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

Tuesday, 05 May 2009

BBC News

• BAA passenger numbers tumble 10%Airport operator BAA saw passenger numbers at its London airports fall 10% in the first three months of 2009, as it was hit by the recession.
• Fiat in talks over GM Europe moveItaly's Fiat is in talks to buy the European business of General Motors - which includes Vauxhall and Opel.

Financial Times

• BAA losses widen as debt costs spiralBAA revealed on Tuesday widening losses after passenger numbers at its airports fell for the second consecutive quarter and costs associated with its £9.5bn debt pile soared.
• CBI tested in spat over Heathrow runwayThe CBI is facing a test of its authority as the main voice of business after its supportive stance on Heathrow's expansion was undermined by a band of prominent executives
• Porsche and VW to clash over rescue plan The feuding families that control Porsche are set to argue over rival rescue strategies for the highly-indebted German sports carmaker.
• Shell at risk of investor pay revoltShareholders in Royal Dutch Shell have been advised to vote down the UK group's remuneration report in protest against discretionary pay awards made to executives.
• Fiat setback in plans for European groupFiat's plan to build a European car group with Chrysler and GM's German unit, Opel, began to hit obstacles as Berlin issued conditions for any Opel buyer,and dissident Chrysler creditors said a sale to Fiat would be 'patently illegal'.
• Network Rail pressed on night repairsMinisters are urging the infrastructure owner to carry out more maintenance at night in a bid to improve the running of Britain's railways
• Maersk calls for safe lane off eastern SomaliaPirate activity in the Indian Ocean has risen since March, as ships in the Gulf of Aden, off northern Somalia, where most attacks took place last year, have stepped up security measures

The Guardian

• Alstom sees rail boost, confirms margin goalAlstom, maker of France's high-speed trains, said worldwide economic stimulus plans would support rail demand as it stuck by an operating margin target of around 9 percent in the year to March 2010.
• Budgets and bullet trainsObama's plan to introduce high-speed rail to the US is revolutionary – but the funding is far short of what is needed
• Germany warns of Fiat plan costsIn creating the world's second-largest car company, Fiat would close plants and axe workers, warns German economy ministerFiat's plans to take over General Motors' European operations to create the world's second-biggest car manufacturer will involve plant closures and substantial job losses, Germany's economy minister, Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, warned today.Speaking after a meeting with Fiat's boss, Sergio Marchionne, in Berlin this afternoon, Guttenberg described the Italian group's plans to take control of Opel, the German subsidiary of General Motors, as
• Pilots refuse to take part in ID trialsAirline pilots are to become the first group to refuse to take part in the national identity scheme when compulsory trials start at Manchester and London City airports this autumn.The British Airline Pilots' Association (Balpa ), which represents more than 80% of commercial airline pilots, is to mount a legal challenge to Home Office plans to use

The Herald

• The next train is too fast for your stationExclusive: Rail passengers have ­complained that people using smaller stations along the west coast main line route are losing out badly after a reduction in the number of stopping trains.

The Scotsman

• Bus chiefs eye plan to scrap £1.20 flat fare ticket systemBOSSES at Lothian Buses are considering plans to scrap the popular flat fare system but insisted there will be no further ticket price rises this year.
• Bus fares: 'Lothian Buses must deal with the downturn'IT has not been the best of years for Lothian Buses. Rising fuel prices and increased staff costs allied to the disruption caused to its services and routes due to the preparatory works for trams have combined to hit its profits badly.
• Contract headaches for rail operatorsThe Department for Transport's stance means National Express may have to walk away from the Edinburgh to London route, forfeiting guarantee bonds worth tens of millions of pounds.

The Telegraph

• Network Rail to replace wooden sleepers with recycled plastic Network Rail is to start replacing traditional wooden sleepers with blocks made from robust recycled plastic following successful track trials.

Times Online

• BAA flyers tumble as debt costs quadrupleThe full cost of BAA's debt refinancing was revealed today as the Spanish-owned UK airports operator said its interest payments had soared to £327 million in the first quarter.
• We can have air travel in a low-carbon ageForget the old debates about Heathrow - British talent can forge the way to a cleaner future
• Hazel Blears at centre of row over £16 billion Crossrail projectHazel Blears is at the centre of a Cabinet row over the future of the £16 billion London Crossrail project, The Times has learnt.
• Lord Adonis criticises railway companies for Rover ticket price riseNow is not the best time to offend the Rail Minister if you are a train company desperately seeking a Government bailout. Yet as the operators prepare to renegotiate their franchise contracts with the Department for Transport they have upset the man who holds the purse strings.
• Eurostar still bans pets nine years after passport schemeEurostar is refusing to allow passengers to bring their pets on their trains nine years after the introduction of pet passports in Britain.
• Disabled pay more for transport than able-bodied passengersDisabled travellers often pay more for public transport than able-bodied passengers and suffer a worse service, according to a new report.
• Fiat's bold bid to create car supergroup runs into opposition in Europe and USFiat's bold move to build a supergroup by acquiring Chrysler and the European arm of General Motors hit resistance on both sides of the Atlantic yesterday.

The Mirror

• Latest: Disabled 'pay more for journeys'Disabled travellers often pay more for public transport than able-bodied passengers and suffer a worse service, according to a new report.

Transport Briefing

• Wolverhampton tram loop consultation gets underwayBusinesses in Wolverhampton trading beside the route of a proposed tram line extension will this week be asked to give information about their day to day operations as detailed design work gets underway.
• London Underground chief takes seat on First boardOutgoing London Underground managing director Tim O'Toole has accepted a seat on the board of First Group as part of a raft of changes to the Aberdeen-based transport's group top management tier.

