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

Thursday, 07 December 2017

BBC News

• Croydon tram crash could have been prevented, says widowMarilyn Logan says a similar speeding incident days before the Croydon crash was not acted upon quickly enough.

The Guardian

• RPI no longer fit for deciding rail fare risesThe shadow transport secretary, Andy McDonald, is on the right tracks. The annual rises in rail fares should be decoupled from the retail prices index (RPI), as he argued in his Guardian article (This hefty train fare rise is yet another Tory betrayal of passengers, theguardian.com, 5 December).
• Stagecoach hopes to retain East Coast rail after 2020 despite bailoutLabour calls for transport group to be banned from bidding again, warning of an impending crisis in railway industry
• A new vision for railways that's rather short-sightedThe government's proposed model will just add more complexity to an already baffling franchise system. The transport secretary, Chris Grayling, unveiled his new vision for our railways a week ago and gained a few favourable headlines for the modest commitment to reopen a few lines closed in the Beeching cuts of the 1960s.

The Herald

• Stagecoach upbeat on Government rail plan as it reports half year resultsSTAGECOACH chief executive Martin Griffiths has said he expects the UK Government to reduce the risk for companies taking on rail franchises, as talks on fresh terms for the East Coast line it operates continue.

Times Online

• Stagecoaches promises for Virgin Trains franchise are way off track [subscription]Stagecoach is counting the £325 million cost this year of overpromising on the returns that it thought it would make on the Virgin Trains East Coast rail franchise.
• Train rows could mean end of the line for quiet carriages [Subscription]The country’s biggest rail network is considering removing “quiet carriages” after rows among passengers over whether they talk loudly.
• Trains cancelled after warning of Storm Caroline danger to life [Subscription]Train services have been cancelled after forecasters warned that Storm Caroline could cause danger to life.

City AM

• Stagecoach shares rev up as it strikes an optimistic noteShares in Stagecoach Group rose more than four per cent this morning as the company beat analysts' expectations and said its 2018 earnings forecast was unchanged, despite issues at its UK bus arm.
• MPs plan to scrutinise early termination of East Coast rail franchise as DfT denies bailoutThe Department for Transport today denied claims it had bailed out the East Coast rail franchise, as MPs said they intended to scrutinise the decision.

Birmingham Mail

• HS2 will 'wipe out' Aston Villa's academy - here is the latest from Bodymoor HeathRail minister Paul Maynard met with Villa CEO Keith Wyness this week to discuss the best way forward for the club 

Derby Telegraph

• Videos show people 'packed in like sardines' on East Midlands TrainsSeveral videos have been shared on social media showing passengers packed into East Midlands Trains (EMT) “like sardines”.

London Evening Standard

• Croydon tram crash could have been prevented after 'near miss' days earlier, victim's widow claimsThe Croydon tram crash could have been prevented if more action was taken after a similar speeding incident days earlier, the widow of a victim has claimed.

Northern Echo

• Virgin braced for strike action on East Coast Mainline - promises passengers 'near normal' serviceRAIL operator Virgin East Coast says it will run a “near normal” service in the event of strike action by the RMT union.

The York Press

• Anger as rail fares face another hike A RAIL users group has
• Queen Victoria's saloon gets royal facelift CONSERVATION staff at the National Railway Museum are to restore the outside of Queen Victoria’s historic royal carriage for the first time in 50 years - thanks to a private donation.

Other Regional Press

• MP dashes hopes of using new Government pledge to reopen Oswestry railwayNorth Shropshire MP Owen Paterson has said a new Government pledge to restoring out-of-use railway lines will not explore opportunities in Oswestry.
• Rail passengers facing £20 fines if they don't get a ticket BEFORE they travelTrain operator Northern is warning passengers of new system

Rail Technology Magazine

• Government opens £600bn pipeline to develop major infrastructure projectsThe government has published plans for a £600bn infrastructure investment pipeline, designed to bring major new construction projects across the UK. The plan, which includes transport infrastructure, is part of a boost to the construction sector which government officials believe will save...
• Network Rail close to completing £9.5m Shoreham Viaduct upgradeMajor upgrade work on the Shoreham Viaduct in Sussex is set to be completed at Christmas. The viaduct, which crosses the River Adur, has undergone strengthening work, and has also been painted and repaired in places as part of a £9.5m scheme. It will now be able to carry all modern trains...
• ScotRail puts severe weather plans in place for WinterScotRail has outlined its extreme winter weather plans as Scotland prepares to be hit by Storm Caroline. Winter impacts on the railway, with the effects ranging from speed restrictions to service suspension. To avoid objects which may have been blown onto the line by high winds, trains travel...
• Angel secures funding to refinance Greater Anglia Aventra rolling stockFunding of £835m has been secured by Angel Trains to refinance the procurement 665 trains for Greater Anglia. The 665 Bombardier Aventra vehicles will be leased to the Abellio Greater Anglia franchise from 2019. Angel Trains Group has raised the funds from a diverse group of lenders...

Railnews

• Rail fares rise of 3.4% is a ˜cruel joke™ Rail fares are to rise by an average of 3.4 per cent at the start of January. Regulated fares will go up by 3.6 per cent, in line with the Retail Price Index in July this year. Critics have described the forthcoming increases as a 'cruel joke' and a 'chill wind', but train operators said the money was needed for investment.
• Kenilworth station delay is ˜beyond disappointing™ A war of words has broken out between the Department for Transport and a local council over a further delay to opening a new station in the West Midlands. Kenilworth in Warwickshire should have welcomed its first trains this weekend with the launch of new timetables, but it has emerged that trains will not be able to call before February. Warwickshire County Council said the further delay to the scheme was ˜beyond disappointing™, but the DfT said ˜the council and its contractors again appear to have failed to meet a revised delivery date™.

Railway Gazette

• Angel Trains raises £1·1bn to support ‘appetite to compete’UK: Rolling stock leasing company Angel Trains Group announced on December 6 that it had secured...
• UK railway news round-upA regulated fares increase of 3·6% based on July RPI will take effect on January 2. In Scotland,...

Other News Sources

• Guest column: New rail service is a real step forward Starting from this weekend there will be a train every hour between Lincoln and Sheffield run by Northern Rail.