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

Friday, 09 January 2009

BBC News

• Rail faults 'not due to upgrade'An initial inquiry into power failures on the West Coast railway line has said the faults were not caused by its new faster timetable, the BBC has learned.
• City airport runway 'was unsafe'Passenger planes were involved in "serious" incidents on an unsafe temporary runway surface at Bristol Airport, an accident report has said.
• Nissan plant to shed 1,200 jobsCar maker Nissan announces it is to axe around 1,200 jobs at its Wearside plant - around a quarter of the workforce.
• Mandelson warns US on car rescuesLord Mandelson warns it would be a

Department for Transport

• Manchester Airport rail upgrade brings business benefits Passengers and businesses will reap the rewards of a new multi-million pound upgrade to Manchester Airport railway station, officially opened today by Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon.
• First Statutory Senior Traffic Commissioner appointed Philip Brown will be the first Statutory Senior Traffic Commissioner to be appointed by the Secretary of State for Transport, Geoff Hoon, under new powers in the Local Transport Act 2008.
• Andrew Adonis reappoints Colin Foxall as member of the British Transport Police Authority The Minister of State for Transport, Andrew Adonis, is delighted to announce the reappointment of Colin Foxall as a member of the British Transport Police (BTP) Authority.

The Guardian

• Transport police will replace conductors on new buses, says Boris'You need a figure of authority in uniform to keep order and help people on and off the back of the bus, and that can be done by community support officers,' says mayor of new Routemasters
• Network Rail under pressure to explain problems on west coast main lineNetwork Rail was under pressure yesterday to explain why the newly upgraded west coast main line has been beset by a week of problems that have brought chaos to tens of thousands of commuters and cost businesses an estimated £50m.The latest overhead power failure, at Atherstone in Warwickshire, happened yesterday morning while engineers completed repairs on the failed power line in Wembley, north London, that brought London's Euston station to a near-standstill on Wednesday.Overhead cable problems at Bletchley, Buckinghamshire, and Rugby, Warwickshire, hit services on Tuesday. On Sun...
• Brown pledges aid to carmakers as Nissan cuts jobsGordon Brown yesterday promised help, but not a huge bail-out, to the car industry as his cabinet meeting in Liverpool was shaken by the news that Nissan in Sunderland is to shed 1,200 jobs, confirming that the wave of job losses will hit even some of Britain's most successful manufacturers. Lord Mandelson, the business secretary, has already invited car industry representatives to discuss their demands, including access to the special liquidity scheme as a way of maintaining the industry's ability to get credit. He did nothing to disguise his view that there would be further job losses and th...

The Herald

• Rail rage after seventh day of delaysNetwork Rail, the operator of the stricken West Coast main line, has been accused of running a lottery instead of a railway after services were disrupted for the seventh consecutive day.

The Telegraph

• Bus services at risk due to cost of free travel for elderlyFree bus travel is being used by so many pensioners that councils across Britain may be forced to cut other services to pay for it.
• Rail passengers on West Coast Main Line hit by seventh day of disruption Tens of thousands of rail passengers suffered their seventh successive day of disruption on the West Coast Main Line as the fiasco continued.
• 'Serious' incidents at airport took place on unsafe runway Passenger planes were involved in

Times Online

• Smart meters in France call time on culture of parking cheatsYou are shopping when you receive a text message on your mobile phone. It is from the parking meter to tell you that you have been given a fine.
• Nissan cuts 1,200 jobs as Gordon Brown tries to soothe fears for motor industry Workers at Nissan's Sunderland factory took the biggest blow yet in the car industry crisis yesterday when 1,200 jobs were cut.
• Aerospace industry has thousands of jobs in peril Tens of thousands of British manufacturing jobs could be under threat this year as the aerospace industry braces itself for a severe slowdown. The end of the boom in the sector was signalled yesterday as Boeing revealed that its new aircraft orders fell last year by almost half.
• Virgin challenges BA by cutting business fares Business-class air fares are set to fall by as much as 40 per cent from Friday as Virgin Atlantic launches a price war.

Mail Online

• 1,200 jobs go as car giant Nissan starts cull Nissan is to cut 1,200 jobs as manufacturers warn the entire UK motor industry is in a 'fight for survival'.

