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

Wednesday, 22 April 2009

BBC News

• At-a-glance: Budget 2009 [Car Scrappage Scheme]■ From next month until March 2010 motorists to get £2,000 discount on new cars if they trade in cars older than 10 years ■ The government will provide £1,000 with the industry expected to provide the other half
• Jobs safe as bus companies mergeTwo Gwynedd bus companies have joined forces safeguarding 50 jobs after securing financial backing.
• Satellite tracking for school busParents in North Wales will be able to use satellite tracking to check their children are on the school bus, as part of a new pilot project.
• New rail freight park 'on budget'An £8m rail freight park in Shropshire will officially open on time and on budget in June, a council has said.
• Bishop's anger at rail link delayThe Bishop of Carlisle has branded the government's progress towards developing a high-speed rail link for the North West of England woeful.
• Tube drivers stage 24-hour strikeTube drivers on one of London's busiest lines are staging a 24-hour strike in a row over door safety equipment.

Financial Times

• Vow to reduce rail replacement buses in UK'Bus­titution' will in future be a last resort as Network Rail promises to provide more diversionary routes and install extra tracks to let trains run during maintenance and upgrade work
• Altitude attitudesThe arcane system that prevents international mergers in the air traffic market also renders impossible its proper regulation, with the result that those who suffer are the passengers
• Relief at lower losses at Delta and UnitedDelta Air Lines and United Airlines reported smaller-than-expected quarterly losses as cuts to flight schedules and lower jet fuel prices helped both US carriers endure a steep drop in demand for air travel

The Guardian

• Rail passengers to suffer price rises despite deflationNational Express East Coast is to impose 11% price hikes on some advance purchase tickets, with East Midlands Trains and First Great Western also imposing increases as the recession squeezes franchise owners. East Midlands is pushing up a swath of off-peak fares by 5%, while FGW is raising some peak-time fares into London by up to 3%.
• Teen faces first US piracy charges in a century¢ Abdiwali Abdiqadir Muse to be charged today ¢ Report shows piracy around the world has skyrocketed¢ Judge decides Muse is over 18 years oldA Somali teenager who was involved in taking the American captain of a cargo ship hostage off the coast of Somalia has appeared in court in New York to face charges of piracy. Abdiwali Abdiqadir Muse will be the first person in more than a century to be tried in the US for piracy. He was captured and taken aboard the USS Bainbridge shortly before US snipers killed three of his fellow pirates holding Richard Phillips, captain of the Maersk Alabama.Muse, wh...

The Herald

• Digby Jones urges Darling to support car scrapping schemeDigby Jones has hit back at criticisms that a car scrappage scheme in today's Budget would only help importers, by saying it would bolster the struggling car dealership sector and UK-based manufacturing, too.

The Independent

• 24-hour strike halts Tube lineThe Victoria Line was halted at 9pm last night by a walk-out of members of the Rail Maritime and Transport union. There have been several disputes with the union complaining that its members have been harassed.
• The Big Question: Is lowering speed limits the answer to saving lives on Britain's roads?

Times Online

• British Airways call to scrap tax riseWillie Walsh, the chief executive of British Airways, has called for Alistair Darling to scrap plans to increase tax on flights from the UK by up to 112 per cent. Mr Walsh said that raising air passenger duty, which could add £280 to the cost of a family holiday to the Caribbean, could harm economic recovery.
• London Tube strike set to disrupt commutersTens of thousands of London Underground commuters face travel chaos from tonight because of a 24-hour strike which will start at 9pm on one of the capital’s busiest lines.

Network Rail

• PUBLIC ASKED: HELP US STOP THIEVES DISRUPTING TRAIN SERVICES

Transport Briefing

• Capital fast-tracked for park and ride projectsPlans to build 10 park and ride sites in the suburbs of Glasgow have been approved by members of Strathclyde Partnership for Transport.
• Rail options rejected by Dartford crossing studyThree options for a new river crossing in the Thames Estuary are to be explored by the Department for Transport following publication of a new report examining how to alleviate traffic congestion encountered by drivers at the existing Dartford crossing.

Birmingham Post

• Transport bosses criticised over Metro lift delaysTransport bosses have been criticised for failing to install a second lift at a Midland Metro station eight years after first considering the scheme.
• 12 month extension for car share schemeBirmingham’s controversial Heartlands Spine Road car share lane trial will be extended for another 12 months despite having made no impact on traffic congestion or journey times for commuters.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Plan for CCTV in taxis to focus on passenger and driver safetyDrivers said there was general support for the move, which they felt would reassure passengers and provide an important security feature for drivers. The footage would only be available to police and officials.

Journal Live

• Your transport links are superb – Lord AdonisTRANSPORT minister Lord Adonis stopped off in the North East as part of this rail journey across the country to claim the region had “superb” transport links.

