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

Friday, 10 April 2009

BBC News

• Flood-hit railway wins top awardThe Severn Valley Railway has been named as the Independent Railway of the Year in recognition of its recovery from massive flood damage in 2007. The track was washed away in 45 places along the 16-mile (25km) line between Kidderminster in Worcestershire and Bridgnorth in Shropshire.
• Virgin drops 'rival' service bidVirgin Trains has dropped plans to compete with a smaller company running direct services between London, Wrexham and Shrewsbury. Wrexham and Shropshire (W&S) had said it faced going out of business if Virgin launched the new service.
• Plan to open rail link consideredPlans to join up part of the old Great Central Railway, that could once again link Leicester with Nottingham, are a step closer. A study is to be carried out to look at re-instating part of the line that was severed 40 years ago at Loughborough.
• Police fight back on laser threatThere has been a "phenomenal" increase in the number of incidents in which aircraft are targeted by small hand-held lasers, according to UK police.
• World's cheapest car on saleThe world's cheapest car, the Tata Nano, goes on sale across India, with reports of customers queuing up to be the first to own one.

Department for Transport

• Transport statistics * Vehicle Licensing Statistic * Sea Passenger Statistics

Financial Times

• US Navy warship in contact with piratesAn American navy warship and Somali pirates holding a US citizen hostage remained at a stand-off on Thursday amid signs that other pirate-held vessels were moving towards the area

The Guardian

• Virgin refunds passengers 15% of £358m payout from Network RailVirgin Trains wins £358m in compensation for enduring a decade long disruption on the west coast main line

The Herald

• Rise in ’laser louts’ targeting pilotsAviation leaders have launched a campaign against

The Telegraph

• Rail complaints rise despite improved punctuality for train passengers Rail complaints have increased with passengers increasingly unhappy about fares and the service they receive.
• Aviation chiefs launch 'laser lout' campaign Aviation chiefs have launched a campaign against "laser louts" after a huge rise in incidents of pilots being distracted in flight.

Times Online

• Virgin Trains ditches plan to take on rail tiddlerVirgin Trains abandoned plans yesterday to compete with a smaller rival after The Times revealed that Sir Richard Branson’s company could put the fledgeling operator out of business.
• No early touchdown for British Airways’ protracted merger talks with Iberia The merger of British Airways and Iberia, the Spanish flag carrier, may be delayed until the summer as the two sides continue to haggle over the terms of the deal.

Press Association

• Rail punctuality and complaints upTrain punctuality is improving but the number of complaints by passengers is on the rise, official figures revealed.

Daily Record

• Bid to crack down on Scots 'laser louts' launched after spate of attack on planesAVIATION chiefs launched a campaign against "laser louts" in Scotland today after a steep rise in incidents against pilots.

The Mirror

• The British love the railways - but we must end this great train robberyBut the iconic British transport system is the train - complicated timetables, unfathomable saver regulations, sidings, waiting rooms, Celia Johnson, Agatha Christie, unexplained delays, and cancellation due to raccoons on the line at Didcot Parkway.
• The British love the railways - but we must end this great train robberyBut the iconic British transport system is the train - complicated timetables, unfathomable saver regulations, sidings, waiting rooms, Celia Johnson, Agatha Christie, unexplained delays, and cancellation due to raccoons on the line at Didcot Parkway.

Transport Briefing

• Crossrail reveals Enabling Works Framework rosterCrossrail has handed 17 construction companies places on its Enabling Works Framework, giving the chosen firms the opportunity to bid for packages of enabling works on the £16bn Crossrail project.

Birmingham Post

• Protesters fight closure of No10 Birmingham bus routeA campaign to save a Birmingham bus route from being axed has gathered 400 signatures on a petition in less than a week.

The News (Portsmouth)

• Back in time for rail travellersRail passengers will be forgiven for believing they have stepped back in time on Easter Monday.

The York Press

• Train operator National Express sets up squad to tackle crime SECURITY is being tightened up at York Railway Station and on National Express East Coast trains with the introduction of new staff to tackle fare-dodgers and crime.
• Selby OAPs to get rail travel deals CASH has been found to provide pensioners and the disabled with subsidised train passes.

Burnley Express

• Battle for better Burnley and Pendle rail servicesTHE battle is on to get better train services through Burnley and Pendle.

Daventry Express

• Pod Off! Residents oppose Daventry PRT schemeMORE than 100 Daventry townspeople voiced their opposition to proposals for a pod transport network in the town at a public meeting on Monday night.