Network Rail

• PASSENGERS TO BENEFIT FROM EUROPE™S LARGEST TICKET GATE LINE

Transport Briefing

• Tube boss: government must solve PPP funding crisisLondon Underground's managing director says Transport for London's investment programme is at risk unless the government steps in to provide long-term funding for the Tube.
• Underground SSL upgrade presents key challenge for 09Moving forward the planned upgrade of London Underground's sub-surface lines remains the major challenge for the next year, according to the latest annual report into the performance of the Tube's public private partnership arrangement.
• Crossrail commissions construction site delivery analysisLogistics services provider DHL Exel Supply Chain has been commissioned by Crossrail to conduct a study into the most efficient way for materials and equipment to be delivered to key central London construction sites while also ensuring smooth traffic flows.
• Waterloo station ticket gates break European recordThe largest railway gating project in Europe has been completed at London Waterloo station.
• Bircham Dyson Bell picked for Leeds NGT rapid transitWest Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive Metro has appointed London law firm Bircham Dyson Bell as legal adviser for the Leeds New Generation Transport project.
• Manchester Airport station third platform declared openTransport Secretary Geoff Hoon has officially opened the newly constructed third platform at Manchester Airport railway station.
• Underground SSL upgrade presents key challenge for 09Moving forward the planned upgrade of London Underground's sub-surface lines remains the major challenge for the next year, according to the latest annual report into the performance of the Tube's public private partnership arrangement.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Station gets £620k parking spaces boostA £620,000 extension of the station car park at Musselburgh has been completed with the addition of 93 new spaces.
• Vicious cycle of bike theftsEDINBURGH'S worst areas for cycle thefts can be revealed today as new figures show thefts of bikes running at four a day.

Journal Live

• Speed limit campaigners meet MP at death roadCONCERNED residents fighting to have a speed limit on a busy stretch of road reduced met their MP yesterday.
• North bid for park and ride schemesA BOLD bid has been launched to secure £15m of Government cash to cut congestion on the North East’s major roads with important new park and ride facilities.

Liverpool Echo

• Gordon Brown in car talksGORDON Brown today said he was committed to finding a solution to the economic crisis ravaging Merseyside’s motor industry.

London Evening Standard

• Commuters hope for cheaper tickets from fare zone reviewTHOUSANDS of commuters may get cheaper tickets from a new review of the capital's fare zones.
• Rail bosses face grilling over Euston failuresNetwork Rail bosses are in the dock over a string of failures which have brought Britain's busiest railway to its knees
• Plane Stupid protestors face £2m claim from RyanairA group of climate-change protesters who brought Stansted airport to a standstill face the threat of being sued for more than £2million by Ryanair, the Standard has learned
• Mayor admits C-Charge fine and defends fare increasesBoris Johnson has defended his decision to increase Tube and bus fares despite the economic downturn
• Kramer quits Clegg teamLiberal Democrat MP Susan Kramer has left Nick Clegg's top team to focus on fighting the expansion of Heathrow

Manchester Evening News

• More West Coast line miseryPASSENGERS on the Manchester to London rail route faced yet more misery when another overhead power problem led to delays of up to 50 minutes. Services had just returned to normal on the West Coast Main Line after six days of upheaval, when trouble struck at Atherstone in Warwickshire at about 9.30am.

Metro

• Airline may sue climate protestersProtesters who brought Stansted Airport to its knees last month face being sued by Ryanair.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Nissan axes 1,200 jobs at Sunderland factoryNISSAN is to axe 1,200 jobs from its Sunderland plant in the wake of the economic gloom which has hit the car industry, it has been announced.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• New car sales in Scotland fall by 15%NEW car sales in Scotland fell by 15% last year ” much worse than the UK figure of 11.3%.
• Drivers are vindicated “ rail lights were faultyDrivers who complained about a dangerous level-crossing have been vindicated by an official report which found a faulty battery caused the lights to fail.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Station car park fees to go up 20 per centPeterborough commuters have been dealt another inflation-busting blow today as station car parking charges go up by 20 per cent.
• Protesters sentenced for airport demoTwenty two protesters have been sentenced after a demonstration that brought Stansted Airport to a standstill late last year.

Sunderland Echo

• Lord Mandelson's vow to Nissan workersBusiness Secretary Lord Mandelson said: "I appreciate that this will be a tough time for workers."

The Shields Gazette

• Mandelson pledge to Nissan workersBUSINESS Secretary Lord Mandelson said: "I appreciate that this will be a tough time for workers."

