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

Tuesday, 03 February 2009

BBC News

• Snow causing further disruptionTravel disruption and school closures are set to continue with the snow moving north and ice warnings in place across much of the UK. This was the picture as of 12:08 GMT on Tuesday.
• Bus station criticised in surveyA survey has revealed deep discontent over the lack of a proper bus station in Stroud, Gloucestershire.
• Air and rail delays for commutersThe weather and technical problems have led to major disruption for people taking flights into Northern Ireland or travelling by train.
• 'Unpaid bill' halts new rail linkThe reopening of a 25-mile (40km) narrow gauge railway across Snowdonia is being delayed because a £250,000 bill has not been paid, it is claimed.
• Fuel costs erode Ryanair profitLow-cost Irish airline Ryanair posts a net loss of £90m for the third quarter, saying it has been hit rising fuel costs.

Financial Times

• Ryanair still targets expansionMichael O'Leary is keeping the throttle open despite the deepening recession. While rival EasyJet takes a more cautious stance towards fleet expansion, the Ryanair...
• Defending The IndefensibleBusiness jets have lately become a symbol of greed and excess “ but they are more than mere luxuries.
• Fuel price hedge hits RyanairEurope's largest low-cost airline fell heavily into the red in the three months to December, but forecast a return to significant profit in its next financial year
• Iberia dispels doubts over BA dealThe deputy chairman of the Spanish flag carrier says an agreement is 'close' despite wrangling over the final share split in the merged company
• Wal-Mart tests diesel-electric trucksWal-Mart is testing hybrid diesel-electric trucks in a step towards extending the energy saving technology to the workhorses of the US road transport system
• Qantas shares placed in trading haltThe Australian airline has had its shares placed in a trading hold ahead of a 'material announcement in relation to capital management initiatives'

The Guardian

• Branson makes tracks for east coast lineSir Richard Branson, the Virgin Trains founder, could mount a bid for the east coast rail franchise amid fears that National Express is struggling with its £1.4bn contract for the prestigious London-to-Edinburgh route and might have to renegotiate terms with ministers.
• Babcock order book up, performing in lineThe engineering company, which is helping to build Britain's new aircraft carriers as well as its railways and managing nuclear sites, said its order pipeline made future performance more visible and was broadly resilient to the economic downturn.
• Ryanair runs up heavy losses but expects passenger growth next yearThe low-cost carrier Ryanair ran up heavy losses in the third quarter but said it was on target for a full-year profit and would do even better in 2009-10.Michael O'Leary, chief executive, described the loss of €101.5m (£91.9m) in the three months to December as
• Biofuel health warning: some are more dangerous than petrol and dieselSome biofuels cause more health problems than petrol and diesel, according to scientists who have calculated the health costs associated with different types of fuel.The study shows that corn-based bioethanol, which is produced extensively in the US, has a higher combined environmental and health burden than conventional fuels. However, there are high hopes for the next generation of biofuels, which can be made from organic waste or plants grown on marginal land that is not used to grow foods. They have less than half the combined health and environmental costs of standard gasoline and a third...
• The day the snow came - and Britain stoppedThe heaviest snowfall for 18 years paralysed swaths of the country yesterday, bringing chaos to roads, railways and airports, closing thousands of schools and businesses, and costing the economy an estimated £1.2bn in lost working hours.Although the snow had been forecast since last week, much of Britain was overwhelmed, with conditions forcing one in five workers to stay at home, as many as 3,000 schools closed and many non-urgent hospital operations were postponed.The south-east bore the brunt of the snow, which settled to a depth of 25cm (10in) in Kent and Surrey, and saw all flights cancel...

