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

Monday, 24 January 2022

BBC News

• Warburton Toll Bridge: Residents react to proposed price hikePlans to raise a toll charge for car drivers over Warburton Toll Bridge are under consideration.
• Chris Boardman to lead bid to get more people cycling and walkingThe ex-Olympic champion will encourage more people to cycle and walk as head of Active Travel England.
• Bolton-Wigan rail: Disruption as bridge rebuild beginsA railway bridge Bolton is being rebuilt as part of a £78m rail electrification scheme.
• Cathay Pacific annual loss narrows to as little as $720mThe airline warned of further losses after Hong Kong tightened aircrew quarantine rules again.
• Bill extending HS2 to Manchester laid in ParliamentOfficial approval for the high speed line to Manchester is a

Department for Transport

• Government supports aviation sector recovery with airport slot alleviation for summer 2022Move gives aviation sector flexibility and protects environment as airlines will not have to operate ghost flights to retain airport slots.

Financial Times

• Airlines will be forced to fly more this summer to retain UK landing rightsGovernment says airport slots will have to be used 70% of the time, up from 50% at present

The Guardian

• Boris Johnson’s ‘bus back better’ plan in tatters as Treasury cuts funding by halfA central plank of the PM’s levelling-up strategy, the investment had been promised to improve transport in many ‘red wall’ areas

Times Online

• Nusrat Ghani accuses Boris Johnson of not taking Muslim sacking complaint seriously [subscription]Ghani claimed she was told that her “Muslimness was raised as an issue” at a meeting in Downing Street and that her “Muslim woman minister status was making colleagues feel uncomfortable”.
• Rail prices in Scotland have increased 38% over the past decade, says union [subscription]The RMT rail union questioned the government’s commitment to a greener Scotland when rail fares were rising so much more than petrol costs
• Shake-up to end polluting ‘ghost flights’ [subscription]Ministers accused of ineptitude on landing slots. Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, said that leaving the EU had provided the opportunity to alter the regulations PA He said that the temporary rules for the summer would stop airlines being forced to operate scheduled services — typically all but empty — simply to retain flying rights. These ghost flights have attracted condemnation for wasting fuel and increasing pollution.
• Cyclists pedal to middle of the road under new Highway Code [subscription]at IAM RoadSmart, a road safety charity, said: “We’re talking about overturning the way people have been trained to drive for their whole lives, how some have been driving for 30 or 40 years, so you’re talking about a fundamental change in priorities.”

Bristol Live

• First Bus in Bristol makes major changes to ticket prices and introduces new ticket optionsTickets are no longer more expensive when purchased on the bus and match app prices

Wales Online

• Airlines forced to operate more flights to avoid losing airport slotsThey must use their slots at least 70% of the time to keep them from March 27, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced

Yorkshire Post

• ‘Irrational’ Grant Shapps deserves sack as Transport Secretary for North’s latest rail insult THE humbled demeanour being adopted by Boris Johnson in the wake of the ‘partygate’ scandal doesn’t appear to have influenced Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, judging by his arrogant dismissal as “irrational” critics of this Government’s decision to deliver a second-rate rail solution for the North of England (‘Mayors are irrational on railway plan’, The Yorkshire Post, January 19).

Carlisle News & Star

• 2022 is the new era for rail according to Transport for the North2022 is a new era for the railway with more focus on sustainability, accessibility and collaboration needed, say leading rail experts

Doncaster Free Post

• Doncaster councillors want buses back under public controlDoncaster Council has joined its South Yorkshire neighbours in calling for buses to be brought back into public control.

Other Regional Press

• West Midlands transport improvements - including Coventry Very Light Rail - are a step closerIMPROVEMENT plans to public transport across the region – including Coventry Very Light Rail – have taken a step closer to reality.
• Stroudwater rail station campaign back on track and picking up speed"I’m looking forward to the day when this gaping hole in the transport network is filled"

New Civil Engineer

• Government to take planning decision on Leeds Bradford Airport expansionHousing minister Chris Pincher has called-in proposals for a £150M expansion of Leeds Bradford Airport rather than letting the local authority decide on the matter.
• This year needs to be one of procurement evolutionThis is a year of opportunity for contractors working in the built environment. Regenerative infrastructure projects including innovations in highways, rail and flood defences will play a vital role in creating stronger local economies in a post-pandemic world. But as well as being a year of opportunity for contractors, it should be seen as an opportunity to evolve procurement.
• Transport Scotland plots new transit systems as part of drive to net zeroTransport Scotland has said it will develop an Edinburgh & South East Scotland Mass Transit and an Aberdeen Rapid Transit, as well as the multi-billion pound Clyde Metro in Glasgow, as it plans for a cleaner and better connected future.
• Northern leaders have not given up on construction of major rail projects in the region despite the way plans were scaled back by ministers in the Integrated Rail Plan (IRP), a key figure has insisted.Northern leaders have not given up on construction of major rail projects in the region despite the way plans were scaled back by ministers in the Integrated Rail Plan (IRP), a key figure has insisted.
• Have ministers given up on finding chair for HS2?The government has insisted it is still trying to fill the vacant chair role on High Speed 2 despite industry speculation that ministers have decided against replacing Allan Cook, who departed last summer.

Other News Sources

• Volkswagen confirms that the first-gen electric version of its iconic bus is on the wayVolkswagen has finally previewed its new bus - the first of its kind to be electric. It has been revealed to have a design somewhat like the original's hallmark shape - however, it will be outfitted with considerably more up-to-date tech. They include an AR heads-up display, LED headlights and a new kind of wheel.
• 'Brighton roads are not suitable for cyclist, cars AND buses'CHRIS WILLIAMS, like many enthusiastic cyclists, would like to see a better road infrastructure for the safety of bike user on Brighton and Hove’s Roads. Actually we all would like a better traffic system than what we have at this present time.
• Over £4m paid out to Greater Anglia by fare dodgers and fraudstersFare dodgers and fraudsters paid out over £4m to Greater Anglia in 2021. Ticket inspectors issued over 54,000 penalty fares in 2021, worth a total value of £1.63m.
• New hours will not affect how we deal with incidents say ScotRailScotRail are saying reduced booking office hours at some train stations will not make events similar to those seen at Troon last year any more likely or dangerous.