta orders 100 A321neos valued at $12.7 billion; selects GTF enginesDelta Air Lines has placed a firm order for 100 Airbus A321neo aircraft, ending speculation on what was perhaps the most heated aircraft order campaign waged between Airbus and Boeing in recent months. read more
• UK and China expand air linksThe UK and China have announced a major expansion of air connections between the two nations. read more

Other News Sources

• BIMCO and CIRM propose software maintenance standard for shippingBIMCO and the international association for the marine electronics industry, CIRM (Comité International Radio-Maritime), have sent the industry’s first proposal for an industry-wide standard for software maintenance to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for consideration. Without an industry-standard, BIMCO sees an increasing risk of severe incidents on ships, delays and costs to ship owners and cyber security problems.
• Heathrow third runway: Anti-expansion group vows "tough proposals" to reduce impacts of third runway Tough proposals in order to reduce the impact of a third runway at Heathrow Airport have been promised by opponents of the expansion.
• Kirkstall Forge station train times: Everything you need to know as five new peak hour stops announcedKirkstall Forge station is set to get five extra peak hour stops.
• Department for Transport says East Surrey passengers with 'Southern-only' tickets won't be charged extra for using Thameslink Reigate MP Crispin Blunt has confirmed 'discretion' will be used after getting assurances from the government that passengers won't be penalised for the switching of rail franchises