Times Online

• Weather: snow brings chaos as councils start running low on gritLocal authorities could run out of salt to grit roads within three or four days as Britain faces a week of paralysis after the heaviest snow for at least 18 years, it has emerged.
• Fuel-hedging "screw up" costs Ryanair dearRyanair, Europe's largest airline, lost €102 million (£92 million) in the last three months of 2008 after botching its fuel-hedging strategy.
• Average speed cameras mean no escape for drivers Cameras that detect a motorist’s average speed will be deployed at all entry and exit points to residential areas as an alternative to road humps and chicanes.
• Vauxhall and Ford raise cost of new cars as January sales fall 30% British car sales are expected to show a drop of about 30 per cent when January figures are published later this week, The Times has learnt.

Network Rail

• RAIL SERVICES BEING AFFECTED BY THE WEATHER

Transport Briefing

• Kickstart bus challenge brings in Local Transport ActCouncils across England have been urged to make use of new powers contained within the Local Transport Act when applying for funding to improve bus services.
• Supertram seals regional approval to buy four tramsSheffield Supertram is set to expand its fleet of trams after the Yorkshire and Humber Regional Transport Board gave approval for South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive to spend £14.3m buying four new trams.
• Bus rapid transit application filed by Bath and NESBath and North East Somerset Council has submitted four planning applications to build a bus rapid transit route and double the number of park and ride spaces around Bath as part of a £60m package to tackle traffic congestion.
• Buses, trams and trains suspended after heavy snowPublic transport networks across south east England have been brought to a halt this morning (2 February) by heavy snow.
• Morgan Est clinches £26m Paddington refurbishment jobNetwork Rail has awarded Morgan Est a £26m contract to restore part of the roof of London's Paddington station.
• Axminster redoubling begins on Waterloo-Exeter lineRail engineers have begun clearing three miles of railway land in preparation for the redoubling of part of the London Waterloo-Exeter Line.
• DB Regio, MTR and Serco shortlisted for Metro contractFour train operators have been shortlisted for the contract to operate trains and stations on the Tyne and Wear Metro light rail network.

Belfast Telegraph

• Ryanair goes into red with £90m loss Ryanair said today it had gone into the red with third-quarter losses of €101.5m (£90.3m), but added that it expected to end up with a full-year profit thanks to recent plunges in fuel costs.

London Evening Standard

• Heathrow shuts down, severe delays at GatwickHeathrow and London City airports were closed as the snow made flights out of London impossible

Manchester Evening News

• No hope of a C-charge 'reward'TRANSPORT minister Lord Adonis has quashed any lingering hopes that Greater Manchester could still get a share of the government's Transport Innovation Fund - TIF. Money for public transport improvements will have to be found elsewhere after a county-wide referendum voted overwhelmingly against the idea of congestion charging - which the government was demanding in return for a £3bn transport package.
• Station bar's £50,000 revampA RAILWAY station buffet saved from demolition has undergone a £50,000 revamp - to the delight of real ale fans.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Forum set to push for Inverness bypass to cut congestionThe campaign for a bypass to ease traffic congestion in Inverness has taken a step forward, after the city™s MP and provost pledged to establish a œwide-reaching forum to support plans for the new road.

The York Press

• Council U-turn over York bus shelter OUTRAGED bus passengers whose stop was moved to a new location without seats or a shelter have forced a U-turn from council bosses.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Leeds bus users brace themselves for inflation-busting fare risesBUS users were today told to brace themselves for a round of inflation-busting fare rises.

Northants Evening Telegraph

• Snow hits the county: Travel and transportationTransport services in the county have been running smoothly so far today despite the snow.

C.N.N.

• Heaviest UK snow in 18 years hits international flightsThe worst snowstorm to hit Britain in 18 years forced the cancellation of more than 650 flights at London's Heathrow airport Monday and shut down the city's bus network, partially paralyzing the British capital.

Forbes

• Shippers Get A New Year's LiftRecent rise of Baltic index likely reflects the start of the new lunar year.

Washington Post

• Shipping industry runs short of young marinersSome shipping companies have told the U.S. Maritime Administration that the problem has forced them to dock or even sell vessels. Others said it has kept them from expanding fleets, or caused delayed voyages and lost contracts.

