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

Wednesday, 23 July 2008

BBC News

• Business people 'keep flying' [video]US airlines are struggling but figures are not as bad as feared as higher-paying customers continue to travel.
• Oil prices fall to six-week lowOil prices have fallen to a six-week low as US energy demand fell and a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico appeared to be missing oil facilities.
• 'Gas guzzlers' face parking hikeDrivers with the most polluting cars face paying more to park them in Edinburgh under new permit proposals.
• Eco-towns plan 'may be unlawful'The government's approach to delivering up to 10 eco-towns could be "unlawful", councils have warned.
• Disabled flyers given new rightsDisabled air passengers are to get a new set of rights to ensure airlines and airports cater for their needs.
• Brown drives green car revolutionGordon Brown urges car makers to use their expertise to develop new cleaner vehicles.
• Left or right... does cycling break down along political party lines?David Cameron and Boris Johnson are well-known Tory cyclists. Does this mean that cycling is a right-wing mode of transport? Norman Smith reports.
• Campaigner 'glues himself to PM'A campaigner against Heathrow's third runway attempts to stick himself to Gordon Brown at a Downing Street reception.
• GM unveils 2010 CamaroUS carmaker General Motors announces it will produce a fuel-efficient Camaro from 2009.
• Turbulence aheadThe troubled saga of Argentina's national airline
• Ford focusLuxury and fuel efficiency will boost sales, firm says
• Fuel sellers start cutting pricesUK drivers are set to benefit after a number retailers including Asda, Morrisons and BP said that they would cut petrol prices.

Financial Times

• Fuel costs to 'take further toll on airlines'Air New Zealand's chief executive predicts a wave of bankruptcies will hit the industry over the next year as carriers struggle with high fuel prices and a global slowdown
• Airports at risk of 'insider' terrorMore needs to be done to check the identity of airport employees, an official report into personnel security said yesterday. It warned that UK airports remain...
• UPS suffers as economic downturn bitesUnited Parcel Service said quarterly profit plunged 18 per cent as its domestic package-delivery business slumped - an ominous sign for the health of the US economy
• Airlines cut costs amid fuel surgeThree US airlines - United, US Airways and JetBlue - have unveiled a series of cost-cutting measures, from shedding capacity and jobs to retiring older aircraft and deferring orders for new ones

The Guardian

• BA goes green [Letter - Richard Branson]You report that BA and Rolls-Royce are teaming up to research alternative fuels which will then be tested on a 747 engine
• Aviation: Half price oil, cheaper tickets - report sees flaws in case for third Heathrow runwayCall for independent study after BAA is accused of economic sleight of hand
• Car industry displays eco credentialsEnvironment, science & technology: British International Motor Show shocks petrolheads with a green 'village' showcasing latest vehicles

The Herald

• Airlines watchdog reports fall in complaintsFor the first time in six years the annual number of complaints made to an air passenger watchdog has fallen, it was revealed today.

The Telegraph

• Eco-towns could be unlawful, barristers warnPlans to build tens of thousands of homes in up to 10 eco-towns across large parts of England could be challenged in court after leading lawyers declared them "unlawful".

Times Online

• Oil prices at six-week low as storm fears fade Oil prices slipped to their lowest level in six weeks yesterday as traders expressed relief that a tropical storm in the Caribbean looked unlikely to cause significant disruption to production in the Gulf of Mexico.
• London Motor Show power players quick to emphasise their green credentials Two hundred special Minis will hit the road next year as drivers from BMW’s Oxford plant put the latest developments in hybrid technology to the test.

Transport Briefing

• ODA confident 2012 transport projects are on trackLondon has hit all the targets for transport set out in the Milestones to Beijing document, according to a progress report issued by the Olympic Delivery Authority this week.

Bristol Live

• Glimpse of life in the fast lane with green machinesElectric cars came under starter's orders at the Airbus plant at Filton when teams from 12 schools tested their vehicles in the fast lane. Pupils from Chipping Sodbury School were among those racing kit cars which they built through the Greenpower ...
• City soars in aviation pollBristol's status as a centre of aviation has been reflected in a top 100 poll of flying history.

Edinburgh Evening News

• New mum's shock at bus pram banBUS drivers in Edinburgh have been told not to allow prams on board to keep the space free for wheelchair users.
• Gas-guzzler motorists facing huge hike in parking chargeMOTORISTS with the most polluting cars face higher charges under a radical shake up of Edinburgh's residents parking permit scheme.

London Evening Standard

• Five seats and 3p a mile to run ... the green family carThe world's first electric family car has been unveiled at the British International Motor Show in London
• T5 fiasco led to foreigners entering UK uncheckedStaff blunders during the early days of Heathrow's Terminal 5 allowed international passengers to enter the country without going through vital security checks

Manchester Evening News

• City bosses still on 'tag' systemTHE technology to be used to charge drivers in the Manchester congestion zone was rejected as impractical after a trial.

Metro

• Refund refusal tops Tube gripesThe refusal by Tube bosses to offer refunds for a two-day strike was one of the biggest bugbears for commuters in the past year, a watchdog said yesterday.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Outcry as city scraps buses for disabledDisabled people in Aberdeen have been dealt a fresh blow after it emerged that the city council is to stop a vital door-to-door transport service “ to save £30,000.

The York Press

• Council to get update on multi-million pound road plans MULTI-million pound plans to massively expand York™s Park&Ride service will go before city leaders next week.
• Triple treat for moors rail fans VISITORS to the North Yorkshire Moors Railway are in for a treble treat this summer.

This Is Local London Network

• BUCKS: Top of the league for speedingThree south Bucks areas have landed in a list of the ten worst UK speeding hotspots, shock new figures show.
• 'On yer bike' urges BorisLondon Mayor Boris Johnson is encouraging Londoners to

Carlisle News & Star

• Coach firm blasted after drivers work up to 20 hours a dayA Cumbrian coach company has been told to cut the number of vehicles it operates after its drivers were reported to be working more than the legal amount of hours.

Chester Standard

• Wirral and Cheshire stations pick up rail safety awardCAPENHURST and Rock Ferry have been picked to be among a new batch of half a dozen Merseyrail stations to have been awarded a coveted national standard for safety and security
• MP blasts road plan at Chester Station as 'chaotic'A HIGHWAYS chief is disputing an MP's claim that traffic arrangements outside Chester Station are a "serious accident waiting to happen".

Sunderland Echo

• Stations get new security checksRail passengers will have their bags scanned at stations to help in the war against weapons.

Western Daily Press

• Council blunder scuppers road inquiryCivic chiefs admitted a blunder in counting lorries would put back a major public inquiry into a £33 million road scheme.

Aviation Industry

• North Somerset Council A368 scheme badly flawed says transport industryhe Freight Transport Association says that North Somerset Council's proposals to introduce an experimental weight restriction scheme for goods vehicles travelling on the A368, together with a permit scheme for 'local' traffic, are badly flawed and will result in an increase in traffic rather than a reduction as intended.

Other News Sources

• New bus fleet hits the roadsTHERE'S a blaze of colour hitting the roads of Redditch this week as the Diamond bus company launches six brand new Red Diamond buses.
• Gallagher Report Strengthens Case for Biomethane as a Transport FuelReport says biomethane has the lowest CO2 emissions of any transport fuel.