Washington Post

• Small cars abound at NY show, but will they sell? NEW YORK -- Music blared and lights blinked as the pint-sized car descended from the ceiling. A platform lowered it to the ground and photographers rushed to snap pictures.

Aviation Industry

• New Legal Head of British Airways Is an International High-Flier"Evolutionary" is how British Airways' head of legal and government affairs Maria da Cunha describes the internal overhaul that saw her take over the main duties of departing general counsel Robert Webb QC last week.

Other News Sources

• Train boss slams 'backward-looking' unionLondon Midland bosses have branded next week's planned strikes by train conductors as “backward-looking”. As the public war of words between the train company and the RMT union continues, London Midland has promised to run the “fullest possible service,” when conductors again take to the picket lines after the Easter holiday.
• Train companies improve on punctualityNational Express East Anglia, which operates along the London to Norwich mainline, scored above the national average with an 88.5pc punctuality rating in the third quarter of 2008 - the same as the previous year. The rail company also saw a 1.1pc improvement on its peak services.
• Train punctuality shows no improvementTHE punctuality of trains running on the Essex and Suffolk rail network has shown no improvement in the last 12 months. Despite increases in fare prices, the National Express East Anglia service recorded an 88.5% reliability rate for October to December last year - identical to the same period in 2007.
• Virgin drops rail link bidntroversial plans to introduce a new direct rail service from Shropshire to London. The company had hoped to bring in a twice daily service of 125mph tilting trains running between Shrewsbury, Wellington and Euston. But the proposals were strongly opposed by rival operator Wrexham & Shropshire (WSMR).
• BA flies high again in brands surveyBritish Airways has been voted back as the UK's most trusted airline while Nationwide has leapfrogged Halifax in mortgage lending
• Railway fundingA £2.5m funding package has been announced by transport minister Andrew Adonis to provide improvements to the Swindon-to-Gloucester railway line.
• Use Q ships against pirates?NAVIES should take a page from history to battle piracy by resurrecting the Q ship tactic from the 20th Century™s two world wars, a security professional has told Fairplay.
• Hapag's CEO details shake-upMICHAEL Behrendt, Hapag-Lloyd™s CEO, has confirmed reports about a major restructuring at the world™s sixth-largest container line.
• Car-scrapping schemes meet huge success in EuropeBerlin announced plans yesterday (8 April) to treble the size of its car-scrapping scheme to five billion euro after consumers massively responded to the initiative, which encourages motorists to trade old cars for new ones in exchange for a 2,500 euro bonus.
• Rail spending increased to record levelsNetwork Rail and Transport for London unveil capital spending plans which will provide £7.6 billion of work over the next financial year alone
• Longest train trip is fasterPassenger Focus, which has offices in Manchester, is calling on the industry to advertise alternative rail routes and run extra services on these lines so that fewer passengers affected by the works are forced to make longer, slower journey
• Euro MP backs villagers' bus battleLEIGH Euro MP Brian Simpson is backing residents in their fight for improved services through their village. He says the petitioning pensioners’ appeal for the 600 or 601 route run by First Bus to divert once an hour through their Golborne estate is not over the top and calls for the return of bus regulation.
• Treasury Department Statement on Auto Supplier Support ProgramThe U.S. Department of the Treasury released the following statement today from spokesperson Jenni Engebretsen on the launch by Chrysler LLC and General Motors Corporation of Auto Supplier Support Programs.  The programs launched today are open to any receivable created with respect to goods shipped after March 19, 2009 made on qualifying commercial terms. Suppliers interested in participating in the program should contact Chrysler and GM.
• Transport moving in the "wrong" environmental direction, EU report saysThe transport sector is travelling in the "wrong direction" environmentally, according to a new European Environment Agency (EEA) report.

News from Europe

• Fewer companies seen dominating EU train, rail networksIn a pan-European study seen exclusively by Reuters on Wednesday ahead of publication, Boston Consulting Group said more than 30 percent of 13,000 consumers it surveyed from 13 countries would like to switch travel modes.

Other Subscription Services

• Beef up naval presence, urges BIMCOUSE of spotter planes and focus on tackling motherships needed to curb Somali piracy.
• Talks underway to free Maersk Alabama masterSTANDOFF continues as attemtps are made to free Capt Richard Phillips, held in a lifeboat by Somali pirates.