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

Tuesday, 25 November 2008

BBC News

• Appeal to speed up railway worksCouncillors in south east Scotland have backed a motion calling for work on reopening the railway between Edinburgh and the Borders to be speeded up.
• Road charging film investigatedA public information film about the proposed congestion charge for Greater Manchester has been taken off air after claims it was biased.
• Hauliers face 'bleak Christmas'Hauliers in Northern Ireland are looking at a bleak Christmas following the pre-Budget report, the Freight Transport Association has said.

Financial Times

• UK flight taxes to rise as reform droppedThe decision by the chancellor to keep the present per passenger APD and to introduce two extra bands to penalise more heavily those travelling farthest met universal criticism
• Sir Stelios spells out fears for EasyJetThe founder and largest shareholder of the low-cost airline is in disagreement with the board over an Airbus contract and the lack of focus on conserving cash amid the recession
• Standard Life backs board in EasyJet rowThe largest institutional investor in the UK low-cost airline rejects the stand of Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou on conserving cash and limiting capital expenditure commitments

The Guardian

• Pre-budget report: How it affects the motor industryBritain's motor industry yesterday responded cautiously to a package of tax changes which will see cuts in VAT but increases in fuel and vehicle excise duty.
• Health of Tube LinesFitch Ratings defines itself as "a leading global rating agency committed to providing the world's credit markets with independent, timely and prospective credit opinions." Let joy be unconfined, and let the impressively-connected London Reconnections summarise Fitch's report on the state of the remaining PPP firm fixing the Underground. On the one hand:
• Air passenger duty to rise 50%Long-haul charge to go up to £60 in two years – but green campaigners attack chancellor for scrapping second tax
• Chancellor soft-pedals on green car taxesSome relief for motor industry as introduction of bands to encourage fuel efficiency is to be phased in

The Independent

• Government spending: £3bn to be lavished on schools and transport A £3bn capital spending programme will aim to improve Britain's road network, refurbish schools, build thousands of new social homes and bettering domestic energy efficiency.
• Motoring: Gas-guzzler drivers get a reprieveDrivers of the most-polluting cars have been spared from serious increases in the amounts of vehicle excise duty (VED) they will pay.

The Telegraph

• PreBudget report: More roads and railway carriages to be built quickerPlans for new roads and railway carriages have been brought forward as part of the Treasury's programme of public works.

Transport Briefing

• Stratford bus plan addresses interchange embarrassmentThe government has stepped in to broker a free bus service between Stratford International and regional stations in time for the start of domestic services on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link in December next year
• Chancellor cuts road tax and fast-tracks motorway spendGovernment plans to overhaul road tax and create a tiered system penalising drivers of the most polluting cars have been watered down.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Mock tram aiming to get critics on boardA FULL-SCALE model of an Edinburgh tram is set to go on display in the Capital in a bid to win over opponents of the £512 million project.

London Evening Standard

• Public get say on Olympic priority lanesLONDONERS will be able to air their views on so-called "Zil lanes" to be implemented on the capital's roads for the London Olympics when a 12-week public consultation begins next month.
• Runway 'will break CO2 limit'BUILDING a third runway at Heathrow would make it "impossible" to meet legally binding targets on air pollution, the head of the Environment Agency watchdog will warn today.
• Don't axe Tube station, upgrade say museumsDIRECTORS of three leading museums have protested to Mayor Boris Johnson after plans to upgrade a Tube station were scaled back.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Hard-hitting road safety campaignEmergency services in Tayside are targeting more than 3,500 young drivers as part of a hard-hitting road safety campaign.

Wales Online

• Helping people fairly with tax-cutsThe Government has already taken action to help people through the current global economic difficulties. To provide additional support for low- and middle-income taxpayers, the Government will:

Yorkshire Evening Post

• West Yorks 'bewildering' bus servicesWEST Yorkshire's bewildering bus system means passengers don't know whether they are coming or going, a new report claimed today.
• Traffic lights to ease M1 congestionDrivers are set to benefit from congestion-busting traffic lights at one of West Yorkshire's busiest motorway junctions.

Blackpool Gazette

• Decision day on Lytham parkingLYTHAM traders are anxiously waiting to hear about the future of car parking charges after Fylde council accountants advised they should remain in place.

The Shields Gazette

• Metro scooter ban set to stayA BAN on use of mobility scooters on the Metro system is "unlikely" to be lifted, according to a new report.

Wall Street Journal

• Auto Makers Settle for Tough LoveIt seems the only love auto makers can get from Washington is of the tough variety -- and from some they can't get even that. All told, the industry is seeing its political support crumple.

Washington Post

• From Funding to Infrastructure, New Transportation Secretary Faces Major Problems The next transportation secretary will walk into an agency that oversees an outdated air traffic control system; congested roads, rails and skies; crumbling highways and bridges; and a financing system teetering on collapse.
• The Car of the Future -- but at What Cost? Many members of Congress believe they know what the car company of the future should look like.
• Ford Motor Co. tops safe car list WASHINGTON -- Dozens of new cars and trucks, led by Ford Motor Co. and its Volvo subsidiary, made the insurance industry's annual list of the safest vehicles, helped by the growing adoption of anti-rollover technology.

Aviation Industry

• Maersk sells UK truckerA.P. Moller-Maersk has agreed to sell container transport and storage provider Roadways Container Logistics Ltd. of Great Britain to start-up Aegeus Transport Ltd.
• Stansted's150 transport leaders and community representatives from across the region gathered at Stansted today to celebrate the airport's
• Stansted celebrates international recognition for environmental managementStansted Airport is celebrating having retained its status as the UK's largest airport to hold the coveted ISO14001 certification for environmental management...

Other News Sources

• London rail link’s spoil will build beauty spotAN AMBITIOUS project to create one of Essex’s biggest wildlife reserves has received a boost from an unexpected source.
• Car tax hikes delayed but petrol duty upCar tax hikes delayed in the Pre-Budget Report, but motorists will not benefit from the VAT cut as petrol duty is raised by 2p
• Paris mulling piracy taxFRANCE is considering an anti-piracy security surcharge tax on owners, the French shipowners' association Armateurs de France has today revealed.
• Effective zero dry rates seenTHE CREDIT crunch is having a
• Support for TIF bid increasing, supporters’ research saysNew research commissioned by the Yes Campaign claims public support for the £2.7bn package Transport Innovation Fund in the region is on the increase.