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

Thursday, 16 July 2009

BBC News

• Pet airline welcomes 'pawsengers' A new airline is being launched in the United States, providing dedicated travel for cats and dogs.
• Tyre tracks on the low carbon road The current UK government carries the scars of repeated blows from the environmental lobby over its failure to "walk the walk" on climate change.
• Businesses' anger at M4 road loss Business leaders have raised concerns about the economic impact of a decision to scrap the proposed M4 relief road.
• Business travel falls at EurostarEurostar reports a 6% fall in passenger numbers, caused by a big decline in business class customers.
• European car sales 'recovering'Sales of new cars in Europe rose for the first time in 14 months in June, buoyed by a number of scrappage schemes.
• Jaguar announces 300 job lossesCar manufacturer Jaguar announces it is to axe up to 300 jobs at its plant in Halewood on Merseyside.

Financial Times

• China aviation heads to clearer skies but clouds remainAfter a turbulent first half, it seems that China's aviation industry is flying into clearer skies. On Tuesday, Air China, the country's flag carrier, said profit for...
• Car trafficPetrol prices rising towards $4 a gallon has evidently worked wonders on Americans' willingness to share cars or jump on the bus
• MSC set to cut ship numbersThe once fast-expanding company that runs the world's second-biggest container ship fleet is set to slash ship numbers in the face of the sector's crisis

The Guardian

• High-speed rail plan part of strategy to reduce transport emissions Low-carbon initiatives aim to reduce carbon emissions from the transport sector by up to 14% over the next decade
• Where do Britain's carbon emissions come from? The energy white paper promises to tranform the way we live. This data shows how we consume energy now

The Independent

• Iain Coucher: It's no time to rearrange the deckchairs, we've got a railway to run The Business Interview: Network Rail is halfway through its transformation and punctuality is improving, its chief executive tells Sarah Arnott

The Scotsman

• Fury over two-hour wait for rail tickets at Waverley STRUGGLING train operator National Express East Coast has been savaged by passenger watchdogs for a two-hour ticket office delay at Scotland's second busiest station.

Times Online

• Rail track network to be electrified in drive to cut CO2 emissions Thousands of miles of railway track will be electrified under a government plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from transport.
• Eurostar feels strain as business drops train Eurostar, the cross-Channel train operator, said yesterday that ticket sales to business customers had fallen by 20 per cent in the first six months of the year, as companies cut costs amid the recession.

Press Association

• Call for rethink of rail regulation Local authorities should have greater powers to hold failing train companies to account, a report from an independent think tank has said.

Daily Express

• Eurostar hits buffersA DROP in business travel means the Channel Tunnel passenger train operator Eurostar will miss its target of carrying 10million passengers a year by 2010.
• National Express running like clockworkNATIONAL Express may have lost its East Coast rail franchise but another of its services is running almost like clockwork.

Mail Online

• No humans allowed: The world's first pet airline launches in U.S.

Network Rail

• A PLAN FOR GROWTH: NETWORK RAIL LAUNCHES STRATEGY FOR YORKSHIRE AND HUMBERSIDE
• C2C BECOMES MOST PUNCTUAL TRAIN OPERATOR EVER (ANGLIA)
• TOP RAIL PROJECTS TRIUMPH AT NETWORK RAIL PARTNERSHIP AWARDS
• AIRPORT PROJECT TRIUMPHS AT NETWORK RAIL PARTNERSHIP AWARDS

Transport Briefing

• Swansea Quadrant bus station work gets underway Willmott Dixon Construction has moved on site after picking up a contract worth more than £8m to build Swansea's new Quadrant bus interchange.
• Rail strategy for Yorks and Humberside published Network Rail has published its route utilisation strategy for Yorkshire and Humberside following consultation on a draft strategy that was issued last year (Transport Briefing 29/09/08).

Belfast Telegraph

• Walsh Faces angry AGM after 'annus horribilis' British Airways has ruled out a rights issue but is talking to institutional investors about a convertible bond to raise the cash to survive the “biggest crisis ever” in the industry. Related StoriesIrish economy ‘unlikely to recover for two years’£4bn in pay and bonuses for Goldman Sachs staffScotland hit worst as more firms go to the wallWorst of recession overPrice fall slowed by a lack of homes

Birmingham Post

• Better rail services the key to West Midlands' economic recovery It is refreshing to see two city politicians calling for action to boost the region’s transport system in a bid to bail the West Midlands out of a recession.
• Call to make upgrade in rail services a top priorityThe upgrade and expansion of regional-wide rail services is essential to get the city moving, a leading councillor has warned.
• Transport projects 'can lift Birmingham out of recession'Birmingham can beat the recession if it invests in key transport projects, a leading city councillor has said.