London Evening Standard

• Heathrow expansion makes no sense, says Brown’s green czarGORDON BROWN'S green guru today savaged the Government's decision to back a third runway at Heathrow. Lord Stern, who compiled a landmark report on global warming for Mr Brown, warned that supporting a bigger Heathrow undermined confidence in Britain's ability to meet its climate change target.

Manchester Evening News

• Tram fines to soar 9-foldFINES for fare-dodgers on Greater Manchester trams are rocketing by up to 900 per cent.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Welsh route gets airborne TRANSPORT links between the north-east and Wales were strengthened yesterday with the launch of a direct flight between Aberdeen and Cardiff.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Minister: Leeds-London flights are capital ideaTHE Minister for Yorkshire has welcomed the news that flights from Leeds to London will be taking off again this summer. Rosie Winterton MP, Minister for Yorkshire and the Humber, was at Leeds Bradford International Airport for the announcement that Flybe, Europe's largest regional airline, was launching a new three times daily service to the capital.
• Airport battle linesAmid the hysteria of some of the reporting and objections about the plans to "expand" Leeds Bradford Airport, a few cold, hard and very important facts appear to have been lost.

Daventry Express

• Test drive a simulator at Daventry Ford BUSINESSES in the Daventry district are being given the chance to test a driving simulator to see how fuel economy can be improved and carbon emissions reduced.

Washington Post

• How the U.S. Will Save GM and Chrysler Negotiations over the government's bailout of Chrysler and General Motors have shifted into high gear in recent days, and from this point until the end of June, things are likely to get more tense and more complicated. My guess is that when it's all over, both companies will have been run through a quickie bankruptcy process and will emerge smaller, with less debt, a lower cost structure and Uncle Sam as the majority owner.

Aviation Industry

• Delta to Ground all 14 747-200 aircraftDelta Air Lines will ground its entire fleet of 14 747 freighters as it addresses big losses and a steep decline in cargo business, the airline said Tuesday.

Other News Sources

• Ferry operator beats expectationsFERRY operator Stena Line has exceeded its initial forecasts by announcing a 2008 operating profit of 272 million Swedish krona (£23 million), compared to 2007's 612 million krona (£52 million).
• Tories want train halt at NewburghFOR decades, the Fife-Perthshire border community of Newburgh has been calling for the re-opening of its railway station on the Perth-Edinburgh line.
• Double-decker station car park plans revealedLondon Midland wants to add a second tier at the station to boost car parking spaces by 98 to make a total of 488.
• £80,000 cash boost for young cyclistsTHOUSANDS of young Vale cyclists are set to enjoy improved pedal power after an £80,000 grant was awarded to Worcestershire County Council for cycle training.
• Bus companies warned not to deliver a double whammy to Wharfedale passengersBUS company bosses have been warned against cutting services and raising fares by the head of West Yorkshire’s public transport authority.
• Big firms queue for Swansea busesSix leading companies are bidding for the multi-million pound contract which will see the existing Swansea bus station transformed into a modern facility with 20 bus bays and state-of-the-art passenger facilities.
• Minister rules out rail line re-openingTransport minister Lord Andrew Adonis has effectively derailed any proposals for the Ivanhoe — or National Forest — line. He revealed it is unlikely the scheme, which would take passengers from Burton to South Derbyshire and North West Leicestershire to Leicester, was unlikely to obtain funding and that the Government would not consider opening up the historic line.
• Rail Minister Lord Andrew Adonis Visits Crewe Rail StationRAIL minister Lord Adonis visited Crewe last week on a fact finding tour to experience train travel from the perspective of an ordinary fare paying passenger Andrew Adonis was joined on the visit by Labour’s Parliamentary candidate for Crewe and Nantwich David Williams.
• Trains get back on track after delaysFIRST Hull Trains has revealed why it was forced to cancel several services, causing three days of disruptions to passengers. The company, which has a fleet of five trains, including four class 180s and one Class 222, needs three trains in operation in order to run a full service each day.
• Shippers told to keep costs lowTHE COUNCIL of Supply Chain Management Professionals is calling for European shippers to keep costs down by using best practice.
• Spanish port bill criticisedSPAIN™S new transport and public works chiefs are under pressure to modify port legislation after a report from its antitrust authority warned that the bill could distort competition.

News from Europe

• Transport Minister: State to give over CZK 1bn a year to regions for railwaysThe Czech state will provide up to Kc1.2bn to regions for railway transport a year, outgoing Transport Minister Petr Bendl said at a press conference on Tuesday. The contribution will amount to 20 percent of the sum the regions will spend themselves on railways.

Other Subscription Services

• Queen’s Award for International Trade recognises Arriva’s growth across EuropeArriva plc was today honoured with a Queen’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade after trebling the size of its bus and rail business in mainland Europe in just six years.