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Wednesday, 03 June 2009

BBC News

• Network Rail sees profits slideBritish railway infrastructure operator Network Rail has seen its annual profit fall and its debt level increase.
• Heatwave may have derailed trainSoaring temperatures may have buckled a section of rail track in Cumbria, causing a passenger train to derail, officials have said.
• Network Rail's punctuality risesBritish railway infrastructure operator Network Rail has said its punctuality figures have hit a record high.
• New A84 roundabout is 'too small'Transport bosses who blamed "complex engineering matters" for prolonged roadworks on the A84 have admitted a new roundabout is too small.
• Ford market share grows in the USFord reports its market share in May in the US was the highest since 2006 as the big carmakers release their sales figures.

Financial Times

• Hoon in collision with both sides of car debateCampaigners from pro-car and anti-car organisations both attacked the transport secretary's stance on pricing for road use yesterday after he told the Financial Times that the UK was "a long way off" implementing the -policy.
• Network Rail misses savings targetThe company that runs Britain’s mainline rail network cut its operating costs by £360m in the year to March 31 as it sought to bring the soaring price of running the system under control.
• NOL plans S$1.4bn rights issue to cut debtNeptune Orient Lines, the world's seventh-largest container shipping firm, will raise S$1.4bn through a rights issue to repay debt and build a warchest for possible acquisitions
• Ryanair bid for Aer Lingus wipes out profitEurope's largest low-cost airline plunged to a loss after the fall in the value of its near 30% stake in Aer Lingus led to an exceptional charge of €222.5m

The Guardian

• Network Rail debt hits £22bnRail infrastructure company Network Rail made a pre-tax profit of £1.52bn last year but its net debt rose to more than £22bn, it was announced today.
• Shell plans to charm City investorsOil group Shell is wheeling out its top directors at a series of meetings in an attempt to rebuild its relations with angry investorsShell is planning a string of back-to-back meetings in which it will wheel out top executives and directors in an attempt to rebuild shattered relations with its big City shareholders.The

The Telegraph

• Ryanair ready for price war as Aer Lingus costs leapRyanair vowed to provoke an air fares price war as it dived to its first full-year loss in 20 years and playfully suggested it could bid for German carrier Lufthansa.
• High prices of 'green' cars dilutes demandA survey suggests that buyers believe fuelsipping variants of popular models are too expensive.
• New Network Rail bonus row looms Senior Network Rail executives are to pocket hundreds of thousands of pounds in performance bonuses despite the industry regulator saying the company had been mediocre over the past year.

Times Online

• Network Rail pension deficit swells by 80%The owner of Britain’s rail system has seen its pension deficit nearly double following a 25 per cent fall in the value of its assets.
• Ryanair plunges into £155m loss on fuel costsRyanair, the low-cost airline, reported today a €180.4 million (£155 million) loss for the full-year, which it blamed on rising fuel costs, lower fares and a steep writedown on its investment in Aer Lingus, its Irish rival.
• Ford to boost production as sales improveFord Motor reported sales down 24 per cent in May from a year ago, but a rise of 20 per cent from April as the carmaker continues to gain market share from its US competitors now under bankruptcy protection.
• Collapse of LDV rescue talks casts new shadow over UK car industryLDV, the vanmaker, reapplied for administration yesterday in a move that raises questions about its owner™s relationship with a consortium seeking control of Vauxhall.
• Back to the Eighties as car giants run out of roadThe world gathered at the graveyard gate on Monday waiting for the arrival of a black Hummer carrying the corpse of General Motors. Days later, the world still waits. Instead of a funeral, we have the imminent birth of triplets. President Obama promises a new GM and the US taxpayer will support Detroit™s welfare mother with a $50 billion ($£30 billion) baby shower. Across the Atlantic, they are using forceps, Russian midwives and billions of euros of medical care to drag Opel into the world. The third GM birth is Saab, the runt of the litter, perhaps too weak to survive on its own. Will the Sw...

Network Rail

• RECORD TRAIN PUNCTUALITY AND RECORD INVESTMENT ARE DELIVERED AS NETWORK RAIL ANNOUNCES ITS ANNUAL RESULTS• TRAIN PUNCTUALITY HITS ALL TIME HIGH - 90.6% • RECORD LEVELS OF INVESTMENT DELIVERED - £4.7bn • PROFIT BEFORE TAX £1.5bn
• PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE: NETWORK RAIL LAUNCHES LONG-TERM STRATEGY FOR THE RAILWAYNetwork Rail today launched a network-wide route utilisation strategy (RUS) on scenarios and long-distance forecasts. The strategy will enable effective planning, facilitate efficient short-to-medium-term investment decisions as well as help to develop an efficient and environmentally-friendly railway for future generations.