Belfast Telegraph

• Needs of disabled ignored in city airport’s new pick-up system [letter]I agree with the sentiments voiced by Belfast’s former Lord Mayor, Jim Rodgers (April 29), concerning the new George Best Belfast City Airport pick-up and drop-off arrangements for passengers.
• Needs of disabled ignored in city airport’s new pick-up system [letter]I agree with the sentiments voiced by Belfast’s former Lord Mayor, Jim Rodgers (April 29), concerning the new George Best Belfast City Airport pick-up and drop-off arrangements for passengers.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Brown urged to do ˜right™ by Highlands on postbusesThe UK Government is being urged to subsidise œlifeline postbuses in the Highlands after the Royal Mail axed services between some of the region™s most isolated communities.

The York Press

• Multiple sclerosis sufferer Helen Weber ˜a prisoner™ in Selby because rail staff refuse to assist with mobility scooter A DISABLED woman claims she has been made to feel like a œprisoner in Selby because of difficulties in boarding trains.
• York train operator silent over franchise claims A YORK rail firm is staying tight-lipped over claims it has struck a deal with the Government to scrap its franchise to run trains between the city and London.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Safety fears over axing of Leeds night busCAMPAIGNERS say Leeds is being shortchanged by its night bus services. Transport giant First axed two night buses – the 921 Leeds-Swillington and 928 Leeds-Otley services – at the end of last month.
• Railway thieves costing taxpayers £3.5mTHIEVES who ripped up railway cables cost taxpayers in Yorkshire and the North East £3.5m last year.

Washington Post

• Fiat Works Toward Deal for Opel With Chrysler in hand, Fiat chief executive Sergio Marchionne is stepping up efforts to expand Fiat's automotive empire by acquiring a majority stake in General Motors' German unit Opel.
• Chrysler Gets Green Light for Federal Loans NEW YORK, May 4 -- A U.S. bankruptcy judge Monday approved Chrysler's request to begin using $4.5 billion in government loans, a key step in the automaker's plan to emerge quickly as a stronger, global company.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Hapag-Lloyd increases Far East ratesHapag-Lloyd has revealed that it is raising its rates for services from the Far East to northern Europe and the western Mediterranean.From June 15th 2009, the shipping line will increase rates by $500 (£336) per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) from the Far East and by $150 per TEU in the opposite direction.The company is also imposing a peak season surcharge of $150 per TEU between August 1st and October 31st this year.One of the largest shipping lines in the world, Hapag-Lloyd owns around 130 ships and employs more than 7,500 people in 130 countries around the globe, transporting 5...

Other News Sources

• £2.7 million to stop fare dodgers at Birmingham stationsTICKET gates have been installed at three Birmingham stations as part of a £2.7 million investment by a train operator.
• Metrolink stops get top marks for safetyGreater Manchester's Metrolink has become the first tram system in the UK to have stops awarded 'Secure Stations' status by the Department for Transport.
• Tories want to ditch tram line extensionTHE Conservatives say they will stop the proposed tram line extension if they gain control of County Hall.
• Pieces fall into place for MediaCityUK tram lineTransport bosses in Greater Manchester have secured the final piece of the legal jigsaw that will see trams running to a new multimillion pound development in Salford.
• Late night buses get the chopLATE night bus services across Glasgow are to be axed in a timetable shake up. Operator First say that due to low demand the late night services in the small hours of Friday morning must go.
• Passenger demands prompt bus changesTHREE bus routes are being changed to satisfy increasing demand and as a response to passenger complaints.
• A Step Too Far In Row Over Welwyn Garden City Bus ShelterPEOPLE are being made to sit in the street while they wait for a bus - after the shelter was removed in a row over payment.
• Aberdeen bus giant wins top US workplace safety awardAN Aberdeen bus giant has scooped America’s highest honour for workplace safety. FirstGroup, which runs school buses and Greyhound coach services in North America, was awarded the Green Cross for Safety Medal.
• How public transport is failing the disabledFOR most of us, jumping on a bus or train is something we do without a second’s thought. Our biggest frustration comes when they are either delayed or cancelled, but, for the most part, using public transport is a doddle.
• Vauxhall in £71bn merger plan Vauxhall could come under new ownership under plans to create a European car giant.
• OSG revenues stumbleTANKER giant Overseas Shipholding Group reported a 22% drop in quarterly revenues today, citing a fall in spot rates, particularly for its VLCCs.
• Jones Act awash in lay-upsOVERSEAS Shipholding Group disclosed today that three of its US-flag petroleum carriers have been laid up and estimated that many more Jones Act tankers are following suit.

News from Europe

• Norwegian Air Shuttle to Provide High-Speed Broadband for its Passengers and CrewNorwegian Air Shuttle ASA, Europe's fifth largest low-cost carrier, announced today that it is equipping its entire fleet with high-speed in-flight broadband. The airline will use a satellite-based broadband solution from Row 44.
• EU patrol tricks and captures 11 armed piratesFrom a distance the large ship on the horizon looked like the perfect target, ripe for a successful spot of piracy.

Other Subscription Services

• Number of laid-up bulk carriers fallsTHE number of bulk carriers in lay-up or idle at ports around the world fell in April, as a combination of Chinese demand for iron ore and better freight rates saw unemployed ships resume trading.
• Fench navy captures 11 pirates after attack on frigateAT LEAST one vessel was confirmed to have been hijacked over the weekend and 11 pirates are still in custody aboard the French frigate Nivose, after mistaking the ship for a merchant vessel and attacking it.