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

Friday, 02 February 2018

BBC News

• Passengers evacuated from burning train in FifeThe small fire took hold underneath a train carriage at Cupar railway station.

Financial Times

• Rail stations to install drinking fountainsGovernment aims to promote refillable water bottles and cut plastic waste

The Herald

• Rail passengers demand a decent level of comfort as well as value for moneySTEPHEN Joseph (chief executive officer of Campaign for Better Transport) has forcefully exposed the need for adequate passenger consultation on seat design for the new Hitachi Class 800 Azuma trains intended for the Aberdeen/Inverness-Dundee-Edinburgh/Glasgow East Coast route to London next year ("Comfort upgrade for travellers as 7,000 carriages introduced", The Herald, January 29).

The Scotsman

• Caledonian Sleeper postpones ban on strangers cabin-sharing A ban on travellers sharing with a stranger on the Caledonian Sleeper has been postponed following a passenger outcry.
• Alastair Dalton: This is ScotRail’s Achilles’ heel The railways are a hugely complex operation, prone to disruption from a myriad range of causes.

City AM

• Crossrail 2 progress stalls as independent funding review won't wrap up until the autumnProgress on the £31bn Crossrail 2 project has stuttered, after Transport for London (TfL) said today an independent financing review sought by the government will not be completed until the autumn.

Daily Record

• Passengers evacuated from train as carriage catches fire at railway station No one was hurt in the incident which happened just before 3pm today.

Belfast Telegraph

• Network Rail attacks ‘stupidity of lorry drivers’ after four bridge strikesThere were 1,774 bridge strikes in 2016/17, up 32 on the previous 12 months.

London Evening Standard

• Notting Hill Gate station: Woman fighting for life after getting trapped in Tube doors and dragged under trainA woman who was dragged under a Tube train after getting trapped in the doors at a busy station is fighting for life in hospital.
• ES Views Letter of the Day: The Tube is terrible value for money Have your say Twitter: @esviews Email: esviews@standard.co.uk

East Anglian Daily Times

• MP warns of level crossing dangers after teenage girl involved in near-miss incidentThe MP for Suffolk Coastal has urged the public to use level crossings safely, after a teenage girl narrowly missed being hit by a train at Halesworth last month.

Other Regional Press

• Plans to replace trains with trams between the Hythe and Colchester labelled 'a load of rubbish'TRAINS between Colchester Town and Hythe stations could be replaced with a tram or bus service as part of the development of garden communities.
• Helensburgh's MSP blames ScotRail for fall in station usageHELENSBURGH’S MSP says ScotRail’s “poor service” is to blame for a decreasing use of railway stations in the area, writes Julie McLaughlin.
• HS2 tree supplier based in Lincolnshire appoints new director'I knew it was just what I have been looking for'
• Ebbw Vale railway line praised by independent report for cutting air pollution and creating jobsAN INDEPENDENT report has found that the re-opening of the Ebbw Vale railway line has been highly successful in increasing access to the jobs market and cutting greenhouse gases.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Elizabeth Line hit with major challenges after electrical explosion pushes back testingThe energisation of eastern sections of the Elizabeth Line was pushed back in November after a transformer meant to connect separate electrical appliances exploded, causing testing to be delayed. The problems, coupled with the complex nature of the project and the scale on which it is being...

Other News Sources

• Bucks MP votes against the second phase of HS2A Buckinghamshire MP has voted against the next part of the HS2 project, north of Birmingham. While the route through Buckinghamshire was covered in the Phase One plans, Dame Cheryl spoke at length on the rising cost of the project to the taxpayer, pointing out that:
• I have lost all confidence in HS2 - Sir Kevin Barron MPFor many years, I have supported HS2 as I truly believed that it would help bridge the divide between the north and London.
• South Western Railway chaos after THREE broken down trains bring network to a standstill in Surrey Routes between Alton and Waterloo and lines in the Wimbledon and Surbiton areas have been worst affected, with disruption forecast until close of service on Thursday (February 1)