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

Wednesday, 15 April 2009

BBC News

• Drivers catch green lights 'wave'Motorists should face fewer red lights following the relaxation of government guidance on the flow of traffic.
• Bus firm to continue free ridesA small Perthshire bus company has vowed to continue to provide a free service for passengers, despite having its licence removed.
• Station to be shed in new lightA new clear glass roof is planned for Edinburgh's main railway station in a bid to make it "cleaner and brighter", according its owners.
• New station facilities unveiledNew passenger facilities costing £600,000 have been unveiled at railway stations across Greater Manchester.
• New pirate attack against US shipPirates failed to seize a US cargo ship off the coast of Somalia, in the latest of a spate of attacks in the area.
• Oxford Circus crossing redesignedWork is to begin on a £5m project to pedestrianise part of central London's Oxford Circus.

Financial Times

• New factory to assemble trainsAlistair Dormer, head of Hitachi's European rail operations, says he wants to involve a large number of UK-based suppliers in the contract for building about 1,400 intercity carriages, writes Peter Marsh .
• Doubts cast on biofuel benefitsThe push to use biofuels in place of petrol has done little to aid the development of the UK’s biofuel industry and may have produced more greenhouse gas than it has saved, according to a report published on Wednesday.
• Dealers buoyed by 'cash for bangers' hopesShares in Britain's leading car dealerships bounced strongly amid growing hopes that the government may introduce a car scrappage scheme designed to boost demand for new cars
• Alabama incident prompts Maersk to dodge SomaliaThe owner of the Maersk Alabama, the US-flagged ship whose captain was taken hostage last week by Somali pirates, looks set to keep more of its ships away from the pirate-plagued area off Somalia
• France moves to revive rail freightFrench government turns to Railroad Development Corp, a Pittsburgh-based investor, in an attempt to stem losses at the state train operator's freight arm
• United Airlines sets ambitions at lower altitudeSubdued by a protracted period in bankruptcy, the fluctuating price of jet fuel and a steep downturn in demand for air travel, the Chicago-based carrier has set its sights on a more modest “ though, for an airline in the current economic climate, perhaps no less elusive “ goal: consistently turning a profit

The Guardian

• Should it be legal for cyclists to turn left at red lights?London mayor Boris Johnson has written to the Department for Transport to suggest a pilot scheme that would allow cyclists to turn left at traffic lights

The Herald

• Glasgow's subway to be given Rennie Mackintosh makeoverTHE Glasgow Subway could be rebranded in a Charles Rennie Mackintosh style as part of plans for its first major overhaul for 30 years. The unique lettering designed by the city's most famous architect would be used for the system's motif and station names.
• Network Rail defends plans to pay bonuses to directorsDirectors of Network Rail, the company responsible for running and maintaining the country’s railways, are on the defensive over increasing pressure from the government to turn down their bonus entitlements of more than £1m following the massive disruption on the West Coast Main Line in the New Year and over recent weeks.

The Scotsman

• Ian Perry: Trams crucial to city's futureI WOULD like to start by reiterating that the Edinburgh Labour Group is totally committed to the tram project, despite rumours to the contrary. We see the tram as absolutely essential to the city's economic development as well as fulfilling the council's environmental obligations to cut pollution in our city.

Times Online

• Andrew Adonis takes a journey to the past – and the future?The Night Riviera sleeper service to Cornwall leaves from Platform 1 at Paddington. This is the platform, dominated by its huge Victorian clock, from which my train to boarding school used to leave, so seven years of vivid memories flood back as I arrive for another uncertain voyage.

Daily Record

• Waverley Station to get glass roof in £130m revampA CLEAR glass roof is to be installed in a £130million overhaul of Edinburgh's main railway station, it was announced today.

Transport Briefing

• Hitchin flyover plans unveiled by Network RailNetwork Rail has revealed detailed plans for a long-awaited to scheme to remove a key bottleneck on the East Coast Main Line.
• http://www.transportbriefing.co.uk/story.php?id=5796A small Perthshire-based company which attempted to take business from Stagecoach in the Scottish city where the bus giant has its headquarters has been ordered off the road for three and a half years.
• Tube cooling contract won by Mansell ConstructionTransport for London has awarded Mansell Construction Services a £6m contract for work forming part of the Cooling the Tube Programme to improve ventilation on the London Underground.
• Evergreen 3 rail design build contract advertisedPlans to create a new rail route between Oxford and London Marylebone have taken another step forward with the advertisement of a tender for a design and build contract for Project Evergreen 3.
• Rail franchises seek bids for 300 train carriagesTwo train operators have invited expressions of interest from rolling stock manufacturers to supply a total of up to 300 new carriages.

Belfast Telegraph

• GM bankruptcy looms as shares slump Shares of General Motors Corporation plunged 17% yesterday after a report that the US Treasury was directing the automaker to lay the groundwork for a bankruptcy filing by June 1.

Birmingham Post

• Union slams CrossCounty Trains' job-slash planTrade unionists have criticised CrossCountry Trains’ plan to slash 25 jobs.

Bristol Live

• Bristol bus scheme will cost £400,000 a yearTaxpayers may have to fork out nearly £400,000 a year to pay for the upkeep of the proposed £48-million rapid transit scheme for Bristol. The aim of the high-speed bus route is to provide a fast, reliable and affordable transport network through the centre of the city to reduce congestion.

