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

Wednesday, 14 October 2009

BBC News

• More railway station plans shown More exhibitions on a multimillion-pound plan to transform Reading railway station are to go on display.
• No end to Alloa freight 'misery' There will not be an end to overnight freight runs on the Alloa rail link. Freight firm D B Shenker said the night services were "essential" for it to fulfil its commercial contracts.
• Council spends £9.4m on road plan Norfolk County Council has revealed it has spent £9.4m on preparation work for a £127m second bypass around Norwich.
• Bridge tolls case taken to London Members of the Humber Bridge Board have met transport minister Sadiq Khan to discuss the financial impact of the recent toll freeze.
• Congestion charge plan for city A congestion charge is to be introduced in Cambridge if transport improvements fail to materialise or do not work.

Financial Times

• Adonis modifies airport crisis plan Lord Adonis, the transport secretary, has watered down plans proposed by his predecessor, Geoff Hoon, to take over the running of Heathrow and London's other main airports if their owners run into financial problems.
• Task force floats debt plan for JALA government-appointed task force overseeing the rescue of Japan Airlines has proposed expanding financial support for the carrier to include Y250bn in debt forgiveness from its creditors
• Zim's fate uncertain amid restructuring delayFresh uncertainty surrounds the fate of Zim Israel after its parent company was forced to postpone the meeting to allow the shipping line time to approve a restructuring
• Airline claims first with gasQatar Airways said it had put paying passengers on a flight powered by fuel made from natural gas, in what could be an important step in lowering dependence on oil-based fuel

The Guardian

• End of the line: suburbia celebrated at London Transport MuseumNew exhibition shows spread of underground and overground as train companies tried to lure passengers to greener fields

The Telegraph

• Government in 'Hannibal' retreat over special administration regime for airports The Government has ditched controversial proposals to impose a "special administration regime" on Britain's major airports that threatened to wreck the finances of operator BAA.

Press Association

• Green transport 'costs UK billions'The "greenness" of transport and utility projects is costing consumers £4 billion a year, an independent think tank report has said.

Network Rail

• BIRKENHEAD RAIL DEPOT STAFF SEE THE LIGHT

Liverpool Echo

• Safety pledge over Mersey school busesMERSEYTRAVEL said it did not want to “prejudge” the plan which goes before members tomorrow.
• Liverpool health and transport chiefs want 10% increase in bike use by April 2011HEALTH and transport chiefs pledged to make Liverpool a “cycling city”.

London Evening Standard

• Even with no new runway Heathrow is still far too big So is it victory? Sensational weekend reports that the British Airports Authority has abandoned its bid for a third runway at Heathrow remain unconfirmed, and indeed denied by the company. But the indications are clear, as is the Tory promise to rescind the bid. The time-honoured pledge that Heathrow would not grow was reneged on by Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.
• Adonis U-turn on Hoon airport planTransport Secretary Lord Adonis has scrapped his predecessor Geoff Hoon's plans to take over the running of Heathrow if London's premier airport got into got into financial difficulty.
• Pensioner's bus death blamed on seat designA coroner is planning to write to the Transport Secretary after a pensioner died when she was thrown off a "flip-up" bus seat, it was revealed today.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Work to help rail passengers feel more secure BRITISH Transport Police officers gave crime prevention tips at Nottingham railway station as part of National Personal Safety Day.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Minister rapped over £30,000 bill for electronic road signTRANSPORT Minister Stewart Stevenson has been criticised after he admitted it will cost around £30,000 to relocate a new electronic sign being erected on a road which will soon be turned into a dual carriageway.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Electric cars 'increasingly adopted by commuters'City commuters are increasingly turning to small, light all-electric cars as transportation, it has been claimed.Trader Media Group marketing director Matt Thompson explained that benefits of the vehicles include lower or free tax and congestion charge exemptions, in addition to "zero emissions at the exhaust pipe".He suggested that although the technology and the infrastructure to support them are still "in their infancy", more manufacturers are producing electric cars and "the technology is developing at a faster pace than ever before".Ac...

Railnews

• Adonis seeks cross-party consensus on High Speed rail RAILNEWS EXCLUSIVE The Transport Secretary Andrew Adonis has revealed that he's been holding informal discussions with the other major parties to improve the chances of a cross-party consensus on High Speed rail. Lord Adonis also told Railnews that he has no intention of serving under any other government if Labour loses the forthcoming election.

Other News Sources

• In depth: Heathrow third runway THE battle for Heathrow expansion took a dramatic twist this week with revelations BAA would not submitting plans for the third runway before 2010 at the earliest. Opponents of the scheme believe the fight could be nearing a finish, with the move signalling BAA accepting the inevitable, that the scheme is doomed.
• Tram stop plans set for green light Council planning officers are advising councillors to grant permission for three tram stops ready for the Metrolink extension - despite fears from the owners of Haji Cash and Carry that their Station Approach store would be forced to close if the plans get the green light.
• Recycling bins to be distributed in Merton's parks and transport hubs More than 20 new recycling bins are being placed near tram, train and Underground stations to catch some of the 1.6m free newspapers and magazines given out everyday in London.
• Revolutionary tram heads StatesideTHE Stourbridge light railway link is set to be replicated across the pond after getting the thumbs up from visiting Americans. Giant US firm Tidewater Developments have announced Parry People Movers will be installing America’s first circulator transport system on Laurel Island in the picturesque state of Georgia.
• Giant road-rail freight depot inquiry opens Planning inspector Andrew Phillipson and his colleague Malcolm Rivett today (Tuesday) officially opened the public inquiry into the proposal for a 259-acre road-rail freight interchange just off the M20 at junction eight.
• Skanska wins £59M Thameslink viaduct jobSkanska has won the contract to build the controversial new Thameslink viaduct over Borough Market in south London.
• Cambridgeshire to bid for £500M TIF cashCambridgeshire has voted to bid for £500M of Transport Innovation Fund (TIF) money, despite the sole bid - for Manchester - failing in its open consultation last year.
• EasyJet campaign inspired by classic anti-Labour adEasyJet is continuing to put pressure on Luton Borough Council to become involved in the dispute over landing charges at London Luton Airport with another scathing advertisement, this time based on the well-known œLabour isn™t working ad.

News from Europe

• Eurostar plans makeover as European rivals circleEurostar, the high speed rail operator, yesterday said it was embarking on a massive rebranding exercise in a bid to fend off competition.