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East Coast line bailout puts rail privatisation back in spotlight

or the third time in a decade, an East Coast rail franchise operator has shown little of the financial prudence once associated with the great cities linked by its trains from London to Yorkshire and Scotland. Following the failures of GNER in 2007 and National Express in 2009, Virgin Trains East Coast has run out of steam, with the government declaring a financial covenant breached and the contract set to fail in months.

Grayling consults on plans to reopen historic northern line

The transport secretary has this week revealed plans to complete a feasibility study on reopening the Skipton-Colne line, closed in 1970. Chris Grayling said the line had the potential to deliver a “vital connection” between Lancashire and Yorkshire, boosting economic and business...

The Big Lemon – A new form of public transport

Imagine if community transport was owned and operated by the community. The Big Lemon is owned and run by members of the community and actively encourages local people to buy shares in the company during regular public meetings where people can come and discuss their thoughts, ideas and concerns. In 2006 a group of people in Brighton decided to set… The post The Big Lemon – A new form of public transport appeared first on ETA.

Saturday, 10 February 2018

BBC News

ITV News

The Guardian

  • East Coast line bailout puts rail privatisation back in spotlightor the third time in a decade, an East Coast rail franchise operator has shown little of the financial prudence once associated with the great cities linked by its trains from London to Yorkshire and Scotland. Following the failures of GNER in 2007 and National Express in 2009, Virgin Trains East Coast has run out of steam, with the government declaring a financial covenant breached and the contract set to fail in months.
  • Andrew Adonis and the economic line to take on railwaysAndrew Adonis makes excellent points about rail nationalisation (Grayling’s rail bailout echoes the grave errors of New Labour, 8 February). However, this is not just about outsourcing in general. It is about the longstanding contrast in economic theory between public goods and private goods, as developed by Paul Samuelson in the 1950s, and between specific and non-specific assets, as developed by Oliver Williamson in the 1970s, both leading to Nobel prizes.

The Scotsman

Times Online

  • Can anyone last the course on the east coast main line? [subscription]It begs an obvious question. When it emerged this week that Virgin Trains east coast would collapse in only a few months, it signalled the third time in 11 years that the principal operator of the the 400-mile rail link between London and Edinburgh has imploded. Indeed, three out of the four franchises on the line since it was privatised in the mid-1990s have ended in ignominy. So is it coincidence, or is there something fundamentally wrong with the east coast main line?

City AM

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Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

  • HS2 awarded first BREEAM Infrastructure certificateHS2 has become the UK’s first infrastructure project to be awarded a BREEAM Infrastructure (pilot) Scheme Certificate for its ambitious sustainability strategy on Phase 1 of the project.   The assessment demonstrates that HS2 is committed to going beyond enhancement and protection of the environment, to address the key social and economic impacts of the development. It includes features such as working in harmony with communities, being a great neighbour, putting safety and wellbeing at the heart of the project, and building sustainable economic benefits for the whole of the UK, suc...

Rail Technology Magazine

  • Eurostar commits to green power by 2030 and all electric vehicles by 2020Eurostar has this week confirmed its commitment to have complete replacements for fossil fuels within the next 12 years. In the company’s ‘Tread Lightly 10-point plan,’ it set out a range of promises which it would be working towards, including completely replacing all vehicles...
  • Grayling consults on plans to reopen historic northern lineThe transport secretary has this week revealed plans to complete a feasibility study on reopening the Skipton-Colne line, closed in 1970. Chris Grayling said the line had the potential to deliver a “vital connection” between Lancashire and Yorkshire, boosting economic and business...

Transportxtra

  • DfT pledges funding for five rail stations due to open by March 2020Plans are being drawn up for five new stations across England and Wales, which will receive a total of Ł16m funding from the Department for Transport towards the projects. All the stations – in County Durham, Warrington, Reading, Ceredigion and Bristol - are due to be completed by March 2020:

Aviation Industry

  • EasyJet shareholders put more Brexit protections in placeUK LCC easyJet is proceeding with plans to protect its business from the possible effects of Brexit on the air transport industry, changing rules governing the ownership of its shares and applying for a standalone UK air operator’s certificate (AOC). read more
  • Thomas Cook ups summer capacity 10% on Airberlin Aviation acquisitionLeisure travel group Thomas Cook has increased its 2018 summer capacity by 10% through its acquisition of Airberlin Aviation, an affiliate of bankrupt airberlin, and has established Thomas Cook Airlines Balearics, which is based in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. read more
  • Lessor CALC leads Airbus January order tallyAfter Airbus’ record-breaking conclusion to 2017, in which the Toulouse-based manufacturer gained firm orders for 836 aircraft in December alone, the company’s January 2018 commercial orders returned to a normal pace, with a total of 20 aircraft firmed between two customers, valued at approximately $2.2 billion at list prices. read more

Green Miscellany

  • The Big Lemon – A new form of public transportImagine if community transport was owned and operated by the community. The Big Lemon is owned and run by members of the community and actively encourages local people to buy shares in the company during regular public meetings where people can come and discuss their thoughts, ideas and concerns. In 2006 a group of people in Brighton decided to set… The post The Big Lemon – A new form of public transport appeared first on ETA.

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