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

Sunday, 26 July 2009

The Telegraph

• Attempt to recreate Louis Bleriot's Channel crossing groundedIt was a cruel blow that killed a pilot's dream. At 5.30pm on Saturday Mikael Carlson was waiting near Calais to fly to Dover in an original aeroplane of the type used in the first crossChannel flight exactly 100 years ago.

Times Online

• Airport strike threat to holiday flightsMILLIONS of holidaymakers face the prospect of airport disruption if staff from the government™s new border force carry out a threat to strike.
• Cycle Doc Q I have a small ground-floor flat and have to keep my bike outdoors. How can I keep it from falling to pieces?
• Toyota Prius Given that the Toyota Prius has become a byword for eco-conscious driving, it is easy to forget that when it first came to Europe, in 2000, the car bombed. It looked like a throwback to the 1970s school of bad design and its innovative hybrid technology was unrefined, meaning the Prius was no more economical than many regular hatchbacks.
• Stagecoach plots £1.5bn merger upsetSTAGECOACH is this weekend poised to enter the race for National Express, the undersiege bus and rail group, having appointed Deutsche Bank to draw up plans for an all-share takeover offer.
• BA losses mount as strike loomsBRITISH AIRWAYS is expected to issue another gloomy trading update this week when it unveils a first-quarter loss of more than £100m.
• High noon for Airbus and BoeingA FIVE-YEAR trade battle between Europe and America over assistance to Airbus and Boeing will come to a head within weeks when the World Trade Organisation (WTO) delivers a long-awaited ruling on subsidies.

Daily Express

• Huge profits slump hits BP and ShellPROFITS at BP and Shell have collapsed from last year's record highs, the oil giants will -confirm this week when they report second-quarter results.

Daily Record

• Scots holidaymakers refuse to board plane over engine fearsSCOTS tourists staged an airport mutiny in Greece amid fears a plane was unfit to fly.
• Exclusive: Grieving dad rages as car crash killer boasts about driving skillsA CALLOUS double-killer driver is looking forward to causing more mayhem on the roads when he gets out of jail.

Mail Online

• Passenger train derails in Croatia, leaving at least six dead
• Swine flu hits five people on board cruise ship in Greece
• Briton killed in helicopter crash on U.S. motorway

Journal Live

• Gateshead roadworks suspended during A1 worksFor more transport news, go to www.journallive.co.uk/news
• One pacer train is all North gets to ease packed rail networkJUST one extra 20-year-old train is being offered to ease overcrowding on North East commuter rail services.

Liverpool Echo

• 830 Vauxhall Ellesmere Port jobs face axe, says leaked Magna documentONE of the bidders to buy Vauxhall will axe 830 of Ellesmere Port’s 2,200-strong workforce if successful, leaked documents suggest.

Wales Online

• ELECTRIC AVENUEAfter the Government announced plans to electrify the main rail route between London and South Wales, Tim Lewis looks at the detail behind the scheme that promises to cut journey times for travellers...

Doncaster Free Press

• Luxury cars owned by blackmailer are sold to fight crimeA CONVICTED blackmailer who made nearly £1 million from crime has had his luxury cars sold to boost crime fighting funds.

Washington Post

• E-China: The bicycle kingdom is going electric SHANGHAI -- It's a simple pleasure, but Xu Beilu savors it daily: gliding past snarled traffic on her motorized bicycle, relaxed and sweat-free alongside the pedal-pushing masses. China, the world's bicycle kingdom - one for every three inhabitants - is going electric.

Aviation Industry

• United Airlines customer ramps up revenge campaignA disgruntled United Airlines customer who has received massive media coverage by making a music video about baggage handlers breaking his guitar is about to release a second ditty, which covers how United stonewalled his complaint.
• Delta spent $752,902 on lobbying in 2QDelta Air Lines Inc., the world's biggest airline operator, spent $752,902 in the second quarter to lobby on passenger issues, international alliances between carriers and airline personnel training, according to a recent disclosure form.
• American Airlines Raises Fees For Checked BagsShare + Jul 24, 2009 3:08 pm US/Eastern FORT WORTH In April of 2008 American Airlines announced it would begin charging passengers $25 for checking a second bag, but the first bag checked was free.

Other News Sources

• Treat road users fairly, urge MPs
• Decline in UK car output slows down
• Pilots recreate first cross-Channel flight Two pilots have flown from Calais to Dover to mark 100 years since the first cross-Channel flight.Related StoriesPietersen gutted to miss AshesAirline complaints on the riseEngland won't risk FlintoffElectricity giant fined £2mBell set to take Pietersen's place
• Smart eco driving hits the roadSmart have released a new initiative towards environmentally friendly driving called ˜smart eco driving™ that is aimed alongside the release of the Forctwo CDI which is currently the most eco friendly car on any production line due to its very low CO2 emissions. The new ˜smart eco driving™ initiative is designed to educate drivers on smarter [...]
• Scottish business pledges to reduce number of flights takenFour major companies that operate out of Scotland and one public body from Scotland committed to cutting the amount of flights they take in the next five years by a fifth earlier in the week in an effort to reduce their carbon footprints. Included in the companies who will participate in what is designated as the [...]