Edinburgh Evening News

• £130m revamp lets travellers see Waverley in a new lightWAVERLEY Station will be flooded with natural light for the first time under a £130 million refurbishment plan unveiled today.

Journal Live

• Must every driver pay toll for Government's tunnel vision?GRIDLOCKED Tyneside traffic is being blamed for forcing transport bosses to put together plans for new road charges.

Manchester Evening News

• Bollards stop ambulancePARAMEDICS were forced to abandon their ambulance and answer a 999 call on foot after Manchester's controversial bollards blocked their way.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Drivers on A19 may be hit by more road chargesMOTORISTS could be facing new road charges. Road improvements from the Tyne Tunnel along the A19 to the Silverlink roundabout on the Coast Road could be paid for by a toll covering the stretch.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Historic railway powers up for the summer seasonA HISTORIC Deeside railway line reopened at the weekend for the summer season.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Rail chiefs blasted over track work cutsNETWORK Rail has been accused of using the "economics of the madhouse" after a Yorkshire-based company blamed delays in rail engineering work for its decision to cut hundreds of jobs.
• Airport expansion 'could cost over 55,000 jobs'ENVIRONMENT campaigners say expansion of three Yorkshire airports will cost the region's economy £2bn in lost tourism revenue and 55,000 jobs in the industry.

West Sussex Gazette

• Park and ride possible in Worthing parking revampWORTHING'S Teville Gate car park could be used as an interim park and ride facility while the borough council undertakes a radical review of parking in the town.

C.N.N.

• Pirates attack U.S. cargo ship but fail to get aboardThe Liberty Sun, a U.S.-flagged cargo ship bound for Mombasa, Kenya, was attacked Tuesday by Somali pirates, according to a NATO source with direct knowledge of the matter.

Washington Post

• Obama holds out hope for automakers NEW YORK (Reuters) - President Barack Obama offered a
• Chrysler debtholder talks pick up pace; GM stalled DETROIT -- The pace of negotiations between Chrysler LLC and its debtholders picked up this week, but talks at General Motors Corp. have slowed as both companies face looming government deadlines to cut their debt in order to stay out of bankruptcy.

Other News Sources

• Aylesbury Vale Parkway fully open in JuneThe station has been operating since opening on December 14 2008 but on June 1 the new station building and all of the car park will be open for the public to use.
• Families left fuming after bus service is axedBUS bosses have been slammed by young mums and dads after they suddenly pulled their low-floor vehicles from routes into Ferguslie.
• New Ribble Valley to Manchester train launchedRAIL commuters from the Ribble Valley will be able to get to Manchester by 8am from next month, when a new early train service begins.
• Government out of train barrier rowTRANSPORT Secretary Geoff Hoon has told Sheffield Council the Government will not intervene in the row over proposed ticket barriers at the city's train station.
• Bus and tram gate petition 'ignored'BUS and tram operators have slammed Sheffield Council for not responding to a 1,500-signature petition calling for no further cuts to the hours of Hillsborough bus and tram gates.
• Residents angered by Harpenden bus stop schemeA NEW bus stop which has been installed outside a Harpenden woman's home has been branded a “ludicrous” waste of money.
• Stockport to Birmingham rail link restoredStockport’s direct rail link to Birmingham is being restored after lobbying by the public/private sector Stockport Boost campaign.
• Turton and Edgworth rail station ’snub’ rowPARISH councillors are angry that bosses appear to have ruled out reopening a rural railway station. North Turton Parish Council has written to Blackburn with Darwen Council to protest at its view that reopening Turton and Edgworth station would not be viable.
• Developer Submits New Bid For Giant Rail Freight Depot Near St AlbansA NEW application for a massive rail freight depot in Park Street has been submitted to St Albans District Council.
• Kemble to Swindon rail line improvements on the wayTrain passengers could see a doubling of the service between Kemble and Swindon after new government funding was provided to improve the Gloucester line.
• Railway work delayed'URGENT' improvements to the railway line outside Weston have been delayed by transport bosses. Network Rail had pledged to add more track at Worle Parkway station this year to allow more trains to use the line. But Weston MP John Penrose has criticised the company after it emerged the works will not be started until 2011 at the earliest.
• 78% UK offshore drop seenOIL AND gas offshore activities on the UK continental shelf dropped by 78% in this year™s first quarter, compared with the same period in 2008.
• Eurogate's volume falls 9.2%BOX TERMINAL group Eurogate/Contship Italia reported today a fall in throughput across its network of 9.2% in the first quarter.

News from Europe

• Bus funding means better serviceThe results of a six-month trial on the 150S bus route in Copenhagen, conducted by consultancy firm Cowi, have shown a 20 percent increase in passenger numbers after an agreement with local councils to provide free internet access connections on the buses.
• Stockholm seeks metro car buildersSWEDEN: Storstockholms Lokaltrafik has invited prequalification bids for the supply of its next generation of metro trainsets. In an OJEU notice published on April 8, bidders have been given until May 25 to apply.
• Competition through the Channel TunnelPresenting the FaberMaunsell/Aecom lecture on the future of rail freight in the UK at the Institution of Civil Engineers on March 12, Rail Freight Group Chairman Lord Berkeley announced that the first ’open access’ freight train through the Channel Tunnel would be running that night.