Transport Briefing

• Network Rail annual results present mixed pictureRecord investment in Britain's rail network and rising train punctuality figures have been hailed by Network Rail chief executive Iain Coucher as he unveiled the company's preliminary results for the year to 31 March 2009.
• Guided busway awards smartcard system contractTransport technology firm Cityspace has been chosen by Cambridgeshire County Council to supply the ticketing systems for the Cambridgeshire guided busway, scheduled to open later this year.
• Network RUS reaches out to rail policy makersNetwork Rail has published a network-wide route utilisation strategy intended to facilitate effective planning and efficient short-to-medium-term rail investment decisions - as well as helping to develop an efficient and environmentally-friendly railway for future generations.
• Ftr on the road as Swansea Metro goes liveSwansea Metro - the long awaited bus rapid transit system for the city - started carrying fare-paying passengers on 1 June.
• Slough bus station wins planning consentPlanning permission has been granted for a landmark bus station in Slough which will provide a new covered link between the railway station and the town centre.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Transport projects ticking over nicely with £1m boostHighland Council has allocated £1,004,000 worth of grants over the next two years to community transport projects.
• Transport minister™s A9 pledgeThe Scottish Transport Minister has given the clearest indication yet of a timescale for dualling the entire length of the A9 between Perth and Inverness ” within his lifetime.

The York Press

• Holgate bus stop blunderRED-FACED road bosses installed a new bus stop – on a road where no buses run.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Concern over rail serviceTrain users in Suffolk have written to a Government official expressing concerns that their direct service to London could be reduced or even withdrawn.

West Sussex Gazette

• Trains getting longerWEST Sussex commuters could benefit from longer trains and more seats as a part of a plan by Network Rail to combat overcrowding.

Washington Post

• Meet the Men Who Are Being Handed the Keys For the foreseeable future, the U.S. government will play an unprecedented role in the nation's auto industry by virtue of its multibillion-dollar investments in General Motors and Chrysler.

Aviation Industry

• Ryanair profits hit by fuel costsLow-cost airline Ryanair has revealed that it dived into the red by 169.2 million euros in the year to March after being hit with a 59% hike in its fuel bill.

Other News Sources

• Bus station design to be showcased at Royal AcademyThe model of Slough's new bus station has been chosen by the Royal Academy to appear in its Summer Exhibition in London later this month.
• Bus station ready for businessIt's one of the most controversial buildings in Bath for many a year. And it's just about ready for business.
• Reading station revamp will have a 'dramatic' impactThe £848 million revamp of Reading station is set to have a “dramatic” impact on the town centre transport network. Business bosses got their first glimpse yesterday of detailed plans to open new pedestrian, bus and taxi routes around the town to accommodate the redevelopment scheme.
• Wireless alliance targets Indian rail marketINDIA: Zylog Systems has formed a strategic alliance with Nomad Digital to develop wireless telecoms products for the Indian rail market.
• CBS OUTDOOR RETAINS MERSEYSIDE RAIL AD ACCOUNTThe contract to manage the advertising account for Merseyrail stations and trains has been retained by CBS Outdoor following a competitive pitch.
• Rail users must catch the bus for six weeksTRAIN travellers will have to use a replacement bus service or find another means of transport when a rail line through Worcestershire closes for six weeks.
• No - to weddings in the airLuton Borough Council have rejected easyJet’s application to authorise pilots to conduct civil partnership and marriage cermonies while in the air. EasyJet believed that due to the recession, there was a market for wedding ceremonies to be conducted in the air en route to the honeymoon destination. Many people liked the idea of getting married at 30,000 [...]
• Ryanair plummets to £145m lossBudget airline Ryanair has dived into the red after being hit with a 60% hike in its fuel bill
• LDV vans back in administration as cash runs dryLDV vans has been forced to reapply for administration after essential funds to maintain the business and workforce failed to materialise
• UK diesel prices 'are the highest in the EU'The UK officially has the highest diesel prices in the EU, according to figures just released by the government.
• Network Rail launch national route utilisation strategyNetwork Rail today launched its network-wide route utilisation strategy of route forecasts.
• Ryanair profits hit by fuel costs
• Taking a SAMBA Down Rio™s New BikewaysAccess to some of the world™s most picturesque bikeways gets a boost as Rio de Janeiro expands its bicycle network with new shared use lanes for cyclists. These changes come just months after the city launched a pilot public bike sharing scheme known as SAMBA - Solução Alternativa Para mobilidade por Bicicletas de Aluguel, which roughly translates to Alternative Mobility Solution Bike Rentals. Mayor Eduardo Paes takes a SAMBA bike from the station. On Sunday 31 May, the city inaugurated 7 blocks of streets with reduced speeds for cars (30 kph - 19 mph) and introduced shared lane pavem...
• Government's carbon offsetting plans exposed as con Dangerous climate change will be unavoidable if the UK, EU and USA succeed in increasing the use of carbon offsetting, Friends of the Earth is warning in a new report released today that exposes carbon offsetting as ineffective and damaging.

Other Subscription Services

• Fitzpatrick promises lighthouse reviewBritish government agrees to a full review of the provision of navigational aids after intense shipowner lobbying.
• Brussels set to approve Gdansk privatisationTHE privatisation of Gdansk Shipyard in Poland is expected to be fully approved by Brussels by the summer.