Aviation Industry

• Levitating Bicycles Bicycle thieves beware; this innovative lock system by Dominic Chargreave hoists bikes up 8 feet in the air and safely out of the reach of nasty nabbers. The cradle is mounted on the wall and with a remote control the owner can raise and retrieve their bike with ease.
• Beware changes to NXEC websitehe NXEC website, which is still as good as it ever was for mixing single fares to get the cheapest return fare price, has - without any notification at all - ceased offering transactions using AMEX and has also removed all signs of its 11% online discount price from all its fares.
• Annoying Mobile Users To Be Kicked Off Trains [Australia]In what could become a popular trend in the rest of Australia, Western Australian transit officers are set to target noisy passengers – especially those with loud music or mobile phone conversations, with the end result being problematic passengers kicked off trains or buses if they don’t heed a warning to tone their music and conversations down.
• Mayor’s budget - transport fares up by 6%Boris Johnson’s decision not to raise the Greater London Authority’s share of council tax with one hand should not mask his cruel attack on working Londoners with the other - above inflation fare rises.
• Loganair and Flybe launch new Aberdeen to Cardiff routeLoganair announced today that it is launching a new route between Aberdeen and Cardiff as part of a wider expansion plan that will benefit Scots travellers...
• Adverse weather conditions at UK airportsFollowings yesterday's adverse weather conditions, flights into and out of our airports today may still be subject to delay and cancellation...
• Heavy Snow Causes Flight DelaysHeavy snow in the southern UK on Sunday evening has led to numerous flight cancellations and delays at UK airports.London City Airport, Stansted, Luton and Southampton are all closed, while there are significant delays at Heathrow and Gatwick.Norwich and Leeds Bradford Airports were also closed, but have since reopened.The snowfall is the heaviest in the UK for 18 years.Heathrow Flight CancellationsBoth runways at Heathrow are closed as of 1000 GMT Monday.With both runways shut, several airlines have announced flight cancellations at Heathrow.British Airways has cancelled all flights from Heat...
• Virgin America's $175 million loss is 67% of RevenueVirgin America said Monday it lost $175.4 million in the first three quarters of last year, as the fledgling airline was plagued with startup costs and rapidly accelerating fuel prices.

Other News Sources

• Light at the end of the tunnel for rail usersPeople were left fuming by Northern Rail’s decision to slash commuter services calling at Flixton Railway Station by 70 per cent before Christmas.
• Winter conditions cause second day of delays for road and rail users in SurreySnowfalls and sub-zero temperatures overnight have caused record tail-backs on the M25 and limited rail services.
• Aim to reopen key city rail routesThe key "spinal" rail routes into London should be working by Tuesday, a spokesman for the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) said.
• Snow brings delays on roads and trainsSevere delays have been caused to the National Express London Liverpool Street to Enfield Town line because of problems with infrastructure, including a points problem outside Liverpool Street.
• Shipowners press for UK light dues public inquiryMODERN cargo ships with state-of-the-art navigation systems are being forced to subsidise other craft using UK ports by paying for services they do not need, British and foreign shipowners are complaining as they mount a fresh attack on light dues that are about to be increased.
• Why Can't The UK Cope With Snow?As millions faced another mammoth struggle to work today, transport bosses stand accused of not being sufficiently prepared for the severe weather.
• Residents say bus figures are flawedFIGURES used to justify cuts to bus services are flawed, says a residents’ group.
• Service changes planned for MayBUS passengers will continue to lobby a service operator before a final decision is taken on any changes.
• Ryanair cuts fares as hopes rise for profitFares are being slashed at Ryanair as Europe's biggest budget airline said its ticket prices are tumbling 20% this winter and will be cut by a further 10% over the next year
• Ford and GM hike car prices in UK
• Airlines prepare for EU carbon trading schemeA directive incorporating aviation into the EU emissions trading scheme (EU ETS) entered into force today (2 February), obliging member states to put in place appropriate legislation within a year.
• Airlines expanding cellphone boarding passesLondon — More travelers are gaining a new weapon to help them avoid the long lines at the airport this spring and summer: their cellphones.