The Economist

• America's car industry: No end to the nightmareDetroit has been given a brief reprieve, but the threat of bankruptcy still loomsTHE sense of relief in Detroit that greeted the $17.4 billion federal lifeline thrown by President Bush to General Motors (GM) and Chrysler just before Christmas is unlikely to last long. The terms of the bridging loans amount to a gun at the heads of the two carmakers and their stakeholders. Unless they use the next three months to negotiate a viable way forward, the loans will be called in at the end of March—and bankruptcy will follow.In effect, the deal announced on December 19th is just one step short o...

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Expert claims empty running is on the increaseThe number of lorries running empty has risen as a result of an increase in available freight capacity, according to a logistics expert.Brian Kilshaw of Transporeon has explained that the number of offers made by UK and European carriers for available loads has doubled between December 2006 and December 2008, Logistics Manager reported."Figures for December 2008 show a doubling of the number of carrier offers against the figure for 2006, and it is a clear indication of an increase in available freight capacity in the market," he told the website.Data published by European Uni...

Railnews

• Government blueprint outlines vital need for rail freightA GOVERNMENT blueprint for working with, and supporting, the rail freight industry has been welcomed by the Freightliner Group.

Aviation Industry

• SAR frequencies change to be implementedThe UK’s Maritime and Coastguard Agency has issued a reminder to seafarers of important changes to the operating frequencies of the Cospas-Sarsat satellite based distress alerting service.
• Making Cardiff easier to get atAn improved transport infrastructure for Cardiff, including a circular bus route around the city centre, is on the way with the start of work in Churchill Way and the lower end of St Mary Street.
• Deutsche Bahn appoints 3Sixty to UK briefLONDON - Deutsche Bahn, the German national rail company, has appointed digital marketing agency, 3Sixty, as its first agency of record in the UK.
• First flight of algae-fuelled jetA US airline has completed the first test flight of a plane partly powered by biofuel derived from algae.

Other News Sources

• Is the train no longer a strain?Adrian Priest, a university lecturer, boarded the Arriva Trains Wales (ATW) service from Holyhead to Birmingham, via Shrewsbury and Telford, at Wellington at 8.35am. Priest said since the return to work after the Christmas break, there were now seats available every day.
• Gatwick Sale to Fetch ’Significant Premium,’ BAA Says Jan. 8 (Bloomberg) -- London’s Gatwick airport, which is up for sale, should fetch well in excess of its 1.64 billion- pound ($2.49 billion) paper valuation even as the global recession dents demand for air travel, owner BAA Ltd. said.
• Transport plan for Mablethorpe hits a setbackTHERE has been a setback for plans by Tony Finnemore to introduce a fleet of up to six three-wheel taxis - known as tuk tuks - to Mablethorpe.
• Hours To Be Cut At Station Ticket Office"It's frustrating because First Capital Connect has decided to make these changes without giving us much warning.
• Crewe station protests gather steamA CAMPAIGN to save Crewe's historic railway station has received the backing of transport groups, union bosses and local politicians.
• Extra Morpeth rail station parking - at a priceA PROPOSED new 92-space car park at Morpeth Railway Station has been welcomed.
• ’Disgusting’ rail parking price riseCOMMUTERS say they are being priced out of working in the City because of 66 per cent hikes in parking costs at some railway stations.
• Clearing space for the Wakefield ring roadDEMOLITION work has begun to make way for a new city ring road which will form part of a £140m redevelopment of Westgate.
• New ticket barriers for Norwich stationAutomatic ticket barriers will be installed at Norwich railway station following the approval of new security measures by Norwich City Council.
• Downsizing sees US carriers report healthier load factorsDespite lower traveller numbers, massive cuts in capacity have seen major US carriers report healthier load factors for the peak month of December, statistics show. Stronger load factors have transla...
• Severn Bridge truck toll increase is slashedThe toll operator running the Severn Bridge has agreed to reduce the price hike for trucks crossing the bridge following the Transport Secretary's intervention in the VAT row.
• End in sight for biofuel trial programmeThere are likely to be no further alternative fuel trials this year after the imminent flight test by Japan...
• Koreans joyful over bicycle sharingIn Chongwan, Korea’s eco-capital, 2,500 people have signed up as members of the city’s first ever bicycle sharing scheme, which opened in October. Members of the NUBIJA scheme can use any of the 430 bicycles, placed at 20 locations around the city centre, free for up to an hour, whilst one day’s hire costs around $1.50. [...]
• Tough negotiations ahead over green road chargesThe Czech EU Presidency has identified striking a deal on 'green charges' for trucks as one of its key priorities for the coming months. Meanwhile, member states remain divided over the issue, and industry stakeholders have joined forces to denounce the