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

Wednesday, 29 June 2022

BBC News

• Railway footbridge plans near Craven Arms are approvedPlans for a railway footbridge have been approved despite concerns it would be "intrusive on the landscape".
• Rail workers outdated, says Transport SecretaryUnion rejects comments by Grant Shapps suggesting that updates are needed to railway working practices.

The Guardian

• Why train stations need staffed ticket officesWhat is the evidence that ticket offices are unnecessary (Boris Johnson backs plans to close ticket offices as fresh rail strike talks loom, 26 June)? Boris Johnson’s reference to “ticket offices that are barely used, or sell one ticket every hour” is misleading, based on the exceptional few.

Times Online

• Digital update for rail signals [subscription]The government will invest £1 billion in digital signalling as part of plans to modernise the railways.

City AM

• Government modernising railways despite ‘unions’ best efforts’, says ShappsThe UK Government is modernising the railway network “despite the best efforts of unions,â€� Grant Shapps said today.  The transport secretary’s comments came as he announced £1bn worth of funding to replace the Victorian signalling system along the East Coast Main Line (ECML) – which connects London to Edinburgh – with a digital one. “We’re [...] The post Government modernising railways despite ‘unions’ best efforts’, says Shapps appeared first on CityAM.

Birmingham Post

• £1m to develop downgraded East Midlands HS2 plansEastern leg of high speed track will only go as far as East Midlands Parkway station

Derby Telegraph

• Up to five new railway stations planned for DerbyshireTwo projects to reopen Derbyshire railway lines that could result in up to five new stations being built are gaining momentum. Outline business cases will be submitted containing proposals to bring back a route between Chesterfield and Sheffield, as well as reviving a line from Burton-on-Trent to Leicester.

Cambridge News

• £70 million funding approved for redvelopment of Peterborough stationCentral to the project is a plan to create a western entrance and parking to improve access

Carlisle News & Star

• Transport for the North to hold first meeting since rail strikesISSUES affecting the transport sector are set to be discussed by stakeholders this week at their first meeting since the rail strikes.

Other Regional Press

• Transport for Wales creates arrival hub for Ukrainians in WrexhamArrival hubs to help Ukrainian nationals have appeared in railway stations in Wrexham and Cardiff.
• Are Angus councillors about to wave goodbye to £15m windfall for Brechin’s Caledonian Railway?Brechin’s Caledonian Railway faces an uphill struggle to land a “once-in-a-lifetime” £15 million funding windfall for Angus.
• MP launches campaign to save ticket officeDerek Thomas MP has launched a campaign to save the ticket office at Penzance train station and is asking rail passengers from West Cornwall to show how necessary it is.
• Elizabeth line: Major boost for Berkshire commuter town as TfL confirms extra services from next yearThere will be two additional trains per hour on the western section from May 2023
• TfL boss warns a lot more London bus cuts could be coming as he slams 'almost intolerable' funding talks with governmentAndy Byford said his job is the "hardest job I've ever done" because of the "never-ending" negotiations over TfL funding
• Bid for 'passing loop' on Abbey Line fails to win backingA bid to increase the number of trains running on the Abbey Line has failed to receive support from Government.

New Civil Engineer

• DfT’s concerns about restoring Portishead railway labelled ‘groundless’Department for Transport (DfT) concerns about the restoration of the Portishead railway line are “groundless”, according to the region’s metro mayor.
• Go ahead for £1.5bn rail upgrade between Huddersfield and DewsburyTransport Secretary Grant Shapps has approved Network Rail’s application for a Transport and Works Act Order to begin work on a core part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU) between Huddersfield and Westtown near Dewsbury.

Rail Advent

• Network Rail completes upgrade ready for Commonwealth GamesNetwork Rail has completed engineering work on the main line between Dorridge and Birmingham Moor Street before this year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

Other News Sources

• Rail operator Northern aiming to 'Perk Up Your Commute’WITH 51 percent of commuters keen to get more out of their travel time, rail operator Northern has launched a 'Perk Up Your Commute' scheme.