London Evening Standard

• Councils reject cycle hire plan to keep car parking cashCouncils defy Boris Johnson’s plans for a bike hire scheme as town halls claim they could lose hundreds of thousands of pounds in lost parking revenues

Nottingham Evening Post

• Chamber hits back at M-way widening critic BUSINESS leaders have responded to criticism of motorway widening. They say it is essential that the work continues if the country is to keep traffic and commerce moving.
• Date set for tram strike TRAM workers are due to stage the first ever strike on Nottingham's network on Monday, July 27.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Far north railway line upgrade pleaMajor improvements to the rail line are needed if the far north is to fully capitalise on the extra activity generated by the wave and tide power developments in the Pentland Firth.

The York Press

• First York condemn James Alexander™s call for cheaper bus fares STAFF at York™s biggest bus company have condemned a local politician who called for cheaper fares and an end to service cuts.

Wales Online

• Newport M4 diversion plan abandonedPLANS to divert the M4 motorway south of Newport have been abandoned because they are too expensive, it was announced today.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Rail staff announce four 48-hour strikesRail workers on National Express East Anglia are to stage four 48-hour strikes in a dispute over pay and conditions, it has been announced.

International Herald Tribune

• To Shrink a U.S. Car, Chrysler Goes to PolandEngineers from Chrysler, looking for guidance, have been visiting a Fiat plant in Poland that is churning out autos and profits.
• European Union Lifts Ban on Indonesian AirlinesThe action follows safety improvements and should allow Garuda, the state carrier, to expand its operations.

Transport for London

• Update on redevelopment of Tottenham Court Road stationMajor utility works required to be undertaken on Oxford Street starting early 2010 and first Crossrail Visitor's Centre to open this week.

Aviation Industry

• Southampton Airport updates its neighboursSouthampton Airport has updated its neighbours at the latest Community & Stakeholder Conference...
• Aberdeen Airport parking deck reaching new heightsThere was an air of celebration at Aberdeen Airport this week, as the terminal™s new parking deck reached its highest point...
• Aero Port Services Selects Aviation Software to Power Baggage Handling Systems New York “ Aero Port Services (APS) has proudly announced the selection of Aviation Software, Inc. (ASI) as its interline baggage solution provider. ASI will help APS to improve current interline partnership opportunities through revolutionary GPS and Wi-Fi integration for a true track and trace solution. Alert messaging, multi-directional communication, and immediate data availability are all part of what makes APS' new system so successful. APS will now be managing all interline baggage handling for Los Angeles International Airport. The project includes 43 airlines that will ...

Other News Sources

• Man Who Lifted London Transit Picked for M.T.A.He put computer chips in the wallets of commuters in London, charged a fee to drive in the center of the city and helped lure the next Summer Olympics there.
• Heathrow™s third runway could be worth £1bn a yearEvery year that Heathrow’s third runway is delayed, the British economy loses £1 billion.  This is due to loss of competitiveness and productivity. Environmental campaigners are still trying to stop the expansion of the airport but they do not realise how much money is being lost. If the third runway was allowed the go ahead, then [...]
• Five scoop £130M Highways Agency technical frameworksFive groups have won 18-month frameworks with the Highways Agency to provide technical consultancy services: Halcrow; Jacobs; Mott MacDonald; an Arup/Capita Symonds/Hyder joint venture; and WSP Civil (with Parsons Brinckerhoff).
• New Forth Crossing: Call to stand firm over bridge cashMinisters in Whitehall are being urged not to increase the œshedloads of British taxpayers™ cash received by Scotland following a request for extra funds to pay for the new Forth Bridge.
• Transport emissions can be 14% lower by 2020, says DfTCarbon emissions from domestic transport can be cut by up to 14% by 2020, according to a strategy published today by the Department for Transport (DfT).
• Transport for London to launch new river transport projectTransport for London is planning a tender to find designers to help it with a new river transport project. ˜We are working on a new programme to increase ridership of the London River Services,™ says TfL™s new head of design Jon Hunter, adding, ˜There is a whole package of work for this project, including wayfinding and looking at services.™
• Government's low-carbon transport strategy won't change the way people travelToday's announcement on transport won't change the way people travel, Friends of the Earth said today.
• Government to set out plans for carbon cutting Precisely how Britain will cut carbon emissions by at least 80% before 2050 is due to be outlined today (15 July).
• Carillion wins award for Manchester Airport workCarillion Civil Engineering won the Best Project category in the Network Rail Partnership Awards for its work to build a third platform at Manchester Airportand#8217;s railway station.

Other Subscription Services

• France ponders new offshore portsTHE French government has been told to look at the possibility of creating offshore ports to preserve the coastline from the heavy dredging.
• European hub throughput 'stable' after dire first halfRECESSION takes toll on Rotterdam and Antwerp.
• Tallink bosses take pay cuts as losses deepenFERRY operator bosses to slash their salaries by 20% and axe group’s shipping operations.